I Like Languages [German, French, Urdu]
Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2016 5:07 pm
This year, particularly the first half, I really need to step up my language game. I have two very important 'deadlines' coming up, one for each of French and German. I figured started a language log would hold me accountable, and I have been lurking on this website for ages! I will outline the details regarding these deadlines, the level I am at/need to be at, and how I hope to achieve said level.
French
I have had a very long and frustrating relationship with French. As I live in a bilingual Canadian city, all elementary and high schools offer a program called "French Immersion", which I participated in. Basically, all of my schooling from grade 4 to grade 10, after which I quit, was done in French. Unfortunately I didn't appreciate the opportunity when I was younger and never put in any effort. It has been 4 years since I stopped studying French, and that takes us to the present day.
I am now studying at a bilingual University, pursuing a degree in a program that requires me to become fluent (or at least functional) in 3 languages; English, French and a third of my choosing. My degree requires that you earn a certain number of credits for each language, or for you to pass an exemption test. This is what I am hoping to accomplish, as it would allow me to diversify my studies. The test is in the beginning of April.
The exam is broken into the typical 4 parts; oral and written expression as well as oral and reading comprehension. I have no worries about the oral or reading comprehension. If I had to guess, I'd say they are already at a C1 level. I have no issues watching French television such as the amazing show "Engrenages" without subtitles, as well as listening to and reading about complicated world affairs. I've also taken university history and political science courses in French and had no trouble understanding the material. I'll still continue to watch French TV, podcasts and read books of course!
Oral and written expression on the other hand, I am unprepared for. Probably somewhere between B1-B2. It has been years since I have done either, and my active skills are weak. Unfortunately, I'm not 100% sure how I'm going to tackle this yet. For the speaking I'm going to register for the FLS mini discussion groups my university offers a few times a week. I'll also hopefully find some language partners to Skype with.
For the written expression I'm going to first work through the Complete French Grammar textbook for a refresher, although I'll probably focus on mastering the tenses and concepts that are 100% necessary for my exam, and skip over the others. Since I have accurate mock questions for the written part of the exam I also plan to brainstorm the types of vocabulary I should focus on as well as sentence structures, mots de liaison, etc. Naturally I will also be focusing on output, output, and more output, and forcing my poor francophone mother to correct them.
German
My journey with German has been short, but very very sweet so far. I chose it as my third language for my university program and am determined not to make the mistakes I made with French. That brings me to my next deadline. At the end of this August I will be moving to Germany to study there for a full year. I am currently A1, but I hope to achieve B2 or AT LEAST B1 by then. German will be taking a backseat to French until I'm done my French exam, however I will still be putting in some extra time into the language.
I am currently taking a German course at university, which is nice. I'm able to go to my professor's office hours and have free speaking practice as well as pronunciation help. I also have many resources such as Assimil, FSI German Basic, Michel Thomas, Duolingo, Anki, and Memrise. Since this is my first language I'll be attempting to seriously learn on my own, I'm not sure which of these resources will suit me and which work well together, etc. In terms of input I really like podcasts, music, children's books and Readlang.
I'll basically work on German when I'm sick of French
I'm sorry for how long winded this post ended up being, I guess I just had a lot to say! Thanks.
French
I have had a very long and frustrating relationship with French. As I live in a bilingual Canadian city, all elementary and high schools offer a program called "French Immersion", which I participated in. Basically, all of my schooling from grade 4 to grade 10, after which I quit, was done in French. Unfortunately I didn't appreciate the opportunity when I was younger and never put in any effort. It has been 4 years since I stopped studying French, and that takes us to the present day.
I am now studying at a bilingual University, pursuing a degree in a program that requires me to become fluent (or at least functional) in 3 languages; English, French and a third of my choosing. My degree requires that you earn a certain number of credits for each language, or for you to pass an exemption test. This is what I am hoping to accomplish, as it would allow me to diversify my studies. The test is in the beginning of April.
The exam is broken into the typical 4 parts; oral and written expression as well as oral and reading comprehension. I have no worries about the oral or reading comprehension. If I had to guess, I'd say they are already at a C1 level. I have no issues watching French television such as the amazing show "Engrenages" without subtitles, as well as listening to and reading about complicated world affairs. I've also taken university history and political science courses in French and had no trouble understanding the material. I'll still continue to watch French TV, podcasts and read books of course!
Oral and written expression on the other hand, I am unprepared for. Probably somewhere between B1-B2. It has been years since I have done either, and my active skills are weak. Unfortunately, I'm not 100% sure how I'm going to tackle this yet. For the speaking I'm going to register for the FLS mini discussion groups my university offers a few times a week. I'll also hopefully find some language partners to Skype with.
For the written expression I'm going to first work through the Complete French Grammar textbook for a refresher, although I'll probably focus on mastering the tenses and concepts that are 100% necessary for my exam, and skip over the others. Since I have accurate mock questions for the written part of the exam I also plan to brainstorm the types of vocabulary I should focus on as well as sentence structures, mots de liaison, etc. Naturally I will also be focusing on output, output, and more output, and forcing my poor francophone mother to correct them.
German
My journey with German has been short, but very very sweet so far. I chose it as my third language for my university program and am determined not to make the mistakes I made with French. That brings me to my next deadline. At the end of this August I will be moving to Germany to study there for a full year. I am currently A1, but I hope to achieve B2 or AT LEAST B1 by then. German will be taking a backseat to French until I'm done my French exam, however I will still be putting in some extra time into the language.
I am currently taking a German course at university, which is nice. I'm able to go to my professor's office hours and have free speaking practice as well as pronunciation help. I also have many resources such as Assimil, FSI German Basic, Michel Thomas, Duolingo, Anki, and Memrise. Since this is my first language I'll be attempting to seriously learn on my own, I'm not sure which of these resources will suit me and which work well together, etc. In terms of input I really like podcasts, music, children's books and Readlang.
I'll basically work on German when I'm sick of French
I'm sorry for how long winded this post ended up being, I guess I just had a lot to say! Thanks.