Learn Languages with Steve Kaufmann

To succeed in learning foreign languages, we need to be resourceful, taking advantage of people around us, and what the internet offers us. Iclal of Istanbul is an inspiring example.

Language learning isn’t easy, but it doesn’t have to made more difficult. In this video I go over the 10 most common mistakes language learners make that I have noticed over the decades. Would you add any?

Many people are put off learning languages because they think it is difficult to do. Language educators often don’t help, but instead complicate the process with jargon, seeking to describe the minute details of the natural and enjoyable process of language acquisition.

It is so important to stay curious and keep learning new things as you age. I have most certainly found this to be the case. I don’t just learn languages, I am curious about many topics and I feed this curiosity every day.

Learning a language means leaving the comfort of your native language and confronting the challenges of a new language and its uncertainty. Call it the learning zone. How do we make it more comfortable?

People often ask me which language they should learn and my answer is always the same: learn the language you are keenest to learn. Even if you learn for a few months then move on to another language, you don’t lose what you gained. Enjoy the language buffet!

Feli is from Germany but lives in the US. She talks a lot about cultural differences on her YouTube channel “Feli from Germany”. There are things she prefers about the US, and some things, not so much, like “ghosting”, a term I had never heard of before this chat.

When I learn a language, I also learn the history of the country. I am transported to that area. I gain a new outlook on the world. It’s a process I always enjoy and am in no hurry to end. In fact, in language learning, the process is the reward.

For a long time I have been convinced that the simplest and most reliable indicator of our potential and our level in a language is how many words we know. Learning words ought to be a pleasant task at the heart of language learning.

There are various ways ChatGPT can assist in language learning: Duolingo seems to have enlisted ChatGPT mostly for error correction and role playing. These are not areas of interest to me. However, these activities could help lessen the workload of teachers.

Elon Musk apparently believes that Neuralink, a computer chip that can be implanted in the brains of animals and people, will make language learning and even language obsolete. Here are my thoughts.

I will visit Denmark, Sweden and Poland, from May 17 to June 2. I’m working on my Danish, Swedish and Polish to prepare. Travel is a great motivator and stimulating, but we don’t have to leave our home country to travel. Hope to see some of you there.

When I want to improve my Italian, Davide’s Podcast Italiano channel is where I will go. The content is interesting and Davide speaks clearly and not too fast. In this my latest video I chatted with Davide about his channel and the Italian language.

To become fluent in a language takes time. It’s important not to be discouraged. Make the time you spend with the language as enjoyable and meaningful as possible and you will reach your goals.

In this video I have some fun with the hugely popular ChatGPT. Is it helpful for language learning? How can it be used with LingQ, the app I use to learn languages?

Using slang too early in your language learning can backfire. I never make slang my focus. Instead I let any slang words or phrases come naturally as I gain more and more exposure to the language.

When I start a new language, I sometimes know a related language and that helps. This is a video of me starting two languages that are not related to languages I know, Finnish and Indonesian.

Mayu has a YouTube channel called Mayu E Room. She helps Japanese people learning English. We talk about the language education system in Japan and also Mayu’s experience in the US. She studied language acquisition at Middlebury College. We speak in English and Japanese.

Do you think quizzes and tests are essential for language learning? Traditional language instruction certainly has many of us believing this to be true. In this video I explain why I don’t do quizzes, drills and tests and why you shouldn’t either.

As Aristotle said “well begun is half done”. Laozi said “The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step”. This is true for language learning. Just getting started is half the battle, but you need to make sure you get started in the right way.

It’s not enough to have a lofty language learning goal like “I want to be fluent”. What matters more is that you focus on what you are going to do every day with the language. Find activities that give you enjoyment and satisfaction, every day. This will ensure constant improvement.

No better person to talk to about chatGPT, AI, and language learning, than my friend and outstanding polyglot, Luca Lampariello. We are of the old school. Will a younger generation learn languages differently?

Numbers, colours, days of the week, family members, body parts, greetings, etc. I have never understood the need to focus on such vocabulary when we start learning a new language. In fact, I find it more difficult to remember these words as there is no meaningful context.

The plateau is a concept that comes up often in language learning. We have some initial success in acquiring new words and gaining a sense of this new language, then we come to that period where there are lots of low frequency words that we need to learn.

I spend most of my time listening. Listening comprehension is where the action is, in my opinion. If you can understand movies, podcasts, conversations, the other end of the conversation, you can eventually get to where you can hold up your end of the conversation.