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Can I learn 2 languages and a forced 3rd?

 Language Learning Forum : General discussion Post Reply
21 messages over 3 pages: 1 2 3  Next >>
Akao
aka FailArtist
Senior Member
United States
Joined 5337 days ago

315 posts - 347 votes 
Speaks: English*
Studies: Spanish, Mandarin, Toki Pona

 
 Message 1 of 21
06 May 2011 at 11:20pm | IP Logged 
Here is my situation to be very brief:

Language learning is fun and easy for me.
I am forced to learn Spanish in school, so I lost interest in Spanish, but I still study
it.
I like Swedish so I study it.
I really want to throw another language in there but I'm worried it will be too much.
Learning multiple languages in the past has not proven difficult, simply distracting.

Can I handle it now that I'm a bit older? I was 11 when I first tried learning 2 at once
but now I'm 14.

Edited by Akao on 06 May 2011 at 11:38pm

1 person has voted this message useful



lingoleng
Senior Member
Germany
Joined 5299 days ago

605 posts - 1290 votes 

 
 Message 2 of 21
06 May 2011 at 11:44pm | IP Logged 
Akao wrote:

I like Swedish so I study it.
I really want to throw another language in there but I'm worried it will be too much.
Learning multiple languages in the past has not proven difficult, simply distracting.

Why not wait until you have a minimal knowledge of Swedish before you start another language? You should ignore whatever funky and pseudo impressive language lists you see here, what can it matter to you? If you are not interested in Swedish, just drop it and learn the other language, whatever it is. If you don't reach a certain level in your language(s), they won't be of a n y use for you in the future, while o n e language you can really use, will be something you own for the rest of your life. With any language there will be a phase where things get some more difficult, and if you make it a habit to drop it then, you'll never reach anything. Well, that's just my opinion, I am sure there will be many people who think different.
5 persons have voted this message useful



Akao
aka FailArtist
Senior Member
United States
Joined 5337 days ago

315 posts - 347 votes 
Speaks: English*
Studies: Spanish, Mandarin, Toki Pona

 
 Message 3 of 21
07 May 2011 at 12:03am | IP Logged 
I guess I could have elaborated a bit more.

It's not a matter of how many languages I learn, it's really the languages themselves. I
still want to learn a lot simply because there is a lot that interests me.

Swedish still interests me but my main problem is I'm still forced to learn Spanish.
1 person has voted this message useful



ellasevia
Super Polyglot
Winner TAC 2011
Senior Member
Germany
Joined 6143 days ago

2150 posts - 3229 votes 
Speaks: English*, German, Croatian, Greek, French, Spanish, Russian, Swedish, Portuguese, Turkish, Italian
Studies: Catalan, Persian, Mandarin, Japanese, Romanian, Ukrainian

 
 Message 4 of 21
07 May 2011 at 12:44am | IP Logged 
Wait, so you're saying that studying Spanish is a requirement for school, right? But are you also studying it outside of your classes as a supplement to class time? For example, I take Japanese and German at school but still study both on my own time as well.

The reason I ask is that if you're simply learning it at school then I see no reason to worry about being able to "handle it" since you'll be dealing with learning the languages in completely different ways. Learning a language at school is not at all the same as studying on your own. Just think of Spanish as another school subject which happens to bear some similarities to your hobby.

However, I don't really think you should start Swedish and another language at a beginner level at the same time. Especially since two of the languages you've listed on your hit list are closely related to Spanish, you might find it frustrating to be beginning in all three simultaneously. They say that the first foreign language you learn will be the most difficult for you, so do you really want to make all three into your "first" language? I'd say to wait until you get to an intermediate level in Swedish (and/or Spanish) before making a start at a new language.
5 persons have voted this message useful



Akao
aka FailArtist
Senior Member
United States
Joined 5337 days ago

315 posts - 347 votes 
Speaks: English*
Studies: Spanish, Mandarin, Toki Pona

 
 Message 5 of 21
07 May 2011 at 1:05am | IP Logged 
What if I were to drop my Spanish studies completely and simply keep my grades up as if
it was another class?
1 person has voted this message useful



lingoleng
Senior Member
Germany
Joined 5299 days ago

605 posts - 1290 votes 

 
 Message 6 of 21
07 May 2011 at 1:18am | IP Logged 
Akao wrote:
I guess I could have elaborated a bit more.
It's not a matter of how many languages I learn, it's really the languages themselves.
still want to learn a lot simply because there is a lot that interests me.
Swedish still interests me but my main problem is I'm still forced to learn Spanish.

I see two problems, the more general is, that interest alone is not productive. We all can spend our language time here on HTLAL while sharing an interest and talking a b o u t languages, and let's face it, that's a bad thing. Forum time creates forum lucidos, but not experts.
And the second problem is: Why not think about your Spanish classes as a positive thing? Isn't it the only language where you did not stop after lesson 2, exactly because you are "forced" to learn it? And isn't it a fantastic, very useful language with a long history and worth to be studied?
All I am saying is, that you, we should be careful not to become a typical internet expert: He knows every thread ever written and can cite any common place and method by heart, but has no clue about the matter.
1 person has voted this message useful



Akao
aka FailArtist
Senior Member
United States
Joined 5337 days ago

315 posts - 347 votes 
Speaks: English*
Studies: Spanish, Mandarin, Toki Pona

 
 Message 7 of 21
07 May 2011 at 1:21am | IP Logged 
It's not a matter of what interested me in the beginning it's a matter of what will
interest me enough to WANT to continue learning it.
1 person has voted this message useful



lingoleng
Senior Member
Germany
Joined 5299 days ago

605 posts - 1290 votes 

 
 Message 8 of 21
07 May 2011 at 1:35am | IP Logged 
Akao wrote:
It's not a matter of what interested me in the beginning it's a matter of what will
interest me enough to WANT to continue learning it.

Yes, I understand, of course, but you have not found a language that interests you, in all this time you are on line here or in the three years since you started (?) learning languages. I don't want to be unfriendly or push you away from your hobby, keep enjoying it, really, but maybe there is a way, how you can adjust your interest to the languages you are actually learning. I strongly recommend getting at least one language to a usable level, everything less is not what can give you a boost for learning more and new languages with relative ease, if this is what you wish for the future.

Edited by lingoleng on 07 May 2011 at 1:43am



2 persons have voted this message useful



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