How Long Does It Take To Learn Spanish?
I am often asked, “how long does it take to learn Spanish?” I am afraid that this is largely a million-dollar question and one for which there’s no universal response.
Sadly there are simply too many variables concerned, in that so much depends on how much effort someone is ready to put into learning the language, and also which strategy or program they are going to be using. Add to that the indisputable fact that while some individuals may opt to use the services of a private tutor, others will choose a classroom environment instead. Actually, some individuals will rather opt for using one or other home study program which gets use out of books, multimedia, software, and audio recordings. You also need to ask yourself whether the student will be learning the language in a place where it’s spoken as the native 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 possible to provide a simple answer to this question. In reality, I have personally been involved with individuals who after half a year, managed to communicate confidently in conversational Spanish, but I have also met individuals who have studied the Spanish language for a number of years, albeit on an on and off basis, and yet after many years they can barely get by.
Rather than attempting to supply a generic response to this question, I would prefer to respond with what I feel to be the fastest way of learning Spanish. The most significant step of all, is for a student to seize every available opportunity with regards to interacting in the language they want to learn, irrespective of what language that may be.
While you definitely do get people who are firm adherents of the classroom approach, I personally feel it takes too long unless it is done in conjunction with another strategy. In my opinion, a self study method of high quality is by a large margin superior in that it allows a student to progress at their own speed rather than being tied down to the average lecture room pace. This is especially true regarding individuals who are really intent on learning a language.
In this case, I might suggest a person to select a reputable program which includes a range of audio lessons, multimedia lessons, and naturally, written Spanish. In addition, they should select a program which allows for lessons to be downloaded onto a mobile device so that the student can listen on their iPod for instance. Remember, if you’re serious about learning a language, then you should aim for being able to not only speak it and write it, but also to read it and understand it. Unless a program covers all 4 of these areas, it needs to be avoided or at least, you may need some further material.
As you may have already heard, Rocket Spanish is an extremely popular program, and not without reason. Considering that it addresses all four of the area’s mentioned, it has gained a name for providing students with aclass] foundation for basic Spanish which in turn will ensure that you’re able to speak confidently in Spanish inside a relatively short space of time. Likewise, Rosetta Stone is understood to be just as good, in that it also addresses the four areas discussed above. Furthermore, it is available in two versions so that individuals can choose between the “Spain” version and the South American Spanish version. Judging from testimonials, it seems that the Rosetta Stone program takes slightly longer to work thru, which of course means it will take you a little longer before you develop conversational Spanish but in general, it ranks right up there with Rocket Spanish. Also, Rosetta Stone is considerably more expensive.
As you can see, there are too many variables involved for me or anyone else to be in a position to give a single answer with regards to “how long does it takes to learn Spanish. However, you have potentially also gathered by this time that there are many things you can do in order to hurry up the process. In reality, many individuals go as far as using both the programs discussed in conjunction with each other to develop conversational skills as rapidly as possible. However, unless you are steadily exposed to the Spanish language, no program will be capable of making you one hundred p.c smooth. On the other hand, providing you’re at an intermediate-to-advanced level, you might consider subscribing to Puerta del Sol Audio magazine which is a Spanish language skills Magazine. Similarly, you’d be surprised at how much you can benefit from joining a Meetup group in your neighborhood that is focused on learning the Spanish language.