If you asked someone what language they would love to learn, about 30% percent would probably say French. The language is spoken in about 29 countries across 5 continents. So, there are plenty of opportunities to use your French skills, especially if you are a frequent traveller.
This global appeal is the primary reason why more and more adults are choosing to learn French. Unfortunately, learning the language later in life is not an easy feat. To put it into perspective, it is often much easier for a child to pick up a new language than it is for an older adult.
In this post, we’ll look at the reasons why that is and also cover a few tips to help make the learning curve a little gentler.
Reasons Why it is Challenging to Learn French Later in Life
Cognitive Challenges
The primary reason why it is challenging to learn French once you are an adult is due to cognitive challenges, primarily those that come with age. Let’s break this down further:
Age-Related Cognitive Decline
A good example of age-related cognitive challenges that impact your ability to learn French is difficulty with memory retention. Retaining new vocabulary and grammar can be a struggle for older adults. Sometimes, it may even take several repetitions and frequent revisions to grasp the simplest concepts. To make this even worse, some individuals forget things shortly after learning them, making it incredibly challenging to pick up a new language.
Besides struggles with memory retention, some older adults may also experience slower processing speeds as they age. What this means is it may take them a little longer to understand and respond in conversations. That often leads to reduced confidence in speech, especially when it is a new language.
One perfect way to manage this is through structured FSL courses. These provide a guided practice and repetition approach, which not only reinforces memory but also builds confidence over time.
Difficulty in Grasping New Grammatical Structures
Another cognitive-related challenge that can impact your ability to learn French later in life is the difficulty of grasping new grammatical structures. French introduces a completely new grammatical structure featuring irregular verbs, complex conjunctions and gendered nouns.
For someone who has spoken English (or any other language) all their life, the new rules may seem illogical and overwhelming at first. It is very natural to find yourself trying to compare them to the rules in your native language. That adds a layer of confusion and slows down the entire learning experience.
Unlike adults, children tend to pick up pronunciation and sentence flow more naturally. That is because adults rely more on conscious learning as opposed to children’s intuitive learning. To put it simply, for adults, things have to make sense first before the brain can properly register and remember them.
Psychological Challenges
It can also be challenging to learn French later in life due to psychological issues like fear of failure and a lack of motivation. Let’s explore these further:
Fear of Failure
Adults are more susceptible to emotional barriers, such as embarrassment and a fear of making mistakes. In most cases, this can discourage them from practicing actively. For example, it can be very intimidating to speak French with other people, especially native speakers who find your pronunciation funny. No one wants to be corrected all the time.
The fear of making mistakes can lead to a lack of active practice, which significantly slows down your learning. To remedy this, it might be helpful to find kind and supportive people to practice with. Ideally, people who are still learning but are slightly ahead in the learning curve.
Lack of Motivation and Commitment
The prospect of learning French can be very exciting, especially when you are just starting. However, the motivation can quickly fade with time – perhaps due to slow progress, frustration, or struggles in balancing classes with other responsibilities. It is not uncommon for people to give up after just a few weeks of signing up for French lessons.
However, like most things in life, consistency is the key to long-term success. If you keep at it, even when you don’t feel like there is tangible progress, things will eventually work out and you will start seeing the results you desire.
Practical Challenges
In addition to cognitive and psychological challenges, adults also face some practical obstacles in their efforts to learn French. Here are a few examples:
Time Constraints
Adults simply do not have as much free time as kids. With responsibilities like work and family, it can be challenging to carve out regular, uninterrupted time to study and practice your French-speaking skills. When your schedule gets busier, you will likely push learning to the side.
Limited Access to an Immersive Learning Environment
Another practical challenge you might need to confront as an adult is the lack of an immersive learning environment. Learning a new language can be a lot easier if you are surrounded by it.
However, that is rare for most adults unless you are learning after moving to a French-speaking country. If you are learning online, you will always get limited opportunities to put what you learned into practice compared to someone who hangs around French speakers. Without immersion, learning might feel very slow.
Tips for Overcoming These Challenges
Now that you know the challenges of learning French at an older age, let’s take a quick look at how to overcome them.
Set Simple, Clear Goals
The biggest mistake many people make is trying to become fluent straight away. Such levels of pressure will most likely discourage you when you don’t notice positive results within a short period. The best way to learn is to start small – maybe strive to learn 10 new words weekly or string a sentence or two within the same time.
Such simple targets help you stay focused on your goals. In addition, they aren’t as challenging to achieve and you will feel very motivated when you hit them.
Utilise Technology
Learning French today is a lot easier and more fun than it was a decade or so ago, thanks to technology. Learners have access to numerous apps and tools that make it easier to integrate learning into their daily activities.
Using these online tools can help you learn French a little at a time. For example, you can easily access an online app while waiting for the train or during lunch breaks at work. They essentially help you create an immersive environment for learning.
Create an Immersive Environment at Home
A smoother way to accelerate your learning is to surround yourself with French. So, strive to create an immersive learning environment with the basic things at home.
For example, you can watch French shows with subtitles, listen to French music or label things at home in French. Although you may not be able to understand anything at first, such an immersive environment helps your brain familiarise with the language.
Other tips include speaking even if you make mistakes, making the most of the little you have already learned and remaining consistent, even when the going gets hard. It takes time to learn a new language – so don’t worry if you feel stuck or have forgotten some things.
Conclusion
Learning French later in life can be challenging, but it is very possible. As an adult, you will face a lot of challenges, ranging from cognitive to psychological and practical constraints. However, steady and small progress can add up over time. So, be patient and keep going, even when it doesn’t seem like there is any progress. Just remember, it is never too late to learn French!
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