The Foreign Service Journal, September 2016

46 SEPTEMBER 2016 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL practicing together with family members. Most of us have encountered lucky colleagues who won the linguistic lottery by coming from a multilingual home. The ben- efits of such an environment can also come from finding ways to enroll one’s spouse, partner or kids in full- or part-time language training, so the whole family can learn the target language together. In addition, sometimes it is useful for students to focus on real-world scenarios and practical situations that facilitate their learning, even if it occasionally takes the place of the prescribed homework. In practice: Language learning can be very stressful for some students. Home study time, familiar environments and comfort- able routines can help. Adults often appreciate consistent struc- tures, such as beginning every class with small group discussions or building each week toward a predictable Friday vocabulary quiz on new terms learned that week. When our teachers did this, we found the routine comforting. 5. I Don’t Hate People, I Just Feel Better When They Aren’t Around... Autonomy. Introverts and solitary learners subscribe to this sentiment, and prefer the “hermit option.” (You can also think of it as the “Walden Pond” approach to learning.) Withdrawing from social interactions can free up time, energy and brain cells. Loads of language learning happens when we retreat from soci- ety and digest in isolation what we have been taught in class. The first four paradigms described here rely on social set- tings, but some learners thrive in the muffled, silent solace of the language lab. They instinctively gravitate toward minimalist settings, such as quiet corners, with just notes and flashcards for autonomous practice. The strength of this approach includes the flexibility to learn when, where and however possible. Talking to oneself is widely recognized as a great learning tactic for language production skills, though it can get a little awkward in public and is probably best done in isolation. Practice time free from pressure and judgment is a great way to grow. But autonomous learning is insufficient to master a lan- guage because the lack of corrective feedback can solidify errors through repetition. It also will not prepare learners for authentic conversation or the rapid exchanges expected during oral exams. In practice: Incorporate more tech-based (e.g., recorded) speaking activities into your language study to encourage independent, judgment-free practice. This can involve reading pre-written texts, activities that develop pronunciation “muscle memory” or reinforcing common phrases from daily scenarios to build up automaticity that flows almost involuntarily like a physical reflex. Hearing your own pronunciation (and errors) can be both mortifying and motivating. Car commuting provides an excel- lent opportunity for judgment-free verbal practice. Doing this on non-FSI bus rides, though, might entertain or annoy your fellow passengers. Regardless of your setting, be ready for the funny looks that will come your way! The Value of Syncretic Solutions What should learners do with this awareness of competing language-learning approaches? See them as possible solutions. Syncretism has been defined as “the attempted reconciliation or union of different or opposing principles, practices or philoso- phies.” Syncretic solutions are ideal in the classroom, creating flexible combinations of the competing methods outlined above. Reconciling multiple learning approaches in the classroom can create opportunities for students to benefit from their class- mates’ differences and strengths. There will always be many ways to approach a new language. Each instructor and learner brings their own bias to the task and to the classroom. Awareness of this fact can empower learners to make deliberate decisions about how to use collective and indi- vidual resources (chiefly time) most effectively. By consciously embracing and balancing the full range of tactics, learners will have access to more tools. Each of the methods we have outlined can be applied individually as a lens for learning, but blending and overlaying multiple lenses is possible and preferable. While some gifted learners intuitively latch onto approaches that draw on all of the above philosophies, most of us need to make a deliberate effort to incorporate different methods and to close the gap between what we know and what we actually do. Be aware of your classmates’ successful strategies so that you can work with themmore effectively to create a harmonious classroom culture. Deliberately blending these tactics and strategies may be less elegant than sticking with a single approach, but it can be much more effective. In short, when we can recognize and combine learning styles, we will see greater success in our language learning. n