Al Fusaic

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Learning a Language in Adulthood

Al Fusaic

By Grace Landsberg

Part 1: Why Learn Another Language + Starting as an Adult

Learning a second language is beneficial in many ways. Science shows us that learning another language makes us smarter, more confident, and helps us to understand other people and cultures [i]. There is also evidence that we are able to make better, more logic-driven decisions in a second or third language [ii]. Unfortunately, learning a second language is not very common in the United States. Only about a fourth of U.S. public elementary schools teach foreign languages [iii].

Speaking multiple languages helps people to become more understanding. If you are able to communicate with more people, it is possible to gain new perspectives. Foreign languages introduce us to new kinds of art, music, dance, cuisine, film, philosophy, fashion, science, and more. Language students also improve their self-confidence when they see their progress after continuous studying. Additionally, people who know multiple languages have healthier brains in old age because the skill helps with memory [iv].

There is often a misunderstanding that it is harder– or sometimes impossible– to learn a new language in adulthood. More scientists are now researching second language learning in adulthood because of the increasingly connected nature of the world. This research is demonstrating that children are better at some language-learning tasks while adults are better at others [v]. Adults learn differently than children, so it is important for teachers and students to approach language learning with this in mind. For example, adults can learn more material in one class, but children might form long-term memory connections with new words faster. In reality, adults are not any worse at learning new languages than children, they are merely much less likely to have the same time for exposure as children do. While children more often acquire a new language through immersion, an adult learning a second language for the first time will almost always begin with more limited exposure in a classroom setting. Here is an excellent guide to the best apps and resources for people who want to learn a new language.

“Studies that compare children and adults exposed to comparable material in the lab or during the initial months of an immersion program show that adults perform better, not worse, than children (Huang, 2015; Krashen, Long, & Scarcella, 1979; Snow & Hoefnagel-Höhle, 1978), perhaps because they deploy conscious strategies and transfer what they know about their first language.” - from A Critical Period [vi].

Part 2: The Case for Arabic

Arabic is often considered a difficult language for native English-speakers to learn. The United States Foreign Services Institute (FSI) has classified languages into 4 levels of difficulty, based on the amount of time it takes to gain proficiency. Arabic falls into Category 4, “super-hard languages.” The only languages in this category are Arabic, Chinese (Cantonese and Mandarin), Japanese, and Korean. Farsi, Urdu, and Dari all use modified forms of the Arabic alphabet but are placed in Category 2 [vii]. The explanation that is widely accepted for this is because Arabic students must learn MSA and a dialect to be considered proficient. This phenomenon: when a language has a distinct and separate dialect for formal and informal situations - is called “diglossia” [viii]. Even though Arabic is a difficult language, the predictable word patterns, and regular writing system and verb conjugation make it easier in some ways like Category 1 languages [ix].

So if it’s so hard, why bother trying to learn Arabic? Arabic is considered a linguistically mature language. This is unique because the structure has had no radical changes for more than sixteen centuries [x]. Linguistic maturity is demonstrated in the flexibility of sentence structure, and the elimination of unnecessary words. Arabic is also considered the language of Islam, the second-largest religious group in the world, and practiced by almost a quarter of the world’s population [xi]. Lastly, the language is a profound influence on Western human knowledge and the preservation of culture. Arabic is often credited with preserving the knowledge from the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations, which then contributed to the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, and so on [xii, xiii].

The good news is that it is never too late to start learning a new language. Take it from Uchechi Kalu, who taught herself how to speak Arabic in one year without a private teacher [xiv]. Her regimen mimics the AJATT (All Japanese All The Time) method, where the learner essentially creates their own immersive environment. As the research suggests, this is the most effective way to gain what all language learners desire: native-level fluency [xv].

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