Languages vs Time

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aokoye
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby aokoye » Fri May 17, 2019 7:56 pm

As a quick example of something I'm comfortable reading - here's a page in French from one of the French immersion schools in Portland https://letoilefrenchschool.com/fr/cycle2-fr/ . While I don't know every word on the page, I am having no real trouble reading it.
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aokoye
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby aokoye » Wed Jun 12, 2019 2:27 am

I've essentially graduated! I'm not going to graduation (I'll go when I finish masters), but I turned in my last assignment Monday morning. The Applied Linguistics dept has its own graduation party on Friday, so I'll go to that. The plan for this summer is to take French 103 (a four week course that starts in about a week and a half), finish out my research assistantship, and apply for a Fulbright. I'll also start looking for part time jobs. Through the 2019/2020 school year I'll be applying to grad school and taking French as a post bacc both so I can keep my current health insurance (which I use a lot) and because my current top choice for grad school requires more French than I currently have and the head of the dept likes my conservative plan for French - take 200 level next year and possibly an intensive course the summer before grad school (assuming I get into that program). I only need fairly high receptive level which is makes things easier.

I came up with an aggressive French plan earlier this month which is what I'm actually going to try to do. The aggressive plan is to work through Édito A2 and then see if I can test into 301 in the Fall. I was just going to work through the rest of my textbook, which is also used for second year French, but this morning I reminded myself that it's a horrible textbook (I can't imagine the department will keep it - this year was a guinea pig year with it). Plus I wouldn't have access to the online workbook activities, even though I've paid for them (thanks McGraw Hill...) because I wouldn't be in a class. Once I realized that using my current textbook was a very flawed idea, I thought about using the textbook that they currently use for 200 level - a much better book from what I can tell. The problem with this is that the cheapest I could find a more recent version of the textbook was $50 (used - at Powell's so at least shipping wouldn't be an issue). Added to that is that I'd have to buy a workbook which is also expensive.

After looking at previews of textbooks from Hachette, CLE, and Didier, I settled on Édito A2. Alter Ego+ A2 would have also been a good option, but I prefer the way Édito A2 introduces vocabulary. Alter Ego+ has more reading texts, but that's easy enough to augment. Comparing at the grammar points introduced in Édito and the textbook I would be using in 200 level French, they're more or less on par which is good.
If I don't touch Édito until my summer course ends, that'll give me 9 weeks to get through 12 chapters (giving myself a week before Fall term starts). However, what I suspect will happen is that I'll try to do one chapter a week until the course ends and then pick up the pace to two chapters a week, giving me more than enough time finish.
In addition to this, I'm going to start working on the vocabulary for 103 this evening after I post this which will make my life easier.

To-do for today through Saturday:
Vocabulary from 103 textbook chapter 7 and the verbs we didn't go over in the previous chapter
Vocabulary from Édito chapter 1: done
Passé composé chapter in the Exercices grammaire en contexte which would leave one more chapter to do in that book and get me ahead for 103
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aokoye
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby aokoye » Sat Jun 15, 2019 5:05 am

The applied linguistics department had their graduation party today which was fun. A bit surreal, but fun. Like I said on Cavesa's newest log, I won't believe that I've graduated until I have my diploma in hand. I'm not walking during commencement because I hate graduations and I figure I'll walk for grad school. Plus it'll likely be well over 3 hours long.

So far I've finished the passé composé chapter of the grammar book I was using, learned the vocabulary for the first chapter of Édito A2, and finished all of the textbook and workbook exercises for passé composé. I've also read all of the readings in the chapter. My goal is to finish the chapter by Sunday which seems potentially doable. I also did some exercises on RFI which I enjoy because I have trouble with listening comprehension and they tend to be on topics relating to the news which is at least useful for me content wise. It's also useful because if I get into the MA program I want to go to, I will fairly high receptive skills in French. RFI has their own CEFR level estimation test which I scored more or less an A1+ on. Essentially it said that I'm working towards A2. Seems appropriate enough.

For fun and because I apparently forgot how much I don't enjoy taking Dialang tests in the evening, I took the French reading test. This was my result:
In the self-assessment task you gave responses which we would normally expect from a learner at level A2. However, your test result suggests that you are at level B2.


