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 Language Learning Forum : Advice Center |  | |
| Akatsuki Triglot Senior Member Portugal Joined 6109 days ago 226 posts - 236 votes  Speaks: Portuguese*, French, English Studies: Norwegian | Message 1 of 9 21 September 2011 at 2:40am | IP Logged |
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Been awhile since I've posted something on these forums, and I'm returning once again seeking guidance
and your input. So, I'm starting University next week and I'm going for the translation course, majoring in German. This wouldn't be an issue if I knew any German at all. I've been talking with tutors about my choice but they all seem to think it cannot be done. They say starting a major in German with no knowledge of the language will be pretty impossible and at the end of my course I would only obtain B1 level. Every tutor or student I've spoken with, had that glitter in their eyes and they seem to admire my consideration for approaching a major like that with such "difficulty", but they all say it's gonna be tough. So, I've never studied German, that's true, but I did study Norwegian, so I'm not really new to Germanic languages (we'll leave English aside for now), and although they say I'll reach B1 in 6 semesters, I can jump levels if I improve outside class. I've tackled French on my own, but I used native speakers in order to arrive where I'm at right now, and for German that might be a little trickier, but the point is, I've self taught myself one language at least, so I'm not completely new here neither. I'm looking for some positive feedback, but if you think I'm getting ahead of myself here please do tell me! In short, do you think B1 in German in 3 years is a bit too low? I'm not going to ask you if I can be fluent by this or that date, but I will ask you if you think I, or anyone for that matter, can become proficient enough to be able to read in German after 1 year of studying. Please bare in mind that I won't be able to study 6 hours a day to boost my learning. Thank you in advance! Edited by Fasulye on 23 September 2011 at 6:17pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| jarm Newbie Australia Joined 4723 days ago 33 posts - 55 votes Speaks: English* | Message 2 of 9 21 September 2011 at 2:23pm | IP Logged |
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Personally, I got to B1 level after one year of university study (I know this because I went and did a summer course outside of school in Germany after two semesters and their placement test showed it as such), but it really depends on what the course is like and how intensive it is. It's worth noting that I study languages in a university which is ranked very highly world-wide for it's courses.
However, I think you'll find comprehension a bit more of a slug with German compared to French, because of the fact that we have twice as much vocabulary of Romance-language origin than Germanic-language origin. Not only that, but a lot of Germanic prefixes and suffixes are no longer very productive (ie. the words using them are a pretty fixed group) in English, so we don't (or at least I don't) have as much intuition of what it means when it modifies a German word, compared to the prefixes and suffixes attached to verbs and such on French words. Because of the time difference involved, the semantic shift of German words is also greater than that of French words. As a comparison, I also took French at the same stage, with the same amount of contact hours, and although I was at B1 in German after a year, I didn't feel confident reading anything. Whereas in French, I could read most bandes dessinées, albeit with a little difficulty (I went to France and Belgium on that same trip). I'm now two and a half years in and I will be sitting the B2 test at the end of the year with the Goethe-Institut, which my teacher thinks I should be able to handle fine. My progress and motivation in German kinda stalled for about a year, so it took me a while to get up to the B2 level. So, in summary: I think if you have maybe four or five hours of class a week, one extra hour for each hour of class to go over class work, then one hour every day for independent study, you'll definitely get to the B1 stage after a year. That's only with 17 hours a week! Also, I would recommend a linguistics class related to the structure of English and its' syntax. A lot of the tense and time-reference stuff are the same or very similar in both languages (being closely related), but having it fresh in your mind makes it very easy to draw parallels. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| montmorency Diglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 4639 days ago 2371 posts - 3676 votes Speaks: English*, German Studies: Danish, Welsh | Message 3 of 9 21 September 2011 at 7:28pm | IP Logged |
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@Akatsuki:
First, congratulations on your written English. Not that it's any of my business, but I'm just curious why you are plumping for German as a major having not done any at all? How do you know you won't absolutely hate it? (Not that i want to put you off - I think it is a great language to learn, but I've always personally found it "challenging".). Anyway, I was just thinking if you want to take a summer course, similar possibly to that which Jarm was referring to, you might consider this one: http://www.uni-jena.de/Internationaler_Sommerkurs.html I haven't done that particular course (I've done the one they call the "Level 3 course" since it is related to a British Open University course I have done), but I'm sure it will be extremly good, and it's great value, as are the hotels they house you in (which are much better than the usual sort of student accommodation), and by now I know the city and the university very well - both are excellent. That web page is for the summer 2011 course, but I am fairly certain it will run again in 2012 at a similar time and under similar terms & conditions. Edited by montmorency on 21 September 2011 at 7:29pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Kyle Corrie Senior Member United States Joined 4640 days ago 175 posts - 464 votes | Message 4 of 9 22 September 2011 at 1:18am | IP Logged |
