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Native vs non-native teacher.

    I   have   met   several   people/prospective   students   who   have   asked   me   whether   it   makes   a   difference   if   one   is   taught   a   foreign   language   by   a   native, or   non-native   speaker   of   the   target   language. In   other   words, is   it   better   to   have   a   native   or   non-native   speaker   of   a    language   as   a   teacher?. The   answer   I   have   always   given   is   that   it   doesn’t   matter   whether   the   teacher   is   a   native   or   non-native   speaker   of   the   language. The   important   thing   is   for   the   teacher   to   be   qualified, to   have   a   complete   grasp   of   the   language   they   teach.    From   my   own   personal   experience, I   have   been   taught   by   both   native   and   non – native   speakers (eg when I learnt Spanish). But   the   one   thing, and   the   most   important   that   they   had   in   common   was   that   they   were   accomplished   professionals
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Never compare your challenges to somebody else’s.

    One   thing   I   can   assure   prospective   language   students   is   that   they   will   face   some   challenges. They   may   be   minor   or   major. And   this   is   normal. One   of   the   biggest   mistakes   a   person   can   make   is   to   compare   their   situation   to   somebody   else’s   without   first   analyzing   it   critically. This   is   what   makes   it   unwise   to   do   so. Let’s   look   at   the   following   analogy, here   are   two   students   who   are   having   a   difficult   time   with   conjugations. At   first   glance, it   seems   like   a   straight   forward   issue. Their   area   of   weakness   is   conjugating   verbs. That’s   a   general   analysis   and   it   may   be   misleading. One   student   may   be   having   difficulties   conjugating   verbs   in   the   present   form/tense   while   the   other   may   be   experiencing   difficulties   with   the   subjunctive   tense.     What   does   the   above  
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You don’t need a dictionary (at the beginning).

  Just   like   a   wise   traveler, any   good   language   student   will   take   stock   of   what   they   need   to   succeed   in   their   studies. This   is   usually   done   at   the   beginning   prior   to   enrolling   for   the   class. At   some   point, every   language   student   will   have   to   use   a   dictionary   in   their   studies. From   experience, I’d   like   to   point   out   that   a   dictionary   isn’t   really   necessary   at   the   beginning, and   this   is why.   You   see, at   the   beginners   level, one   is   just   laying   a   foundation. This   is   where   someone   starts   learning   from   the   alphabet   level, getting   to   understand   the   mechanics   of   the   language. At   this   point, the   emphasis   isn’t   on   vocabulary. This   is   the   time   to   learn   about   the   language   structure, conjugations (past, present, future) etc. Now, this   may   sound   strange, telling   a   prospective   languag
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Spanish/English phrases (select) related to Coronavirus.

Gloves – Guantes Symptoms – S í ntomas Virus – Virus Infection – infecci ó n Breath – Respirar Wash – Lavar Hands – Manos Touch – Tocar Wipe – Limpiar Throw away – Tirar Sanitizer – Desinfectante Sanitize - Desinfectar
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Some English/Spanish words relating to Coronavirus.

English.                                                                                        Spanish. Pandemic                                                                                    Pandemia Risk                                                                                              Riesgo Exposure                                                                                     Exposición Temperature                                                                               Temperatura Illness                                                                                           Enfermedad Ill/Sick                                                                                          Enfermo (m), Enferma (f) Quarantine                                                                                  Cuarentena Social distance                                                                            Distancia social Fever            
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Spoken versus written language.

        I   have   had   people   come   over   to   me   and   tell   me   that   they’re   interested   in   learning   a   foreign   language. They   go   on   to   say   that   they’re   only   interested   in   learning   for   example, the   spoken   version   of   Spanish   or   French   only. This   makes   sense   and   seems   straight   forward   because   languages   exist   at   the   written   and   spoken   levels. However, a   closer   analysis   of   their   intention   reveals   a   totally   different   perspective. Usually, what   these   prospective   language   students   mean   is   that   they   intend   to   discard   the   written   part   of   their   target   language   in   their   studies. And, here   lies   the   problem. One   can   never   divorce   the   written/spoken   or   spoken/written   aspects   of   language   from   each   other. The   insistence   on   doing   so   would   be   like   demanding   to   have   a   glass   of   wine   made  
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Take classes in sequence.

  Now, taking   classes   in   sequence   may   sound   like   the   automatic   thing   to do, but   I   have   seen   students   taking   college   level   classes   who   did   the   exact   opposite. I   never   got   to   know   what   led   them   to   make   that   choice, but   I   highly   advise   against   it. The   students   I   encountered   had   taken   higher   course   levels   before   completing   the   preceding   level. One   had   enrolled   in   Spanish   102   ahead   of   101   and   the   other   student   had   taken   Spanish   202   ahead   of   201. The   two   reached   out   to   me   when   they   realized   that   they   were   completely   lost   in   their   courses. Like   I   have   previously   said   in   earlier   posts, a   language   course   is   like   a   building   block, the   success   of   the   next   phase   will   depend   on   the   foundation   laid   in   the   previous   class/course.      This   is   the   danger   in  
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