No recuerdo nada!

September 8, 2008 3:54 PM

I am looking for resources to help me improve my Spanish quickly-- but wait! There's a hitch.

So I have gone all the way through my intermediate courses of Spanish in my university and have passed with flying colors. But now, I'm in an advanced course-- all Spanish-speaking, all Spanish-reading, no English at all. And I'm lost.

I can understand what people say, and I can understand the reading, but I have trouble constructing my own sentences and I can't speak very well at all. I can read the textbook, for instance, but if I regurgitate what it says in my own words, it's slow, and grammatically incorrect, and I have to look up an embarrassing number of words. Part of the problem was that last semester's Spanish class had almost no emphasis on speaking, so I am very out of practice, and there seems to be no transition whatsoever between the intermediate, "I can get by", and the advanced, "I'm totally fluent."

I need to brush up on my grammar and dramatically improve my vocabulary, stat. The hitch? I've got an over full-time courseload, and so I need to do so in as time-economical a way as possible.

Suggestions are more than appreciated! :D

posted by WidgetAlley to education (11 comments total)

Practice a lot. Find someone who speaks Spanish fluently and have them help. Watch Spanish language TV and movies without subtitles. Yeah, I know that's still hearing and not speaking. But it's another way to hear it, and exposure can't be bad.

And in all honesty, if you feel like the course is too much maybe consider getting out. Especially with the course load that you've described. Practice for a semester outside of class however you can and try the class again when you feel like you're more ready for it. There's no shame in that.
posted by theichibun at 4:13 PM on September 8, 2008

I think that tutoring is really going to be the only way for you to improve your spoken fluency. If you can't make time for it now, then maybe taking theichibun's suggestion and deferring this class if possible, and using the time for one-on-one tutoring instead, might be the way to go.
posted by Sidhedevil at 4:48 PM on September 8, 2008

This is not speaking, but I improved my ability to construct sentences (in French) by frequenting a chatroom with people who spoke that language (make sure they're not other people also learning said language). The downside is that this exposes you to a lot of internet lingo that won't make any sense, just like WTF or O RLY? wouldn't make sense to someone just learning English.
posted by desjardins at 5:18 PM on September 8, 2008

Speaking is always the last and hardest of the four skills to come. I'd agree with Sidhedevil that tutoring, or at least conversation classes with a native speaker, is the way to go. Failing that, teach yourself to carefully repeat, over and over, what you're hearing on your audio CDs until phrases become second nature. (You can come across as a decent speaker on a surprisngly few number of learned expressions.) Get involved in mental monologues whenever you have a spare moment, i.e. when you're alone, talk to yourself in Spanish. Ask yourself questions in your head and answer them. Follow Spanish-language TV programs and repeat what people say, a second behind them. Fill your mouth full of Spanish. Stay motivated at all times, never lose confidence, and be patient. It will come. The advanced, by the way, is not "I'm totally fluent": that's reserved for the very few non-native speakers and makes me think you may be setting the bar too high for yourself.
posted by Holly at 5:19 PM on September 8, 2008

Before you worry about this any more, check out your classmates. Are they really that much better than you? If your university considers Course N+1 a logical successor to Courses 1-N, which you did so well in, then how likely is it that you're completely out of your league?

Keep in mind, too, that advanced language courses are usually a mixed bag of students, and the professor knows that. In my advanced German course this semester, for example, we have people like me who learned the language through study abroad and therefore converse fluently but make stupid grammar mistakes, a native speaker whose grasp of word-choice and noun cases puts us all to shame, and a few people who, like you, came up through the ranks and therefore are way better than the rest of us at dictionary-work and reading comprehension, but struggle to keep up with our spirited discussions. You're not in the class because you can already do it perfectly; you're there to learn.

Oh, and about this: if I regurgitate what it says in my own words...I have to look up an embarrassing number of words. That is completely understandable and totally normal. It means that you're using your English words and trying to translate on-the-fly. I know it's really hard, but try to think in Spanish, even if it's just stupid baby-sentences about the things you see around you. Even though it's an advanced class, you'll do so much better jumping in with simple sentences you are confident of than agonizing over long, complex thoughts that you don't trust yourself to have translated properly. Accept that you can't discuss philosophy yet. It's okay.

On the topic of learning fast, though, I really love the Visual Education flashcards for German, and assume that the Spanish ones are equally awesome. They pack SO MUCH information into a totally usable, portable format. I like to just flip through them before bed, and sometimes I save the ones I don't understand for research/in-class questions the next day. I think I paid about $30 for two sets of them at the campus bookstore. Totally worth it.
posted by teremala at 5:28 PM on September 8, 2008 [2 favorites has favorites]

Practice speaking without allowing yourself access to English as much as possible. My best language experience has been programs that do not allow English, and where I refused myself the chance to even think in anything but the absolute minimal English. While the first few weeks the first time I did this were brutal, I was eventually able to think, albiet slowly and stupidly, in Japanese. My Japanese may still be very stilted and horrid sometimes, but it's no longer a matter of worrying that I'll never 'get' the language.

