Spagnolo | Madrelingua |
---|---|
Inglese | Quasi madrelingua |
Giapponese | Fluente |
Cinese | Sufficiente |
(↑ Turn on the subtitles)
¡Hola! 初めまして!大家好!Hi there!
I’m Ale, from Chile, the country in Latin America. I confess I’m in love with languages.
I’m not a teacher, nor is my expertise related to languages. You could instead say I’m someone whose interest in languages brought him to work hard to learn a few. I’m here to share a bit about all I’ve picked up about language learning in the process of acquiring three of them. I’d be really happy if I can help you feel the joy and sense of fulfillment it brings!
My approach to language learning
My story as a language learner
My past 22-year-old self made the decision to learn Japanese, and thus enrolled in a class every Saturday. Since I was highly motivated, I partly learned the “kana” writing system before classes even started, and the first year went smoothly. But then the difficult grammar and the thousands of “kanji” characters became a roadblock, and I found myself unable to keep up. It wasn’t the fault of my teachers. I started doubting my abilities, and almost gave up entirely.
I didn’t, though, and instead went on a quest to learn from successful language learners, from research, and from experimenting with different methods. I started reflecting on my time learning English as a kid. Raised in a Spanish-speaking country, the computers and video games I enjoyed were all in English, and so a bit at a time I ended up acquiring the language. I won’t say it was the only factor, but I think that my enjoyment and plain interest in understanding was the big reason that I ended up naturally acquiring English.
By now I understand a lot more about language acquisition. Using my strategies I finally was able to learn Japanese to fluency, and then study a Master’s degree in Japan. Later I began tackling Mandarin Chinese, down now to an intermediate level. Every day a small step!
My background
I’m a designer and developer of digital media. I studied graphic design in Chile and new media art in Japan. I’m also a self-taught programmer.
Although I’m not a teacher, I’ve been involved in educational projects for a long time, most often the development of educational software. I have also taught a workshop on how to study the “kanji” writing system in a Japanese language school. These are experiences that have also colored my lessons here on Cafetalk.
I’m an extremely curious person, and have many distinct interests, so I’m constantly looking into this and that. You could say I know a little bit about a good bunch of totally different stuff.
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