By Constance García-Barrio
Want to learn Swahili? Or Spanish, amigo? Or pick up some bons mots for your trip to Quebec? Then seize the day (or día) with a few tips in mind.
Too old to learn? Nonsense.
Expressing yourself in another language helps keep your mind limber. A foreign language also gives you a door into another culture. You have a chance, for example, to wonder why “pulling your leg” in English is “pulling your hair” in Spanish.
If you jump into this linguistic adventure with a partner or friends, you may learn faster. You can pool your talents. One person may hear and mimic sounds easily and help others with pronunciation. Someone else may have a quick grasp of grammar and a knack for clarifying it.
Lots of choices
You have lots of choices of how and where to study. Berlitz Language Centers tailor classes to individual needs, and you may find Berlitz CDs at bookstores. Check departments of foreign language at local colleges and universities.
Graduate teaching assistants may want to pick up a little money as tutors.
Regular college classes — sometimes up to 27 students or more — may be too large to allow members enough time to talk. A private tutor means plenty of airtime.
Organizations like Alliance Française de Philadelphie and the Polish American Cultural Center are another possibility. Many such groups have classes beginning in the fall and spring.
Your group may want to work on its own. Go to college or university bookstores to find not just a book, but tapes and CDs. You need to hear and repeat the language, not just see a printed page. Also, call Audio Forum for a catalogue; its materials cover more than 50 languages.
Put pronunciation first
Whether you’re learning the language for the first time or refreshing your knowledge, put pronunciation first. You might spend a week or two just listening to and repeating the sounds. Get an inexpensive tape recorder so you can hear yourself and your tutor’s corrections. You can learn a zillion vocabulary words and a ton of grammar, but if you distort sounds, what value will that knowledge have?
You’ll make more progress if you commit to listening to tapes or CDs at least three days a week, in addition to your day of class. Shorter listening sessions make for greater gains. Let’s say you decide to spend 40 minutes, three days a week on homework. You’ll absorb more if you divide those 40 minutes into two 20-minute segments.
Have fun. Allow yourself mistakes. There’s an old saying, “To make an omelet you have to break some eggs.” So relax and break them.
Reward yourself. Treat yourself to a meal at, say, Tierra Colombiana, if you’re studying Spanish, or Susanna Foo’s if you’re learning Mandarin. Or drink in the language with your eyes. The Philadelphia Museum of Art offers free audio tours in foreign languages.
Philadelphia has many resources if you’re studying a foreign language.
Here are some:
• Alliance Française de Philadelphie, 1420 Walnut St., 215-735-5283.
• Audio Forum sells tapes, CDs and other materials in more than 50
languages. 800-243-5283.
• Berlitz Language Centers, 1608 Walnut St., 215-735-8500.
• Community College of Phila., 17th and Spring Garden Sts., 215-751-8450: classes ranging from Arabic to Swahili. Philadelphians 65 and older may qualify for a steep discount.
• Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation, 7921 Old York Road,
Elkins Park, Pa., 215-635-0316: classes in Greek at beginning,
intermediate, advanced levels.
• Philadelphia Museum of Art, 26th St. and the Parkway, 215-684-7580: tours in foreign languages, free with admission.
• Polish American Cultural Center, 308 Walnut St., 215-922-1700.
• Spanish Language School, 2004 Sansom St., 215-567-4446: classes for individuals and small groups.
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