Today we will talk about something disturbing: mistakes that probably you are doing or did before. And the most shocking is that teachers can do it as well. However, our goal is not criticize, but share our experience and help. So, if you’re studying (or teaching) Portuguese (or other language) you must read this.
Introduction
After many years teaching Portuguese as a foreign language, we have noticed some mistakes in the learning process. This is because they apparently have potential to improve language skills, but in practice they are mostly a waste of time and energy.
However, student can do that, for different reasons:
– It makes sense from the student’s point of view
– Other students do the same
– They read on internet that it’s fine
– A teacher have recommended that
Let’s go to the specific examples.
Translate
First shocking fact: to know a language has nothing about translation.
Know another language is about to think in that language and for some moment forget the mother tongue. Consequently, you only start speak fluently when you stop thinking in your mother tongue.
Many people translate texts from Portuguese to them mother tongues in order to improve skills. Of course, if they do it for a while, they will learn something, especially if the original text is suitable. Although, they won’t have the desirable results, because they are not practicing the necessary skills.
Despite we believe this method is not efficient, we would say that is better if you translate from your mother tongue to Portuguese. If the thematic of the original text is suitable, it can help expressing in the foreign language (if you have someone to correct your text).
Books for children
Second shocking fact: books for children are usually more difficult.
It is pretty easy to accept that these books are more accessible for beginners. It includes literature for children and scholar textbooks. In other words, they are the first books that every person read.
Nevertheless, this is completely wrong, for two reasons. First, learn the mother tongue is completely different from learning a foreign language. Consequently, methodologies and didactic materials must be completely different. Secondly, literature for children has a specific thematic, with specific vocabulary and structures. The more specific is the text, the more difficult is to understand, so…
When a student reads these texts, they waste a lot of energy with something that will bring very little results. They really believe this should be easy, but it is usually hard, and then they think “I cannot even understand a text for children”. From here results frustration and we must avoid that.
Alternatively, we strongly recommend adapted books. We have already talked about them in our article “The best way to learn Portuguese: adapted or non-adapted books?”. They are designed for a specific level and it uses vocabulary and structures likely to be used in daily life context. In other words, when a book is well adapted, it tells a story using a more “daily language” instead of literary language.
Songs
Third shocking fact: yes, it is what you’re thinking now…
Almost everyone loves music and the idea of learning Portuguese through Portuguese songs. That’s delicious, but…
Despite here we talk about oral comprehension (not text comprehension), the situation with songs are similar with children books. Often songs express feelings that people feels, but in different ways. In English this is not so noticeable, but in Portuguese it does. In Portuguese songs you can find words that we rarely use, and phrases have figurative or metaphoric meanings.
Very few songs are suitable for a foreign student. So we recommend songs as a way to contact the culture, but not as an effective way to learn the language.
Start with grammar
Fourth shocking fact: grammar is not the most important.
Some students believe if they know all the grammatical rules they will be able to talk. Here is a bad and a good new. The bad one is that it’s not true: unfortunately this is not enough. The good one is that you don’t need all rules to start talking normally.
Learn grammar is different than learn the other components, because you see the results immediately. You study a rule, learn it, then you do an exercise, check the answers, and if it is correct, you get the result. This is stimulating and different from learn the other skills, specially the oral comprehension. About the role of oral comprehension, we already wrote in our article “Learn Portuguese in Portugal”. However, we can shortly say that for oral comprehension there is a kind of “incubating time”: the results are not immediate.
In order to start to communicate as soon as possible you must develop aspects in a balanced way, including grammar, of course. Grammar is important, but it should be learnt in a context, because grammar is for communication and not only for fill an exercise book.
Finally, the result is a lack of communicating skills (in comparison with the linguistic skills).
A student can know advanced grammar, but he/she cannot communicate in a lower intermediate or even upper beginner group. This destroys motivation, so must avoid.
Conclusion
We hope this article help you to avoid mistakes and learn Portuguese in a more efficient way. If this was useful for your, please leave your feedback and wait for the second part.
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Até breve!