It’s so interesting to me that I am a student of Haitian Creole who’s been studying for 360 days now, and I don’t think I change my skills or knowledge depending upon the audience. And yet there are times when I feel pretty good about my abilities, and then there are other times when I think I am the most ignorant and ill-taught student ever.
This week I joined a chat with some students and felt like I fit right in. We were all at the same general place in our language journey, and although we slipped between English and kreyòl, we were enjoying the communication going on.
Then in the same week I joined a chat with people who have had a bit more experience than I have, and I was lost for the entire ninety minutes. It was the kind of conversation I say that I want—the people involved were trying to communicate at a higher level, and they were talking about topics and ideas, for example. But even the people who said that they weren’t skilled were speaking at a higher level than I speak at, and it made me feel as if I have done nothing in my studies.
Grrrrr…
Well, the meta lesson for me is that I need to be in some kind of immersive environment. It’s just not enough to be studying on my own, listening to YouTube videos, or reading texts, even if I’m reading them out loud.
I have no idea how to make that happen, though.
On a related note, I bought a copy of the book that they’re using as part of their curriculum—Anba Bòt Kwokodil—and it might be just challenging enough to push me to work harder.
Onward and upward!
Photo by Cindy Chen on Unsplash