If you are serious about learning a foreign language, using the right adult language learning strategies is crucial to your success. Adult language learners have specific characteristics that set them apart from other learners. Make sure you are targeting your efforts to address these learning styles.
Actively Participate In Your Language Learning
Adults language learners learn best when they are actively engaged in what they are learning. You can’t sit back and absorb a language, either in a classroom or in real life. You have to actively engage and interact with a language. Take control of your own learning.
Put Yourself In Charge
One key to adult language learning is to put yourself in charge. Take responsibility for determining what you will learn and how you will learn it. The most effective learners are the ones who spend the most time learning outside of the classroom. On a daily basis, choose topics that interest you, and then actively seek to learn about those topics. You will progress much faster than someone who just sits in a classroom.
Choose Only Interesting and Useful Topics
Another key adult language learning technique is to only choose topics that are interesting and useful to you as the learner. Make a list of all the things you personally want to be able to say in the foreign language and then use that as a basis for your learning. Give priority to the topics you need to know right away. Be sure to edit and re-prioritize this list frequently.
Use Your Practice Sessions to Accomplish Your Goals
Adult language learners are busy people. Why not accomplish two things at once. Practice the language and get things done at the same time. For example, lets say you need to go shopping for a new shirt and negotiate a good price. First, learn some words and phrases to accomplish this task. Then go shopping and use the language! If you are working with a tutor, bring them along. They can provide feedback and extra help as needed.
Communicate!
This is the most important part of adult language learning. Use what you learn! If you want to speak a foreign language, then you have to practice speaking it. The temptation is to stay home and memorize words and grammar. But if you don’t practice speaking the foreign language, you will never become fluent. You have to get in the water to learn to swim. You have to speak to people if you want to learn a language.
If you are ready to take charge of your own adult language learning, then it helps to have a good collection of strategies and techniques. For a comprehensive guide on independent language learning methods, be sure to check out http://languagelearnersecrets.com.