July 27, 2010 at 09:40How to learn any language in 3 months?
Tim Ferris article translation from his blog .
(Judo Okano Isao's textbook, which I used to study Japanese grammar)
Learning a language does not have to be complicated.
The principles of cognitive neuroscience and time management can be applied to achieve fluency at a conversational level (in this case it is defined as 95% + percent understanding and 100% expressive capabilities) for 1-3 months.
Some tips on my obsession with learning from my previous self-study language article :
From the academic environment of Princeton University (Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Italian) and Middlebury Language Schools (Japanese) to the disappointing results that I have seen as head of the study process at Berlin International (Japanese and English), I’ve been more than 10 years I was looking for the answer to a simple question: why most of the language lessons simply do not work?
An ideal system and process is based on three elements in the following order ...
1. Efficiency (Priority)
2. Understanding (Interest)
3. Efficiency (Process)
Efficiency, understanding and effectiveness are, respectively, “what?”, “Why?” And “how?” In the study of the selected language. Simply put, you first decide what to learn based on frequency of use (priority). Then, you filter the material based on the likelihood of continuous use and study (i.e. your interest). And finally, you decide how to study this material most effectively.
Now consider each item in detail. This article will focus on vocabulary and subject matter. To learn grammar, I suggest you read this short article . To “reactivate” forgotten languages - for example, Spanish, which you studied in high school - this sequence will look like this.
Efficiency:if you choose the wrong material, it doesn’t matter how you teach (if you learn) - in practice, achieving fluency in the language at the conversational level is impossible without the proper tools (material). Teachers depend on material , just as cooks depend on recipes.
Understanding:revision and repeated reference to the same material will always bring uniformity to which the material's interest should be contrasted. Even if you have chosen the most effective material and method of training, if you cannot adhere to them, efficiency and effectiveness will not mean anything. In other words, can you stick to the materials and methods that you have chosen? If not, less effective materials or methods will still be better. The best approach does not mean anything if you do not use it.
By analogy, even if a sprint up the hill with a bowling ball in each hand would be the most effective way to lose weight, how long would an ordinary person have been able to follow this program?
If you are not interested in politics, can you learn the language at a course that focuses on it? Ask yourself: can I study on this material every day and further until I reach my goals? If you are in any doubt, change your choice. Most often, the best solution would be to choose materials that match the ones you are interested in in your own language. Do not read anything that you would not read in English if English is your native language (for example, do not read Asahi Shimbun (one of the largest Japanese newspapers), if you do not read newspapers in English). Use the language you have chosen to learn as a means to learn more about the subject, skills, or cultural field that are of interest to you.
Do not use materials that do not coincide with your interests as a means for learning a language - this will not work.
Effectiveness: your training means almost nothing if you use the best materials and diligently adhere to this approach, but at the same time, to achieve fluency in the language is 20 years. Payback will not satisfy you. Ask yourself: will this method allow me to achieve accurate recognition and memory with the least number of defects in the shortest period of time? If the answer is no, your method should be redesigned or replaced.
The Pareto 80/20 principle states that 80% of the results in any effort come from 20% of investments, materials or efforts.
We can apply this principle and arrange the material based on the recorded probability and frequency of use. In order to understand 95% of the language and achieve fluent spoken language it may take 3 months of practical study; reaching a threshold of 98% may require 10 years. This is a point of diminishing result, where for most people it becomes more important to learn more languages (or other skills) than to improve current knowledge of the language by 1% in 5 years.
To see exactly how I deconstruct the grammar of new languages, I suggest you read "How to learn (but not master perfectly) any language in an hour . " Now, the most important thing in communication is words.
If you studied English (although the list can be applied to most languages), the following English words will have the greatest efficiency for the hour spent in the first 1-3 weeks of training:
1. the
2. of
3. and
4. a
5. to
6. in
7. is
8. you
9. that
10. it
11. he
12. was
13. for
14. on
15. are
16. as
17. with
18. his
19. they
20. I
21. at
22. be
23. this
24. have
25. from
26. or
27. one
28. had
29. by
30. word
31. but
32. not
33. what
34 . all
35. were
36. we
37. when
38. your
39. can
40. said
41. there
42. use
43. an
44. each
45. which
46. she
47. do
48. how
49. their
50. if
51. will
52. up
53. other
54. about
55. out
56. many
57. then
58. them
59. these
60. so
61. some
62. her
63. would
64. make
65. like
66. him
67. into
68. time
69. has
70. look
71. two
72. more
73. write
74. go
75 see
76. number
77. no
78. way
79. could
80. people
81. my
82. than
83. first
84. water
85. been
86. call
87. who
88. oil
89. its
90. now
91. find
92. long
93. down
94. day
95. did
96. get
97. come
98. made
99. may
100. part
The first 25 of the words written above make up about a third of all printed material in English. The first 100 contains half of all written material, and the first 300 comprise about 65% of all written material in English. Articles and conjugations of the times, which can often be omitted in some languages or studied for recognition (understanding), but not for reproduction.
