Overcoming your language plateaus: Going from Conversational to a Higher Level of Fluency

Loosely defined, a language plateau occurs when you cannot get any better without putting in an exponentially larger amount of work. The first plateau occurs when you become conversational: when your language skills are sufficient enough to cover most of your basic needs.

Can you order food? Crack a few jokes? Can you order food and have it delivered in your target language? Yes? If so, you’re conversational. Now think: can you discuss philosophy or economics? Most people can’t - how often do you use the terms ‘international trade’ or ‘deficit’ in your first language?

Depending on why you chose to start learning a language, plateaus may be viewed with varying degrees of frustration. If you chose to learn Russian so that you could travel in Russia, plateauing may be fine and may not need addressing. However if you learned a language out of a desire to increase your career prospects or genuine passion for learning a language, overcoming a plateau may be a necessary endeavor.

Here’s why:

·         Be more than 'good enough'-If you chose to learn a second - or in the case of those industrious souls: third or fourth language to advance your career - you’re going to want to stand out. If you are merely conversational, you may not receive that job promotion you were looking for or that scholarship you spent weeks preparing for.

You want to demonstrate that you are committed, hardworking, and industrious through your language abilities. Being someone who overcame their first (and then second and third) language plateaus will prove that you’re a candidate who is not willing to settle for ‘good enough’. Remember that you will not be competing against average Joe American college student, rather you’ll be competing against exceptional Joe Russian Studies master.

Don’t expect him to stop at conversational Russian.

·         To prevent forgetfulness- Similarly, when learning a language, you will forget words when not using them daily. Ask any exchange student how their second language is progressing six months after returning to their home country and they will tell you they have forgotten a lot.

At the early stages, unused second languages leak like a bucket with a hole in it. To expand the metaphor, overcoming a language plateau may seem like overfilling an already leaky bucket, but it’s actually more akin to mixing the water with cement. The stronger your understanding of a language, the higher your retention rate will be. Simply put, the more you learn the less you will forget.

·         Improve relationships-Finally, if you expect to have meaningful relationships in a foreign language, you have to assume you will be talking about more than dinner and visiting the doctor. If you are merely conversational expect your interpersonal relationships to be as limited as your language abilities. 

Now that we understand the necessity of overcoming language plateaus, let us move on to the ‘how’.

Modern Language instructors use a combination of techniques including task based teaching and total physical response to overcome language plateaus. These two clumsy ESL terms essentially mean that you need to be able to problem solve on the fly in real world scenarios. In addition, language learning at this phase requires self-direction and autonomous learning.

Here are some things you can do to bring your language skills from conversational to a higher level of fluency:

·        Get out of your comfort zone- We cannot overstate the value of this. If you are eating at the same restaurants and talking to the same people, you’re probably having the same conversations. Likewise if you commute the same way to work every day, you’re probably not reading the signs anymore. Changing your environment will force you to problem solve on the fly.

·        Learn some words in a different dialect- Every major language on Earth has dialectal differences.  And while many formal language instructors will focus on teaching you the most correct variant (High German, Modern French, or Mandarin Chinese with a Beijing accent), understanding the local dialect will increase your knowledge of the mechanics of the language. Similarly, it will teach you different routes to the same end, different vocabulary, and finally allow you to talk to people from different social classes in your target language. 

·        Take a class unrelated to your target language in that language- We’ve already stressed the importance of getting out of your comfort zone; one great way to do this is to take classes. Consider the way hobbyists talk shop. Now imagine doing this in your target language. Taking a class in something like Jiu Jitsu in Brazil, Kendo in Japan, Kung Fu in Taiwan, or cooking in German is a good way to learn technical vocabulary, make friends, and problem solve in your target language. Likewise, classes will create a structured environment in which you are not being graded on your language ability. Taking differing classes may also help you break up the monotony of foreign language learning.

·        Learn a game in your target language- As with taking a class, learning a game in your target language (especially a culturally significant game) can be a valuable tool. If you are studying Chinese learn Mahjong or go, if you’re learning Spanish, learn dominoes. Learning a game will give you an opportunity to multitask and converse in a language. Similarly, people tend to gossip and talk politics over hands of cards. Just be careful if you decide to take on the old ladies in your neighborhood; they will clean you out.

·        Read the foreign news- Do you ever notice how you hear the same political and social ideas over and over again? The decriminalization vs. legalization of drugs for example.  This trend is not unique to English. Interesting ideas tend to float around and be repeated in every language. Understanding these ideas will help you talk about them. If you can read a newspaper in your target language (impressive!) do so. If not, read the English newspaper from your target language’s region. Understanding the crises, ideas, and solutions in countries where your target language is spoken will allow you to contribute meaningfully when a topical subject arises. It may also help you avoid any cultural or political insensitivities (like calling Taiwan China, or Czech people ' eastern Europeans').

·        Take tours in your target language- Want to learn some obscure diction? Take a tour of Angkor Watt in Korean. Or see a modern art museum in Spanish.  You will be surprised at how much you will learn. Touring in target languages will not only help you improve your language skills, it will also expose you to common arguments and ideas floating around about a particular topic. Imagine the understanding of Vietnamese culture and politics that could be learned from touring Vietnamese government buildings in Vietnamese.

·        Seek Employment or Volunteer work in your Target Language- For many this  may seem like a long shot, however if you can find it; working or volunteering in your target language will teach you a lot. Look for orphanages or hospitals catering to immigrants. Many places also accept tour guides for foreign tourists. Ask around and you may be surprised what you can dig up.

·        Carry a journal- one of the major causes of a language plateau is the infrequency at which you use certain words. As mentioned above, we use words like “deficit” maybe once a week in our first language and therefore it is unlikely you will use this word in your target language. This means you have to take control of your own review. Write the words you learn from playing games, taking classes, touring museums, and getting out of your comfort zone in a journal. Find a note book that can fit into your pocket or purse. Take it everywhere. Flick through this journal once a day. Review and persistence are your two greatest allies.

·         Last but not least: perseverance- Persistence in language learning will lead you to success at every level. This holds true when approaching a language plateau. Understanding that you are plateauing is half the battle, the rest is up to you. Applying the above discussed tips will separate you from your peers, and make you a better language learner.

To recapitulate; language plateaus are actually a sign of progress in your language learning endeavors; you’re so good, it’s hard to get better. Overcoming language plateaus will separate you from the competition, ingratiate you to target language speakers, and increase your rate of retention. Blasting through language plateaus requires you to problem solve and push yourself in your target language.

The most important factor in this endeavor is persistence and getting out your comfort zone. Good luck, and don’t give up!

Bio: Bryn Thomas is a Master of Asia Pacific Studies from National Cheng Chi University in Taipei, Taiwan. His research focus is traditional industries and privatized education and is currently associated with the UNI-Prep Institute. He has over ten years of ESL teaching experience, is a Chinese speaker, and is an avid practitioner of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.