The first is to learn English. The second is German. Knowing English and German, you will be able to learn French without any problems, since the lexical base will already be laid. But they are practically not useful to you when living, say, in the UAE. And you won't be able to use them if you go to work in China or Uganda.
In China, English can be explained with units, and in Uganda, knowledge of Swahili is especially urgent - less than 1% of the population speaks English here. We recommend evaluating not the global perspectives of the language, but its prospects for you, for your later life and work. How to do it, what languages should be learned and how to compare them with your own priorities? More on this later.
Which language to learn first
English. With rare exceptions that only prove the rule. It is the official language in over 60 countries around the world. English is spoken by more than 1.5 billion people around the world. It is native to more than 700 million people. Take a look around - the best songs, TOP movie scripts, documents, instructions - all this is written in English. Knowing it significantly increases your chances of employment and your value as a qualified employee, no matter what industry you work in and whatever your duties include.
5 reasons to learn English first:
- Opportunity to clarify in most countries of the world.
- Best for travel and business trips abroad.
- The ability to watch the best Hollywood movies in the original.
- An advantage in education and career development.
- The ability not to face language barriers in everyday life.
It is the most used language in the world. What's more, it is versatile and applicable in most situations.
Example: you want to go study abroad, let's say to Italy, but you don't know Italian. Knowledge of English will allow you to choose a program in which you can use a well-known foreign language for learning as a base. But if you know only German or French, then the chance to get an education in Italy tends to zero.
But there are exceptions. They consist in individual features each person. If English is not given to you, if you feel sincere hatred for studying it, if you do not understand the logic, it makes no sense to torture yourself. Of course, if these are just your feelings, and not the mediocrity of the teacher and incorrectly built training.
Example: singer Shakira knows many languages, but English was the most difficult for her. Despite a close-to-genius IQ and phenomenal learning ability, the Colombian native still doesn't speak English fluently and prefers to sing and speak English only as a last resort.
TOP 5 places to learn English online
 | EnglisDom - free introductory lesson +2 lessons with promo code enboxA192 New generation online school of English. The teacher communicates with the student via Skype, and the lesson takes place in a digital textbook. Personal training program. |
 | Inglex - 3 free lessons By promo code WELCOME. School of English on Skype. Strong Russian-speaking teachers and native speakers from the UK and the USA. Maximum speaking practice. |
 | SkyEng - free trial lesson The largest online English language school that gives you the opportunity to individually learn English with a Russian-speaking teacher or native speaker. |
 | Improve your knowledge of English by playing in the form of a game. |
 | Lingualeo - free registration An interactive online service for learning and practicing English in a fun way. |
What language to learn second, third, fourth
There is no need to guess here - it is important to be guided by the desires, needs and tasks facing you. Motivation is the basis of fast and successful learning. You must clearly understand why you need it and at what level you need to master it. It is recommended to formulate goals and only after that start considering options.
Suppose that after graduation you want to enter one of the Czech universities for a master's program. Then you should learn Czech. Or in your city there is a plant owned by the Japanese - in order to make a successful career as a manager, knowledge of Japanese is desirable here. We know nothing about the tasks before you. Therefore, we can offer only TOP-7 languages (besides English), which are most often chosen for study:
- French.
- Spanish.
- Chinese.
- Italian.
- Arab.
- Norwegian.
Let's make a reservation that the Scandinavian languages are among the most difficult in the world. If you are planning to move to Norway or Sweden but are not making progress in learning Norwegian and Swedish, consider your options. It is no secret that in Sweden they are quite loyal to emigrants, not those who know the language. Moreover, children have the right to study in their native language: if there is at least one Russian-speaking child in the school, then a Russian-speaking teacher will be found for him. Therefore, be sure to clarify the need for training.
TOP 5 most promising languages
If you do not set yourself the task of moving or traveling frequently to a certain country, working in international enterprises and being a sought-after translator, then we recommend that you pay attention to the most promising languages in the world. They may not be the most sought after and not the most popular on this moment time. But if you do not know which foreign language is better to learn in terms of its prospects in the future, this rating is especially for you.
Chinese
The most widespread in the world. The prospects for the Celestial Empire in terms of the development of the economy and industry are beyond doubt. Strong contacts with Russia, the United States and other leading economies of the world lead to the emergence of a mass of international enterprises in which knowledge of Chinese is highly welcome. Chinese is at least 10 radically different dialects. It makes sense to learn literary (it is also called Mandarin or Northern Chinese) - it can be used to communicate with a native speaker of any dialect.
Spanish
It ranks third in prevalence among all languages of the world. It is also one of the easiest to learn. It is used not only in Spain, but also in many countries that were once colonies. Not all of them are alike - for example, in Mexico they speak a special dialect of Spanish called Español mexicano. There are significant differences, but if necessary, you can speak in classic Spanish with any Mexican - you will be understood.
