Learning Spanish: Classroom vs. independently
I've been reading in my "Pratice Makes Perfect" Spanish workbook, and in the past few days, I've covered about 4 topics. I thought to myself, "Wow. In school, it would have taken us 2 months to get through all of that! And I did it a few days." That got me thinking...is it better to learn Spanish independently or in a classroom?
Independently: When you are learning by yourself, you can go at your own pace. You don't have to spend extra time on a topic that you understand, and you can take more time to learn the more difficult topics. However, in a classroom, you can interact with other students. Sometimes, I find that other students have questions that I later benefit from.
Classroom: You are able to talk to other students and ask them questions. Your teacher will be there to explain the topics for you. However, you have to stay on schedule. Sometimes, you might feel like the class is going to slow, and other times, you might be like you're falling behind.
I think I like learning in the classroom better. Ultimately, I think the choice just depends on your own personality.
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Tell me what you think. 
33 Answers
I think one thing that should be noted about the original question is that it asked whether classroom education or independent study was the more effective method. I don't think that such a question implies, however, that one who undertakes to learn Spanish through independent study must also be bereft of teachers. Not all lessons must be learned through explicit analysis but more often only become firmly rooted through repeated exposure and emulation.
I suppose that my own opinions are probably a bit skewed by the fact that I live in an area where it is not very difficult to find large pockets of Spanish speakers. In such cases, I think that one's conversational abilities are limited only by one's willingness to go out and interact with others on a daily basis. A person who is willing to initiate conversations, who is willing to throw caution to the wind and treat each encounter, each conversation, as a potential learning experience will find that, in all actuality, their classroom is the world, and it just happens to be filled with teachers.
I would mention that even for those who do not live near a large Spanish speaking population, even this does not have to limit one from finding such teachers. With the advent of certain technologies (such as Skype and other similar voice chat technologies), it has never been more convenient to "leave one's own insular community," to "travel the world without taking a single step" and to find opportunities for conversation right on one's own computer.
I'd like to mention the importance of a teacher's contribution. A student cannot evaluate himself, cannot find and understand his mistakes without the help of an expert. Also, the teacher has the experience to guide the student and to draw his attention to any "secrets" of language which the student wouldn't notice by himself.
Territurtle said:
Language learning in the internet age is completely and utterly different than pre-internet!!!
I don't believe that someone who is trying to learn a foreign language with the help of fora like SpanishDict is completely independent. Technology has advanced so much that the student has the opportunity to join a virtual classroom reaping the benefits of a conventional class, having both teachers and classmates. And that's the reason why SpanishDict is successful, it combines both ways.
Please correct any mistakes.
One of the benefits of the classroom setting is structured environment. If the student is not a self-motivater, the structured pace of the classroom will help. However, the student who has the necessary determination may be able to get more out of the self-study method.
The best option is probably a mix of the two. Using the structure and interaction of the classroom setting coupled with the freedom of self-study at home (particularly for areas where the student may be "falling behind" in the classroom).
There are some online services where you pay an hourly rate to have one-on-one lessons with a teacher who is also a native Spanish speaker...I think those could be highly effective...though out of my ability to pay right now. (But perhaps not too bad compared to a college course...about $10/hour I believe is an expected rate for these types of lessons).
I started out taking it in college on a Saturday which did not interfere with work and finished Span I & II. The government then cut back so much of the funds going to colleges that Saturdays were dropped so I was not able to take 3 & 4 and thus continued on learning on my own for the second year. Both ways are good but when you have class and have a test coming up, you have to put in more hours to get a good grade and you have to retain more of what you studied or you fail the test {a lot more incentive}. Of course with the internet you have more info than you can absorb but at least you can apply it to what at the moment you are practicing. Conclusion, I would still do both if given the opportunity.
I think it depends entirely what you want to achieve in your learning. If you want to pass an exam then you are probably better in a formal class. One of the big critisims I have of language learning in England is it seems totally focussed on passing exams \ collecting pieces of paper, rather than actually 'learning' the language. You are taught techniques to listen for buzz words in a phrase so that you can answer a question. For example I was looking through GCSE material just out of curiosity and in one of the listening exercises it said "hint! listen for the word andén". Of course the question then was....."which platform does the train depart from"? This to me is nonsense, I am far more interested in trying to understand what is actually being said and meant rather than a number following a buzz word!
For me personally, I want to learn conversational Spanish. I would like to be fluent enough to get by living in Spain. I am not interested in collecting pieces of paper that say I know Spanish - the proof to me is can I do it for real!!
I have yet to find a classroom course that focusses on this and really teaches me what I want to know. I have learnt far more through self study and the help of the Spanish speaking natives on this website. I know that I need to actually speak more, and I am putting plans in place to do that.
Generally speaking of course, Spanish natives speak far better English than English natives speak Spanish. There may well be many reasons for this, but I think one of them is the lack of educational provision in the UK towards 'real' learning of foreign languages.
Jack:
However, it has taken me years to find a decent tutor/teacher, which is out of the classroom because the classroom teachers were a joke.
Well, I wonder where you were looking
I am a classroom teacher and I am not a joke, and many of my colleagues take their job very seriously.
To call a teacher a joke is in itself an insult.
