Comments on: The Get-it-done Guy Features Foreign Language Mastery http://l2mastery.com/featured-articles/the-get-it-done-guy-features-foreign-language-mastery Tips, Tools & Tech for Learning ANY Language Fast Wed, 15 Dec 2010 23:09:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: jf http://l2mastery.com/featured-articles/the-get-it-done-guy-features-foreign-language-mastery/comment-page-1#comment-1019 jf Sat, 12 Jun 2010 08:13:34 +0000 http://l2mastery.com/?p=1185#comment-1019 Glad you like Foreign Language Mastery, Corcaighist! There are some exciting new additions coming soon. Stay tuned... Glad you like Foreign Language Mastery, Corcaighist! There are some exciting new additions coming soon. Stay tuned…

]]> By: Corcaighist http://l2mastery.com/featured-articles/the-get-it-done-guy-features-foreign-language-mastery/comment-page-1#comment-1012 Corcaighist Fri, 11 Jun 2010 21:02:16 +0000 http://l2mastery.com/?p=1185#comment-1012 Loved the site! Great to see a language learning blog from a professional linguist. Loved the site! Great to see a language learning blog from a professional linguist.

]]> By: jf http://l2mastery.com/featured-articles/the-get-it-done-guy-features-foreign-language-mastery/comment-page-1#comment-1001 jf Thu, 10 Jun 2010 02:00:00 +0000 http://l2mastery.com/?p=1185#comment-1001 Hi J. From what I can tell, the good folks at Quick and Dirty Tips try to keep things around 6 to 7 minutes, and it's hard to pare down a topic so large (and so often misunderstood) into this time frame. I did of course send Stever more tips than those that made it on the air, but I think he did a good job of including the fundamentals: 1) Focusing on input (listening and reading) 2) Spending time on the task (especially in short, frequent, intense sessions) 3) Using spaced repetition to maximize retention. And while he did touch on it briefly, I would have liked to hear a little more about the all-important aspects of attitude and emotion in language learning. This can sound extraneous to some, but these psychological factors often make the difference between success and failure in the long run. It is imperative to enjoy the language learning process and truly believe that one can actually reach fluency in the language. But hey, this just leaves room for another episode... Lastly, I would again like to thank Stever for sharing these tips with his audience. The language learning establishment all but ignores these basic tenets of language acquisition (due to either ignorance or arrogance), and as a consequence, almost every last language student fails to reach fluency despite years of effort. I hope this episode reaches lots of language teachers and learners, gets them to question the language learning status-quo, and helps swing the learning philosophy pendulum (however slightly) in the right direction. Hi J. From what I can tell, the good folks at Quick and Dirty Tips try to keep things around 6 to 7 minutes, and it's hard to pare down a topic so large (and so often misunderstood) into this time frame. I did of course send Stever more tips than those that made it on the air, but I think he did a good job of including the fundamentals:

1) Focusing on input (listening and reading)

2) Spending time on the task (especially in short, frequent, intense sessions)

3) Using spaced repetition to maximize retention.

And while he did touch on it briefly, I would have liked to hear a little more about the all-important aspects of attitude and emotion in language learning. This can sound extraneous to some, but these psychological factors often make the difference between success and failure in the long run. It is imperative to enjoy the language learning process and truly believe that one can actually reach fluency in the language. But hey, this just leaves room for another episode…

Lastly, I would again like to thank Stever for sharing these tips with his audience. The language learning establishment all but ignores these basic tenets of language acquisition (due to either ignorance or arrogance), and as a consequence, almost every last language student fails to reach fluency despite years of effort. I hope this episode reaches lots of language teachers and learners, gets them to question the language learning status-quo, and helps swing the learning philosophy pendulum (however slightly) in the right direction.

]]> By: J http://l2mastery.com/featured-articles/the-get-it-done-guy-features-foreign-language-mastery/comment-page-1#comment-997 J Wed, 09 Jun 2010 22:00:32 +0000 http://l2mastery.com/?p=1185#comment-997 I can't put my finger on it, but there was something incredibly weak about that article. You have so many good suggestions on your site, but the Get-It-Done Guy seemed to only pick the fluffiest strategies for his article. It starts out promising, talking about how our "existing vocabulary and advanced thinking abilities give us a head start," but it peters out after that. Listen to your iPod and read a book? Those aren't "advanced thinking abilities," those are non-thinking abilities. If it were as easy as that then we'd all be speaking 10 languages. I can't put my finger on it, but there was something incredibly weak about that article. You have so many good suggestions on your site, but the Get-It-Done Guy seemed to only pick the fluffiest strategies for his article.

It starts out promising, talking about how our "existing vocabulary and advanced thinking abilities give us a head start," but it peters out after that. Listen to your iPod and read a book? Those aren't "advanced thinking abilities," those are non-thinking abilities. If it were as easy as that then we'd all be speaking 10 languages.

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