I don’t think I mentioned this on the blog but a couple of months ago I hit a plateau in learning Korean ^^ where now I wasn’t actually learning anything. No new vocabulary and no new grammar. NOTHING. It was no progress for almost a month and a half and although it was a busy time for me with #schoolwork and other stuff like life, there are a few more reasons to it and I want to share them so no one makes the same mistakes 🙂
Here are a few reasons on ‘how’ someone lands up hitting a plateau in learning Korean (or any other language)
Lack of time when you don’t have time you study small amounts, right? I usually study this way when I don’t have time, I make a study-time and its usually about 20-30 minutes before I get very tired because I have been busy the whole day or ; when I am waiting for maybe my class for about 5 minutes I try and study something but then its hard to study while you are standing on the second floor balcony so it usually ends in me having an open book in my hand and talking to someone else ㅠㅠ so that is one problem which can cause a plateau “Lack of time”
Reading in a block environment you can’t improve on new vocabulary if you are reading just the vocabulary you know, and have mastered. That’s what I was doing for like a month, everything I was reading I understood it was at my ‘level’ so there were no advances on anything I was learning. It was actually then I thought to myself I should read my Big Bang book (Shouting out to you in the World!) because those words I obviously don’t know all of them xD and I can improve through it. Which is happening (: I see loads of improvements and its moving pretty fast.
No usage of language skills its only now when I write my 일기 (which I will post for some as some practice) that I have started using what I know but before I just didn’t make that effort, not because I didn’t want to but because I just had no energy to try and make an effort ): its pretty sad to think of it that way but when I make an effort I remember everything about 100times better eg. when I was beginning I would remember everything so much better because I was always reading it ; revising with it; and most importantly USING it no matter what so I got to understand the structures and usages of these grammar and words I was learning and using 🙂 now I can sometimes easily forget something I learnt about 3 weeks ago ㅠ.ㅠ Probably my short-memory though so I shouldn’t put too much thought into what I forget! I usually forget most thinks if I don’t go over them again and again
Those are three reasons why I know I hit a plateau in learning Korean for a few weeks (ummh…more like a month :D) but since I am out of it ; and have been for a long time I thought I should share with you what I was doing ‘wrong’ not that there is a wrong and right way, but for me this was wrong and actually was killing my progress which can get frustrating a lot ><
You have to get out of a situation like this before its too late. 🙂
How to get out of it is easier than how you got into it though ~ luckily 🙂
Read more! if you read more then there is no time to be forgetting words and grammar and you will be learning new words and grammar as you read more challenging material when you study.
Use the language or it becomes useless that says it all, but you have to use the language or there is no point in learning the language. That’s why you usually need a strong desire for the language to get far with it, I have just pure love of it and the happiness it gives me when I understand something in normal speed Korean and large quantities ㅎㅎ
Find time no matter what I make excuses, I know it and most friends/ and readers know it if you have been reading my posts and who follow me on Twitter and Facebook. Its just who I am and its my personality I think, but it usually escalates when I don’t have time for what I was which is bad because then I never get much done ㅠ.ㅠ and that’s not very beneficial to me or my Korean no is it?! 🙂 Although I usually find 20 minutes I don’t think its enough one or twice a week I should make it 20-30minutes everyday when I don’t have time.
