Imagine living in a new country, connecting effortlessly with a relative across the globe, or unlocking career opportunities that once seemed out of reach. Perhaps it’s the key to studying abroad or pursuing research in places you’ve only dreamed of.
”If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.” – Nelson Mandela
As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Language is the archive of history.” Speaking a foreign language can enrich travel experiences, offer a bit of privacy when chatting with a friend in public, and open doors in countless other ways. There are thousands of reasons to learn a new language—but none of them matter if the curiosity isn’t there to spark the journey.
The Creative Thinking Test, developed by E. P. Torrance, demonstrated that speakers of an additional foreign language exhibit greater cognitive flexibility, creativity, and originality in problem-solving tasks. Researchers have also shown that patients who spoke at least one foreign language were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease four years later than monolingual patients. This is because learning another language engages the brain’s executive control center—the key area responsible for managing cognitive processes. Bilingualism can strengthen the functions of this center; in other words, the mind retains its sharpness with age.
Whatever motivates a person to learn a foreign language, the method of learning is of crucial importance. Learning psychology has provided multiple theories explaining differences in individuals’ learning potential. Naturally, there must be a variety of learning methods, because each learner is unique.
In the 20th century, socio-educational animation in foreign language learning emerged. In 1963, the OFAJ (Office franco-allemand pour la Jeunesse) was founded—the first bi-national organization aimed at promoting international exchanges among young people. The main question was how to successfully carry out a bi-national exchange among young people who did not speak each other’s language, and how to make such exchanges beneficial for language learning.
Tandem learning or language animation is a method that stimulates communication and encourages learning a foreign language. During intercultural exchanges, language animation promotes interaction among young participants. It integrates playful activities that spark curiosity about the other language and trigger the learning process.
In the 1990s, the concept of “natural communication” during intercultural exchanges was studied in the Bielefeld project. The study confirmed that participants in bi-national programs used a variety of strategies necessary for communication. The key question was: how can natural communication occur without external support?
It was observed that participants learned the partner’s language spontaneously through a range of tools—note-taking, imitation, correction, drawing, mime, etc. The will and desire to learn the foreign language were activated. Learning a language was no longer seen as an end in itself, starting from grammar rules, but rather as a necessity to exchange information effectively.
Interestingly, the main objective of this method is not linguistic acquisition itself. While it certainly creates optimal learning conditions, the approach begins with achieving social, intercultural, personal, and finally linguistic objectives.
Social objectives:
- Promote group dynamics
- Overcome personal and social blockages
- Encourage communication
- Develop cooperation
Intercultural objectives:
- Overcome obstacles arising from contact with other people, cultures, or languages
- Encourage awareness of other cultures and ways of life
- Foster appreciation of one’s own cultural values
Personal objectives:
- Encourage openness to the “new”
- Stimulate curiosity and interest in “the other”
- Build self-confidence in interpersonal interactions
Linguistic objectives:
- Develop sensitivity to another language
- Support language learning through playful methods
- Improve the ability to communicate in a foreign language
It must be remembered that no matter how attractive the learning method is, it will not succeed if learners do not recognize the importance and necessity of learning.