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Personally, I'd say the most advantageous and speedy way to learn a language (even to a
high degree) is continuous self-study. Really, that's all a university course is anyway, except that they tell you what to study. You can't learn any language unless it is you that puts in the hours and a few hours a week in a classroom won't do it. If I were you I would get my hands on a copy of the German version of the Colloquial or Teach Yourself series as soon as possible. Work on it and see if you even like the language or not before you waste a semester or two on something you're not even interested in. Believe me. There are plenty of reasons to hate German, but still more to enjoy it. I imagine you can find a copy of those books online if you're really interested. 4 persons have voted this message useful | |
| LebensForm Senior Member Austria Joined 4861 days ago 212 posts - 264 votes Studies: German | Message 5 of 9 24 September 2011 at 9:56pm | IP Logged |
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I understand you, I too am majoring in German, and I started teaching myself the language on my own on and off for a while, than I thought, maybe I should just take classes and get credit, so here I am. I am doing Goethe next fall in Germany and hopefully this will boost my German, I don't see how being immersed in the language could hurt :) but honestly I commend you, German is a diffult language, but it can be learned. People have asked me why German? I was told once, that being born in Germany wasn't a good enough reason to learn it (I'm adopted, been in the states since I was 2). But honestly, you don't need a reason to learn German...
But like someone else said, taking classes isn't going to cut it, persoanlly for me, studying on my own, has helped me with the language more than any of the classes I've taken. Because that way, you can go at your own speed. The good of the classes and that I can practice speaking with others and the language assistants here from Germany. And if you really have the drive to learn it you will, and you will put in the hours and time to do so. In my opinion, I don't know if a year is enough time, but I think if you put in the time and effort you will be amazed at what you will learn in that time. Viel glück!! 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| TMoneytron Groupie United States Joined 4672 days ago 70 posts - 83 votes Studies: German | Message 6 of 9 25 September 2011 at 12:29am | IP Logged |
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I felt German in school to be constraining.
Especially along the lines of "what they tell you to study." We were forced to take a GERM204, Grammar class. Talk about dull. This was suggested before the 301, conversational class. I basically slacked off because I had so much other work to do. Grammar just got to be boring after awhile, and took away my motivation to learn. I felt like I REGRESSED. No vocabulary was learned, and almost no native material was introduced. It was just manuals and workbooks. So, if anything I'd be weary of studying it at school. I've found it much more enjoyable when I can regiment myself and use my own materials. AKA Assimil and Harry Potter! 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| aniken Diglot Newbie Germany Joined 4601 days ago 1 posts - 1 votes Speaks: English*, German | Message 7 of 9 16 October 2011 at 5:30pm | IP Logged |
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I am starting a Bachelors at a Germany University this week, studying Philosophie/Sozialwissenschaft. The program is all in German, and I wanted to get any tips from others who have done a Bachelors program in German, in terms of how difficult it was at first to cope with the language difference, and how quickly they were able to adapt.
Any tips on coping with the language difference would be appreciated. I passed the DSH with a 3 recently, but I know it will still be very challenging. I sat in on lectures this past summer, and at the beginning of the lecture I could some times understand only 50% of what was being said, and then I noticed that once my brain adapted to the language and vocabulary I could understand most of it by the end of the same lecture. I am assuming that it will get much easier with time and acquiring the necessary vocabulary, but I was wondering how long that process took for other people, and if there was any strategies they used that helped. thanks! 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| montmorency Diglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 4639 days ago 2371 posts - 3676 votes Speaks: English*, German Studies: Danish, Welsh | Message 8 of 9 16 October 2011 at 11:47pm | IP Logged |
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@Aniken: Congratulations on getting there, and I'm sure you'll have a great time. I
slightly envy you. I can't say I've been through that experience, and at my age, am unlikely to now (although I'm contemplating a longer version of a summer school at a German uni that I've previously done a few times). It sounds like you won't have a great problem with the spoken and reading material. My guess is that your biggest challenge might be with the written. I assume you will have to produce essays or some other written work on a regular basis. I'd advise trying to get as much practice as you can, in addition to any set work, and try to get it "marked" by a native speaker, schooled in the formal written language at that level. You will probably find yourself needing to stretch your vocabulary considerably, and structure and clarity is almost as important as content. On another tack, if you've not come across them, you might find these of interest: http://www.wdr5.de/nachhoeren/das-philosophische-radio.html See also: http://www.wdr5.de/nachhoeren/tischgespraech.html Viel Spaß! 1 person has voted this message useful |
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