I have failed three times to learn another language. I took three Spanish classes and have not
improved in learning the language. Each
time, I start from the beginning with no knowledge of the subject. For some reason, I can learn math, business,
and science classes but language classes are a nightmare for me. The information doesn’t click in my brain and
I forget everything the next day. I have
learned a couple things from these repeated failures. First, I am bad at learning Spanish. Second, my mind has trouble processing
different words but not numbers. Third,
I learned to keep trying and try to take more foreign language classes to
improve this failure.
I think failure is healthy to an extent. Failure teaches important lessons and
develops maturity. Failure is hard but
it represents taking a step out of your comfort zone. I handle failure as an opportunity. Defeat one time is a chance to rise greater
than ever the second time. It builds
character and makes us who we are. My perspective
on failure is more accepting, and I do see myself taking more risks in the
future. I see the rewards from
overcoming numerous failures.
Adam,
ReplyDeleteI can absolutely relate to your struggle with learning Spanish. It’s interesting how we might qualify what is a failure. I, too, have taken Spanish courses NUMEROUS times. Most recently, I completed Spanish II at a local college because it was an AA graduation requirement. Somehow I received a 100 in the class, but I cannot speak the language, so in my opinion this is a failure for me as well! I think the key with learning a foreign language is to become immersed in it. If we were to live in a Spanish-speaking country where we did not have any English speakers to rely on, I think we would develop the ability to speak Spanish.
Sometimes, however, I think it is okay to accept that we are not meant to do everything well. It’s important to choose where we put our effort and energy, and sometimes that is best spent on things that we already do well, but can become experts at, rather than try to be good at lots of different things.
Susan
Hi Adam,
ReplyDeleteI can totally relate to you on this failure. Growing up, I took Spanish classes for countless years during middle school but I was so bad at it they eventually pulled me out of the class and gave me my own study hall...keep in mind we didn't even have study halls at my middle school haha. It's funny looking back on certain failures and just laughing at yourself!
Adam,
ReplyDeleteI completely understand where you are coming from with how learning a different language can be challenging. My family is Colombian and everyone speaks Spanish fluently, even my sister, but I someone who can only understand and read the language for the most part, but when it comes to speaking I can't do it, I feel like it does require a different part of the brain. I think we both share the frustration that has caused us to stop trying to learn several times, but we understand you don't have to be great at everything, sometimes things don't click with people.