【BBC 20150303】BBC教你如何快速学习一门外语
【原文标题】Secrets of learning a language — quickly【中文标题】BBC教你如何快速学习一门外语【文章来源】BBC【文章链接】http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20150302-secrets-to-learning-a-languagePicture this: You want to apply for a dream assignment abroad. There’s just one problem. You need foreign language skills that you don't have – and time is not on your side.想象一下：你想应聘梦想中的海外工作。但有一个问题，就是你不会那个国家的语言，你也没有太多的时间去系统学习。
It might sound like an impossible task, but according to language experts, you can learn basic communication skills in weeks and master the basics of a foreign language in several months. While you might not quickly reach the fluency that allows you to understand great foreign literature classics, you can, though, quickly hone in on phrases and technical language specific to your needs whether you are working with the diplomatic service or a blue chip multinational. 所以这个梦想似乎要泡汤了，但根据语言专家的说法，你可以在几周内学习这门外语的基本回话技巧，并在几个月内掌握这么外语的基础。尽管你不能很快的达到能够理解外国经典文学的程度，但无论你要在外交机构或者是跨国公司工作，你都可以根据你的需求，先学习一些基本的短语和使用的句子。
It won’t take most people long to be well on their way to discussing current affairs with a native speaker in Rome or sharing a 'water cooler' moment with new French work colleagues in Paris.要达到可以和罗马人讨论时事或者和巴黎同事闲聊一下的水平还是可以的，而且你不用花费太多的学习时间。
Getting started行动开始
Sometimes travelling the globe for work will force you to come up with ways to master conversation in many languages. Benny Lewis, an engineer, learned enough of seven languages -- including Spanish, French and German — to work easily and attained near fluency in several others, including Mandarin.有时环游全球找工作能迫使你找到掌握外语基本回话的能力。工程师Benny Lewis学了足足七门语言，其中包括西班牙语、法语和德语，这使他的工作变得更轻松，同时还有普通话，他的普通话水平接近流利。
Learning Spanish, Lewis’s first non-native language, took over a year but subsequent languages, even the basics of conversational Mandarin, were quicker. His secret: when he first needs to learn a language, Lewis compiles a script of sorts for himself so that he can respond to simple queries from strangers. As Lewis mastered new languages, he was even able to do work as a translator of technical engineering texts.Lewis花了一年的时间学习了他的的第一门外语——西班牙语。但在接下来其他外语的学习中，甚至包括普通话基础回话学习，他所花费的时间更短。他的秘诀就是：当他刚开始接触一门外语是，他准备了一个分类的语言手册，这样他能够对照手册回答陌生人提出的问题。当Lewis掌握了该门语言时，他甚至能够做一些有关技术工程文本的翻译工作。
Phrasebooks and online tutorials can prove useful in this early stage, experts say, as they can give you the vocabulary and the confidence to have basic conversations with native speakers, the crucial first step in learning a language.专家称，常用语手册和网路教程在语言学习初始阶段能够帮助语言学习者，因为这些材料能够增加学习者的词汇和与当地人进行对话的信心，这是开始学习外语的关键一步。
“The biggest barrier in the beginning is the lack of confidence,” said Lewis. “That got better and better for me .”Lewis说：“学习语言的起步阶段最大的障碍是缺乏信心。但我开口说得多了，口语水平也就进步了。”
Indeed, simply having the courage to speak is necessary if you are going to make progress in a foreign language, language experts said.语言学家称，要想外语取得进步，敢于开口确实是很重要的。
“A lot of people don't make progress if they don't open their mouths,” said Michael Geisler, the vice president for language schools at Middlebury College in Vermont in the US. “If you are not willing to put your identity on the line, progress will be slower.”美国佛蒙特州明德学院语言系副主任Michael Geisler称：“许多人不开口练习，因此他们无法取得进步。如果你不愿意放下身份来学习，进步就会缓慢得多。”
This means not being afraid to take risks or make mistakes. When he started learning Spanish, Lewis said he spoke a lot like Tarzan, the fictional man of the jungle.也就是说，别害怕出错。当Lewis开始学习西班牙时，他说得像极了电影里的泰山。
“I would say 'me want go supermarket'. But I reached the advanced stage by starting as a beginner. My 'light bulb' moment was when – two weeks into learning Spanish – my toothbrush broke and I was able to ask for a replacement at the supermarket,” he said. “Wherever you go, people are very patient.”他表示：“我会说‘me want go supermarket’（一个语法上错误的句子）。但之后说多了就进步了。我认识到我进步的那一刻是我学习西班牙语两周的时候，当时我的牙刷坏了，我居然能在超市顺利的通过口语来更换牙刷。无论你去到哪里，人们都是很有耐心的。”
