There is this unspoken fear of not being able to communicate with anyone after moving to a foreign country and the pressure to learn a new language. Fear of being alone and not being understood. Good thing you are not alone. There is always a high probability that there is someone else who is also a foreigner. Not only that, social media has made it easier to learn a new language and in the shortest time possible.
One of the best ways to settle after relocating to a new country, is learning a new language, in this case the most spoken language in the country you are relocating to. You may experience a culture shock and find things done in different ways, but learning their language will help smoothen things out for you. Learning their language will help you avoid language barriers and you are able to communicate effectively with those around you. It will generally make life easier for you. Learning a new language takes time but it’s easy when you have a guide;
1. Be open to Learn
Every language is different, with grammar, rules and syntax of its own, which may seem weird when accustomed to another language. For example, Romance languages have grammatical genders for nouns, which greatly puzzles speakers of Germanic languages like English.
Therefore, it is imperative (as difficult as it may seem) for one learning a new language to empty their minds of what they know and approach the experience with the ignorance of a child. Be a blank slate — an empty vessel — ready to be filled with new knowledge. In his 2013 TED Talk, Sid Efromovich explains the importance of scraping your existing alphabet in order to enable your mind to learn the new language without subjecting it to the filters of the language(s) that we already know.
Above all, understand that you will definitely make mistakes. Like with any process of gaining knowledge — especially one that you’re completely unfamiliar with — you will stumble a lot, but that is part of the journey. Embrace your mistakes, learn from them, and don’t ever let them discourage you.
2. Start with the common words
“Hello,”
“Good morning,:
“How do you do?”
“How much is this cost”
“Yes, please,”
“No, thank you,”
“My name is…”
All these are words you could learn easily. In a new environment, people find it easy to speak to or connect with strangers who know their language. So, learn the most frequently used words first- especially conversation starters, so as to get by and avoid being left in the dark most of the time.
3. Get a pocket dictionary or better yet, get one on your phone
Having a pocket-sized translation dictionary that defines the new language in one you already know is an immense help. It especially comes in handy with big, intimidating words, and in sticky situations where you’re uncertain on what to say. Most bilingual dictionaries help you translate words, show you how to pronounce them and also illustrate how to use them in different contexts.
For the tech-savvy folks, Google has a free online translator called Google Translate that understands about 100 languages at the moment and covers 99% of the online population.
4. Install Language Learning Apps
Get technology to help you. In the last decade, a slew of language-learning apps have been developed that can help you build a vocabulary in your target language, develop proper grammar and eventually become fluent through lessons that are easy to digest and retain. They have features like speech recognition which is key to learning proper pronunciation, and allow users to input text which helps with spelling. They offer tests after each lesson which gauge your progress in learning the language. Some applications even have multiple language options. Some of these applications include- Babbel, Duolingo, Memrise, Mondly and Busuu.
5. Learn on YouTube/online
One of the reasons YouTube is called YouTube University is because you can learn anything from there including new languages for free. All you need is an active internet connection. For the most common languages, there are some online courses (videos and Audio) that are offered by various entities and most of them are free. So pull up one of those videos, and don’t be afraid to speak along with the instructors.
6. Get a Tutor
You could hire a tutor professionally or a friend who will teach you the new language that you want to learn. This of course comes at a fee, but in return you get someone who is available to teach you the intricacies of the new language. They will also correct you when you fail, and can greatly accelerate your learning process, especially if you have frequent contact with them.
7. TV shows, movies, books, newspapers and magazines listening to speeches and podcasts for supplementation
Once you are a passable speaker of the language, you need to get as much information in your brain using the new language as possible. Get into the habit of consuming content in the language you are learning, whether passively or actively:
Subscribe to a Swahili newspaper. If you regularly watch the news, you’ll have a good idea of what they’re reporting on, so seeing the content printed in a foreign language won’t be too daunting.
You can watch TV shows in German with the subtitles on. Or better yet, rewatch your favourite movies with the German audio track enabled instead of your native language.
Try listening to a Spanish-speaking podcast, and challenge yourself to at first get the gist of what they’re saying, and replay parts of the podcast slowly to gather information. Write down any challenging words and phrases and look them up.
Watch Hindi speeches delivered by the most powerful Indian orators in history. You can even have them play as you sleep, as research shows that listening to newly-learned foreign vocabulary while sleeping can help solidify the memory of the words.
8. Make conversation
Practise! Practise! Practise!
It is one thing to know a word and it’s another to say it right.
When you are at home alone, or in the car, practice the words, the phrases, sentences, how to get their pronunciation right. The best way to practice is to get a friend whom you can converse with in the new language.
According to the developers of Duolingo, 30 minutes of daily practice for one year will give you elementary fluency in that language. Make it a daily habit to speak to the locals around you. For example, if you have relocated to Nairobi Kenya, practice speaking swahili every day with your office colleagues. Their response will tell you whether they understand you or not, and their feedback will help you grow. If possible make a friend who’s a native speaker of the language that will objectively critique you and correct your mistakes. Listening to their speech will also help you self-correct as you note how they use the language in comparison to how you do it.
For most languages, learning a new language is not as daunting as it appears (unless you’re learning Cantonese or Sanskrit). You just have to put in time, practice and dedication. Embrace your mistakes, and above all, practise daily. These two aspects — daily practice and a dedication to learning — will have you bargaining at the local markets with the fluency and confidence of a native speaker.
