Interesting thread. I’d like to add a few things from the point of view of someone who actually posts some language videos on his youtube channel.
First of all, with the exception of Benny and Laoshu I don’t know of anybody who tries to sell a product on their channels (lingq is mostly free, so I don’t count Steve). But even these two post many videos that in my opinion can be useful to people who are interested in learning a foreign language. I would not pay for anything where I have a feeling that the quality of what is offered is not up to what I’d like to see in a product the author is asking money for. However, this is a decision everybody has to make on their own. Benny is not actually teaching any language but he offers advice as to how he thinks one can obtain a level of proficiency which will allow you to communicate with people within a relatively short period of time. If people who so far have thought they’d never be able to speak any foreign language at all actually can find a way to demystify the language learning process thanks to his tips, I don’t see anything wrong with that (even if they have to pay for his tips).
As far as I understand, Laoshu only sells products which have been written and/or proofread by native speakers, whereby he also explicitly advises students to use study material such as Teach Yourself as the basis for his road runner concept. I have yet to see any of that material to be able to say if it is as error-ridden as some people suggest the study material he offers is. As for his youtube videos where he “teaches”, it is clear that he is still practising and it is like asking a study buddy to help you out. He does not ask money for this and I don’t see why he should not post videos offering help to others, especially since it is more than obvious to anybody (he also repeatedly says this himself) that he is neither a teacher nor an expert in any of the languages. He, too, sells a certain concept which I have not tried myself yet but it may actually work.
When I watch videos like his or those of other people offering advice on youtube I am not looking for an experienced language teacher but for somebody who can keep me motivated and/or some interesting insights into language learning which I may not yet have been able to find out about myself.
This way I have come to know the language learning community on youtube mostly as a group of encouraging and helpful people. What I do find quite disappointing, however, is the constant insinuation from some people that polyglots or anybody posting language learning/practising videos on youtube are show-offs, egocentric or maybe even psychologically deranged people. If anybody else here ever tried to post youtube videos on their own, they’d see very quickly for themselves what I mean. You get your share of usual trolls who I don’t really care about and then you get people who keep criticizing other language learners without ever offering any positive input themselves.
I have never seen any video, any blog or any other constructive input with useful information as to how one could do things better from people who simply call polyglots fakes, liars or diminish their efforts. I once asked one of the people who keep saying how little polyglots are able or “dare” to venture out into realms that are not connected to language learning to have a video chat with me in the 6 languages we supposedly had in common (I say supposedly because I have never heard him speak or write in any other language than English) on any topic without any preparation - not to show off, but I was kind of fed up with people coming up with those generalizations and offering nothing else but their rather indiscriminate criticism. I have never heard of that person again …
I consider the quality of study material to be essential for any learner to make progess in the long run. This is why I normally only use material from renowned publishing houses or from original sources (like quality newspapers, radio programmes, etc.). The same goes for language exchange partners. I try to look for people who are not only interested in languages but who also have a certain level of proficiency in their native language. Sometimes non-native speakers may even be better language partners than native speakers for several reasons. At the end of the day it all depends on what makes you feel more comfortable while progressing in your language studies.
As I understand it, polyglot videos or any other language learning videos should be an additional means to help people get or keep motivated. I wish people did not try to find fault with every single sentence and word one pronounces in those videos just to “show” that polyglots are not that good after all. Ah, he/she mispronounced this word! Did you hear him make this mistake? His tones are fare from perfect. She has a weird intonation…the list goes on and on.
I am not saying that people should not criticize those videos or post comments on them. But I think there are more and more cases where this is not really done with a constructive mind but rather with the joy of supposedly “exposing” some fraud. People ought to realize that most polyglots and/or other language learners have full-time jobs and posting videos, answering sometimes up to 80 - 100 e-mails per week and trying to help others (if they ask for help) takes a lot of time, even if you do not update your youtube channel every week or so. It is something that is offered out of a passion for languages and not to show off.
Personally, I am not teaching anything to anybody. This has never been my intention. If I wanted to do something like this, I’d probably choose a different format and a different setting, while teaming up with some teaching experts. But that is just my view of things. I do believe, however, that people sincerely trying to share their passion for learning with others sometimes are treated unfairly as arrogant, egocentric and fakes.
As for my own videos and/or contributions, I have decided to only take comments seriously from people who have shown me “their credentials” before asking me what credentials I have. It is easy to sit back in your comfy chair and keep criticizing people while offering little help to the learning community on your own. I have received a lot of very constructive feedback on how I can improve and I really appreciate this kind of interaction. But this has always come from people who have made the effort to do more than just pick out some random mistakes to “expose” you as a failure. Instead, they have offered some solid and well-founded advice with the good-spirited mind of a fellow language learner. Sometimes it is this kind of spirit I miss in all the discussions about polyglots and other language learners.
@ cazasigiloso: (…) The only thing I care about is that people are teaching things improperly and teaching people how to speak incorrectly. It’s not that they are teaching an “informal” way of speaking–they are teaching people how to speak in a way that no native would ever speak. (…)
I have seen a couple of videos like this for German. However, in those videos it was clear that the person was neither a teacher nor a native speaker, but just a fellow language learner. Spending a few hours with a good textbook very quickly makes you aware of mistakes committed in these videos. I agree with you that if people say they actually want to “teach” others, they should not make this kind of mistakes. A teaching video to me is completely different from a practising video.
Reading and writing forum posts on the other hand is a good way of practising a language.