As an FYI…you will see numbers like this on the internet and is often the typical way words are counted when the subject comes up. These number relate to word families and doesn’t take into account all the various forms and conjugations. LingQ counts words differently in that it counts EVERY word. Even the singular and plural of a word are considered different. azarya posted a LingQ generalization of the # of words you need for a given level. This can very across the the different languages (Russian might require far more than what he’s listed for example).
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Regarding gramar rules. I mostly agree with what’s on this text. I think grammar is good to look up when you’ve read something and are wondering why the sentence is the way it is. Then I think looking up the grammar will stick better…and it may be helpful early on in thinking how to form the basics. However, I think at some point ultimately most of the grammar is recognized through vast amounts of listening and reading. The patterns come again and again. From an output point of view this may come in the form of speaking and/or writing these patterns over and over.
All of this happens over a very long time though. One may get the grammar wrong for a long time, or may not ever quite get it right. Plenty of adults do not use correct grammar and foreigners…even the most fluent often have at least one thing that they always get wrong.
Anyway. I hope the best for you. It definitely does not sound like an ideal situation. As far as the language is concerned, I think you’re on the right path if you are using LingQ, at least for the majority of things. Or at least sticking with the concepts of comprehensible input. As someone suggested, watch Steve Kaufmann’s videos. I find them very motivating and honest. He talks about the struggles of learning a language and isn’t pushing a “you can learn a language in 3 months” garbage. It takes a lot of hours. But it’s a fun journey if you take it at the pace you can do it. Do at least a little each day. Try italki maybe as you get better where hopefully you would find someone that will be helpful.
Oh I think you asked somewhere else in this thread about the writing and speaking aspects. You can do writing by clicking on the Writing Exchange menu item at the top of the page. You can write something, submit it and hopefully someone will come along and make corrections. If not, at least it is practice. You could also simply write on your own…there are also other writing feedback sites, but I don’t know them off the top of my head.
Speaking…I’m not sure if this one goes up automatically in some way when using LingQ tutors. Otherwise, you can update the value manually. That’s what I do as most of my speaking I do speaking to myself. Or if you were to use Italki you could come back over to LingQ and update the stats of your speaking time.
In fact you can update all the stats manually. If you are doing some reading/listening/writing/speaking outside of Lingq, come back and update the stats if you want to keep track of everything you are doing. I do a lot of listening outside of LingQ (podcasts, youtube, netflix using Language Reactor)…I come back and update the stats when I’m done. Some things I’ll modify the time spent…i.e. a movie isn’t not non stop talking so I may consider that as 50% of the time spent for example). Just to keep a rough idea of the things I’m doing outside of LingQ.
Honestly, you sound like you see yourself as a victim. Attitude matters a LOT when it comes to language learning. The journey is so damn long that it ultimately boils down to your mindset. You’re likely expecting too much. It also seems like you’re basing all of those expectations on promises made by others. Don’t do that. Just keep exposing yourself and be patient.
I can tell that you’re almost certainly not doing enough, if you were, you’d learn these languages, it’s literally inevitable if you’re a human being. You’re not the exception to that so stop telling yourself that you are because it’ll only become an excuse to justify not doing what’s required.
I hope you take this in the way it was intended.
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Give me a call and I will tell you all that I have done and battled against. I had no intention or wish to learn as much as I have about learning or acquiring language. I had no wish to be treated as I have been. Even my spouse can tell you what he has witnessed. Call me 1-908-342-1275. Anyone else who wants to call and attack and insult go ahead and call me too.
I tried, it’s busy.
At what hours is your service available? Also, is it for free? Foreigners too?
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Error. It is 1-908-342-1275
Out at the moment
I’m going to give you some different advice. Stop studying Tagalog. Seek out other native English speakers in your area and invite them for a coffee or beer. Find some common interests and just shoot the breeze. For a frustrated language learner, there is nothing quite like being able to express yourself fully and understand the person across the table perfectly. It’s an oasis.
Do this as much as possible, until you experience a release from these feelings of isolation and depression. Only then will you be in a proper mindset to resume your studies.
I’ve lived in Brazil for several years now and my Portuguese is at a very high level (probably C1) and yet I still have difficulty understanding a lot of people and I am still unable to express myself fully in social situations. I get frustrated and often use that as a reason not to go out to social events, so I do get it. It must be a thousand times worse for you.
Hang in there and don’t give up. And remember…no matter how happy or successful other people seem, absolutely everyone is going through some invisible battle of their own.
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And all you’ve done is immediately get confrontational when all people are trying to do is help you. Advising you to lower your expectations and have more patience is the most common advice you’ve been given, but you just seem to want to close your ears to it and claim victimhood. Quit whining and start listening to people who are genuinely trying to help you.
This is a helpful place, somewhere where you’ll get helpful advice, but nobody is going to want to continue to help you if you keep throwing it back in their face.
