Accelerated Fluency

By Rick Dearman

A book for people who know learning a language isn't easy, but want, even NEED, to be successful. The benefits of learning another language aren't immediately evident, but a second language can make you a better listener, boost your creativity, spur brain growth, and for some people, even delay Alzheimer's. Additional rewards could include opportunities for employment, increased salary potential, new friends, and interesting travel opportunities.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Rick Dearman
• Release date: Jul 19, 2023

Rick Dearman

Rick Dearman (1964 - ) is a prolific author who has written extensively across multiple genres. Born in Newark, Ohio, Rick spent 10 years in the USAF before relocating to Britain, where he currently resides in Chelmsford with his partner and beloved dog. With a passion for storytelling and an imaginative mind, Rick has created captivating works in the realms of fantasy, action, and more.Rick's literary journey began with non-fiction works available on Amazon, covering topics such as problem-solving, language learning, and meditation. However, his true calling lies in the realm of fantasy. Rick has launched two popular fantasy series, namely "Frontiersman" and "Librarian," which have enchanted readers with their immersive world-building and memorable characters.In addition to his fantasy series, Rick Dearman has delved into other genres, drawing inspiration from personal experiences and research. His action-packed series follows the adventures of a former French Foreign Legion soldier, providing an authentic and gripping narrative.Beyond writing, Rick Dearman finds joy in reading, exploring new places, and spending quality time with family and friends. With an insatiable appetite for knowledge, Rick hosts the Autodidactic podcast, serving as both producer and podcaster. The podcast caters to self-learners and polymaths, offering valuable tips and methods for learning.Furthermore, Rick is an accomplished speaker and language learning enthusiast. He holds the esteemed position of administrator on a popular language learning forum, where he actively contributes his expertise. On his YouTube channel, Rick shares insightful tips, tricks, and information on language learning, writing, and other subjects that pique his interest. His dedication to self-study and becoming an Autodidactic is also showcased through his podcast.In total, Rick Dearman has written over twenty books under his own name or as a ghostwriter. With a diverse background ranging from being a cook and dishwasher to an aircraft mechanic and IT manager, Rick brings a wealth of life experiences and knowledge to his writing. His fiction works are known for their thrilling plots and action-packed storytelling.Throughout his journey, Rick's passion for learning has been evident. He has taught himself French, Italian, and numerous computer languages, highlighting his relentless pursuit of knowledge.Whether you're seeking high fantasy adventures, heart-pounding action, or valuable insights into language learning and self-study, Rick Dearman's writings offer a diverse range of experiences to captivate and inspire readers.

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Accelerated Fluency

The guide to fast, free, effective language learning

First published in Great Britain in 2014 by XGI Publications.

Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form or by any means, with the prior permission in writing of the publishers. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside these terms should be sent to the publishers at the above mentioned address.

You must not circulate this book in any other binding or cover and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer.

© XGI Publishing 2014 The right of Rick Dearman to be identified as the editor/owner of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data data is available.

First published in paperback with ISBN 978-0-9563994-2-7

This book is sold with the understanding the publisher and the author are not engaged in the rendering of consultancy or other professional services. The sole purpose of this book is to educate and entertain. If expert advice or assistance is required the services of a competent professional should be sought. It is not the purpose of this manual to reprint all information that is otherwise available to the author, readers and/or publishers, but instead to complement, amplify and supplement other texts. You are encouraged to read all available material and tailor the information to your individual need.

Every possible effort has been made to ensure the information contained in this book is accurate at the time of going to press, and the publishers and authors cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions, however caused. The author and publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility for loss or damage occasioned to any person or entity acting, or refraining from action, as a result of the material in this publication.

Dedication

To my family.

Jane, my lovely wife. Emily, Catherine, Hannah, my wonderful daughters. Thank you all!

Special thanks to all the people who proofread and improved this book.

Jane Dearman

Liz Martindale

Fiamma Shiong

Renata Taralli

Any man who does not make himself proficient in at least two languages other than his own is a fool.

Martin H. Fischer

The purpose of this book is to help you to learn a language faster and cheaper. It isn't going to teach you any specific language but rather to give you tips, tricks, and methods for accelerating your language learning. While you can use the information contained in this book to learn a language by yourself, it is primarily designed to supplement a course or tutor.

