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Goals: a list of specific errors to fix | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Learning Techniques, Methods & Strategies |  | |
| Arthaey Groupie United States arthaey.com Joined 4848 days ago 97 posts - 155 votes  Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 1 of 5 17 May 2015 at 5:09am | IP Logged |
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I've been thinking that I could use some more directed learning & improvement of my Spanish. I realized that I've been using Spanish okay during these first 5 months of my year in Mexico, but I haven't been working on anything in particular, just sort of hoping that mere exposure is all I needed to improve from my current level. But really, I think I need to get back to studying and doing exercises.
I searched the forums here for suggestions on goals/milestones/checkpoints/what-have-you. But much of the discussion was around either measuring time in the TL or vocabulary size. Neither has helped so far. In contrast, what I'm considering is much more focused. I'm planning to make a list of the specific errors I make in Spanish, and then work through each one, systematically. For example, I've noticed that I overuse the trilled r where I should be using a simple tap (a hypercorrection for avoiding an American r, I'm sure). So I'd add just that one sound to the list, and I'd focus on it for a while. Then I'd move on to the next thing (perhaps remembering to put "a" before the person who likes a thing, rather than having to do weird self-corrections mid-sentence like I currently do). Etc. I'm hoping that this "micro-focus" will help to actually stop each error as I work on it, until I've addressed all the biggest, most glaring errors I continue to make. So my question is, has anyone else done this? Did it work for you the way I'm hoping it'll work? Do you have any suggestions or advice? 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| luke Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 7007 days ago 3133 posts - 4351 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: Esperanto, French | Message 2 of 5 17 May 2015 at 7:38am | IP Logged |
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Look for the drills in FSI Basic Spanish that address the areas you want to work on.
The Hard Core FSI technique may be helpful at your advanced stage. Edited by luke on 17 May 2015 at 7:38am 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| day1 Groupie Latvia Joined 3694 days ago 93 posts - 158 votes Speaks: English | Message 3 of 5 17 May 2015 at 7:42am | IP Logged |
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Get a friend who will stop you mid conversation and politely point out worst of your mistakes. This method worked wonders for my mother when she was young. Though the "politely" aspect was missing. And "worst mistakes" aspect, too. She was being stopped at smallest mistake and ridiculed by her uncles wife. Maybe slightly traumatic, but she could pass for a native a few years down the line.
I do not think it's so easy to catch and fix your own mistakes. External help is needed. What helped me was writing essays and getting them corrected. Since we tend to write the way we would speak, written corrections help spoken language, too. I felt good about my speaking, I was being understood, and noone really corrected me. Seeing my essays come back all in red ink was an eye opener. I would sit down and look carefully through my mistakes and suggested fixes, and ended up benefiting. 3 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Serpent Octoglot Senior Member Russian Federation serpent-849.livejour Joined 6399 days ago 9753 posts - 15779 votes 4 sounds Speaks: Russian*, English, FinnishC1, Latin, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese Studies: Danish, Romanian, Polish, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Croatian, Slovenian, Catalan, Czech, Galician, Dutch, Swedish | Message 4 of 5 17 May 2015 at 1:06pm | IP Logged |
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Reminds me on the 20 hour technique. See also the post by Benny that I linked to.
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| iguanamon Pentaglot Senior Member Virgin Islands Speaks: Ladino Joined 5064 days ago 2237 posts - 6731 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Creole (French) | Message 5 of 5 17 May 2015 at 2:28pm | IP Logged |
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I agree with everyone else. It is very difficult to catch one's own mistakes. When I write, which I do for a living, if I leave it for a day I can usually find and correct my errors. When I don't have the luxury of time, watch out!
For writing, free options: lang8 is probably still a good bet though you do have to reciprocate by correcting Spanish-speakers' English. There's also the language exchange route, though you'd have to find that rare someone who can keep a schedule and is willing to help you as much as you are willing to help them in return. Shadowing techniques can help, but then again there's that "catch your own mistakes" bugaboo to deal with again. If you are able and willing to pay: I had a tutor for Portuguese and correction was a big part of the value I gained. If you can find one at a reasonable price in Mexico in person, it may be worth it, or, it may be easier to do it online at $10 US per hour with nulengua.com or plqe.org in Guatemala. Just ask the tutor to correct your speech in the session. Talk about your day, your favorite film or your opinion on an issue, with the main focus being correcting your speech and pronunciation. With a couple of sessions a week, for a couple of months, of focused tutor interaction, you should see noticeable improvement. If you can do it for free, great, but sometimes you just have to spend some money. Also, have a look at the Centro Virtual Cervantes Aveteca site with multimedia lessons graded up to C1. Within the lessons are plenty of grammar exercises. Edit: If you have flexibility and need/would like a break from Mexico, you can also physically go to Antigua, Guatemala. There are plenty of Spanish schools there where you can get individual instruction at a very good price. Antigua is a beautiful city. The people are very friendly. The countryside is incredibly beautiful. It's a nice place to spend some time. The cost of living is very reasonable. I took a bus from Belize (via Mexico City to Chetumal, many years ago) but you could probably do a bus (first class is the way to go for comfort) for a low price (compared with flying) from DF to the Guatemalan border. Love those 24 hour Mexican buses all the way to the border! There's no need to arrange for a tutor in advance. Just show up and ask around. Edited by iguanamon on 17 May 2015 at 5:41pm 2 persons have voted this message useful |
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