How to learn any language in six months | Chris Lonsdale | TEDxLingnanUniversity

About this Video

• Video Title: How to learn any language in six months | Chris Lonsdale | TEDxLingnanUniversity
• Channel: TEDx Talks
• Speakers: Chris Lonsdale
• Duration: 00:18:27

Introduction

This TEDx Talk by Chris Lonsdale explores how adults can learn a new language to fluency within six months. Lonsdale challenges the common belief that language acquisition requires innate talent or intensive immersion, presenting five core principles and seven practical actions to achieve rapid language learning.

Key Takeaways

1. Mythbusting: The speaker debunks the myths that language learning requires talent and total immersion in a foreign country. He argues that anyone can learn a language quickly with the right approach.
2. Five Principles: Lonsdale outlines five key principles for effective language learning: attention, meaning, relevance, memory, and psycho-physiological state. These principles emphasize the importance of focused attention on relevant content, active engagement with the language, and a positive mental state.
3. Seven Actions: He details seven actions learners should take: listen extensively ("brain soaking"), prioritize meaning over individual words, actively mix learned vocabulary creatively, focus on high-frequency words (core vocabulary), find a "language parent" for personalized feedback, copy native speakers' facial expressions to improve pronunciation, and directly connect new words to existing mental imagery.
4. Comprehensible Input: The talk highlights the importance of comprehensible input – understanding the overall message, even if some words are unknown – as a crucial aspect of unconscious language acquisition.
5. Relevance and Tools: Learning is faster when the language is used as a tool for communication from the outset, making the learning process directly relevant to the individual's goals.