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← Asian languages are hard enough that arriving without preparation and refusing to speak English will not work.
17 connected korrents · 14 moments from 3 Oct 2011 to 2 Jun 2026.
Everything filed under language learning
language learning
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AI and human skill
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education
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motivation
Everything filed under China
China Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Read this korrent: Asian languages are hard enough that arriving without preparation and refusing to speak English will not work. Asian languages are hard enough that arriving without preparation and refusing to speak English will not work. Last stated 12 years ago
2 Sept 2014
SY
Scott H. Young — holds since 2014-09-02 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Refusing to speak English is what makes immersion work: it compresses years of language learning into months. — tap to centre the map on it Refusing to speak English is what makes immersion work: it compresses years of language learning into months. Last stated 12 years ago
2 Sept 2014
SY
Scott H. Young — holds since 2014-09-02 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A person who studies a language for years and cannot speak it was taught the wrong method; it is not a failure of talent or of effort. — tap to centre the map on it A person who studies a language for years and cannot speak it was taught the wrong method; it is not a failure of talent or of effort. Last stated 6 months ago
13 Apr 2026
SK
Steve Kaufmann — holds since 2026-04-13 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Young children learn a new language through immersion far more effectively than adults do. — tap to centre the map on it Young children learn a new language through immersion far more effectively than adults do. Last stated 12 months ago
24 Oct 2025
TU
Tim Urban — holds since 2025-10-24 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Reaching a conversational level in a language within three months of arriving is not something to expect. — tap to centre the map on it Reaching a conversational level in a language within three months of arriving is not something to expect. Last stated 12 years ago
2 Sept 2014
SY
Scott H. Young — no longer holds since 2014-09-02 — tap for who they are
Same subject: The hard part of speaking from the start is not the gaps in what you know but making peace with not knowing the simplest words. — tap to centre the map on it The hard part of speaking from the start is not the gaps in what you know but making peace with not knowing the simplest words. Last stated 14 years ago
by 12 Oct 2012
BL
Benny Lewis — holds since 2012-10-12 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Failing to hear a language's sounds is what makes its words impossible to remember. — tap to centre the map on it Failing to hear a language's sounds is what makes its words impossible to remember. Last stated 7 years ago
by 18 Jul 2019
GW
Gabriel Wyner — holds since 2019-07-18 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Everything other than talking to a native speaker is auxiliary, and none of it will get you speaking on its own. — tap to centre the map on it Everything other than talking to a native speaker is auxiliary, and none of it will get you speaking on its own. Last stated 15 years ago
by 3 Oct 2011
BL
Benny Lewis — holds since 2011-10-03 — tap for who they are
Same subject: There is no threshold of vocabulary to cross before speaking begins; the change is a decision, not a level reached. — tap to centre the map on it There is no threshold of vocabulary to cross before speaking begins; the change is a decision, not a level reached. Last stated 14 years ago
by 12 Oct 2012
BL
Benny Lewis — holds since 2012-10-12 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A better school looks more like the old-fashioned schoolhouse than like project work; the more school resembles free play, the worse it gets. — tap to centre the map on it A better school looks more like the old-fashioned schoolhouse than like project work; the more school resembles free play, the worse it gets. Last stated 5 months ago
27 May 2026
SY
Scott H. Young — holds since 2026-05-27 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A dense-looking building does not by itself create a livable dense suburb without supporting schools and shops. — tap to centre the map on it A dense-looking building does not by itself create a livable dense suburb without supporting schools and shops. Last stated 8 years ago
2 Jun 2018
FS
Felix Salmon — holds since 2018-06-02 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A design course should start with history and art, grounding students in the world, rather than with tools that may be gone tomorrow. — tap to centre the map on it A design course should start with history and art, grounding students in the world, rather than with tools that may be gone tomorrow. Last stated 2 years ago
21 Feb 2025
TC
Thiago Costa — holds since 2025-02-21 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A machine doing your work better than you is no reason to stop doing it, because the point of the work was never that only you could do it. — tap to centre the map on it A machine doing your work better than you is no reason to stop doing it, because the point of the work was never that only you could do it. Last stated 5 months ago
2 Jun 2026
LS
L. M. Sacasas — holds since 2026-06-02 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A skill being automated is not a reason to stop learning it: practising what machines already do is often the stepping stone to what only people can do. — tap to centre the map on it A skill being automated is not a reason to stop learning it: practising what machines already do is often the stepping stone to what only people can do. Last stated 11 months ago
18 Nov 2025
SY
Scott H. Young — holds since 2025-11-18 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A well-written email does not need an AI summary, and an executive who delegates his reading to one has stopped doing the job. — tap to centre the map on it A well-written email does not need an AI summary, and an executive who delegates his reading to one has stopped doing the job. Last stated a year ago
21 May 2025
EZ
Ed Zitron — holds since 2025-05-21 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A drop in agency is the earliest sign of burnout, arriving before you consciously notice you are burning out. — tap to centre the map on it A drop in agency is the earliest sign of burnout, arriving before you consciously notice you are burning out. Last stated 3 years ago
10 Jan 2024
CH
Cate Hall — holds since 2024-01-10 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A founder who picks an idea because the market wants it will give up, because nobody can persist at something that was never important to them. — tap to centre the map on it A founder who picks an idea because the market wants it will give up, because nobody can persist at something that was never important to them. Last stated 2 years ago
19 Jun 2024
AS
Aravind Srinivas — holds since 2024-06-19 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A general inclination of all humankind is a perpetual, restless desire of power after power that ends only in death — tap to centre the map on it A general inclination of all humankind is a perpetual, restless desire of power after power that ends only in death
TH
Thomas Hobbes — holds since c. 1651 — tap for who they are
At the centre
Asian languages are hard enough that arriving without preparation and refusing to speak English will not work.
Holds Read this korrent →
Refusing to speak English is what makes immersion work: it compresses years of language learning into months.
Holds
A person who studies a language for years and cannot speak it was taught the wrong method; it is not a failure of talent or of effort.
Holds
Young children learn a new language through immersion far more effectively than adults do.
Holds
Reaching a conversational level in a language within three months of arriving is not something to expect.
No longer holds
The hard part of speaking from the start is not the gaps in what you know but making peace with not knowing the simplest words.
Holds
Failing to hear a language's sounds is what makes its words impossible to remember.
Holds
Everything other than talking to a native speaker is auxiliary, and none of it will get you speaking on its own.
Holds
There is no threshold of vocabulary to cross before speaking begins; the change is a decision, not a level reached.
Holds
A better school looks more like the old-fashioned schoolhouse than like project work; the more school resembles free play, the worse it gets.
Holds
A dense-looking building does not by itself create a livable dense suburb without supporting schools and shops.
Holds
A design course should start with history and art, grounding students in the world, rather than with tools that may be gone tomorrow.
Holds
A machine doing your work better than you is no reason to stop doing it, because the point of the work was never that only you could do it.
Holds
A skill being automated is not a reason to stop learning it: practising what machines already do is often the stepping stone to what only people can do.
Holds
A well-written email does not need an AI summary, and an executive who delegates his reading to one has stopped doing the job.
Holds
A drop in agency is the earliest sign of burnout, arriving before you consciously notice you are burning out.
Holds
A founder who picks an idea because the market wants it will give up, because nobody can persist at something that was never important to them.
Holds
A general inclination of all humankind is a perpetual, restless desire of power after power that ends only in death
Last stated c. 1651
Holds