Lists of frequently used words presented as “the most used words” in English are erroneous without separation between the written spoken dictionary. The list of the 100 most frequently used words used in speech is significantly different and this difference applies to any language studied.
The individual frequency of words will vary from language to language (especially articles, pronouns and possessive), but the differences mainly relate to the position on the list, rather than the absence or substitution of another term. Surprisingly, the two above lists apply to all popular languages.
The choice of vocabulary in addition to the most frequently used 300-500 words should be dictated by the area of interest. The most relevant questions are: “What do you do when you use this language?”
If necessary, the closest suitable rephrase is “What am I wasting my time with?”. And again I repeat - do not read what you would not read in your native language. Use the language you are learning as a means to learn more about a subject, skill, or cultural area of interest. Bad material will never lead to a good language.
Feed your language abilities with food that you like, or you will end your “diet” and stop learning long before you reach any significant level of skill.
As a personal example: I used martial arts training aids to compete effectively in judo competitions while I was a student in Japan. My main goal was to learn the shots and apply them in competitions. I was very motivated to learn step-by-step diagrams in each tutorial to avoid pain and confusion. Language development was a distant second priority.
Someone may suggest that the intersection of material with other areas will be minimal, but the grammar is generally identical. Vocabulary can be highly specialized, but I exceeded the grammatical skills of students studying Japanese for 4-5 years in just 2 months of study.
The specialization of my vocabulary did not represent a problem in communication at all. It is important to note that I spent 80% of my free time in training with people who also used the terms Judo and other vocabulary unique to sports training and athletic development.
Once the “backbone” of the grammar is transferred to long-term memory, vocabulary replenishment will be a simple repetition process, which I will describe in the next post.
In the meantime, don't let the languages scare you.
Original (English): How to Learn Any Language in 3 Months
Translated by the crowd
If you want to learn more English words, I would pay attention to the excellent EngCards mobile program. It uses 3,500 of the most common words with pictures and voice acting. It is built on exercises: memorization, dictation and test.
(Judo Okano Isao's textbook, which I used to study Japanese grammar)
Learning a language does not have to be complicated.
The principles of cognitive neuroscience and time management can be applied to achieve fluency at a conversational level (in this case it is defined as 95% + percent understanding and 100% expressive capabilities) for 1-3 months.
Some tips on my obsession with learning from my previous self-study language article :
From the academic environment of Princeton University (Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Italian) and Middlebury Language Schools (Japanese) to the disappointing results that I have seen as head of the study process at Berlin International (Japanese and English), I’ve been more than 10 years I was looking for the answer to a simple question: why most of the language lessons simply do not work?
An ideal system and process is based on three elements in the following order ...
1. Efficiency (Priority)
2. Understanding (Interest)
3. Efficiency (Process)
Efficiency, understanding and effectiveness are, respectively, “what?”, “Why?” And “how?” In the study of the selected language. Simply put, you first decide what to learn based on frequency of use (priority). Then, you filter the material based on the likelihood of continuous use and study (i.e. your interest). And finally, you decide how to study this material most effectively.
Now consider each item in detail. This article will focus on vocabulary and subject matter. To learn grammar, I suggest you read this short article . To “reactivate” forgotten languages - for example, Spanish, which you studied in high school - this sequence will look like this.
Efficiency:if you choose the wrong material, it doesn’t matter how you teach (if you learn) - in practice, achieving fluency in the language at the conversational level is impossible without the proper tools (material). Teachers depend on material , just as cooks depend on recipes.
Understanding:revision and repeated reference to the same material will always bring uniformity to which the material's interest should be contrasted. Even if you have chosen the most effective material and method of training, if you cannot adhere to them, efficiency and effectiveness will not mean anything. In other words, can you stick to the materials and methods that you have chosen? If not, less effective materials or methods will still be better. The best approach does not mean anything if you do not use it.
By analogy, even if a sprint up the hill with a bowling ball in each hand would be the most effective way to lose weight, how long would an ordinary person have been able to follow this program?
If you are not interested in politics, can you learn the language at a course that focuses on it? Ask yourself: can I study on this material every day and further until I reach my goals? If you are in any doubt, change your choice. Most often, the best solution would be to choose materials that match the ones you are interested in in your own language. Do not read anything that you would not read in English if English is your native language (for example, do not read Asahi Shimbun (one of the largest Japanese newspapers), if you do not read newspapers in English). Use the language you have chosen to learn as a means to learn more about the subject, skills, or cultural field that are of interest to you.
Do not use materials that do not coincide with your interests as a means for learning a language - this will not work.
Effectiveness: your training means almost nothing if you use the best materials and diligently adhere to this approach, but at the same time, to achieve fluency in the language is 20 years. Payback will not satisfy you. Ask yourself: will this method allow me to achieve accurate recognition and memory with the least number of defects in the shortest period of time? If the answer is no, your method should be redesigned or replaced.
An example of efficiency (80/20) in practice.
