Foreign Language Study Fun But Humbling

I think the way that foreign languages are taught in school completely misses the point. Instead of beating in repetitious grammar patterns with a limited vocabulary, they should have been flooding us with vocabulary at the expense of the grammar. I spent many grueling years in elementary and high school studying under such a curriculum with the Audio-Lingual-Materials (or ALM) system of language instruction. It was an utterly dreadful experience. As humans, we all have a natural capacity to pick up on grammar. But all of the grammar in the world won't help if you can't think of the word you want to express or understand the word you read or hear!

For me, studying foreign languages is a pastime, a fun activity much akin to doing puzzles like sudoku or kakuro. I don't see myself necessarily becoming fluent in them, but I do have varying degrees of success in learning some of them. And the Internet is a paradise for anyone wanting foreign language exposure!

Ah, the Internet. Yes, there are translation tools like that found on Google. There is the incredible Wikipedia: pick your language and jump right on in! One can pick the language of choice and delve into blogs written in that language, with the option of practicing it by submitting comments. And there are numerous sites giving access to radio and television programming in various foreign languages from countries spread across the planet.

The one possible drawback involved with immersing oneself in foreign language study is that it is an incredibly humbling undertaking. For no matter how much progress I make in learning a particular language, there will always be many, many others who are much better at it than me. Including little bitty children, fresh out of the crib! Ouch!