That B2 for reading (or anything related to my French abilities for that matter)...is silly. I'll be the first to say that I'm having a very easy time with French, but B2 seems a bit overblown. I suspect B1 is a little more realistic. A low B1. Either way, it appears that I'm doing something right.
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby Elsa Maria » Sun Jun 16, 2019 12:48 am

Congratulations on your graduation! And good luck with both French and the upcoming applications.
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aokoye
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby aokoye » Fri Jun 21, 2019 4:45 am

First, thanks for the well wishes on my graduation, both in this thread and others!

I ended up changing my goals for the week which was unexpected but ok, if not smart in the long run (and the immediate future). I realized pretty quickly that I needed to do more work on verbs before doing the verb related exercises in Édito A2. As a result, I ended up splitting my text related time between Édito and Practice Makes Perfect French Verb Tenses, which is a shockingly good book. My new plan of attack is to pass over all of the verby parts of Édito and stick with PMP French Verb Tenses. After I feel more competent with regards to verbs, I'll go over what's in Édito. Verb tenses aren't given me a whole lot of trouble with regards to comprehension, thankfully.

Speaking of reading comprehension, I ended up reading three or four articles on RFI's android app this morning while my car was getting worked on. I didn't have a terribly difficult time with things which was great, and these were the regular articles, not the section of the website aimed at people learning French. Needless to say, I'm thinking about starting another round of my Monthly News Challenge in July.

I've also managed to stumble upon a bunch French food related news like shows that people have uploaded to Youtube. I've watched enough of of them for the algorithm to start suggesting them to me now. I don't understand a lot of things, but at least I've managed to find something that holds my interest.

My four week French class starts on Monday and I think the goals outside of that class are to essentially at the very least work from the verb book, at least skim Édito, and watch French shows. I'll get a better idea of what I'm actually capable of doing by the end of next week.
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aokoye
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby aokoye » Sun Jun 23, 2019 4:44 pm

This weekend has been/will be a total wash with regards to studying French. The NW Masters Rowing Regionals are June 21-23 up in Vancouver, Washington - about half an hour from my house driving. I completed the first two days and am going up today to watch my friends/support the team.

I was able to review vocab on Learn with Oliver early this morning and I ordered Grammaire essentielle du français niv. A2 which should be arriving at my house this afternoon (Sunday delivery is wild). Having thumbed through the Grammaire Progressive du Francais Niveau intermédiaire book at Powells on Thursday, I think I'll like the format of this one more.

Goals for this upcoming week:
Get ahead in my French class
Work on grammar
Keep up with the vocab from Édito as time permits (I'll always do the reviews, but how much new vocab I'll enter is the question)
Keep up with vocab on Lingvist (see the above conditions)
Look for a partime job (that'll be a multiweek thing...)
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby Lawyer&Mom » Sun Jun 23, 2019 7:19 pm

I wouldn’t question the Dialang test. A native English speaker, experienced with languages, can achieve a B2 in French reading pretty quickly. (The flip side is that French listening is a beast.)
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aokoye
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby aokoye » Mon Jun 24, 2019 5:43 am

Lawyer&Mom wrote:I wouldn’t question the Dialang test. A native English speaker, experienced with languages, can achieve a B2 in French reading pretty quickly. (The flip side is that French listening is a beast.)

Interesting...I'm going to hope that you're right with regards to reading. I kind of suspect you are. Listening is being worked on. At least I've found a very series that I enjoy - La Meilleure Boulangerie de France. That and I can do things like listen to the news in French when I'm on the streetcar or walking somewhere.
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby Deinonysus » Mon Jun 24, 2019 6:13 pm

I second L&M. I had better reading comprehension in French without ever studying it than I had in German after a year of study. There's a huge English cognate bonus.
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aokoye
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Re: Languages vs Time

Postby aokoye » Wed Jun 26, 2019 9:22 pm

Deinonysus wrote:I second L&M. I had better reading comprehension in French without ever studying it than I had in German after a year of study. There's a huge English cognate bonus.

Yeah that makes sense - thank you Norman French invaders ;) - one of the few times I'll thank an invading colonial force...
Between the words borrowed into from French and Latin reading is easy. Not as easy as Dutch (given my knowledge of German), but still pretty easy.
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