It's New Year (again), what are your resolutions? Hold on for a second, did you achieve what you had planned for last year? I see many people have a great interest in language learning, however, when it comes to the practice, they give lots of excuses and the biggest excuse is not having the time for language learning.
I know that it is easier to say than to do and learning is a lifelong process. One will not be fluent in a fortnight. I give myself at least half a year to one year time period to be able to use a language in easy contexts, such as self-introduction and asking directions. Note that I always spare a few minutes to hours learning languages every day despite working full-time with tons of workload.
Language Challenge
I believe that "discipline" and "repetition" are the keys to successful language learning. Well, at least, it works for me. One of many factors to unsuccessful language learning is lack of motivation. Fortunately, some language websites have got the solution to that.Italki, one of many popular language learning websites, had created an event that called "Italki Language Challenge" and the prize this time is 400 ITC (equals to roughly US$40). You will get 50 ITC extra if you make a Public Video Pledge talking about your expectations, the reason you take the challenge or how you will commit to the learning.
The goal is very simple, take a total of 20-hour classes during January 15th - February 28th. You can learn ANY languages. I have signed up for the challenge too! It will be the very first language challenge in my life, so I want to make it as memorable as possible. Let me know if you are also taking the challenge.
Cool features
Italki is one of my favorite language learning websites because it has got cool features that really help me in learning. I am the type of person who likes to read, thus, writing is my method of learning most of the time besides reading.One feature called Notebook allows me to write compositions in the target language and some speakers of that language will correct the mistakes for free. If I have questions about anything related to the language, I can ask in Answers or Discussions. Note that Italki supports a wide range of languages.
I don't practice much speaking but I do chat often with my language partners online, who I know mostly from Language Partners. I have known quite a lot of acquaintances from Italki, so Italki does not only serve as a learning platform but also connecting people.
If you are not interested in casual language practice and prefer to take an organized course, you can navigate to Professional Lessons, Informal Tutoring or Instant Tutoring. Lots of qualified language teachers are available to help you.
How do I prepare?
As a language enthusiast, I have learned a dozen languages but I use only about half of them mostly for reading. That means there is still room for improvement.
I wish to take the class every day. If I couldn't, it wouldn't be less than 4 sessions/ week. I work full time from Monday to Friday and I need time to hang out with friends too so it would be super intense but I hope to manage everything well.
I am still thinking if I will learn only one language or multiple languages for the challenge. Stay tuned for more details about how I prepare for this challenge. I will cover that more on the next post.
Photo credit
Wikipedia