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Last week I promised you that I’d blog in more detail about the different levels of learning a language and how to figure out where you are on the scale. Generally speaking, when it comes to foreign languages, people are categorized as beginners, intermediates and advanced. While those three labels are handy in providing a general distinction among levels, the truth is is that within each category there can be extreme variations in skills.

There’s a lot of ground to cover here, so today’s post is going to look solely at the BEGINNER category. In the coming weeks I will revisit this topic exploring the Intermediate and Advanced levels.  All of the categories can be broken down into subcategories. For the Beginner level, I’ve chosen to split them into three subcategories. They are:

ABSOLUTE BEGINNER: Zero knowledge and understanding of Spanish. Can perhaps say “hola”, “adiós” and “gracias,” but that’s about it.

TRUE BEGINNER: Very rudimentary knowledge of Spanish. Can introduce himself and perhaps knows some Spanish words for basic items, such as colors, numbers, food, family, etc. but doesn’t know enough of the language to form neither questions nor answers. Vocabulary and grammar are extremely limited while listening comprehension and pronunciation are usually weak. As a result, it’s very challenging for the True Beginner to make himself understood as well as to understand native Spanish speakers.

ADVANCED BEGINNER:  Can speak in the present tense and may be aware of the other tenses in Spanish but isn’t skilled at conjugating and using verbs correctly. The Advanced Beginner has enough vocabulary to introduce himself, ask for basic items and to express some of his likes and dislikes. Initially, some Advanced Beginners may appear to be at a higher level because they are comfortable using and repeating many stock phrases and expressions they have learned. However, the typical Advanced Beginner generally speaks in one-word responses or incomplete sentences and frequently falls back on using words and syntax from his native language when trying to communicate in Spanish.

What to do next:

If you are at the “Absolute Beginner” or “True Beginner” level, your best course of action is to enroll in a Spanish course with a real-life teacher. Listening to podcasts and CDs or watching DVDs are fine learning supplements, but at this stage you are building a foundation and in order for that foundation to be strong, you need the instruction of a good teacher.

While I applaud people who have the desire to go it alone, there are major drawbacks to the DIY (do-it-yourself) method of language instruction at the beginner level. After the initial flurry of excitement and interest in buying books, language learning CDs and software, etc, there inevitably comes a dip in interest and motivation. Real life intrudes and before you know it, several weeks have passed since you last listened to your Spanish CDs or given any thought to your Spanish studies. If you enroll in a course, you’re making a commitment on some level to study Spanish for at least a certain number of weeks. Signing up for a class should give it some priority in your life, particularly knowing that you’ve paid money for a course that is going to happen whether or not you attend. Most important, being in a class gives you an opportunity to interact with other people in the language and to receive corrections in the moment. You can’t get that sitting at home listening to recordings, so add “taking Spanish lessons” to the mix.

If you are an Advanced Beginner and want to move up to the Intermediate level, start focusing your Spanish studies on specific tasks. Build your vocabulary related to certain topic areas, such as food, family, the weather, your job/school, etc. Learn how to conjugate a few basic verbs beyond the first-person singular so that you don’t find yourself stuck when speaking of a third-party. Many beginners learn how to say “Me llamo es….” but may get stumped by “Se llama…” when talking about someone else.  Work on your pronunciation and on speaking in complete sentences. Set a goal for yourself that you will be able to maintain at least a two-minute conversation about yourself in Spanish. Train yourself not only in the answers but also in asking the questions. (¿De dónde eres? ¿Dónde vives? ¿Cuánto años tienes? ¿Cuántos hermanos tienes? ¿A qué te dedicas?, etc.) People who fall into the Intermediate category can participate, at some level, in straightforward conversations about themselves and their daily life. If you want to move up to the Intermediate Level, you’ll have to be able to do this.

A lot of this info that I’m giving you comes from my own personal experience, both as a language teacher and as a student. Additionally, I also did some research related to foreign language proficiency and found the guidelines presented by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) very useful. In this post I’ve incorporated some of the ACTFL info in a very simplified version.

Next week Wednesday I’ll be back to a look at the Intermediate level.

Hasta entonces,

Eleena

Eleena also blogs about the Spanish language over at Voices en Español, a bilingual blog and conversational Spanish podcast.

Tags: advanced beginner spanish, beginner spanish, beginning spanish, spanish proficiency, survival spanish

This entry was posted on Miércoles, Octubre 29th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
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