Ask HN: Foreign language learners, what's the workflow you find most effective?

Re:Ask HN: Foreign language learners, what's the workflow yo... by WheelsAtLarge on Tuesday September 13, 2022 @11:06PM (#32832853)

Regular conversations in the language you want to learn. You CAN'T use your native language at all and you must respond in the language you are learning. And you can't get help from your conversation partner by having them translate to your native language. Doing it this way forces you to search your memory for the words you need and the adrenaline of having to understand the words and answer correctly helps you remember. Do this enough and you will get the language's basics in a relatively short time. It's not the easiest way to learn but it's the fastest way to get to fluency.

BTW, stay away from Duolingo. It won't get to the level you want to be at. There are better and faster ways to learn a new language.

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Re:Ask HN: Foreign language learners, what's the workflow yo... by arcticadder on Tuesday September 13, 2022 @11:48PM (#32833129)

I agree that having regular conversations in your target language is a good path to fluency. However, finding a conversation partner who is willing to work with you is hard. Unless I migrate to one of the countries where the languages I plan to study are spoken, the only way to have a conversation partner would be to hire someone.

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Re:Ask HN: Foreign language learners, what's the workflow yo... by wallflower on Wednesday September 14, 2022 @12:16AM (#32833279)

Please check out https://italki.com You can find native speakers to practice with for reasonable hourly rates. From personal experience, hiring someone to practice with is a practical compromise and more convenient than burdening friends who speak the desired language. Even the best of friends will be tested on their own patience. Like going to gym and hiring a trainer, there is good accountability and feedback.

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Re:Ask HN: Foreign language learners, what's the workflow yo... by arcticadder on Wednesday September 14, 2022 @12:48AM (#32833428)

Thanks for the recommendation. Indeed, the rates are reasonable. I'll check it out.

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