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 basically a million dollar question and one for which there is no universal answer.
Sadly there are simply too many variables concerned, in that so much depends on how much effort a student is willing to put into studying the language, and also which technique or program they are going to be using. Add to that the incontrovertible fact that while some students may opt to use the services of a personal tutor, others will choose a classroom environment instead. In reality, some students will rather opt for using one or other home study program which gets use out of books, multimedia, software, and audio recordings. You also have to ask whether the student will be learning the language in a land where it’s spoken as the local language, or whether they will be learning it in their home country. Additionally, the quality of a program or the experience of a teacher will also influence the result.
Since these variables will have such a direct result on how long does it take to learn Spanish, it is just not possible to provide a simple answer to this question. In fact, I have personally been involved with scholars who after half a year, managed to communicate confidently in conversational Spanish, but also , I’ve known people who have attempted to study the Spanish language for a number of years, frankly on an on and off basis, and yet after many years they can hardly get by.
Rather than attempting to provide a simple answer to this question, I’d prefer to offer what I feel to be the quickest way of learning Spanish. The most vital step of all, is for a student to seize each possible opportunity with regards to interacting in the language they want to learn, irrespective of what language that may be.
While you actually do get people who are firm adherents of the lecture room approach, I personally feel it takes too long unless it is done in conjunction with another method. In my opinion, a self study method of good quality is by far superior in that it allows a student to proceed at their own pace rather than being tied down to the average lecture room pace. This is very true regarding individuals who are truly serious about learning the Spanish language.
In this case, I might suggest a student to go for a credible program which includes a range of audio lessons, multimedia lessons, and naturally, written Spanish. In addition, they should choose a program which allows for lessons to be downloaded onto a mobile device so that they can listen on their iPod for instance. Remember, if you’re serious about learning a language, then you should aim for having the ability to not only speak it and read it, but also to write it and understand it. Unless a program covers all 4 of these areas, it must be avoided or at least, you’ll require some additional material.
As you probably have already heard, Rocket Spanish is an intensely well-liked 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 a first[ class foundation for basic Spanish which in turn will make sure that you are able to communicate confidently in Spanish inside a relatively short space of time. Similarly, Rosetta Stone is thought to be just as good, in that it also addresses the four areas mentioned above. Furthermore, it is available in two versions so that people can choose between the “Spain” version and the South American Spanish version. Judging by testimonials, it would seem that the Rosetta Stone program takes slightly longer to work through, which of course means it’ll take you a little longer before you develop conversational Spanish but generally, it ranks right up there with Rocket Spanish. Also, Rosetta Stone is quite a bit more expensive.
As you can see, there are too many variables concerned for me or anyone else to be in a position to give a simple answer with regards to “how long does it takes to learn Spanish. However, you have doubtless also gathered by this time that there are a few things you can do in order to speed up the method. In fact, many scholars go as far as using both the programs discussed together with each other to develop conversational skills as rapidly as possible. However, unless you are continuously exposed to the Spanish language, no program will be capable of making you 100 % fluent. On the other hand, providing you’re at an intermediate-to-advanced level, you might want to consider subscribing to Puerta del Sol Audio magazine which is a Spanish language skills Magazine. Additionally, you’d be stunned at how much you can benefit from joining a Meetup group in your area that focuses on learning the Spanish language.