Introduction
It is not an easy-breezy task to learn a new language. One is required to invest both, time as well as patience for being well-versed in any new language. Determination, practise, and constant motivation is quite essential.
German is the official language in most of the European countries. There are over 200 million people who speak German. Besides Germany, the major German-speaking countries are Italy, Austria, Luxembourg, and Switzerland. In fact, after English and French, German is the most spoken language in the European Union, which comprises 28 nations.
If you want to know how to master German, then you must get rid of the idea that German is impossible to learn. While it may not be that easy, it is not impossible either. At least 200 million people will vouch for that. The first thing about German that might scare you is its grammar which is mostly inclusive of complex nouns and compound words. However, if you wish to go through the journey of learning German, then you must embrace yourself to buckle up. You need to get down practising, putting the required amount of effort, and being efficient while at the same time being consistent.
Best way to learn German
To learn a language, one needs to put in a be a considerable amount of time and effort. One needs to practice that language to master it. The more hours of practise you put in learning something, the faster you will master it. It is rightly said that “practice makes you perfect.” Therefore, spending more time on learning German will result in faster learning of the language.
Initially, it may appear complicated, but over time and practice, you will learn the language much sooner and realize it is a cakewalk. You may have heard about the FSI (Foreign Service Institute) which trains officials going to foreign embassies. The FSI has ‘difficulty indicators’ for every language.
According to their difficulty indicator, German falls under category two language as it is quite similar to English. According to FSI, approximately 30 weeks are required to learn German. In comparison to other difficult words such as Mandarin or Japanese which takes 2200 hours, German comparatively takes lesser time to learn.
How to learn German?
Various aspects affect how you learn this language. It depends on the number of hours you put in practising this language every day. Your effort and the motivation you have behind learning the language also matters a lot. Having the right teacher and adopting the ideal method of learning also holds great importance. Factors are as follow:
1. How Much Time You Spend on Learning German: Depending on how much time you invest in learning and studying German, you will achieve proficiency in the same. To garner the perfect German language skills, you would need to adopt efficient methods of learning. To do any task, you would need to put a minimum number of hours and effort into learning it. You can try the ‘trial and error’ method and see which way works best for you when it comes to learning German. Try reading Learning German for beginners’ books, German audios, German videos, and German movies. These will help you learn quicker.
2. Find the Proper Teacher: Getting a proper teacher as per your personality and learning methods are very important. You would need a teacher who knows the subject at the back of their hand while at the same time being compatible.
Difficulties faced when Learning German
There may be many reasons which act as hurdles or obstacles in your path while learning German. These include- lack of practice, low confidence, adopting wrong methods of learning, not finding the teacher who can work on your learning requirements, inability to understand the language, etc.
● Low confidence: People who encounter low confidence while learning German are bound to face hurdles in the learning process. We need to be confident about our competencies to complete any task. Likewise, to study German, maintaining that conviction to continue learning until the desired level of proficiency is reached, is essential.
● Adopting the wrong methods of learning: Not following the correct methodology to learn German, is another hurdle that you may face. The process you may be following may be unproductive and time-consuming. So if you are still looking for the best ways to learn German, then you must also learn ways to learn it ‘efficiently’. It is always advisable to learn under a language professional, be it in personal or online.
● Lack of practice: Taking a short cut and not practising or not doing your homework as assigned by your German tutor will lead to delay in the learning process. German may not be tough to learn, but it also requires practice, especially the grammar part.
German Grammar: German grammar is much more precise than English. There are nouns and genders, just like in English; but with a little alteration. While English has only two genders -masculine and feminine, German grammar has three genders, which are masculine, feminine and neuter. The endings of words reveal the grammatical gender. For example, the feminine nouns are those that end with – ung (-ing), -schaft (-ship), -keit or heit (-hood, -ness), and neuter nouns are those ending in -chen or -lein (diminutive forms). German grammar also has two numbers singular and plural, just like English grammar.
How do English Speakers have the upper hand?
For English Speakers, it has never been easy to answer the question, “How to learn German?”. German grammar is not entirely foreign to English grammar. Indo-European group of languages include English and German. Both languages use the same letters with a few differences. The verb patterns are much more natural than English. Compared to that, to speak in Japanese or Mandarin, you would require constant practice and a whole lot of knowledge.