This book is directed to people that don't have a love of language and a desire to read a famous author in his own language or anything similar. It is for people who need to learn another language for whatever reason and want to do it in the fastest, cheapest and most efficient way possible.

There isn't any magic method of learning a language in a week, month, or day regardless of what some advertisers would have you believe. You'll often see a box of tapes with Italian in 24 hours or some similar claim on the label. Don't believe it because learning a language takes time, effort and money, but this book will help you to reduce expenditure and effort so you can enjoy the benefits quicker.

It is quite common for people to hire a personal trainer when they want to get fitter or lose weight. You can think of this book as your personal language trainer. You will use it to discover various exercises to help you learn, and to plan a complete training plan. Unlike a personal trainer this book will save you a lot of money and time. The system set out here will help you to avoid expensive items and show you how you can get learning material and methods using that modern wonder of the Internet.

The techniques included in this book assume that you are either attending a class or have a tutor with whom you meet on a regular basis. You can use the methods described here to learn completely by yourself, however you will struggle with things such as pronunciation or idioms that a teacher or tutor could clear up for you easily.

So what will this book teach you? Most successful language learners have used some or all of the techniques that we'll cover in this book. These are for the most part easy and cheap, but some will appeal more to you than others.

When you are learning a language and using the methods in this book you need to remember that language learning is supposed to be fun and enjoyable. So if one of the methods is difficult or boring for you then feel free to drop it from your personal programme.

You'll be shown the various techniques and strategies for accelerating your acquisition of a second language. You'll learn how to discover free or low cost tools to help learn the language off the Internet and elsewhere. You'll discover a number of open source and free computer applications or public domain material you can use for learning.

Learning another language is almost entirely down to your motivation and willpower. Contrary to the advertisements put out by people trying to sell language courses learning a language is hard work. You will have to put in the mental sweat if you want to reap the rewards.

This book is primarily about self-directed learning. Self-directed learning means that the individual takes the initiative and the responsibility for what they learn. You'll learn how to select, manage, and assess your own learning activities, which can be pursued at any time, in any place, through any means, at any age.

A person with average ability and adequate motivation who uses the techniques shown here should have a sufficient grounding in the language to carry off most conversations. Two years with these methods should let you be fluent enough to speak and understand with a high degree of accuracy.

These methods are not difficult or obscure, but a question that crops up again and again is always the same.

There are a lot of factors that influence the speed that you can learn a language such as what your first language is, the language you have selected, how much time you devote, and how much material you have to study.

How long will it take to learn a language?, is the question that everyone asks, but unfortunately it is the same as How long is a piece of string?; the answer is It depends.

The most important factor is the motivation you have to learn, and how long that motivation lasts.

This book should assist you to cut down the time it takes to learn a language by about 25-50% by showing you the best method of language learning without the need for trial and error.

Let me review with you my own goals when I started learning a language. I set my initial goal with Italian as specific and measurably as I could. My goal was to be able to hold a conversation with an Italian speaker for 10 minutes.

Now this may sound like a really easy goal. Seems like you could do that in about a week, but it isn't that easy. The reason is that this goal was to have a conversation with someone not just exchange pleasantries like Hello and What is your name?

My goal was to hold a conversation on a topic like you might have with your colleagues at work.

Think back to the last time you went out with a friend for a coffee or a drink at the pub. You spoke for 10 minutes at least, but do you think you could hold the same conversation in a different language without knowing a great deal of the language first?

You probably didn't bother with lots of pleasantries, nor ask questions about train times, or rooms available. You had a meaningful discourse about a subject you were both interested in.

There really is no definitive definition of fluency, but as a rule of thumb fluency is to be able to use the language in a fluid manner without slowing and halting. For me a typical pub conversation, talking back and forth with a friend, would be fluency. You can reach this level of fluency by immersion in the culture and language for about six months. I believe that this is simply a function of compression. I think that if you can move to another country and learn that level of fluency, then I should be able to do the same with the same amount of time.

My reasoning is that in six months of immersion you would be awake for 16 hours and be exposed to or using the language. This translates to a total of 2,912 hours of language practice. Therefore if I did 2,912 hours of language practice I should hit the same level.

So how long would it take to