When learning a language is it better to go fast or slow?
Hello,
I was wondering when learning a language is it better to learn fast or slow or does it depend on the person. Because I am learning Spanish between SD and Duolingo and I wanted to know your thoughts on this?
9 Answers
Hello Ros,
Welcome to SpanishDict 
You asked:
When learning a language is it better to go fast or slow?
Why should there be only two possible speeds: fast or slow?!
In reality, each person really needs to go at their own pace when learning a foreign language (like water finds its own level!) and to find the pace that's right for them, individually! There really is no 'one size fits all' approach to anything in life; least of all with learning languages..we are all individuals! 
I admit that you would, more or less, have to follow the group's pace if you had chosen to sign up for learning a language on a course at a local community college, or otherwise you might get left behind and find it hard to catch up later! That being said, in this kind of situation you would be well-advised to
1 read any instructions regarding the levels in their booklet and what you would be covering/expected to learn and ....
2 if you were unsure as to your individual level of proficiency in the language, you would be best contact the college and ask for advice and
3 if necessary, speak to the course tutor who would be teaching you before the start of the course date ..
If you choose to follow the route of self study rather than organised course then you will be able to set your own pace and adjust it according to your rate of progress.
The biggest drawback (disadvantage) to following this route is that you have to be much more self-motivated to persevere when things get tough (and they will) and self disciplined in order to keep making progress! The biggest advantage is that you have the support of like minded people in learning communites like ours at SpanishDict to help you through the rough patches, when taking that next important step seems very difficult!!
There is, in my view and from my experience a middle way (and I am not talking politics here lol) which involves taking language classes through Skype and then suplementing these classes with private study, and practice! I am following this route!
Finally, you might find it helpful to keep a small journal in which you record your progress so that when times are hard you can look back at how far you have come and the progress you have made so far doing this can work well for some people but may not suit everyone!
I hope this helps
I can't learn anything fast at this stage in my life. However, if you define fast as learning as much as you can and retaining it, go with fast. To some, learning a language is just a matter of spending time with it and using it. That's good advice if that suits your time and resources. If you have the time for immersion you could be functional in Spanish within six months or less. If you have to spend your time in an English speaking environment and are limited to books or media intake, it will take longer.
Some days it feels like I take one step forward and three steps back. But I have to keep going. I don't see how I can go any faster or slower and what good it would be. I just have to do some Spanish everyday. Even a little bit is something. I do see a point in all this. I should have some kind of plan. Not just things here and there, but an organized plan and I do not have a good one right now. I think that is where I will find way to increase my learning.
I really don't see any point in deliberately going slow. What would be the point? It's one thing to not be able to learn quickly, it's entirely another to slow down the learning process for some ???? reason.
I've got a lot more time behind me than I have ahead of me, I burned as many candles as I could at both ends trying to reach my goal of fluency in as little time as possible.
I believe that it's according to a persons talent. I "gobble" up languages and can learn a musical instrument in no time. but I am a complete idiot when it comes to math. So I take my math slow and my music and languages fast.
At first I went at learning Spanish like the 'Charge of the Light Brigade' , but then had to saddle up an old hack that had to break wind in order to move forward , when I am down wind of it I manage 1 new word a week , upwind is not so good , I have to feed it malted oats in order to conjugate a new verb and a bucket of carrots to get past the present tense . Dulcinea has been a waste of time , her visits have been subject to me losing six conjugated verbs in the preterite , 1 more visit and I will have to sell the horse and ask Sancho Panza to up his intake of 'verduras ' and help out , so you see my speed learning has taken a turn for the worse and is -
¿Cómo se dice hacia atrás en Inglés?
All good answers. Of course everyone's different. However, for most folk I expect language acquisition is a relatively long, slow process, at least if you want the new language to 'stick' (by which time, of course it will no longer be a 'new' language to you).
Like Ray, I 'crammed' a lot into the first couple of months of my Spanish journey. This gave me a wonderful sense of accomplishment & a tremendous boost in confidence. Of course, after two months I couldn't speak Spanish (as indeed nor can I now after another five or six months), but I had covered, understood & could retain most of the grammar & a lot of useful vocab. However, when I took a few days off I found I was beginning to lose it very fast. At one point I actually believed my Spanish was becoming as good as my French (which I started learning at school 30 years ago & still haven't mastered). However, I can go for whole weeks or months without looking at or listening to any French, then come back to it & still understand & speak it almost instantly (to be fair, it takes about a week of immersion in France to re-attune properly). I don't think I could do so with Spanish (yet). This is because after all this time French has become 'familiar' to me, & this can only happen with time... Lots of time.
There are folk who, like Dani says, can 'gobble up' languages, & some of them can attain relatively high proficiency impressively fast. However, they can also lose these languages just as swiftly if they don't use them. Some professional interpreters, translators & espionage experts who work for organisations like the UN, NATO or secret services, undergo special training to learn how to 'hack' languages so they can acquire them fast, but only for brief periods, then they forget them. Some professional linguists may work with 30+ languages in a career, yet at the end of it only retain proficiency in a few (only a few !!).
Besides, fast for some it is really slow, and viceversa.
It depends on why you are acquiring the language. If you arrive in a foreign country to work or travel extensively you may want to learn as much as possible as quickly as possible. In addition you may need to know a lot of colloquial phrases. With Spanish it is worth making an effort at an early stage with pronunciation as, unlike English, it is consistent so rather than leaping ahead make that effort. It is a good idea to listen to a lot of the language so you absorb the rhythm of the language - of course that can include watching films and listening to music. Repetition is also helpful - write words or phrases down and repeat them then the next day look at them again. A few days later look again. You may want to keep a list in a small notebook or on your phone.You will find you remember lots. At the early stage don't make the effort to learn unusual or complicated words - some will stick but you need the every day words, verbs and conjunctions.
I remember as a teenager going to France and being served oysters - I have never eaten them since but still remember the French for oyster!
If you are highly motivated/ or go to a country where it is the main language or fall in love your learning will speed up.
However,for effective learning in addition to bursts of hard work on verbs or grammar you should spend 15 to 30 minutes at least 3 x a week, on your chosen language. !5 minutes focusing on the language beats an hour flitting.