Deutsch
Germany is one of the strongest economies in the world, one of the most developed and comfortable countries for life. Therefore, the language has not lost its prospects for more than a century. German is spoken not only in Germany, but also in Austria, Switzerland, and a number of other European countries. It is especially promising for employment and emigration to Europe.
Arab
It ranks 4th in terms of prevalence in the world. More than 240 million people speak it in different parts of the world. The difficulty lies in the fact that the language has a lot of local dialects, and learning classical Arabic does not guarantee you understanding them. However, they will understand you - you will be able to speak not only as a tourist, but also as a specialist.
Japanese
The official Japanese language is only in Japan, but to varying degrees it is in demand in at least 25 Asian countries. By the way, it has a minimum of similarities with Chinese, you should not combine the study of these two languages, mistakenly assuming their identity. From the point of view of prospects, it is worth noting the development of the state economy, scientific industry. Japan is one of the world leaders in terms of GDP.
What foreign language to learn for emigration
Naturally, this depends on the country to which you plan to emigrate. Our advice will be relevant only if you have not yet decided on the place of your future residence.
We are guided by information about the most popular countries for emigration among Russians. Which languages do you need to learn according to these data:
- English - most often, Russians prefer to emigrate to the United States. He is also in demand for admission to universities in the USA, Great Britain, Canada and a number of other countries under special programs and grants that cover tuition costs.
- German and French is ideal if you want to emigrate to these countries and stay there after completing your studies. Education in these countries is practically free (with the exception of mandatory fees of 300-500 euros per semester).
- Italian is required for immigration to Italy. Interestingly, the level of English proficiency in this country is almost at the same level as in Russia. In general, Italians, unlike many Europeans, do not speak English well.
Also popular destinations for emigration are Scandinavian countries - Sweden, Norway, Denmark. Russian citizens also willingly emigrate to European countries- to Switzerland, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Serbia, the Baltic countries. But according to surveys, less than 10% of Russians ready to emigrate plan to go to Asia.
What foreign language to study for a child
Here again, it is important to be guided by the conditions of the child's life. Do not choose the simplest language - choose the most promising. At the same time, observe the child's enthusiasm, his desire to learn. If you see that he is absolutely indifferent to learning, change the tutor or place of study. If the result remains the same, it makes sense to choose another language for learning. The most popular are English, French, German and Spanish. The native languages of the parents (or one of the parents) should not be taken into account.
What language is better to learn as an additional? It makes sense to pay attention to the options with the simplest grammar - Italian, French.
Educators disagree about whether a child should learn two languages at the same time. It is important to monitor the condition of children - they should not be overloaded. You should not take away their childhood, guided only by their own ambitions and the desire to get a comprehensively developed child prodigy. Observe the child's attitude to the educational process - his desire is extremely important.
The easiest and most difficult languages to learn
The starting position is important here: for example, knowledge of English will greatly simplify the study of the languages of the Latin and Germanic groups. Your native language is also important. It is no secret that the easiest way for Russians to learn Ukrainian and Belarusian, Bulgarian and Serbian. However, they cannot yet be called promising in the global sense. Therefore, we note the most simple European ones to study:
- English.
- Italian.
- Spanish.
- French.
Spanish is considered to be the simplest - it is characterized by simplicity of spelling, grammar and pronunciation. As it is heard - so it is written, there is no need to be afraid to make mistakes. Ideally, if you know English - Spanish has a very similar vocabulary, and learning will go as quickly as possible. The second and third places are Italian and French, respectively. English is more complex but also quite accessible.
It was from him that all dialects were formed, therefore, even when moving to a country where pure language variations are not practiced, you can quickly adjust. In the classical version, it is also easiest to follow the logic of word formation and sentence construction. It is often clearer, more pleasing to the ear. Almost always it is literary and official for drafting documents.
Conclusion
Learn the languages that you need and are interested in. Without necessity, there is no motivation, and without sincere interest, there is no desire. Both of these components form the basis of successful learning. It makes no sense to study when the process only causes tension and irritation in you. Learning should truly please you. You must understand why you are studying this particular language, what prospects it opens up for you, what allows you to do it in the future.
If you do not know which languages to learn right now, try to look into the future. Figure out where you want to live and what to do. Choose English as your base and master it at a decent level. If you already speak English, move on to others. But be careful - only some people are able to simultaneously learn French and, say, German. In other cases, separate training is required.
Maria Kositsyna
Editor of the Info-Profi portal, head of the Student Projects Support Center of Tyumen State University.
Some people think that there is a special gene that allows you to learn several foreign languages in a lifetime. In fact, knowing five or eight foreign languages is not a special gift and not even years of hard work. Believe that everyone can do it, and follow 12 rules from experienced polyglots.
1. Learn the right words the right way
Learn new language- means to learn new words, a lot of new words. Some people think they have a bad memory for words, give up and quit learning. But here's the bottom line: you don't have to learn all the words of a language in order to speak it.
In fact, you do not know ALL the words of your mother tongue but you speak it well. Just 20% of the effort to memorize new foreign words will provide you with 80% of your understanding of the language. For example, in English language 65% of the written material includes only 300 words.
