Yanagihara Kanako (柳原可奈子), a fast-speaking Japanese comedian imitating a schoolgirl on a bus

One major obstacle in learning a foreign language is listening to it being spoken by natives. By default everything you learn yourself or in class is at a slower pace. But what happens when you hear it being spoken in a dialect? Slurred? Slang? There are so many variations on a language that it seems next to impossible to get good at hearing and recognizing words.

Needless to say, you’re not always going to find someone whose native language is the one you’re learning. So how to do you practice listening to your language being spoken–not by a teacher, but by real people in real conversations? Here are some tips.

Study Abroad
This one is the most obvious one, but at the same time most difficult and expensive to do. You have to be lucky enough that your school participates in a study abroad program with your country of choice, you have to have the enough funds, and the acceptance from said participating school. However, this is the best way to practice listening because you will be in an environment where you can hear the language being spoken 24/7.

Participate in a Home Stay Program
If you do study abroad, try getting into a home stay program where you live with a family instead in a dorm, where you will be with fellow English speakers. (The phrase “blind leading the blind” comes to mind.) You will learn your language the fastest by staying with a family, and learn listening skills very quickly when your family is trying to convey something to you.

Listen to Music in Your Foreign Language
Listening to music is a great way to practice listening skills because the replay value is greater than say, a language cassette tape or CD. You can find the lyrics to the song and read along as its being played. You’ll also be able to pick up new vocabulary that you hear over and over.

Subscribe to Podcasts
I love podcasts because they’re free and easily accessible. Some of them even include videos! You can access them from the iTunes store and subscribe to as many as you want. This is great to listen to while browsing the Internet as the podcasts are usually pretty lengthy.

Use Headphones
When listening to a foreign language through media like podcasts, music, or movies, use headphones for better clarity. You will be amazed at how clear the language sounds when you can hear it right against your ears. You’ll also increase your chances of recognizing phrases or grammar points that you’ve learned.

Watch Movies and TV Shows
If you watch movies or TV shows in that foreign language you are learning, you’ll be able to both see and hear natives interacting and study how the two go together. (Not all body language is the same in all countries, you know!) You should first watch them without subtitles and see what you can pick up. Then watch them again with subtitles, and while reading them listen for words or grammar you know. Finally, watch them for a third time without subtitles and see how your listening has improved.

Study Regional Dialects and Slang
Schools for the most part will only teach standardized languages, so you should look into any regional dialects or slang in your foreign language as well–they are just as (if not more) important than the standardized language since you will probably hear it more often. Chances are if you can’t understand something you think you should, there might be a variation of the language involved.

Listen for Key Words
You already know that you can’t follow every single word being spoken, but you can look for key words that can give you an idea of what is being said. Think of the context of what you’re listening to: If it’s a romance movie, do you know the words “love,” “hate,” “girlfriend,” etc.? Or if you’re listening to a song about spring, can you recognize the words “rain,” “flowers,” “sun,” etc.? It seems simple enough but I think a lot of people blank out as soon as they hear a string of words they can’t understand. Take it easy and just listen for anything that sounds familiar to you.

Don’t panic if you feel like you are being overwhelmed by words you can’t understand–this is part of the learning process. Immerse yourself as much as you can by listening to natives speak the language you are learning, and you will notice your listening improve considerably.

More of my Language Articles:
- How I Skipped An Entire Semester of Japanese in One Month
- Tips in Building Up Vocabulary in a Foreign Language
- Improve Your Foreign Language Skills By Being Consistent
- Why You Should Learn a Foreign Language

- Speak Our Language or Go to Jail
- Learn a Language Faster By Slowing Down
- Using Bilingual Dictionaries
- Learning a Foreign Language for Beginners pt. 3: Main Resources
- How To: Use Chopsticks

Foxes | how-to, language | Wednesday, February 27th, 2008 | Trackback