| There are many ways to learn a new language: you | | | | Literacy is one of the 21st century's most innately |
| can go live in a country where the language is spoken, | | | | valuable compound skills. After all, you're reading THIS |
| attend a formal language class, get a private language | | | | now, aren't you? Few would wish to be illiterate in their |
| tutor or use books and written materials. Other ways | | | | new foreign language so practice of reading skills is |
| to learn a foreign language are to listen to CDs or | | | | paramount. Online newspapers, magazines, |
| audiocassette tapes, watch TV, movies and video | | | | newsletters and blogs can provide the needed |
| programs, memorize phrase books, use the Internet or | | | | practice and learning materials. Check out these |
| employ a combination of all the above. | | | | reading comprehension skills sites: |
| But not everyone can arrange to live in a foreign | | | | - How to Read Your Textbook More Efficiently |
| country. Native speakers of the language may not be | | | | - Self-study reading lessons |
| available. Written or recorded commercial materials | | | | - Read the article in the following address: |
| may not be available in the language you're interested | | | | In the address that follows, take the quiz to verify your |
| in (Cochimi, Cibemba or Kukapa, anyone?) True, many | | | | understanding of the reading passage: |
| major languages like Spanish, French, German, Italian, | | | | 4. Help in developing listening skills |
| and Portuguese broadcast TV programs via cable. | | | | Considered to be the most difficult of the language |
| Even Korean, Catalan, Arabic and Japanese have | | | | skills to develop, listening cannot be taught. Rather, you |
| venues available in cosmopolitan areas worldwide but | | | | must practice, practice, practice and then practice |
| the vast majority of the world's thousands of spoken | | | | some more. Every week, twice a week I passed a |
| tongues are simply not at large outside of their local | | | | street vendor at the same spot, absolutely clueless as |
| areas. So what's a prospective polyglot to do? | | | | to what he was saying. I knew what he was selling - I |
| One answer of course, is the internet. Plug "foreign | | | | just peeked over at his wares. But his entreaties in |
| language courses" into an internet search engine like | | | | street Spanish fell on my language-clogged ears for |
| Google or Yahoo and more than 62 million hits instantly | | | | months. Then one evening, without warning, it |
| come up. From Afrikaans to Punjabi, and Hebrew to | | | | happened. Just two days before, his cries were the |
| Zulu, thousands of listings lay before you only a mouse | | | | same incomprehensible slur they'd been for months. |
| click away. How exactly then, can the internet be used | | | | That one evening however, when he launched into his |
| to tackle learning a foreign language? Start off | | | | huckster's spiel I suddenly understood every word. My |
| effectively by using these six ways: | | | | listening comprehension skills had clicked in. Why then? |
| 1. Do an initial evaluation | | | | No one knows. Especially not me, and I'm a |
| The first thing you may want to know is where you | | | | post-graduate-degreed Language Education Specialist! |
| are in the scheme of learning the language. An initial | | | | Practice your listening skills with radio programs in your |
| language skills evaluation is in order are you a raw | | | | target language for a change at which has live global |
| beginner? False beginner? Intermediate level? Higher? | | | | feeds 24 hours a day in multiple languages. |
| Let's take English as a second or foreign language as | | | | Foreign language internet radio and foreign news radio |
| an example. English proficiency diagnostics tests are | | | | in 27 European, 4 Middle Eastern, 9 Asian languages |
| free online at: | | | | and audio feeds from 19 African countries are |
| - General English Test with instant results | | | | broadcast on: |
| - Parlo (diagnostic tests in English, Spanish, and French) | | | | 5. Playing games and having fun |
| - Upper Intermediate Test | | | | Vocabulary is often referred to as the building blocks |
| If you score above 80% in this test, you should take | | | | of language. Knowledge of vocabulary is one aspect |
| the next one and also show your teacher or tutor a | | | | that separates the language learning levels. The more |
| copy of the results. | | | | vocabulary you know, the more communicative you |
| 2. Become familiar with language learning strategies | | | | are. Here are some unique linguistic sites that help build |
| How do YOU learn? Knowing this can make the | | | | your language as you "play": |
| daunting task of foreign language learning less like | | | | - The site offers "interesting things for ESL students" |
| study and more like play. Are you a Visual - Spatial | | | | like songs, jokes, quizzes, word games, puzzles, slang |
| learner who likes pictures, drawings, graphics and | | | | and even podcasts to help stimulate English language |
| extensive use of color? A Musical - Rhythmic type | | | | acquisition. |
| that would benefit from having your lessons and | | | | - The foreign language course site at: has activities in |
| materials set to music, rhythm or rhyme? Perhaps | | | | 27 languages including Finnish, Mandarin and Quechua. |
| you're the athletic type who'd derive more success | | | | - At the Transparent Language site you can play |
| with learning by motion, movement, mime or even | | | | games in any one of more than 100 languages from |
| dance? Playing the works of Mozart in the | | | | Afrikaans to Farsi or Guarani to Yoruba. And yes, they |
| background while studying has been shown to | | | | have Zulu too. Check out all their listings here: |
| enhance learning in a number of areas. To find out | | | | 6. So what language tickles your fancy? |
| more about your manner of learning visit these sites | | | | While the selection of language courses, tutorials, news |
| for starters: | | | | feeds, music and other audio - visual materials online is |
| - Learning Styles Explanation | | | | extensive, ALL the world's languages simply aren't |
| - Index of Learning Styles Questionnaire | | | | available. Sorry. But many are and here's how to find |
| - The Success Types Learning Style Indicator | | | | yours if it's online. |
| 3. Practice reading skills | | | | |