These words are used very often, and this scheme works for all other languages. You can find these frequently used words or a specific topic and frequently used words by that topic.
There is a program for PC and smartphones Anki. Here the method of cards is used, when the question is written on one side, and the answer is written on the other. There are no cards as such, only questions and answers that will appear until you remember the word. You can also use real cards, such as Vis-ed for study different languages. You can buy them or make your own.
2. Learn related words
You already know a lot of the words of the language you are going to learn. Whatever language you start learning, you know at least a few words, so it's basically impossible to start learning from scratch. Related words are "true friends" of words from your own language that mean the same thing.
For example, in Romance languages - French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and others - there are many related words with English. English originally borrowed them from the Normans during the conquest, which lasted several hundred years. Action, nation, precipitation, solution, frustration, tradition, communication, extinction, and thousands of other “-tion” words sound exactly the same in French, and you can immediately use them once you get used to the pronunciation.
Just change "-tion" to "-ción" and you will get the same words in Spanish. Change of ending to “-zione” - Italian, “-ção” - Portuguese. In many languages there are words with common root which sound a little different. But still you have to try hard not to understand what in question. For example, hélicoptère (French); porto, capitano (Italian); astronomía, Saturno (Spanish).
To find common words you can search for borrowed or related words in the language you are learning. This method works for European languages, but what about the rest, like Japanese? It turns out that even in the most "distant" language you can find enough familiar words. This works especially well if you know English and want to learn another language. Many languages have borrowed words from English and adapted them to their pronunciation.
So include borrowed and related words in your first list of new words. It will be much easier for you to learn them than completely new words that are not similar to the words in your native language.
3. You don't have to travel
Another reason (or justification, depending on how you look at it) for not learning a foreign language is that people cannot visit another country where that language is spoken. There is no money, time, etc. Believe me, there is nothing in the air of another country that would make you suddenly speak a foreign language. There are cases when people live in another country for several years and do not learn the language.
If you need immersion in a foreign language, it is not necessary to buy a plane ticket - you can do it via the Internet. If you want to listen to conversations in a foreign language, here is the Tunein.com Internet resource with over 100,000 real radio stations from all over the world.
There is an app of the same name for iOS and Android smartphones (free) where you can find several radio stations in the language you are learning and listen to them every day, anywhere. If you prefer to watch videos in your language, find the most popular videos in your country at YouTube Trends Dashboard.
Go to the Amazon or Ebay of the country you are going to learn (e.g. amazon.es, amazon.fr, amazon.co.jp, etc.) and buy your favorite movie or series in a foreign language. You can use online news services different countries, such as France24, Deutsche Welle, CNN Español and many more.
To read materials in a foreign language, in addition to the same news services from different countries, you can add reading blogs and other popular sites, and you can find them on the Alexa website. If you find it difficult to immediately translate foreign articles, Chrome has special plugin which will help you gradually learn different expressions in a foreign language, translating parts of the text. That is, you read the text in your native language, and some parts of it in a foreign language.
4. We train on Skype and not only
So, you already have something to listen to, something to watch and even something to read, and all this in the warmth and comfort, in other words, at home. Now it's time for the next step - talking with native speakers. In general, if your goal for learning a language includes speaking it, this item should be one of the first.
Let's say you start learning a foreign language. It will take a little time to learn the basic words and repeat what you already know. And then immediately establish contact with native speakers and start talking with them.
You won't need many words for the first dialogue, and if you start the conversation immediately after you've learned them, gaps in your vocabulary will show up that same day and you can add the missing expressions to your vocabulary.
In four to five hours, you will have time to learn a few words in another language, and among them it is desirable to include such words and phrases as “hello”, “thank you”, “Can you repeat it?” and I do not understand". All words for the first dialogue can be found in phrasebooks.
Now about how to find a native speaker and impose your society on him. And it's not as difficult as it seems. For example, on Italki.com you will find professional teachers, informal learning, and even just conversationalists.
Moreover, training is very inexpensive, for example, you can find Chinese and Japanese courses on Skype for $5 per hour. If it still seems to you that one day of preparation is not enough to start communicating with a native speaker, think about the fact that communicating via Skype does not prevent you from opening a file with basic phrases in a foreign language that you have not had time to memorize well.
In addition, you can use Google Translate and learn the words you need in the dialogue along the way. This is not a scam, because your goal is to learn how to speak and do it well.
5. Don't waste money. The best resources are free
It is worth paying for the constant attention of native speakers, but, as you can see, the courses cost a penny in general. As for the other facets of education - it is not clear why pay hundreds of dollars, if all this can be obtained for free. Duolingo has great free language courses.
Everything is presented here in a playful manner, so learning the language will be more interesting. If you already know English and want to learn another language, a number of free courses provides FSI and Omniglot. BBC languages offers basic phrases for over 40 languages, and About.com's Languages section has information on specific aspects of different languages.