Immerse yourself沉浸在环境中
Geisler believes that total immersion is key to mastering a foreign language quickly. The more you immerse yourself in the foreign language – such as reading, listening to the radio or speaking to people – the more rapid your progress will be.Geisler认为要快速掌握一门外语，将自己完全沉浸在外语环境中是很关键的因素。多阅读、多听广播、多交谈，这样你也会更快进步。
Students at Middlebury College are required to conduct all extra-curricular activities, from sport to theatre, in the language they are learning. Middlebury, which also runs graduate programs, runs courses in 10 languages including French, German, Chinese and Hebrew.明德学院要求学生参加体育和戏剧等课外活动。该院同时还开设研究生课程，其中包括法语、德语、汉语和希伯来语等。
Getting to basic conversational proficiency can be achieved in much less time, just several weeks according to experts, particularly if you can speak regularly. James North, associate director for instruction at the Foreign Service Institute, said students are encouraged to get to know native speakers.有关专家表示，掌握基本的语言会话能力所花费的时间可以少到几周的时间，尤其是当你经常开口练习的时候。华盛顿特区的外交学院教学助理James North称，他们鼓励学生多跟当地人交流。
“You need to invest not just the head but also the heart,” North said. You can, for instance, do volunteer work or engage with the local community at restaurants and neighbourhood functions. “你不单单要用脑学习，还要用心学习。比如，你可以在餐馆和社区机构里当志愿者。”
More broadly, in major cities there are often regular — several times weekly — language-immersion Meet-Up groups that join together people practicing a language. There are also online alternatives. Lewis recommends italki.com, a language social network that connects native speakers and teachers with students. Others include lang-8.com and voxswap.com.更大点的，在大城市他们每周都举行几次语言学习的见面会，人们可以在会上练习外语。网络上也有相应地一些活动。Lewis推荐一家名为italki.com的社交网站，人们可以在网站上找到当地人和老师。这样的社交网站还有lang-8.com、voxswap.com等。
By conversing regularly with language experts or native speakers you also have someone to check – and correct – your progress.通过经常和语言专家或当地人交谈，你可以通过他们来改正自己的错误和检验自己的进步。
“Practice makes perfect,” said North. “But practice without feedback just makes perfect whatever you are practicing. The naïve learner does not have a perspective on what they are doing. It is really vital to have someone saying yes you are on track.”North称：“熟能生巧。但没有回馈的练习只能原地踏步。学习者无法对自己正在做的事情进行评价，所以如果有人能说‘对，这样做就对了’，那对学习者来说是非常关键的。
You’ll need to ask those you speak with for feedback and make sure they know it’s OK to correct your pronunciations and grammar, although experts say you need not worry too much about grammar in the early stages.你同样需要寻求与你交流的人的反馈，要让他们知道你希望得到他们对于你发音和语法的纠正。但专家称，初学者不必太纠结于语法。
Use the language first and focus on the grammar later, Lewis said. When you are ready to pick up the grammar, he recommended using podcasts at sites such as radiolingua.com or languagepod101.com as particularly useful in picking up grammar and dissecting the language.Lewis称，要先使用语言，再关注语法。当你准备学习语法的时候，他建议使用向radiolingua.com或languagepod101.com等播客，对于学习语法和剖析语言都很有帮助。
As you learn, be sure to consume media in the foreign language. If you are starting out, read illustrated children's books or watch familiar films in a foreign language, experts advise.专家建议，在学习过程中要使用外语的媒体资源。如果你刚刚开始学习一门外语，你可以读一些有插图的外语儿童读物，或者看一些你熟悉的电影的外语版。
If you have specific goals to achieve, such as conversing with a partner or using a foreign language at work, that motivation can be all you need to begin to master conversations. But beware lofty ambitions. If you say you want to be fluent in two months, you will likely be disappointed. But if your goal is to reach some level of conversational proficiency, especially for a work assignment, that’s entirely possible.如果你有明确的目标要实现，比如与同伴交流或工作需要外语，那这些目标就是你要掌握外语回话能力的动力了。但切勿定下雄心勃勃的计划，如果你说要在两个月外语达到流利的水平，那最终你可能会失望。但你的目标是获得一定程度的对话能力，尤其是工作场合的对话能力，两个月时间完全有可能。
页:
[1]