Learning a language "vocabulary first" is like training a vine on a metal frame.
Learning a language "grammar first" is like building a vertical garden.
CorporateNature Metaphor Series, No 121
Learning a language is a lengthy and demanding process. It requires hours of reading boring grammar rules and doing tedious exercises. However, this is by no means the most efficient way to reach conversational fluency in a foreign language.
1. CASE IN HISTORY: MEZZOFANTI
Cardinal Giuseppe Mezzofanti was a hyperpolyglot known to speak more than 30 languages fluently. Reportedly, he was able to pick up a new language within weeks. How did he do it?
Learning a language "grammar first" is like building a vertical garden.
CorporateNature Metaphor Series, No 121
Learning a language is a lengthy and demanding process. It requires hours of reading boring grammar rules and doing tedious exercises. However, this is by no means the most efficient way to reach conversational fluency in a foreign language.
1. CASE IN HISTORY: MEZZOFANTI
Cardinal Giuseppe Mezzofanti was a hyperpolyglot known to speak more than 30 languages fluently. Reportedly, he was able to pick up a new language within weeks. How did he do it?
Entrepreneur Tim Ferriss explains the method Mezzofanti used: Whenever he would start learning a new language, Mezzofanti would ask a native speaker to recite the Lord’s Prayer. By doing this, he was able to deconstruct the target language and reveal its basic grammatical structures. This proved to be a more than sufficient framework upon which he could then develop further his knowledge of the new language.
2. VOCABULARY LEARNING IS LIKE VINE TRAINING
The Mezzofanti approach gives the learner a lot of vocabulary and merely a basic set of grammatical rules around which to start organising the vocabulary. This process is similar to growing a vine (the language) in the ground and training it on a metal frame (the basic set of grammatical rules). When the vine shoots are just above the ground, they hardly need the frame at all. Over time, as the vine grows, it needs to be tied to the frame so that it keeps growing straight (adhering to the grammatical framework).
3. GRAMMAR-CENTRED LEARNING IS LIKE BUILDING A VERTICAL GARDEN
In contrast, learning a language by first instilling a complete grammatical framework is a much more labour-intensive process that focuses on the wrong priority. Grammatical rules are of no use without words and expressions. Speaking the language should come first, not be left as a mere afterthought. The unnatural (forced) "grammar first" learning process resembles building a vertical garden, with plants growing not in the ground but on the vertical framework itself. "Grammar first" learning takes longer and requires a lot more effort, just like setting up a vertical garden wall and populating it with plants is harder to start and maintain than planting a vine in the ground.
4. PRIORITIES AND RESULTS
After all, wine comes from the grapes, not from the metal frame to which the vine is attached.
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| Vine training (image source: Wikipedia) |
