Why is it Easy for Them?

Hi there! 

Some people pick up languages like cold or sunburns - without effort, through simple immersion in the atmosphere. Others can't hear the word "conjugate" without flashing back, in shame, to the times when they failed to undo the spell of monolingualism and show the green-eyed monster of one's success now. What exactly is it that allows the first group to make small talk in Spanish and read Confucius in Chinese while the rest of us struggle with just one language? Are some people really inept in language learning? Well, now let's get a look at some features that maybe can influence it. (I hope that after reading this post you will not hedge your bets and decide rather to learn mathematics😅)

Age

A lot of people say that the younger you are when you start to learn a new language, the better you will be at that language and the more native-like you will sound. Babies initially can tell the difference between sounds and make sounds that aren’t used in their language. But as they start to learn their language, they focus only on the most important sounds. They stop discriminating between those sounds not in their language and they narrow their production to the sounds that are in their language. This means that as you get older, it gets harder to pick out and use sounds that are not in your native language. Also can be age differences in learning things like grammatical rules, about how words in a language are organized and used. The earlier a language is learned, the less likely a speaker is to make grammatical errors. 

Young people have a huge advantage that makes them better at learning multiple languages. But learning multiple languages when younger also seems to influence how well a person will learn additional languages. There is evidence that people who are already bilingual are faster and more efficient at learning another language than monolinguals. This could be because they have more diverse language knowledge to relate to the new language, or already have well-developed skills at switching between different languages.

Strong communication skills

Someone who is good at expressing himself/herself and intuitive about understanding other people will have less of a barrier in a new language. Simply put, people who are good with people are the same people who are good at getting a start on a new language. This is especially noticeable at the beginner level, when some people can achieve language goals (like getting and understanding directions to the train station or expressing that they need medicine for their headache) even though their fluency may still be very limited. They use gestures and inference to get things done. They problem-solve and figure it out because they have strong communication skills, and that early experience can encourage them to keep learning. If these people don't give up, they have a great chance at learning. One warning here, though: people with strong communication skills who coast on that and don't put in the same effort as other learners can run into future problems, like making persistent grammatical mistakes, because they are able to communicate even when their accuracy is imperfect. Still, they have an easier time than others. But also they are more likely to put their foot in their mouth by talking a lot without knowing things that are unacceptable for another culture. 

Environment

People who are immersed in a language learn it much better. There are good classes and bad classes, but nothing beats having to use the language every day. The effect of that daily, real-life practice is enormous. Also being in a place where the language you are learning is spoken will be extremely helpful.

Motivation

There are different types of speakers. Someone is learning Spanish in high school or college in order to get jobs or increase their marketability. Another is someone who, for example, immigrates to a new country and doesn’t speak the language, and for whom learning that language becomes a sink-or-swim issue. Circumstantial learners tend to pick up the language faster, because they have to. If you approach a subject thinking that you're not very good at it, you may not work as hard to master it. So approaching a foreign language with the sense that it's hard may affect your ability to learn it. The attitude with which you approach the language is important, so if you can't stand Chinese food, that may influence your performance in Mandarin class. On the other hand, if you're motivated to learn Mandarin so that you can speak to your grandmother in her native tongue, you may find that you have an easier time picking it up. And immersion is also important - if you wake up in China one morning and need to get around by yourself, you may pick it up very quickly indeed. 

That's all for today. Take care 💗