Foreign Language Learning Experience

Within this article I will discuss a foreign language learning experience,

the learning situation and personal feelings toward the methodologies
used during the 1980s, and compare these to the methods used during that
period and those that are used today. I will also discuss how the earlier
methods were effective but only to a certain extent. This in turn will
reveal that the skills taught were not used in a realistic way and that there
is always room for improvement in teaching a foreign language.

Having attended schooling in the Netherlands it was common to be taught

several foreign languages. During the early 1980s I was taught three
foreign languages, besides my native tongue Dutch, I was taught English,
German and French. Each of these foreign languages was taught in the
same manner and utilised identical methodology, which was grammar
first and followed by translating word-for-word and phrases (lexical
items) from native tongue into the foreign language. This was in effect
accomplished through the memorisation of extensive lists of words and
phrases or what may now be called the Grammar-Translation Method.

During the process of learning my foreign language, several written tests

were administered in order to gauge progress. By having a good memory I
was able to achieve satisfactory results and quite capable of passing these
tests with flying colours. However, using that language effectively in a
‘real-world’ setting was near impossible as I soon discovered while on
holidays in France. For example, a simple visit to the bakery proved that
being able to say ‘boulangerie’ didn’t help me much in ordering fancy
pastries. Nor being able to say the German word Wurst was going to get
me a decent meal in Germany while on holiday there. All the memorising
of extensive word-lists in the world did not make me a good speaker of
the target language nor did it provide confidence or the ability to
communicate with the locals, leaving me floundering with my acquired
foreign language skills.

The above experiences proved to me that the main focus of years of

learning a foreign language was based on mental discipline and
intellectual development rather than being able to communicate the target
language effectively. This in turn was very frustrating, as all I remember
are the numbers 1 to 20 and a collection of individual words. Because my
native language was always there as a reference point I believe it did not
teach me effectively and my learning experience was minimal, boring and
rather purposeless because it did not encourage me to apply myself in
using the target language.

Although I was exposed to hearing the target language, either through my

teacher or from tapes, I was discouraged to actually engage in
conversation. The main emphasis was on being able to read and write and
certainly not on the ability to communicate through speech. I found that
my language training was mainly based on the accurate reproduction of
the target language and if translation errors were present it was looked
upon as a crime of the foreign language rather than a learning curb. This
is in stark contrast to today’s learning where students are encouraged
verbal fluency through understanding and producing spoken and written
language used within a well-defined context.

Another classic example of one lesson was when my English teacher was
going through the process of rote-learning once again. When the teacher
translated the Dutch word ‘ruggegraat’ as being your ‘bottom’ and not
your ‘spine’, no amount of arguing would convince him that he was
incorrect. It came to the point where I was expelled from class and sent to
the headmaster as being a troublesome student. However, being
headstrong and adamant that the teacher was incorrect, the offending
word was soon recognized as being indeed the equivalent of the spine and
certainly not your bottom. This learning experience left me with little
enthusiasm to want to learn another language. I was humiliated, expelled
and of course very upset. Even though I was vindicated shortly afterward
it did not instill a continuing passion for wanting to learn this foreign
language using what I considered a ridiculous and perhaps even abusive
method.
I believe that rote-learning is not stimulating because it relies on
memorising all the rules of a language and it can not realistically be used
in everyday language as I found out when I went to Australia armed with
my ‘school-English’. Because no student verbal communication had ever
happened in the classroom simple words like ‘onions’ were pronounced as
‘unions’ and the abbreviated form of refrigerator being ‘fridge’ in
Australia was an alien word until pointed into the direction of the
refrigerator. When my facial expression said, "Yes, I know what a
refrigerator is but not what a fridge is" I was the centre of laughter. Not
that I cared being laughed at because the locals I was with thought that it
was rather odd that I did not know the word fridge but used the full word
refrigerator. This experience proved to me that language barriers in a real-
world situation don’t actually exist because most people today are tolerant
of those who speak a foreign language and are quite often very much
interested in learning from them as well. I am of the opinion, through
personal experience, that the word-for-word translation method is a
difficult art and requires years of study. It is an unsatisfactory teaching
method and I believe that most foreign language teachers actively
discourage it these days.

The best method of learning a foreign language, I have found, is to

actually live amongst the locals, which is what I did for 3 months initially.
I learned more in those 3 months than I had done in four years of
classroom based learning. I had mastered entire conversations and was
encouraged to communicate, as my Dutch accent was well pleasing to
their ears. If I could not express myself in one way I would work out
another way of telling what I wanted to say. For example, I was very itchy
from a bee sting but I did not know the word itchy at the time. When I was
asked if I was itchy I simply shrugged my shoulders and said, "No, I just
want to scratch all the time." Of course this was very humorous to the
locals but I learned a new word and they learned that the word itchy is not
all that common among foreign language learners.

Having read about the different methodologies such as the Grammar-

Translation Method, the Direct Method, the Audio-lingual Method, the
Functional Approach, the Communicative Approach, and Task-based
learning, and looking back 30 odd years when I was learning a foreign
language, I now realise the problem. All my learning was passive; there
was no student interaction. Textbooks and tapes was the staple diet of
learning a foreign language, no real meaningful practices or encounters
formed part of my learning. There was no play or games involved in
learning just a rigid set of rules of grammar and spelling with no room for
errors. The main emphasis was on the ability to read and write fluently
rather than speaking the language. Direct translation from native tongue
into foreign language word-for-word or whole sentences was always
present with my native language to draw upon. It is only through actually
living and speaking with the native language in Australia that I have
mastered my foreign language reasonably successful within such a short
period of time.

In conclusion, what was learned was certainly not used in a realistic way,
which made learning a foreign language monotonous. Under no
circumstance was I ever encouraged to fill in realistic forms e.g. a job
application as an activity or communicate a task such as the ability to
connect a TV and select the correct channels. There were no goals, inputs
or activities to learn from. The teacher was always the centre of attention
and I was there to listen, read and write and somehow master the foreign
language. I guess I was there to gain the knowledge of my teacher but
somehow my automated response to all this was unpleasant, not
meaningful and uninspiring in my learning adventure. I believe for success
to take place in learning a foreign language, the learning must be
purposeful, motivational and above all, engage the