Let me start off by conceding that the author is not a language-learning expert or formally trained in the field; and that this article is grounded entirely in opinion and a reflection of personal experience. If you want in-depth studies on the science of linguistics, I’m sure that this can be easily found elsewhere. If however you’re looking for a view from a learner who’s seen a reasonable degree of success; read on.
So with the disclaimer out of the way, let’s get stuck in to the meat of subject. It seems to be widely accepted that children just learn languages more easily / better / faster / more naturally than adults. Why? Because most of us, in our own experience, will have come across children picking up new languages easily and adults struggling.
For children, just move country and send them to the local school, wait a few years –> they are native speakers of the new language. Adults, perhaps especially English-speaking ones, move to a new country but here the common pattern is: wait a few years –> paltry skills in the local language. Why this stark difference?
This subject has been a matter of significant interest for linguistic researchers and theorists who have tried to demonstrate the existence of a so-called “critical period” where the brain is best able to acquire language. Although the actual hard evidence for this is limited and a matter of ongoing debate, this seems to be easy to accept for most people.
So does that meaning learning a new language to a significant level of fluency is not possible for adults? Some would-be language learners believe this, if not wholeheartedly then perhaps to some degree. “Adults can’t learn new languages,” or “I’m too old to learn a new language,” — is this something you believe? The “critical period” theory serves to reinforce these kinds of limiting beliefs.
For many adults, this perception of impossibility is a massive motivation killer… When was the last time you took on something new that you KNEW was impossible from the beginning? The typical reaction to seemingly ridiculous goals is just to brush them off, for example, if a friend suggested that you should get together and tried to make a youtube video, you might think that you won’t get very far, but could nonetheless get excited and really get into the project. If however your friend suggested that you get together this weekend and make a plan to make a billion dollars in the next year — your reaction might be more like, “You know what, I think I’m okay without that.” Ridiculous and seemingly impossible goals have a tendency to be brushed off. If you view learning Japanese in this way, you may struggle to find the motivation to get (re)started. This kind of perception of impossibility, perhaps with the backing of the “critical period” theory can lead some foreigners living in Japan choose not to actively engage with learning the local language.
“Why play at all if you’re doomed to lose?”
“Adults can’t learn new languages” — is this something you believe?
Whereas children are generally happy to learn new things without any particular focus on the long-term outcome, adults tend to be greatly influenced by this perception. Take for example a 7-year-old child whose parents want them to learn a musical instrument; for the sake of argument let’s imagine that they even let the child choose the instrument. After 3 lessons, it’s unlikely that the child will turn to his or her parents and complain that they no longer want to learn the piano because they will never become a concert pianist.
Ridiculous though it may sound, this is exactly the process that occurs in many adult language learners. “I will never be fluent in Japanese, so there’s no need to try at all.” This all-or-nothing approach to perceptions of language learning can be quite pervasive as it is almost entirely subjective.
However, this very same subjectivity is also an opportunity. Subjectivity means that it is a point of view, and something that we are able to change and mould to fit our goals. Imagine that instead of believing, “it’s impossible,” you instead actively worked to make yourself believe “there’s no way I can fail, I will master Japanese,” just how different could your long-term outcomes be?
Scratch long-term, imagine how you would feel in that very moment… Being empowered to believe in yourself and your abilities is a much more effective place to be when thinking of committing time and energy to learning Japanese. We must make use of these kinds of opportunities to fuel our motivational fires. Subjectivity means you can, with some work, engineer your beliefs to charge you with the excitement and drive to pursue your dreams with enthusiasm.
Readers of any age will benefit from changing their mindset in this way; but for adults it tends to be critically important – without it many will give up before even stepping up. To know that mastery is a possibility, or indeed with the right approach, an inevitable outcome will be an amazing boost to your Japanese language journey…
If you’re starting to feel a little bit more positive, a little bit more empowered to learn Japanese, then this article will have achieved its goal. It must be acknowledged that simply doubting or even fully overturning a single limiting belief will not be sufficient for most people to find the energy they need to see through learning a new language.
I will continue to address approaches to other limiting beliefs so that you can, over time feel invincible in your self-belief regarding language learning. We will also return to the subject of children and their supposed propensity for language learning, as well as other discussions of beliefs and mindsets in future articles, so please check in from time to time to see the updates!