Melkor wrote:Skynet wrote:AMBIDEXTERITY + LANGUAGE LEARNING:
To make my language learning more exciting, I have decided to assign French to my left hand and German to my right hand to see if writing my weaker language with my slightly-dominant hand will help improve my German.
Any news on this experiment? Has your German improved? If so, how can you tell if it was the result of changing your writing hand, and not purely because of consistent practice?
Skynet wrote: More than a fortnight into the experiment, I can absolutely confirm that my German has improved tremendously. What is not yet apparent is the cause of this improvement: switching writing hands or simple determination to learn the language over the past 2 weeks. It would be ideal if other ambidextrous members would share their experiences with language learning.
POLL: "Has your L2/L3/LX improved by 'switching' your hands?" If not, please answer the following questions:
DUMMY VARIABLE QUESTION: I am left-handed.
For those who answered that they are ambidextrous:
a) Which language(s) did you write using your dominant hand? Which hand was dominant?
b) Which languages(s) did you write with your non-dominant hand? Which hand was non-dominant?
c) Which language(s) did you switch to either your dominant or non-dominant hand? Did you see any difference?
Definition of ambidextrous: writing skills.
TLDR: I am ambidextrous, with my right-hand being ever-so-slightly dominant. Initially, I used it for French and German, but decided to write my stronger language (F) with my non-dominant hand (left), and write my weaker language (G) with my dominant hand. I was able to see improvements in a fortnight in my German, but no deterioration in my French.
Disclaimer: I am aware that no amount of ambidexterity can substitute diligence, which is why I know that my continued studying of German played a huge role in my improvement. The only way that I can test my hypothesis is to check if other members have noticed this as well.