How many mistakes should one allow themselves to make when learning a language if they want to speak it well?
Of course, “well” is relative. I mean comprehensibly, and not broken—to a high level. If you’ve learned a language by allowing yourself to make as many mistakes as possible, how did that go? Do you have many fossilized errors in your output? (Naturally, some languages have more resources than others, and I recognize that. But I also recognize humans are just as resourceful as their lack of resources.)
I’m learning a new language where finding the answer to why something is wrong is quite a bit more difficult than the first language I learned, so that’s why I ask. I like to research and correct myself before I let my work be seen, so this is quite a shock.
Thank you to all who respond. If you need me to clarify something, just let me know.
How many mistakes should one make?
- eido
- Blue Belt
- Posts: 841
- Joined: Tue Jan 30, 2018 8:31 pm
- Languages: English (N), Spanish (C1)
- x 3181
- iguanamon
- Black Belt - 2nd Dan
- Posts: 2353
- Joined: Sat Jul 18, 2015 11:14 am
- Location: Virgin Islands
- Languages: Speaks: English (Native); Spanish (C2); Portuguese (C2); Haitian Creole (C1); Ladino/Djudeo-espanyol (C1); Lesser Antilles French Creole (B2)
Studies: Catalan - Language Log: viewtopic.php?t=797
- x 14189
Re: How many mistakes should one make?
Mistakes are just as much a part of the learning process as anything else. Mistakes are integral to self language-learning. We all make mistakes. I make them. I will continue to make mistakes. The thing is we must try to learn from our mistakes and try to make different mistakes in the future
I can't give you numbers. Over time, with more interaction with the language. The mistakes become fewer. It does take time and frustration. Self Language-learning is a humbling experience.
I can't give you numbers. Over time, with more interaction with the language. The mistakes become fewer. It does take time and frustration. Self Language-learning is a humbling experience.
6 x
-
- Black Belt - 4th Dan
- Posts: 4960
- Joined: Mon Jul 20, 2015 9:46 am
- Languages: Czech (N), French (C2) English (C1), Italian (C1), Spanish, German (C1)
- x 17566
Re: How many mistakes should one make?
Hmm, it has never occured to me you could choose
I've probably overlooked that in my brain's basic settings.
I've probably overlooked that in my brain's basic settings.
6 x
- eido
- Blue Belt
- Posts: 841
- Joined: Tue Jan 30, 2018 8:31 pm
- Languages: English (N), Spanish (C1)
- x 3181
Re: How many mistakes should one make?
iguanamon wrote:I can't give you numbers. Over time, with more interaction with the language. The mistakes become fewer. It does take time and frustration. Self Language-learning is a humbling experience.
Cavesa wrote:Hmm, it has never occured to me you could choose
I've probably overlooked that in my brain's basic settings.
Maybe my question was too specific to me, though I tried to make it have wide appeal
0 x
- jeff_lindqvist
- Black Belt - 3rd Dan
- Posts: 3135
- Joined: Sun Aug 16, 2015 9:52 pm
- Languages: sv, en
de, es
ga, eo
---
fi, yue, ro, tp, cy, kw, pt, sk - Language Log: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=2773
- x 10462
Re: How many mistakes should one make?
Essentially, the more mistakes you make, the more you learn.
That’s why I try to make 200 mistakes a day on my language learning missions.
https://www.fluentin3months.com/mistakes-matter/
5 x
Leabhair/Greannáin léite as Gaeilge:
Ar an seastán oíche:Oileán an Órchiste
Duolingo - finished trees: sp/ga/de/fr/pt/it
Finnish with extra pain :
Llorg Blog - Wiki - Discord
Ar an seastán oíche:
Duolingo - finished trees: sp/ga/de/fr/pt/it
Finnish with extra pain :
Llorg Blog - Wiki - Discord
- SCMT
- Orange Belt
- Posts: 245
- Joined: Thu May 30, 2019 6:32 pm
- Languages: Engilsh (N)
Spanish (Learning)
French (Beginning) - Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=10551
- x 803
Re: How many mistakes should one make?
jeff_lindqvist wrote:Essentially, the more mistakes you make, the more you learn.
That’s why I try to make 200 mistakes a day on my language learning missions.
https://www.fluentin3months.com/mistakes-matter/
Does it count if you make the same mistake 200 times in a row?