Maybe it is some of the students who are a joke, what do you think, Jack
In my opinion learning a language requires these things; Effort, time and money. They must be balanced. You can learn by yourself without a classroom, but this requires more time and more effort. Or you can take lessons from a teacher and spend less time and make less effort.
If you really want to learn, those things must be present, in different proportions depending on what way you chose.
In my case, I'm not spending any money, but I have to duplicate the effort 
Someday I'll take classes, but now I have enough with the college
Whether you learn in a classroom or by yourself, eventually you will need to live in a country where people speak the language to be truly fluent, and you will have to interact frequently with natives for years. Even in bilingual regions like the southern border of the US, there is too much English spoken to get the immersion effect. In fact, even living with an English speaking person in a Spanish speaking country slows things down.
The main difference between having a verbal conversation versus reading and writing is the pace. I've been writing in English for over 45 years and I still stop and think about things that I never do when talking, and the same is true when I speak Spanish (except I make a lot more mistakes.)
I am sort of combining the two at the moment. I am learning with the Open University which is distance learning. Books and audio materials are provided by them and there are online resources too. We have regular tutorials online, about one a month, a couple of face to face tutorials and a day school. There are also 6 assessments and a longer final assessment and an oral exam, again online.
Because there are no classes as such you can work at your own pace so long as you can get the assessments in on time. The only thing I miss compared to a more conventional course is the speaking practice, Luckily for me one woman from the course lives nearby and we get together and practice weekly.
Personally I don't think I would do it if I had no course structure at all, the assignment deadlines are a great motivator, and the fact I have paid good money for the course too. I am planning to go on and do the next level, assuming I pass this one of course.
I may even go on for the degree in modern languages, that would be one in the eye for the teacher who threw me out of her German class, OK that was about 30 years ago maybe I should have got over it by now
Without rambling on too much, I would like to add my own opinion to this Topic.
The more self disciplined you are, the better you will be studying independently. you can set and keep your schedule, set your goals and work at your own pace.
If you are like most of us, a formal or semi formal environment works well, as the instructor sets the goals, the pathway to the goals, and the student must meet them.The instructor also answers the questions that we independent students must find on our own.
Once a person achieves some mastery of the (language) , independent study works for most us.
We that study independently can so often drift off into areas not conducive to a logical learning pathway and in doing so find ourselves frustrated and overloaded with things to learn that are, "out of sequence" in the learning pathway, or tryng to learn too many things at once.
I say this with the voice of one who has been there and done that.
Having learned my limited Spanish from the " street up" I find I must now learn it all over again from the "book down"
All of the resources here, Lessons, the forum, including the Skype chats and Skype contacts as well as my native speaking friends are all contributing to my success.
I started out in school, continued independently, when I reached an impasse I signed up for more classes, at a different school.
I personally prefer independent work and working on various websites.
Now I am really confused..... 
As Jack was quoting something that Heidi said, followed by my agreement to her opinion, something must have been lost in translation (wow another pun).
Combining both of our thoughts he said:
Although I agree with what you are saying, why does one assume that a person that is "listening to videos or recordings" doesn't interact with a native speaker? And why would one assume that a student in a classroom is going to get that 'extra touch' from a teacher?
Originally, Heidi said this:
so far I have not met anybody who could actually speak listening to videos or recordings.
I agreed with that statement as you can read in my answer. I can't speak for Heidi, but I can speak for myself. It was merely a statement about the fact that people are not going to learn how to speak simply by listening to videos and recordings....alone. There was no assuming about any other topic. It was just a simple thought....Audio recordings are excellent tools, but to really be able to speak in a foreign language, a teacher (whether in a classroom or your mom) has to lead, guide and correct you.
That being said, teachers are necessary and very important. There are many excellent tools available for us to learn a language. But even they are created by teachers. The information doesn't just fall out of the sky.
You said:
For what it's worth, I've never met anyone who was taught in a classroom that could speak Spanish worth a flip. I'm sure my opinion is skewed from my own personal experience, but that's all I have.
However, it has taken me years to find a decent tutor/teacher, which is out of the classroom because the classroom teachers were a joke.
I am sorry to hear this. Of course there are exceptions to every rule, but for the most part, teachers should be held in the highest regard! They usually work long, difficult hours with minimal pay and little appreciation. Often they have to pay for supplies out of their own pocket. I think to be a teacher, especially a classroom teacher takes a lot of character and a lot of strength. Of course, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but I just wanted to put that out there.
Hopefully, you will find one in your area that can meet your needs.
Heidi said:
so far I have not met anybody who could actually speak listening to videos or recordings.
I agree 110% with Heidi. No matter how many hours you spend listening to Spanish TV, videos, radio, etc., nothing can compare to speaking with a native. When you are passively listening, you are not put "on the spot" so to speak. When you are talking to another person, you have to process what they are saying fairly quickly and then be able to answer in a way that they can understand. This will never be done with a video or audio recording.
If you are working with a teacher or someone willing to correct you, all the better. That is the only way to get instant feedback and to know if you understood what was being said to you. Also, if the native speaker could understand you in return.
There is no replacement for one on one contact!!
I like learning independently. The great thing about Spanishdict.com is we have the opportunity to interact with other students and ask them questions when we need to while we work independently! 
