Myths about Foreign Language Learning
MYTH:
To learn a foreign language, you have to live in the country where the foreign language is spoken.
REALITY: No. I learned Spanish and Italian fluently without living in a Spanish speaking country or Italy. Plus, I had almost perfect accents in both languages. If the myth were true, then all the immigrants and refugees living in the United States would speak perfect English. Many of them don’t and it’s because foreign language instruction is focused on grammar and memorization. Students get bored or frustrated with traditional foreign language education. They don’t learn how to appreciate the rhythm and flow of the language and see that it can be fun and easy to learn.
MYTH:
If you can’t go to the country where it is spoken, you need to work one-on-one with a tutor to learn the language.
REALITY:
I am living proof that you don’t need a private tutor. With the exception of a few private lessons in Bosnia, I never had a tutor.
MYTH:
To get a good accent, you have to spend a long time in a country where the language is spoken.
REALITY:
If that were true, then Arnold Schwarzenneger, the Austrian-born movie star and current governor of California, would be able to pronounce the word “California” like a native speaker and not with a heavy German accent. According to the International Institute of Education, the number of American students studying abroad has increased 250% since the 1990s. Other statistics show that more and more people are studying languages, but they are using the same ineffective methods that have failed millions of students in the past. Americans study languages, but we are known internationally for being abysmal foreign language speakers. Why? Because we simply memorize vocabulary lists to “learn” words. BORING! Lists of words are just useless stockpiles if not used creatively and naturally. It’s like taking a cooking class and making a recipe without tasting the food after cooking it, or reading a car construction guide without riding in the car and feeling and seeing how it runs. We have to feel, taste, and breathe a language to learn. The Language is Music book aims to remedy our horrible foreign language learning process. You will realize that you have the power to learn languages successfully in my fun and engaging way, without having to take expensive classes or leave the country.
