Total Immersion

Question

This is from yesterday's podcast from Scientific American about Language Immersion:

Adults can have a tough time learning a new language. Some opt for language immersion, in which the person spends all their time reading, listening to and speaking the new language. Now research reveals that immersion students do indeed learn the new language faster than students studying the language in a classroom situation—but immersion comes with a price. The work appears in the journal Psychological Science.

Other recent studies of both bilingual people and those learning a new language have shown that both languages appear to be active simultaneously during reading, listening and speaking. Which means that bilingual people have to constantly solve a cognitive problem in order to use the right language at the right time.

En la investigacion, dos groups of American students learned Espanol. Veinte y cinco estudiantes took part en enfrascamiento absoluto de espanol en Espana. Pero un otro grupo studied solamente en la clase at their universidad en los Estados Unidos. Los estudiantes en Espana habla espanol mejor. Pero their English was no so bueno. Call it conservacion de conversacion.

Answer 1

Muy interesante pero ya yo sé este información y es la verdad. Creo que todas las personas irá a un programa de immersión. Gracias para este información.

Answer 2

Thanks for the post! And especially for the sources -- it´s always fascinating to keep up with the research!

Answer 3

Personally speaking as a bilingual second generation American, I feel that using both is extremely beneficial to teaching younger persons the language. My children learn words in spanish that there is a lack of the word in english and vice versa. Thanks for posting this it is most interesting!

Answer 4

I am about to go for my first immersion experience--only a month, but better than nothing--and I am glad to find some research about it. Thanks!

Answer 5

I am about to go for my first immersion experience--only a month, but better than nothing--and I am glad to find some research about it. Thanks!