How Long Does It Take To Learn Spanish?
I am often asked, “how long does it take to learn Spanish?” I am afraid this is largely a million dollar question and one for which there’s no single response.
Sadly there are simply way too many variables involved, in that so much depends on how much effort an individual is ready to put into studying the language, and also which method or program they will be using. Add to that the fact that while some people may decide to use the services of a private mentor, others will choose a classroom environment instead. In reality, some students will rather choose using one or other home study program which gets use from books, multimedia, software, and audio recordings. You also need to ask yourself whether or not the student will be learning the language in a place where it’s spoken as the local language, or whether they will be learning it in their home country. Similarly, the quality of a program or the expertise of a teacher will also influence the end result.
Because these variables will have such a direct effect on how long does it take to learn Spanish, it is simply not feasible to provide a simple response to this question. In reality, I have personally been involved with students who after half a year, managed to communicate confidently in conversational Spanish, but I have also met folks who have studied the Spanish language for a few years, frankly on an on and off basis, and yet after many years they can barely get by.
Rather than attempt to offer a single answer to this question, I’d rather offer what I feel to be the fastest way of learning Spanish. The most vital step of all, is for a student to take advantage of each possible opportunity regarding interacting in the language they want to learn, regardless of what language that could be.
While you definitely do get people who are firm believers in the classroom approach, I personally feel it takes too long unless it is done in conjunction with another method. In my opinion, a self study method of high quality is by a large margin superior in that it allows a student to proceed at their own pace rather than being tied down to the average classroom pace. This is especially true regarding individuals who are really intent on learning the Spanish language.
In this situation, I might suggest a student to go for a credible program which includes a selection of audio lessons, multimedia lessons, and of course, written Spanish. Additionally, they should select a program which allows for lessons to be downloaded onto a mobile device so that they can listen on their iPod for instance. Remember, if you’re serious about learning a language, then you should aim for having the ability to not only speak it and read it, but also to write it and understand it. Unless a program covers all 4 of these areas, it should be avoided or at least, you’ll require some additional material.
As you’ll have already heard, Rocket Spanish is an extremely well-liked program, and not without reason. Considering that it addresses all four of the area’s discussed, it has gained a reputation for providing scholars with a-class foundation for basic Spanish which in turn will ensure that you are able to speak confidently in Spanish inside a relatively short space of time. Similarly, Rosetta Stone is known to be quite as good, in that it also addresses the four areas discussed above. Furthermore, it is available in two versions so that students can choose between the “Spain” version and the South American Spanish version. Judging by testimonials, it would seem the Rosetta Stone program takes a touch longer to work through, which of course means it’ll take you a little longer before you develop conversational Spanish but generally, it ranks right up there with Rocket Spanish. Also, Rosetta Stone is significantly costlier.
As you can see, there are too many variables concerned for me or anyone else to be able to give a simple response with regards to “how long does it takes to learn Spanish. However, you’ve probably also gathered by this point that there are many things you can do in order to hurry up the method. In fact, many people go as far as using both the programs mentioned in conjunction with each other to develop conversational skills as rapidly as possible. However, unless you are continuously exposed to the Spanish language, no program will be capable of making you one hundred % smooth. On the other hand, providing you are at an intermediate-to-advanced level, you could consider subscribing to Puerta del Sol Audio magazine which is a Spanish language abilities Magazine. Furthermore, you’d be stunned at how much you can benefit from joining a Meetup group in your area that focuses on learning the Spanish language.
