Remembering Who Is Responsible for Your Language Learning Success

by Reid Wilson

First appeared: Language Learning issue #2

I took five years of French in junior high and high school in the United States and really wanted to learn the language, but my success would have to be measured as "fair" at best considering the time and effort I put into it. While for years I passed the fault for my fair performance to my high school French teacher--who had never spent significant time in a French-speaking country and who seemed embarrassed to speak the language in front of us--as I reflect on my experience years later I realize that my underlying assumption about language learning was inadequate.

My wrong assumption was that I should allow someone else to be responsible for my language learning success. In those days I did what I was told to do, I studied what I was told to study, I made all A's, but in all honesty I couldn't carry on a three-minute conversation in French after five years of class! (I could read intermediate passages, though.)

Now I understand and seek to apply the fundamental principle that I am the one responsible for my success in learning a particular language. If I have a great teacher, that is of course a blessing, but if I have a bad teacher, that is no excuse, as today there are many, many resources available for language learning.

For example, this past semester I had a friend who was studying Arabic. He decided a month into the semester that his formal class and two teachers were not the right approach for his learning style. Instead of dropping out and quitting, never to learn the language, as did other classmates, he decided to take responsibility upon himself for his language learning. He went out and found a tutor, "trained" the tutor in the approach he wanted to take in language learning, and continued to plug away at the language, both with his tutor and in class, and made much more progress than if he would have stuck with a method that wasn't meeting his needs. He realloted his time, intentionally skipping 40% of his classes to study and work with his tutor, and realized great benefit from the missed class time.

I have another friend who is an Italian major. He has a great teacher and learns much in his university class, but he intentionally sought out and made Italian friends, sometimes swapping Arabic for Italian, other times just hanging out and speaking Italian. It's no surprise that he is the top student in his class.

More than motivation is needed: I was very motivated to learn French. As language learners we must creatively and persistently act on the conviction that we are the ones ultimately responsible for our language learning success.

And that highlights the purpose of Language Learning, to provide you with suggestions and insight into how you can personally maximize your own effectiveness.

Until next time...