Language Immersion: Another Way To Learn A Language
- Posted by Raphael Pares
- Posted in SVI
CUTE LITTLE SHEEP…
Let’s say you have two weeks of holiday, or a month, or even a whole year that you can dedicate to learning a language, during or after your studies. First, it is a unique opportunity to have that time during higher education. But it’s also a question of money… and meaning. Discover now what language immersion really means…
The first thing that comes to mind is to turn to well-established international mobility actors. The most famous of them know – by bombing us with posters, flyers, and ads – how to persuade us that they are the only ones on the market and the only option for us if we want to have good teachers, be happy, get a good sun tan, improve our language skills. And we tend to forget that there are many alternatives.
This results in individualism, in language stays reserved for affluent students who are advantaged by their privileged social background, and – most alarming – in public subsidies. This results in a herd of nice little sheep who go to class in the morning and to the beach in the afternoon and all exchange in their shared mother tongue.
CULTURAL IMMERSION: A NEW OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN LANGUAGES
Even though these actors are obviously legitimately allowed to teach languages, there is a risk of ending up in a place with people from your nationality, speaking only in your own language, or being confined in a fake paradise with no meaning, value, or commitment.
THAT IS WHERE WE COME IN!
Practising! Always practising! Learning a language requires being on the ground, because a true language immersion makes you learn much faster. And beyond the educational aspect, a real cultural immersion project brings people together and gives them confidence. So, go on and take the plunge! Taking part in a voluntary project, an ethnolinguistic stay, or a language-voluntary stay will make you practise a new language, the language of your host country, the language you will speak with other volunteers, in a MEANINGFUL WAY. Because, beyond your language goal, you will get to experience commitment, solidarity, and intercultural meetings. All of this being ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE.