The best time to learn a language is...?
When is the best time to learn a language?
Most experts say the best time to start is when the child is
around 10 years old or so which then possibly peaks around 17 or 18. That is
according to a study by MIT by researcher Joshua Hartshorne published someplace
I don`t know. I found an article talking about it here in The Sun from May 2nd
2018
“TOO LATE TO LINGO Kids must start learning foreign
languages by TEN to be able to speak like a native” by Nick McDermott
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/6190032/kids-aged-ten-can-learn-languages-fluently/
Checking it out I can agree with some of the findings but
not all. People learning a language later in life should have the same ability to become just as
fluent as a child. If not a greater chance. In fact the language learning industry itself is wrong.
Most of the grammar taught in the textbook is either outdated, oddly chosen for
it’s example and most often unrelated to actual use. A child who begins
learning a language has no choice but to use the material provided for him or
her. Sometimes that material is fun and geared toward their level but more
often than not it`s dull and difficult to understand. In addition because it’s just focused on teaching the grammar, it has the
additional benefit of causing them to further hate it. That said I tried the
test the researcher created and they told me my language was that of a native
North American. So I passed. Of course I am an adult and I’ve been teaching
English for over twenty years.
Tests only check one aspect of a persons ability to
understand the complete functions of a language while ignoring the ability to
function within the language. In addition after going through any schooling
there is a good possibility that you would be able to get just as good a score
on the test because it doesn`t measure the ability to actually use the language,
only understand how to answer tests. Adults are good at that. One entertainer
I`ve seen on Japanese TV by the name of Bobby Ologun (an African man living in
Japan) became famous through his bad punny use of Japanese. He was becoming
more and more popular until a program revealed that he was actually very good
at speaking and understanding Japanese causing his popularity to decline. His
grammar was terrible and he will probably never be a native speaker but he is
fluent despite starting late. In his case though he has the added benefit of
already speaking several languages.
To sum it up the best time to learn a language is to start
early but anybody can become fluent if they want to as long as they start now.
Also going back to the research, most kids hate studying
something without purpose. They will do it but only half-heartedly. Adults who
study often have a better reason to study and consequently improve faster. However
they are just as lazy and without a push they will probably rather just watch TV,
at least that’s what I do. So in short what works for children may not work for
adults but what works for adults can be just as effective.
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