When I do have time studying is not an issue for me I can sit and study Korean for up to two (2) hours at a time when I have all the time in the world ~ which is usually December time when its a long holiday for most people 🙂
Anyway, hope this helps you if you have been in a language learning ‘rut’ it certainly helped me once I realized what I was actually doing to my Korean ~ hehe
Have you ever hit a plateau in language learning? Did it make you want to give up? Share your experiences 🙂 Look forward to reading them everybody!! ~ So leave a comment ㅎㅎ
Actually yes, I’ve had more than once thought to give up! Actually it isn’t because lack of time, I always can find a way to do everything in a day, but people judging me for what I like… I don’t live in a very open minded community, and here studying Asian languages at 16 is something HUGE and not everyone understands it… I am often fooled around by people here, and when it becomes an everyday thing it’s frustrating. What makes me go on studying everyday is knowing the fact that I am doing this for myself and for my future, if I work hard now I have more possibilities to be where I want when I’ll grow up, this is what makes me motivated! (sorry the tedious reply ^^`)
I haven’t thought of giving up! I WOULD NEVER DO THAT…EVER 🙂 but I just was reading and reading the same things which means I was not progressing in my Korean studies for about a month ^^ you are so lucky to have enough time in a day to finish everything me..on the other hand sometimes I am just too busy to get it all done. I need a 48hr day to complete things hahaha xD I hope you don’t mind me asking but where do you live? Because it does seem a little strange a society that would not accept you learning Asian languages?! My parents are thrilled that I even have the drive and love that I have for Korean and everyday I look forward to learning and look forward to the books I will read ; they even encourage more to read when I have spare time. They know I love it so there whole-heartedly support me and my dreams, which is so awesome 🙂 its not nice that people fool around with you, I hope you wont listen to their comments and just keep doing what makes you happy and you are right you will get your revenge on them when you have gotten to where you can be happy (which I assume is Korea or Japan?) 🙂
Words cant hurt 🙂 and no it wasn’t tedious at all I love comments and I read and reply to any comment I receive and I absolutely enjoy it ^^ you must leave a comment always it makes me smile ㅎㅎ have a good day and thanks for the comment! (mine I bet was long and tedious?!) ^^
I live in Italy, but unfortunately not in the peninsula.. I live in a island and here people aren’t that open minded.. Of course not everyone but the majority of them really don’t accept my choice! With time I learned to not care about what they say, it’s my life and I choose it!
My family is supportive too! I was lucky with it! But teachers and other people I know are not >< and being constantly being fooled by teachers isn't that funny ! Also I got many racist comments…
Anyway, I would never give up! I enjoy what I do and I do it for myself, if people don't understand I don't care in the end^^`
I will continue forever!
I love long comments and discussions too^^v
Have a good day too~
I’ve hit plateaus… orz Never wanted to give up though. 😀 Right now there’s a lack of time with college back and before it was me not challenging myself. Finally got a hold of some new materials (praise everything T^T) so that last problem has been fixed. The main problem is not knowing what to do next or not really having a plan. I’ll hop around through resources and never really get the “accomplishment” feel of finishing a book or section on a website. Since I’m making gradual progress through multiple resources instead of constant progress through one, I don’t get to see how much I’m really progressing.
I also have a bad habit of thinking, “Crud, I’m not ready for this… Okay, let’s try it anyway.” -20 minutes later- “Crap, I didn’t quite get that. I did skip some stuff in the previous level. Maybe I should go back. Oh chipmunks, I can’t remember what I learned in that other series that has nothing to do with this one.”
So the new plan is to work through one material for a while and THEN switch. Writing daily in the notebook I picked up recently should help with usage (mainly Korean because I take a Japanese class so therefore it’s easier to make sure I’m using Japanese).
Make a plan. Use the plan. Live the plan. That’s basically what I need to do. XD
Same never wanted to give up xD most of the time I make like its lack of time but infact its me not challenging myself and me complaing I have something to do and never getting round to that something ^^ the accomplishment feel I understand that because sometimes I try something and land up feeling like I shouldn’t have tried. Luckily though I never stay down long so with those situations I just print about 10million copies of what confused me and make about a billion notes about it ㅎㅎㅎ which makes me feel like I have done something ~~~~~
New materials? YAY XD \awesome
Make a plan. Use the plan. Live the plan.? I like your new life hahaha ^^
I thought it was just me in the “not giving myself a challenge and then saying I have nothing to do when in actuality there’s plenty” problem thing. T^T
I have no idea how I came up with that line. It just happened. XD