Although Asian languages are not classified in this way, you can still take similar tests for Chinese and Japanese. So what will you be aiming for? And what do the words "possession" and "perfect possession" mean to you, if you translate them into real levels?
As a rule, "ownership" begins with an increased average level (upper intermediate, B2). This means that in social situations you will be able to speak just like your native language. You can easily chat with a friend in a bar, ask a person how he spent the weekend, and talk about your aspirations and relationships with people.
Of course, this is not the level of language at which you can speak. professional activity. This requires more high level- С2 (advanced advanced). But you won't work in every language you learn, will you?
To make your goal achievable, lower your requests. For example, if you work in English, aim for C2 level, but only learn German, French and Spanish up to B2 level, which is enough for speaking, reading, watching movies and shows in these languages.
If you focus on speaking (maybe also reading) when learning a language, you can become fluent in a few months. And finally, to make your goal limited in time, it is better to set yourself limits for a few months.
Three to four months to get new level, is the perfect time. Tie the end of your goal to an event that will be relatively soon, such as your summer vacation, your birthday, the arrival of guests, etc. To track your progress, you can use special applications, such as Lift. And here is a selection of goals for those who learn languages.
10. From conversational (B1) to perfection (C2)
To constantly improve your level of spoken language and learn to speak fluently in just three months, you need to train constantly. You should speak a foreign language for at least an hour a day, and it is advisable to choose different topics in order to learn more and more new words that are used in conversation.
For example, you can start your daily workouts by asking the other person how they spent their day and talking about their experiences. Then move on to discussing what you have been told, talking about your thoughts and opinions. Talk about your hobbies, your aspirations and goals, what you don't like, how you are going to spend your vacation, etc.
Going from B1 to B2 in a short time is quite difficult, and you will make a lot of mistakes. But, as said before, mistakes are your progress and moving forward. After regular practice in speaking, you will begin to better understand grammar rules. However, this approach does not work with everyone: for some, it is more convenient to learn grammar from the very beginning of learning.
Once you get to level B2, the real fun begins. You will already be able to get a full buzz from communicating with native speakers. But in order to jump to the next levels, talking alone is not enough.
You'll have to read newspapers, professional blog posts, and other articles that aren't "light reading." You can accustom yourself to read news from well-known foreign newspapers every morning, and it is advisable to take topics from different categories.
Achieving perfect language proficiency (C2) is even more difficult. If you take an exam for this level and fail it, pay attention to your mistakes. For example, if you passed colloquial speech and grammar, but ruined the hearing, it is clear what to pay attention to in the future. Your workouts should include listening to foreign radio stations, interviews, and other audio material.
11. Learn to speak without an accent
At C2, you know the language as well as a native speaker, but you may still have an accent and make some mistakes. It depends less on your level and more on two factors.
Factor 1. Your accent and intonation
The emphasis is obvious. If you can't pronounce "r" correctly in English, any native speaker will recognize you as a foreigner. You are not used to making such sounds, and the muscles of the tongue are not developed in the right way. But this can be changed: a good YouTube video detailing the pronunciation will help you get rid of the accent.
Intonation is much more important, although it is often overlooked. Step, rise, fall and accents in words. To make your speech similar to that of native speakers, from the very beginning you can follow the musicality and rhythm of speech and try to copy them. You can practice copying intonation on a special resource The Mimic Method.
Factor 2. Social and cultural integration
No matter how well you know a foreign language, people of other nationalities do not recognize you as their own. You may not even be spoken to in your native language, and you will have to use either Russian or English (provided that you learned another language, it will be a little insulting).
And the point here is not even that you do not look like a resident of this country outwardly - to a greater extent you are not similar in behavior. You dress differently, act differently, walk, gesticulate, hold your hands - it's not like foreigners do it.
What to do? As with intonation, you can simply copy the behavior. Observe people, pay attention to all the features of behavior, and you will notice the differences very soon. If you copy behavior, speech rate, gestures and other factors, foreigners will start talking to you in their native language.
12. Become a polyglot
If your goal is to learn several languages, you can start learning all at once, but it's better to stick with one until you reach at least an intermediate level and can speak it confidently. Only then move on to the next language.
Although you can make significant progress in a few months, in order to speak the language you have learned for the rest of your life, you need to constantly practice and improve your skills. But there is good news: if you have learned to speak a foreign language fluently, it will stay with you for a long time.
How many languages do you know, and was it easy for you to learn them?
In the modern world, knowledge of a foreign language has long been a mandatory item in a resume. Language skills greatly facilitate the job search and distinguish the applicant from hundreds of others.
Some vacancies are generally impossible without knowledge of an additional language. They are considered prestigious because they provide access to abroad and provide additional career opportunities.
Knowing a foreign language is not only useful for your own development, but also profitable. For example, these prestigious professions are simply impossible without language skills!
1 Written translator
The profession of a translator implies knowledge of a foreign language at the highest level. Such a specialist is mainly engaged in translating complex texts from one language into another. Common topics are law, business correspondence, documents and other important papers.
The translator has a great responsibility, because every dot or comma is important in documents. For such a load, the payment is quite decent, but the requirements are high. Rare languages such as Greek or Latin are especially popular. Knowledge of a rare language at the highest level makes a specialist in great demand.
Such work can be found in government agencies or private translation agencies in your city. It should be borne in mind that certain qualifications may be required for the translation of documents.
2 Simultaneous interpreter
Another profession related to translations is a simultaneous interpreter. His duties include a complex type of interpretation, in which speech is translated simultaneously with the speaker. Such a specialist is invited to multilingual events, conferences and seminars.
A simultaneous interpreter must be prepared for hard work, which requires a high concentration of attention, speed of reaction and good health. Often, several simultaneous interpreters are invited to major events at once, who replace each other in 15-20 minutes.
A person who has chosen this profession is waiting for a long training and practice. A specialist who fits all the requirements will easily find a highly paid job.
3 Teacher/tutor
The love for learning languages can be shared through teaching or tutoring. A foreign language teacher can find work abroad at a college, university, conduct language courses and give lectures. A tutor, on the other hand, can work with students of any age privately online or in person.
This job is suitable for those who like to work with people and have Teacher Education. Language skills can not be limited to English alone - rare languages \u200b\u200bare very popular, since narrow specialists are much more difficult to find.
For teaching in educational institution It is worth considering vacancies in schools and universities. If you plan to do tutoring and work with private clients, pay attention to those who help in finding full-time and online students.
4 Tour guide
Knowledge of the language will be an indisputable advantage for the guide or guide. The specifics of the work is that tour groups often consist of foreigners, so a guide who speaks a foreign language definitely has advantages over the rest.
In addition, knowing an additional language will help the guide get a job abroad. For such work, it is important to know not only the humanities, but also to be able to organize people and even provide first aid.
To work as a guide, you need to study at a special faculty or complete courses. Moreover, it should be borne in mind that the specifics of working with a group in the local language and in a foreign one are very different.
5 Specialist in working with customers
A customer service specialist, in other words, a manager, can reach a new career level thanks to the knowledge of a foreign language. This skill will help you get into language school, a translation agency or any company that specializes in language learning.
The duties of the account manager will include working with client bases and searching for new clients. Accordingly, most negotiations will need to be conducted in a foreign language. This significantly increases the salary when compared to a regular manager.
If the level of knowledge of the language allows, you can look for a vacancy among educational companies hometown or even abroad.
6 Work at the embassy
Prestigious, but not particularly profitable occupation - work in the embassy. The difficulty lies in the fact that there are few vacancies for this specialty, there are many candidates, so each of them undergoes a rigorous selection. The embassy needs workers different areas- accountants, drivers, civil servants, assistants.
For an embassy employee, it is important to have a suitable higher education in the field international relations, which can be obtained at several universities in the country. The main requirement is proficiency in the language of the country where the embassy is located. Russians are willingly taken to the consulates of developing countries.
Career growth for employees of these institutions is a rarity. Basically, the employee expects a routine, but stable work.
7 Copywriter for a foreign edition
With the development of Internet professions, copywriting has gained immense popularity. The Internet is filled with representatives of this profession, and a copywriter with knowledge of foreign languages will be able to stand out among colleagues.
Such a specialist will be able to work not only in the market of his country, but with publications in other countries. A huge field of activity opens before him, since there is already a lot of competition among Russian-speaking colleagues. The disadvantages of this profession are the same as in ordinary copywriting - not everyone can work in free swimming.
The search for vacancies should start with foreign publications, including online magazines. It is important to write several works and prepare a summary that can be sent to any publication you like. You can also pay attention to foreign labor exchanges.
8 Education Abroad Coordinator
For this profession, knowledge of a foreign language is also in the first place. Such a specialist must have organizational skills, the ability to work with people, higher education and be fluent in their native and additional languages.
The coordinator must be ready to keep records, and other activities, purchase educational materials. Important advantage (or disadvantage) - living abroad.
For the performance of their duties, the coordinator receives an above-average salary. You can start looking for a job by monitoring educational companies in your country.
9 Business Marketer
A good marketer is worth its weight in gold, so in this profession it is important to know a foreign language. For large companies, first of all, it is required to enter the international market, which is available only with the language skills of a marketer.
Knowledge of an additional language will advantageously distinguish a marketer from colleagues. Bring sales to the international market and explore target audience another country can only be a specialist who knows the language. This skill significantly increases the salary of a marketer.
You can look for a vacancy in marketing not only in large companies, but also on freelance. Online sales also require competent marketing and business expansion outside the country. In addition, a specialist can work with clients remotely.
10 foreign correspondent
For journalists, knowledge of an additional language in the modern world is simply necessary. For example, a correspondent can move up the career ladder considerably by reporting from another country.
To work as a correspondent abroad, it is important to know the language of the country where the shooting will take place. It is advisable to study the culture and political situation in the country in order to be objective. It is important to note that in some countries it is quite difficult to be a foreign correspondent due to censorship and difficult political situations.
You can start looking for a vacancy for a foreign correspondent from major publications. For this specialty, it is important to have a higher education and excellent knowledge of the language.
Proficiency in a foreign language in most cases is not just a check mark on a resume. This is a useful skill that will help you get a prestigious job and move up the career ladder.
Do you have a dream that requires knowledge of a foreign language, but no understanding of how to implement it? Join my step-by-step 30-day program of my author's training. In the process, you will build a personal goal achievement system and learn how to apply a foreign language in real situations through daily mini-tasks and reports.
Like the article? Support our project and share with your friends!
That the study of foreign languages is a "threat to traditions", and criticized the idea of the Ministry of Education to introduce a mandatory USE in a foreign language and add a second language to school curriculum. In the Duma, her position was supported. T&P contacted 6 experts from the fields of neuroscience, psycholinguistics, translation and social psychology to find out what is useful for learning foreign languages and what its absence can turn into.
"Several languages give several pictures of the world"
Even Ludwig Wittgenstein wrote that "the world of a man is what his language is." Language largely determines how we look at the world and how we perceive it. According to the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis (the hypothesis of linguistic relativity), which is being actively discussed in science today, language affects our thinking and the process of cognition. Therefore, when a person knows more than one language, he has several pictures of the world. This is an incomparably richer life. You need to learn foreign languages not because it is useful for traveling - now you can get by with English - but because, penetrating into another language, you penetrate into other worlds. Why do people learn Latin, Ancient Greek, Sumerian? After all, these Sumerians, ancient Greeks and Latins are long gone. And yet, you can imagine what kind of world they lived in by studying their languages. Language proficiency is not a matter of technical well-being when you can go to a store in China and say Right words. It's not about that, it's about expanding your world.
Any training changes the brain. And when the brain learns, the number and quality of nerve connections increase in it, the efficiency of gray and white matter grows. Therefore, no matter what this brain is doing, whether it solves simple crossword puzzles, which seems to be a difficult task for a particular person, or proves complex theorems that are suitable for completely different people as mental work, it improves the brain. This is true at any age, because neural network develops every second. The brain is always changing, even at 90. Learning foreign languages in this sense is extremely efficient due to code switching. When you switch from one language to another, it is a very difficult job for the brain. And hard means good.
Of course, the younger the brain, the more plastic it is, that is, the more capable of learning and changing - therefore, the earlier a person begins to study anything, the more useful it is. With respect to foreign languages, this is triple the case. This does not mean that in adulthood it is not worth or impossible to do this - just in childhood such activities are much more effective.
Canadian scientists conducted experiments showing that people who know more than one language postpone memory loss by several years due to the development of neural connections. When a person speaks several languages, his neural network works more intensively. The brain in this case will be more preserved. This pushes back a theoretically possible decline intellectual abilities including memory loss.
Tatiana Chernigovskaya
Neurolinguist, Doctor of Philology, Doctor of Biology, Professor, St. Petersburg State University
"Rejection of languages will return Russia to a state of savagery"
Knowledge of a foreign language affects the breadth of thinking. In addition, people who study it are much more sensitive to their native Russian language, and, accordingly, to literature. After all, the language is often taught not only for practical purposes, but also in order to read works of art or non-fiction. From foreign languages come concepts that cannot be translated, and which do not exist in our reality, so their study significantly broadens one's horizons. It also, of course, has a positive effect on mental abilities. Languages are indispensable to those involved in science, since much of the material is now not translated, and has never been fully translated.
Of course, there are people who are not very capable of foreign languages, but they are not completely incapable. Ignorance of the language limits knowledge in general - both social and scientific, and all the rest. It makes a person more limited. Over the past 20 years in Russia, people began to learn more language, and were involved in a wider range of information. You definitely get a lot more information about life if you know languages.
We all exist in the same world, and a foreign language introduces us to other civilizations. These acquaintances do not occur by someone's selection: a person begins to freely navigate in what he wants to know. Translations cannot cover everything, so some things need to be known in the original. Or, say, a person who is engaged in literature will be able to compare what he read in a foreign language with what he read in Russian. This broadens his range of knowledge. And it will be the same in any field. Neither in physics, nor in computer science, nor anywhere else, everything can be mastered only through translations.
Of course, with a certain amount of effort, any text can be translated. But there are many concepts in the world that we do not have and come to Russian first in the form of barbarisms, and later become part of it and, as a result, expand it. You can take any scientific dictionary and you will see how many words we simply borrowed. It seems to us that the word "influence" has always been in Russian, but in fact it was invented by Nikolai Karamzin, and this is a tracing paper from the French "influence". If you stop for a second, you will see how many foreign words exist within Russian. For example, the word "computer". At first, such machines were called "calculating devices", but then their designation in English simply ceased to be translated. When you say "computer" instead of "computer", you spend less life on unnecessary actions. Everything can be translated, but concepts from one language constantly enter into others - first as foreign bodies, and then, if this is a necessary thing, they eat into it in a normal form.
The Russian language has absorbed a huge amount of Tatar, Turkic, Latin and Greek words. Usually we do not even suspect that some element of the language is actually a Greek loan, but in Greece, as soon as you learn to read letters, you instantly begin to understand signs. Russian drags words from everywhere. Celtic, Saxon, French, a lot of Danish and even, for sure, there are Dutch - especially if we start talking about the sailing fleet. Under Peter I, we stole from the Dutch many concepts related to shipbuilding. We simply no longer notice that these are words of foreign origin. "Atom", "Jesus Christ", "patriarch" - all these are also foreign words. If no one knew Greek or English, we simply would not have these concepts, and we would again turn into barbarians.
To stop teaching foreign languages means to stop the development of Russian. The Russian language is the main field of all intellectual activity in Russia. If it is artificially limited, cut off from the world by an iron curtain, we will have a mentally retarded country. The rejection of foreign languages will return Russia to a state of savagery.
Viktor Golyshev
Translator of Anglo-American literature, author of classical translations of many works
"The poverty of the language is associated with a lack of mental development"
Today, there are many studies in which magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has shown how the volume of speech-related brain formations increases when learning a second language, even in adults. This suggests that the brain, in principle, has the resources to master several languages. There are studies that have shown a significant development of cognitive (cognitive) skills in people who speak two or more languages. This is not surprising, because concepts are formed on the basis of language, and thinking is nothing but operations with concepts.
It has long been noticed that the poverty of the language correlates with the insufficiency of mental development. This is primarily due to the fact that, in the words of the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein, "the limits of our knowledge are determined by the limits of our language." Learning languages is one of the most intellectual activities of the brain. After all, this is not just a mechanical memorization of new words, but also the embedding of these words into a single system of concepts. Like any exercise, learning languages keeps the brain functioning at a high level.
Second, third, etc. Languages clearly make the picture of the mental world richer, richer in descriptions of how things and phenomena are interconnected. Thus, each item gets more "hooks" for memorization and subsequent retrieval from memory. Memory becomes stronger, more capacious and more associative. The latter quality is especially important, since it is associations that are the basis of creativity.
Alexander Kaplan
Doctor of Biological Sciences, Psychophysiologist, Head
laboratories
neurophysiology and neurointerfaces, Moscow State University
"Languages affect thought processes, memory and personality"
Learning a foreign language, like any other experience, does not go unnoticed for our consciousness and brain function. Any information that enters the brain from the outside at any moment of its activity modifies neural connections. The consciousness of a person who speaks two or more languages will never be equivalent to the consciousness of a monolingual - a person who speaks only one language. Experiments that have been carried out - they are, for example, described in the works of Judith Kroll (Judith Kroll) - indicate that bilinguals automatically activate both languages in their mental lexicon, even when language situation expands in only one language. For example, when an English speaker hears the word "marker", in addition to English word also activates the Russian "mark" (Marian & Spivey, 2003). To avoid confusion in languages, bilinguals have to constantly "juggle" words and concepts, while suppressing information that is irrelevant to the current speech situation. Some scientists believe that this mechanism helps bilinguals develop executive functions and show greater cognitive flexibility compared to monolinguals.
The idea of "bilingual cognitive superiority" first emerged in the mid-1980s and has since been developed largely under the guidance of University of Toronto psychologist Ellen Bialystok. Over the past 30 years, scientists have conducted many studies and found that bilingual children and adults cope faster and better with tasks that require switching attention, resolving cognitive conflict situations, and choosing between relevant and irrelevant information. Bilingualism also affects the preservation and maintenance of cognitive functions in old age. For example, one 2010 study looked at data from 200 Alzheimer's patients and found that those who spoke multiple languages experienced symptoms 5.1 years later.
Of course, the concept of the cognitive advantage of bilinguals should be treated with skepticism for the time being - after all, a large amount of data remains outside scientific journals, and we still do not know much about how several languages “get along” in the human head, and what mechanisms are responsible for this. But the value of such linguistic knowledge is definitely very high, since languages constantly interact with each other within the framework of the human cognitive system, influence thought processes and memory, and leave an imprint on personal characteristics, not to mention the sociocultural component.
Anna Lukyanchenko
Employee of the Research and Educational Laboratory of Neurolinguistics, National Research University Higher School of Economics, PhD (University of Maryland, USA)
"Without a foreign language, a person is deprived of hands"
A society in which the study of a foreign language is restricted or banned will become one-sided and dull. Languages enrich each other, and without interaction with other systems, Russian will not develop. Indeed, in other languages there are concepts and descriptions of phenomena that simply do not exist in our reality. Without such concepts, without these names, we will not be able to learn anything about unfamiliar or new phenomena. The cultural environment will also be cut off, so that our worldview will suffer greatly.
A person who is unable to express himself in something other than his native language, in communication is simply deprived of his hands. When he leaves somewhere, he immediately finds himself completely dependent on other people and feels helpless. He needs guides to take him everywhere, he cannot live on his own. Such a person can only find a place for himself in his native country, and as soon as he is taken out of there, he will immediately face a huge number of problems.
A person who is only familiar with one culture may become less tolerant and more suspicious and very limited. In the modern world, of course, this is rare: to be so within the same environment, you need to be born in a closed tribe in the Amazon. Most of the world's population has access to books, television, and often even the Internet, so we constantly encounter other cultures. But the question of how we are able to understand them and are ready to accept them is directly related to the study of languages. Prohibitions in this area hinder the development of culture, primarily in the country where they begin to operate.
Lilia Brinis
social psychologist
“A person who has been forcibly limited to his native language and native culture will be deprived of the opportunity to understand the world around him”
Everything Scientific research Linguists and psychologists unequivocally testify that the more languages a person knows, the higher his intellectual level and the better his ability to adapt to the world around him and all his cognitive abilities. The reverse has never been observed. Talk about the fact that learning foreign languages can be harmful has no scientific basis. It is clear why such conversations arise: the authors of such ideas do not like the values \u200b\u200bthat stand behind the languages they study. But fighting values is one thing, fighting learning languages is another. This is the wrong way.
A person who has been forcibly limited to his native language and native culture will be deprived of the opportunity to understand the world around him, since language is the key to the perception of a foreign culture. It's like forcing someone to look exclusively at black and white instead of color photographs. The world is diverse, and this is expressed in how different languages are. A person can be deprived of this diversity if he closes the way to their study.
According to the general opinion of all researchers, the earlier we start learning a language, the easier and with less stress it is acquired. In childhood, a person has mechanisms in his head that allow him to master his native language. After six or seven years, these mechanisms fade away. In an adult, they are practically absent. Therefore, when a child begins to learn a foreign language, he does it effortlessly: classes are quite easy for him, and there are special techniques that help children with this. If we miss this deadline, it will be difficult to start as an adult.
It's not that foreign languages are taught so well in our schools - that's out of the question. Why teach them even worse? Among the statements of Irina Yarovaya was a rhetorical question: “Citizens of which country will we educate?”. This question is very easy to answer. By teaching children foreign languages, we will educate the citizens of a modern, strong, competitive country.
Russian, like any major language, has interacted a lot with other languages in its history. From the time of the very first literary monuments and the very first stages of its formation, we see traces of extremely diverse influences. For example, we observe a very early Germanic influence - the so-called Gothic borrowings. The simplest, primordial Russian words: “hut”, “bread”, “glass”, “letter” are very early Germanisms that entered the Russian language even in pre-literate times. There are also a number of Scandinavian borrowings. Greek had a very strong influence on Russian, which was associated with the adoption of Christianity - however, Greek vocabulary turned out to be not only ecclesiastical, but also everyday. For example, “notebook”, “beetroot” or “sail” are all ancient Greekisms. Then a powerful stream of Turkisms poured into Russian, although their influence should not be overestimated. Many important areas were affected by them: in particular, the administrative and financial sphere. Say, such words as "money", "customs", "label", "treasury" are Turkisms. There is also a mass of everyday vocabulary: “caftan”, “cap” and others. Then came the Petrine era, and with it came a huge stream of elements from Western European languages. At first these were Dutch words, then German and French, and a little later English. The Age of Enlightenment also brought us many German and French words: “role”, “boulevard”, “piano”, “bridgehead”, “scar” and hundreds of others.
We are used to these words and often do not even realize that they are borrowings. I am not talking about such words as “hut”, which are many hundreds of years old, but who would suspect a foreign word in the less ancient Turkism “hearth” or in the more recent “scar”? This is an absolutely natural process, the language is enriched with the help of borrowings and improves its ability to reflect the world around. From this point of view, there are no problems here - only people with deep complexes can have problems.
Borrowing is not a threat to tradition. It is rather strange to speak of language in these terms. Threats to language are quite different, if they come across it at all, and they lie far apart. There is no need to be afraid of borrowings, and it is pointless to fight them. Language is a natural phenomenon that is difficult to control and manage. We can’t cancel, say, the dative case, can we? In the same way, it would be very difficult to ban a word and instill another in its place. Similar attempts have been made in the past, but their effect has been negligible.
People who describe the study of foreign languages as a threat to tradition are likely to be afraid of the values associated with the culture that expresses itself through these languages. This is a substitution of concepts. A person himself is able to figure out whether these values suit him or not. Why decide for him? In itself, learning a foreign language does not change our consciousness in the way that the authors of such initiatives think. It's just that a person has a choice. He himself can judge everything, having access to texts and other people. Study in itself only develops the intellect, just as physical exercise develop muscles and improve health. Depriving a person of access to learning a foreign language, especially in childhood, is like depriving him of movement or color vision. This is a stupid forced impoverishment of spiritual development, not motivated by anything. It is very sad if these ideas prevail.
Vladimir Plungyan
Linguist, specialist in typology and grammatical theory, author of Why Languages Are So Different