How to learn foreign languages for free and without leaving home
Text: Alexandra Bazhenova-Sorokina
Foreign language proficiency long been a pleasant necessity. This is an easy way to increase your professional value. Not to mention the fact that knowing only English, you can safely travel around the world, forgetting about the guides and travel agencies. Thanks to the Internet, you can learn languages today for free (which is more important than ever in a crisis) and not getting up from a comfortable home sofa.
Before turning to the story about specific online courses, let us warn you: the main problem of independent language learning is the lack of real practice, that is, communication. No matter how many rules and words you learn, it does not guarantee an adequate understanding of a living person and the ability to easily speak your chosen language. For the Russian person, a separate problem is the language barrier, because, due to the mentality and peculiarities of language learning in Russian schools, we focus on not making mistakes and speaking correctly. To overcome the language barrier, there is nothing better than enrolling in a conversational club. You can search for a suitable club in your city on the site Study.ru, in "VKontakte" or at the corresponding cultural centers. However, you can start with small things - the lessons of one of the educational online resources, which we describe below.
Duolingo
One of the most successful foreign language learning platforms. Duolingo works as a website and as a mobile application and allows Russian-speaking users to learn English (American national version). Those who already speak English can switch to French, Italian, Spanish, German, Brazilian Portuguese, Irish, Dutch, Danish and Swedish. The method of service is based on mastering certain sets of vocabulary and translation of thematic materials, plus here you can learn the basics of pronunciation - students will have to not only learn to write in a foreign language, but also repeat certain words and phrases at the computer. Unfortunately, translation can quickly get bored, so it makes sense to combine Duolingo lessons with other audio, video and text resources in order not to lose interest in the language and diversify the learning process.
LinguaLeo
LinguaLeo is the most popular Russian application that allows you to learn English for both beginners and advanced users. They use the game form and there is a large selection of supporting materials, starting with famous songs and audio books and ending with lectures from TED and Coursera. The symbol of the company - Leo the lion cub - accompanies the students from exercise to exercise, and depending on how well the student performs the tasks and works out the new vocabulary, he earns points. The bulk of the exercises is available for free, but for an additional amount you can buy an unlimited amount of materials. LinguaLeo will appeal to those who want to train English and increase vocabulary, but are unlikely to be able to replace a full-fledged language course.
German Deutsch Interaktiv courses
Deutsch Interaktiv is an educational initiative of the German TV channel Deutsche Welle, on the site of which there is a separate section that allows you to independently learn German from level zero to level B1 (that is, Pre-Intermediate). The free course includes video and audio materials, slides, texts, exercises and tests. What is important, enough attention is paid not only vocabulary, but also grammar. Students have the opportunity to study independently and at the same time learn about the realities of Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Coursera lectures
Many of us have mastered English enough to communicate freely, but want to raise the level of the language. Coursera’s free course platform is not only an opportunity to learn something new on any topic, from programming to advanced lectures for microbiologists, but also an ideal way to improve three language skills simultaneously: academic reading, speech perception and, most importantly, writing. If you are going to enter a foreign university or want to go for an MBA, but are not sure of your English, this is the perfect way to prepare. In addition, it is possible to find language courses among platform courses, although they are likely to be intended for philologists and linguists.
YouTube lessons
YouTube is a universal assistant with which you can find an incredible number of video tutorials. Foreign language courses are no exception. Basic Korean, Japanese, French, and Spanish lessons are easily found here. Video tutorials are very convenient to use at the elementary level, or when you want to find answers to certain grammar questions or learn specific vocabulary: a wide choice of lectures will fall out at the right request. The problem with YouTube lessons is often that the teacher does not sufficiently understand the material, and, most importantly, even with a brilliant teacher from YouTube there is no opportunity to talk live, there is no one to do homework, so everything that you learned as a lesson will have to be trained independently.
Educational Podcasts on iTunes
iTunes - the source of a huge number of specialized podcasts for the study of foreign languages. Enter the English name of almost any language plus "Pod 101" into the search and you will be able to replenish vocabulary daily, and basic Hindi, Italian, German or French courses usually give you the opportunity to practice your pronunciation while listening to dialogues and work with new vocabulary. There are also express lessons, for example, this course of useful phrases in Arabic. Unfortunately, iTunes podcasts do not always offer their own docking exercises, so, like in the case of YouTube, you will have to invent tasks or search for them on other sites.
Cambridge University Language Center
Those who wish to learn German, Chinese or practice French, Greek or Italian (the last three are part-time) can be self-appropriate with the appropriate application, originally developed at Cambridge to help them conduct lessons in these languages at the university. The program consists of cards that help learn the vocabulary and grammar of the appropriate level of language. The resource can be very useful, but, as its creators warn, it is advisable to combine it with live lessons.
University of Iceland Language Courses
Specifically, these Icelandic lessons are designed for people studying or working in Iceland, but they are also suitable for those who simply always wanted to understand the language of Sigur Rós or read the Icelandic sagas in the original. The free course is divided into several steps and provides an opportunity to understand the grammar and vocabulary, as well as to monitor their own success. For those who want to fully master the program with the help of a personal instructor and learn how to speak, there is a paid version.
Busuu
The Busuu platform is designed to learn a wide variety of languages: from German and French to Turkish, Japanese and Polish. The format of the application is similar to Duolingo: a set of exercises for training grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary can be held on a computer or on a smartphone. The premium program offers special lessons honing skills, but it can be quite limited to the basic version. The Busuu curriculum may seem too difficult if you set out to learn a language from scratch - students are immediately offered to build phrases, a little more prepared will quickly get used to the format.