Look up the bare minimum of words. You'll remember things better if you have to ask "what is that word that means ***" instead of finding in them in a dictionary. Studying with other people helps here.

Don't worry about the bad grammar. With practice it will improve, and letting it impede your learning will only slow you.

Practice outside of class. If this is a university, there is a class language table of some sort for you to attend. Go to other classes' if you can.

My experience has been that in every class, I've routinely misestimate how skilled my classmates are. I'm slowly coming around to the idea that I've not been the worst student in every language class I've ever taken, but it's still a tough sell. Keep at it if at all possible. At some point you're going to have to face the long (i.e. neverending) period of turning study into practice, and this sounds to be it.
posted by jacobbarssbailey at 7:25 PM on September 8, 2008

Definitely talk to yourself in Spanish. I used to walk home from class thinking, "Bueno, nena, qué vamos a hacer hoy? Tengo tarea de la clase de..." Plan out your evening in Spanish, summarize what you did that day in Spanish, and just generally keep jabbering to yourself. It doesn't matter if your sentences are short and silly, just keeping up a stream of words will help you get into the swing of things.

In the same line, you can keep a journal in Spanish. Writing is easier than speaking because you get to erase, but you still get to practice formulating sentences. You can look up words now and again, but try to just reformulate your thoughts so you don't have to.

Also remember that many of your classmates won't notice your grammar mistakes because they're too trying to formulate their own contributions to the discussions.

Another thing to do is make sure you always talk in Spanish in the classroom and with your fellow classmates. When you come in, greet people with "Hola, qué tal" or the like. Ask about their weekend in Spanish, and complain about your other classes. In general, talk as much as you can in class.

Learning to speak another language can be daunting, but it's worth it.
posted by matematichica at 8:28 PM on September 8, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

Most of these things were already mentioned, but I'll reiterate them
1) Study with a native speaker or at least a fluent person.
2) Listen to Spanish language radio and/or watch Spanish language TV.
3) Make yourself translate things you see or think into Spanish. I would sometimes translate TV commercials into Spanish in my head while I watched them. Obviously you can't be sure that your translations or Spanish thoughts are correct, but it will get you thinking in Spanish, and that's really important.
4) A lot of areas have informal clubs or classes for people trying to polish their Spanish skills, and people who are fluent.
posted by fructose at 9:48 PM on September 8, 2008

My university's language students and professors often frequent "Foreign Language Tables" at the dining halls. If your school doesn't have them, perhaps you and some classmates could make a habit of eating together and conversing only in Spanish. Put up some flyers to draw non-classmates and fluent/native speakers, too.

If you use Firefox, there are plug-ins that enable you to highlight or mouse over words to get their Spanish equivalent. Other browsers may offer similar features. You could even try frequenting Spanish sites centered on other subjects that interest you.

I took advanced Spanish courses and found myself doing what matematichica^ suggests. It helped immensely.

The whole "use it or lose it" thing applies all too well--I've reverted to "just getting by" Spanish through atrophy.
posted by bonobo at 6:39 AM on September 9, 2008

This guy's reflections on the subject may be of help, as well. He watches himself trying to learn Spanish and then blogs what he's observed.
posted by Holly at 7:05 AM on September 9, 2008 [3 favorites has favorites]

How many weeks have you been in this course?

Talk to your professor and ask whether you're supposed to be feeling fairly comfortable at the point, or whether it's normal for there to be a few weeks of adjustment.

I took some immersion (no English) courses in college, and some of the professors told us not to worry if it felt overwhelming for the first 3-4 weeks. It really did seem like, after three weeks of reading 30 pages a week in the target language, there was a real shift.

Maybe the professor can give you an idea of the cut-off date for dropping the course if you don't experience that shift.

And I'm not sure I ever felt like I was writing well when I wrote in the target language, but I got good grades, and all the red pen circling my mistakes was, after all, what I was there to learn. At some point, you have to learn how to speak and write beyond the intermediate level. This is the point where you learn that. You don't jump full-fledged into knowing it. Maybe you're expecting more of yourself than your professor is.

Beyond that - see if the library has any audiobooks in Spanish and load them onto your iPod, and whenever there's a natural place to take a break, turn off the iPod and talk to yourself, summarizing what you just heard.
posted by kristi at 8:18 PM on September 9, 2008