The Pareto 80/20 principle states that 80% of the results in any effort come from 20% of investments, materials or efforts.
We can apply this principle and arrange the material based on the recorded probability and frequency of use. In order to understand 95% of the language and achieve fluent spoken language it may take 3 months of practical study; reaching a threshold of 98% may require 10 years. This is a point of diminishing result, where for most people it becomes more important to learn more languages (or other skills) than to improve current knowledge of the language by 1% in 5 years.
To see exactly how I deconstruct the grammar of new languages, I suggest you read "How to learn (but not master perfectly) any language in an hour . " Now, the most important thing in communication is words.
If you studied English (although the list can be applied to most languages), the following English words will have the greatest efficiency for the hour spent in the first 1-3 weeks of training:
The 100 most commonly spoken English words.
1. the
2. of
3. and
4. a
5. to
6. in
7. is
8. you
9. that
10. it
11. he
12. was
13. for
14. on
15. are
16. as
17. with
18. his
19. they
20. I
21. at
22. be
23. this
24. have
25. from
26. or
27. one
28. had
29. by
30. word
31. but
32. not
33. what
34 . all
35. were
36. we
37. when
38. your
39. can
40. said
41. there
42. use
43. an
44. each
45. which
46. she
47. do
48. how
49. their
50. if
51. will
52. up
53. other
54. about
55. out
56. many
57. then
58. them
59. these
60. so
61. some
62. her
63. would
64. make
65. like
66. him
67. into
68. time
69. has
70. look
71. two
72. more
73. write
74. go
75 see
76. number
77. no
78. way
79. could
80. people
81. my
82. than
83. first
84. water
85. been
86. call
87. who
88. oil
89. its
90. now
91. find
92. long
93. down
94. day
95. did
96. get
97. come
98. made
99. may
100. part
The first 25 of the words written above make up about a third of all printed material in English. The first 100 contains half of all written material, and the first 300 comprise about 65% of all written material in English. Articles and conjugations of the times, which can often be omitted in some languages or studied for recognition (understanding), but not for reproduction.
Lists of frequently used words presented as “the most used words” in English are erroneous without separation between the written spoken dictionary. The list of the 100 most frequently used words used in speech is significantly different and this difference applies to any language studied.
The 100 most frequently spoken words in English.
- a, an
- after
- again
- all
- almost
- also
- always
- and
- because
- before
- big
- but
- (I) can
- (I) come
- either / or
- (I) find
- first
- for
- friend
- from
- (I) go
- good
- goodbye
- happy
- (I) have
- he
- hello
- here
- how
- I
- (I) am
- if
- in
- (I) know
- last
- (I) like
- little
- (I) love
- (I) make
- many
- one
- more
- most
- much
- my
- new
- no
- not
- now
- of
- often
- on
- one
- only
- or
- other
- our
- out
- over
- people
- place
- please
- same
- (I) see
- she
- so
- some
- sometimes
- still
- such
- (I) tell
- thank you
- that
- the
- their
- them
- then
- there is
- they
- thing
- (I) think
- this
- time
- to
- under
- up
- us
- (I) use
- very
- we
- what
- when
- where
- which
- who
- why
- with
- yes
- you
- your
The individual frequency of words will vary from language to language (especially articles, pronouns and possessive), but the differences mainly relate to the position on the list, rather than the absence or substitution of another term. Surprisingly, the two above lists apply to all popular languages.
The choice of vocabulary in addition to the most frequently used 300-500 words should be dictated by the area of interest. The most relevant questions are: “What do you do when you use this language?”
If necessary, the closest suitable rephrase is “What am I wasting my time with?”. And again I repeat - do not read what you would not read in your native language. Use the language you are learning as a means to learn more about a subject, skill, or cultural area of interest. Bad material will never lead to a good language.
Feed your language abilities with food that you like, or you will end your “diet” and stop learning long before you reach any significant level of skill.
As a personal example: I used martial arts training aids to compete effectively in judo competitions while I was a student in Japan. My main goal was to learn the shots and apply them in competitions. I was very motivated to learn step-by-step diagrams in each tutorial to avoid pain and confusion. Language development was a distant second priority.
Someone may suggest that the intersection of material with other areas will be minimal, but the grammar is generally identical. Vocabulary can be highly specialized, but I exceeded the grammatical skills of students studying Japanese for 4-5 years in just 2 months of study.
The specialization of my vocabulary did not represent a problem in communication at all. It is important to note that I spent 80% of my free time in training with people who also used the terms Judo and other vocabulary unique to sports training and athletic development.
Once the “backbone” of the grammar is transferred to long-term memory, vocabulary replenishment will be a simple repetition process, which I will describe in the next post.
In the meantime, don't let the languages scare you.
Original (English): How to Learn Any Language in 3 Months
Translated by the crowd
If you want to learn more English words, I would pay attention to the excellent EngCards mobile program. It uses 3,500 of the most common words with pictures and voice acting. It is built on exercises: memorization, dictation and test.