Profeza

      Never   let   your   work   pile   up   more   than   it’s   necessary. Let   me   elaborate   what   I   mean   by   this   statement. When   taking   classes, whether   in   college/online, there   are   some   courses   that   we   feel   comfortable   with   in   our   ability   to   catch   up   if   we   fell   behind. Let’s   say   for   example   we’re   at   the   beginning   of   the   semester, and   we   know   that   our   first   test   in   course #235   will   be   in   seven   weeks   time, and   so   we   decide   that   we’re   going   to   let   the   chapters   pile   up, but   on   the   sixth   week, a   week   before   the   exams, we’ll   go   back   and   revise   all   the   previous   chapters   and   get   ready   for   the   test. Now, I   have   done   this   with   some   other   classes/courses, but   from   my   personal   experience, I   would   advise   anyone   taking   language   classes, especially   at   the   beginner   level   not   t

   One   of   the   things   I   mentioned   in   an   earlier   post   that   is   invaluable   when   learning   a   second/foreign   language   is   practicing   what   you   learn   each   day/lesson/class. Constant   practice   gives   you   the   confidence   and   boldness   to   start   applying   what   you   have   already   learned. The   other   thing   that   will   help   you   succeed   in   your   foreign   language   studies   is   total   immersion. Well, now   I   know   it   sounds   like   I’ve   gone   off   on   a   complicated   trail   of   phrases   and   sophisticated   terminology. But, stay   with   me   and   you’ll   see   that   immersion   is   probably   something   that   you   do   consistently, albeit   in   a   different   context.      In   the   context   of   learning   a   foreign/second   language, immersion   means   taking   every   opportunity   to   expose   yourself   to   situations   where   your   target   language   is   being  

    You   have   just   started   taking   your   language   lessons (could be Spanish, French, Chinese etc) and   then   you   get   to   a   point   and   feel   like   you’ve   come   up   against   a   wall. Nothing   is   making   sense, you   can’t   understand   why   those   words   are   written   the   way   they   are, you   can’t   seem   to   be   able   to   conjugate   any   word. As   a   matter   of   fact, you’ve   even   forgotten   what   the   word   conjugation   means. Most   likely   than   not, at   some   stage, you’ll   hit   this   point. And, the   first   instinct   will   be   flight, because   that’s   how   we’re   wired   as   humans. We   run   away   from   anything   that   threatens   our   wellbeing, including   mental/emotional   wellbeing. If   you   hit   that   point, please, don’t   flee, it   is   a   part   of   the   journey.       One   of   the   things   that   we   tend   to forget, especially   when   we   are   pursuing   a  

     One   of   the   biggest   mistakes   that   people   make   when   studying   a   second/foreign   language   is   to   wait   until   they   develop   some   semblance   of   fluency   before   they   start   attempting   to   speak   the   language. This   is   one   big   mistake   that   has   the   potential   to   adversely   affect   your   long   term   development. I   have   learnt   from    my   experience   that   once   you   start   studying   a   language, whether    it's   Spanish, or   French, it’s   never   too   early   to   start   practicing   to   speak   it. In   fact, I’d   urge   someone   to   start   attempting   to   use   whatever   they   learn   from   day   one. What   determines   one’s   ability   to   speak   is   the   accumulation   of   knowledge   that   they   have   gained   over   the   course   of   their   language   studies. I   liken   the   studying   of   a   language   to   the   building   of   a   pyramid. Pyramids   are

      The   first   step   after   deciding   on   which   language   to   study (Spanish, French, Portuguese etc) is   to   find   a   good   school, college, or   university   to   take   classes. This   is   a   very   crucial   decision   and   one’s   success   will   hinge   on   it. When   I   say   a   good   school, college, or   university, I   mean   good   in   terms   of   the   quality   of   instruction   at   their   languages   department. A   good   institution   will   place   a   high   premium   on   the   development   of   its   students   as   far   as   their   studies   are   concerned. What   this   means   is   that   Professors/Instructors   will   be   concerned   with   their   student’s   progress. When   instructors   are   invested   in   the   student’s   progress, it   becomes   easier   for   one   to   approach   them   for   assistance. On   the   other   hand, if   an   institution   is   only   interested   in   seeing   students   through