DerDrache
2008-08-10, 00:44
..."input" being all of the target-language material that enters your brain, as opposed to output, which is when you speak and write.
I've found that it's probably the single most important thing with learning a language, as you're only going to be able to fluently listen and read if your mind can fill in the blanks. For example, any fluent English speaker would know that the phrase "fill in the..." ends with "blank". If they heard "single...important", they'd be able to deduce that "most" was the missing word. If someone mumbled "lea...ng a language", an English speaker would automatically understand they meant to say "learning."
When you aren't fluent in a language, you don't have the ability to fill in most of these blanks. There are lots of common word combinations that you aren't familiar with, and if something is pronounced in an unfamiliar way, you often won't understand it. I figure that recognizing a word (without remembering the meaning) is just as important as knowing the meaning...I mean, with French, I knew the meanings of tons of words, but being unable to recognize some of them in conversation really made it difficult to use the language. I'm making sure I don't make the same mistake with Russian.
So, how much input do you get? What do you use?
For Russian, I've been using a podcast, I've got many episodes of a TV show, and I've got a small collection of Russian films. I notice that I'm remembering lots of phrases and word combinations, even if I haven't actively used them much/at all. The TV Shows and films are native-level materials, and the podcast is 100% Russian, but spoken clearly and at a comfortable pace. When I first started the podcasts about a month ago, it was too fast and I had to listen many, many times to get the gist of what was being said. Now I can listen to new ones and, although there's always new vocab, I'd say I cna understand at least 50% of the podcasts (sometimes 70-80%) without too much trouble. The TV shows and movies are still tough, but I figure I'll just keep on listening to as much Russian as possible, and once I find that I'm understanding it, I'll know I've arrived.
I've found that it's probably the single most important thing with learning a language, as you're only going to be able to fluently listen and read if your mind can fill in the blanks. For example, any fluent English speaker would know that the phrase "fill in the..." ends with "blank". If they heard "single...important", they'd be able to deduce that "most" was the missing word. If someone mumbled "lea...ng a language", an English speaker would automatically understand they meant to say "learning."
When you aren't fluent in a language, you don't have the ability to fill in most of these blanks. There are lots of common word combinations that you aren't familiar with, and if something is pronounced in an unfamiliar way, you often won't understand it. I figure that recognizing a word (without remembering the meaning) is just as important as knowing the meaning...I mean, with French, I knew the meanings of tons of words, but being unable to recognize some of them in conversation really made it difficult to use the language. I'm making sure I don't make the same mistake with Russian.
So, how much input do you get? What do you use?
For Russian, I've been using a podcast, I've got many episodes of a TV show, and I've got a small collection of Russian films. I notice that I'm remembering lots of phrases and word combinations, even if I haven't actively used them much/at all. The TV Shows and films are native-level materials, and the podcast is 100% Russian, but spoken clearly and at a comfortable pace. When I first started the podcasts about a month ago, it was too fast and I had to listen many, many times to get the gist of what was being said. Now I can listen to new ones and, although there's always new vocab, I'd say I cna understand at least 50% of the podcasts (sometimes 70-80%) without too much trouble. The TV shows and movies are still tough, but I figure I'll just keep on listening to as much Russian as possible, and once I find that I'm understanding it, I'll know I've arrived.