0 x
- tarvos
- Black Belt - 2nd Dan
- Posts: 2889
- Joined: Sun Jul 26, 2015 11:13 am
- Location: The Lowlands
- Languages: Native: NL, EN
Professional: ES, RU
Speak well: DE, FR, RO, EO, SV
Speak reasonably: IT, ZH, PT, NO, EL, CZ
Need improvement: PO, IS, HE, JP, KO, HU, FI
Passive: AF, DK, LAT
Dabbled in: BRT, ZH (SH), BG, EUS, ZH (CAN), and a whole lot more. - Language Log: http://how-to-learn-any-language.com/fo ... PN=1&TPN=1
- x 6093
- Contact:
Re: How many mistakes should one make?
It doesn't matter how many you make as long as you learn from them
5 x
I hope your world is kind.
Is a girl.
Is a girl.
- SCMT
- Orange Belt
- Posts: 245
- Joined: Thu May 30, 2019 6:32 pm
- Languages: Engilsh (N)
Spanish (Learning)
French (Beginning) - Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=10551
- x 803
Re: How many mistakes should one make?
tarvos wrote:It doesn't matter how many you make as long as you learn from them
That's the part I forget sometimes
0 x
- rdearman
- Site Admin
- Posts: 7231
- Joined: Thu May 14, 2015 4:18 pm
- Location: United Kingdom
- Languages: English (N)
- Language Log: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1836
- x 23123
- Contact:
Re: How many mistakes should one make?
I do a lot of management and one of my topics is continuous improvement. I often tell people; All business have problems, but only invest in companies who have different problems than last year.
If you want to increase your success rate, double your failure rate. - Thomas J. Watson CEO of IBM
“Failure is a teacher; a harsh one, but the best.” Thomas J. Watson
“Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It’s quite simple, really. Double your rate of failure. You’re thinking of failure as the enemy of success. But it isn’t at all, you can be discouraged by failure – or you can learn from it. So go ahead and make mistakes. Make all you can. Because remember that’s where you’ll find success. On the far side of failure.” Thomas J. Watson
“Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” ― Albert Einstein
“Have no fear of perfection - you'll never reach it.” ― Salvador Dali
“Success does not consist in never making mistakes but in never making the same one a second time.” ― George Bernard Shaw
8 x
: Read 150 books in 2024
My YouTube Channel
The Autodidactic Podcast
My Author's Newsletter
I post on this forum with mobile devices, so excuse short msgs and typos.
My YouTube Channel
The Autodidactic Podcast
My Author's Newsletter
I post on this forum with mobile devices, so excuse short msgs and typos.
- Iversen
- Black Belt - 4th Dan
- Posts: 4768
- Joined: Sun Jul 19, 2015 7:36 pm
- Location: Denmark
- Languages: Monolingual travels in Danish, English, German, Dutch, Swedish, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Romanian and (part time) Esperanto
Ahem, not yet: Norwegian, Afrikaans, Platt, Scots, Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Albanian, Greek, Latin, Irish, Indonesian and a few more... - Language Log: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1027
- x 14962
Re: How many mistakes should one make?
The first problem is to discover the errors (or have them pointed out to you). This will always cause some disturbance into your train of thought and/or working processes, and if you are overwhelmed by errors you can just as well give up and start studying things in a more systematic way where you make fewer errors - and make them in situations where you have a chance to correct them.
But the more controversial thing is what harmful effect the errors you DON'T discover may have in the long run. There is a theory that they get fossilized and will mar your production in the language until the end of your days. I'm not so sure: the best time to discover that you have been massacrating your target language for years on a certain point is when you are sufficiently on top of things to have the time and savvy to correct the problem - not when you are still struggling in the swamp. The only caveat is that you may have become too selfconfident at that point to do something about the problem.
But the more controversial thing is what harmful effect the errors you DON'T discover may have in the long run. There is a theory that they get fossilized and will mar your production in the language until the end of your days. I'm not so sure: the best time to discover that you have been massacrating your target language for years on a certain point is when you are sufficiently on top of things to have the time and savvy to correct the problem - not when you are still struggling in the swamp. The only caveat is that you may have become too selfconfident at that point to do something about the problem.
2 x
Return to “Practical Questions and Advice”
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests