By Peter Douglas
DO you find yourself envious of those who can slip effortlessly between English and another language? Or perhaps you’re just keen to woo that special someone with a few choice exotic phrases? Rescu. shows you how to get started.
‘Halo, me gustaria un emparedado’.
I think I just wrote; ‘hello, I would like a sandwich’ in Spanish – but I doubt whether that would really impress anyone.
But, thankfully, there is a huge collection of resources out there for those who wish to learn a new language, and many of them are free online. There is a wealth of knowledge for potential language learners, in the form of CDs, DVDs, instruction courses and podcasts.
It can be fun and free, but don’t be fooled; it takes application and hard work to be able to learn a second language.
Get down to basics
Firstly, how well do you know your English? If you don’t know the difference between a preposition and a conjunction, or a verb and a pronoun, then I suggest you have a closer look in your own backyard before venturing abroad.
Decide which language you want to choose. Is it the French tongue that tickles your fancy? Or do you want to get your head around the complex Japanese language?
Also, decide early on how in depth you wish to go, because you will be faced with a hefty workload of memorising, memorising and memorising.
Online resources
There are many websites dedicated to online language learning, but be mindful of websites that are trying to sell their products. Sometimes they have the word free in the website, but are actually selling something or urging you to try a free trial.
Some suggestions are:
• Livemocha www.livemocha.com/
Livemocha’s rather novel concept is to put language learners in touch with native speakers. It offers various self-paced courses, using plenty of interactive materials. But most important is the social networking function, which means you can befriend and help others as they help you.
• Open Culture www.openculture.com/2006/10/foreign_languag.html
There are mountains of freely downloadable language podcasts online, so finding one that suits can be a nightmare. If you like the idea of learning through your headphones on your daily commute, Open Culture has an A-Z list of language podcasts.
• BYKI www.byki.com/fls/FLS.html
BYKI Lite is a downloadable tool that aims to improve learners’ skills by teaching bite-size phrases. It monitors responses and adapts to suit the learner; it’s customisable and available in an impressive 63 languages.
• Free Language www.freelanguage.org/
Free Language offers a selection of resources for language learners, including video and translation, and plenty of recommendations.
Offline options
To help you choose the right language for you:
The centre for continuing education at the University of Sydney (www.cce.usyd.edu.au/) has an extensive list of language courses, including Arabic, Hindi and Mandarin; Professional and Continuing Education at The University of Adelaide has a large language and culture program. It offers a wide range of language courses, catering for the beginner to the more advanced learner; Courses are offered from organisations such as Alliance Francais, who are based in the metropolitan areas.
And many universities and schools offer a variety of courses:
• Confucius Institute at The University of Melbourne, www.confuciusinstitute.unimelb.edu.au
• Centre for Adult Education (CAE), www.cae.edu.au
• Lyceum Language Centre, www.lyceum.com.au
• Centre of Italian Studies (CIS), www.italianstudies.com.au
• RMIT Short Courses, https://cbs.rmit.edu.au/
Think outside the square
Do check out the podcasts, most are free and they have huge archives. Read foreign newspapers and watch foreign movies. Instead of travelling abroad, make a foreign friend and converse—or simply hook up with a friend who wants to learn, too, and help each other out.
Keep it fun
We all know children pick up a new language as easy as pie, but for most of us it will take a little elbow grease. But the most important thing is to keep it fun and remember the benefits. After all, what do you call the person who speaks only one language? An Englishman!
Until next time, Adios amigos