As before, this is genuine advice that could help you, so try not to twist it into some kind of personal attack.
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I’ve come to believe that the best goal of language learning is understanding.
Then from there, that the best goal of understanding is empathy.
And more so from there, that the best goal of empathy is compassion.
We all learn languages for different reasons. I offer mine.
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I seem to read what boils down to it will take many more than the 12.5 years. It reads like another decade or more. Might as well quit and end all communication. Or, others saying quit. That was the lesson taught to me by my parents - stop, quit, run away and never try. Yes that is my childhood lessons.
I’ll preface this by saying I sympathize with your situation. What meager successes I’ve had have been despite my parents rather than anything they taught me.
I’ve heard about this. Which leads to the question, why learn Tagalog? It’s not necessary in the Philippines. Why spend inordinate amounts of money and time on a language that I assume doesn’t have nearly as many learning materials as other languages that are more widely spoken?
And how has language learning managed to wreck or threaten to wreck your relationships?
Over the years I’ve read a lot on psychology in an attempt to fix my issues and one of the most painful things I learned in the process was about self-sabotage. From what I’ve seen self-sabotage isn’t at all uncommon. In fact, it appears to be the norm, though there’s a lot of forms it can take, ranging in severity, type, and so on. I realized that I do it, that my friends do it, and even though I don’t like my parents, I even felt a twinge of sympathy for them, when I realized they did the same themselves. Not everybody self-sabotages all the time of course but the prevalence of self-sabotage is shocking. To grossly oversimplify, we have our comfort zones, and the prospect of leaving that comfort zone frightens us, to the point that unconsciously we think that we’d be better off failing.
Now a person will say, “I’m not comfortable with failure!”, and to that I would ask: “Oh, are happy relationships the norm for you?”, or “Are successes in business the norm for you?”, or… you get the idea. If success really is the norm for you then congrats. If not then unconsciously when you try and make changes to have happier relationships for example then there’s a chance you’ll self-sabotage. It’s usually worth asking, “Have I really set myself up for success?”, and being brutally honest with oneself.
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I never have a complete talk when with most Filipinos. I am very lonely, alone and isolated since talk around me is Tagalog. It is not true that most Filipinos know meaning are fluent. I cannot read various things. I need to have others with me to make sure all thoughts in various discussions are made. It goes on and on. If you lived here you would understand.
As for my relationship and friendships, I have grown to hate every time Tagalog is spoken and not fully translated.
Learning materials in excess are not needed. What is needed are those telling me stories and describing pictures. I added LingQ for reading and to see vocabulary.
From Poly-glot-a-lot with Prof. Brown
He mainly uses storytelling in classes due to higher level achieved meaning fluency. I had five classes of Spanish in college and couple of years in high school and a yearnin junior high. I never met anyone who could engage in a simple conversation after such useless classes.
I was told quite sincerely it seemed by all Filipinos I knew in New Jersey and NYC that Filipinos would help learn Tagalog and in one year I would learn it. They all lied. I did not realize it was a secret code amongst themselves and I would be in endless battles. I wish I had videos of how I have been treated.
Understanding is refused.
Hello Geo,
I want to say again I feel a lot of compassion for you and for what you have had to experience. Your suffering is evident. We humans who have experienced abuse can react a lot like animals who have, and we will snap at a hand reaching out to help, seeing it as a threat. I’d suggest taking the advice here as well intended.
There is a saying in English that the role of a priest is to disturb the comforted and comfort the disturbed. The point is that different people in different situations may need different advice. “Never quit” may be good advice for those who give up too early, but like many things in life, it should not be absolute. Some things need a good quitting.
I’m not saying to quit or not quit studying tagalog, but I agree with PerpetualTraveler that you appear in need of a change of priorities. I would prioritize social connection and mental health over language learning.
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Along the lines of what others have said, you may be better served by seeking healing in your primary language to best proceed in learning second languages.
I wish you healing.
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Can you please stop along with orhers in attacking me. I expressed the facts of what is taking pkace and you and others now studying Tagalog nor living in the Philippines come out to attack me. What is going on here.
Do not play this sickening mental health game. I expressed what is tsking place and now attacked by younand others with no experience here or with Tagalog. Who the hell are you to judge.
Geo, you may be on to something. We really don’t know what’s going on in your context.
Many of us are trying to empathize with your situation and provide basic advice from a distance. But… I doubt many of us are either that experienced in your context or have any sort of professional training on what to do in these situations.
No attack is intended.
I wish you nothing but deepest blessings in your life and that your path forward be as wonderful as it possibly can be.
What’s going on here isn’t much more than strangers who care but also strangers who have really come here to focus on language learning with a positive attitude.
Be blessed.
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No judgment or attack here. I wish you all the best. Peace.
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