I Will Never Learn English-I’m A Stupid Spaniard
How your attitude and mindset can jeopardise your foreign language learning
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I am horrified by the idea Spaniards have of themselves when it comes to learning foreign languages, and more specifically when it comes to learning English.
It does not surprise me that impossible methods come out “hasta debajo de las piedras” (even under the stones). When you look at the Spanish mindset to learn English you will see that we are a breeding ground for these methods to proliferate.
There are a hundred thousand native speakers who keep inventing perfect methodologies and another hundred thousand non-natives who think that being in possession of a B2 is enough to teach. It wouldn’t surprise me if someone starts hiring alien teachers soon. Well, in fact we already have artificial intelligence knocking on the doors of passive learning through implants in the brain. If you don’t believe me, check it out for yourself. This idea has been on the table since 2013.
THE SPANISH MENTALITY
In an interview with the co-founder of Englishcafe in Barcelona he said that after working nobody wants to get into a class where they have to concentrate in front of a book and where they do not interact. And that made me ask myself what kind of classes are still being taught in today’s physical academies for this type of business to proliferate. What is being done so badly? Are teachers really still the only ones who speak in class and do not use all the audiovisual resources within their reach? Do they not converse with their students as they would with their friends? Isn’t it obvious that a language is not just grammar, or talking or reading or listening and speaking, but all of the above in a balanced way? And moreover, why do they keep deceiving their potential students by saying that they can learn as natives when in reality they are not native speakers but learners of a second language? Why do they fool them by saying things like “learn English with 1000 words” or with algorithms, or in impossible timeframes? Hello there, I’ve been teaching the language…
