Language barrier: causes and ways to overcome. How to overcome the language barrier: personal experience

In our world, there are many barriers that separate humanity. The difference in views, in religion, in worldview. But the very first and most difficult to overcome is the language barrier. The phrase "we speak different languages" can be used in a direct and figurative sense, but it means about the same thing. The inability of the interlocutors to understand each other.

What is a language barrier?

The language barrier is a concept more psychological than linguistic. Sometimes this situation happens: a person diligently studies foreign language, improves, writes and reads easily, but cannot speak. This problem is called the language barrier in linguistics.

Language barrier - psychology

AT psychological sciences there is also the notion of language. It is one of the cases of communicative barriers in communication and means the inability to understand each other by persons speaking the same language. Reasons for not being able to communicate mother tongue, even when the grammar and vocabulary are well studied.

1. Fear of error. This problem may appear even if the language course was taken under the guidance of a world-class teacher. All people strive to be, if not the best, then at least not the worst. The need to build a phrase from subconsciously incomprehensible words is a great opportunity to make a mistake, and a person subconsciously tries to avoid it.
2. Lack of practice. Even if someone reads Shakespeare in the original and translates Lermontov into Spanish, this does not mean at all that this person will be able to speak with foreigners in their native language with the same ease. In order to overcome the language barrier of communication, you need to talk and listen.
3. One-sided learning. Most schools suffer from this problem. 80% of study time is devoted to writing and reading. The need to teach schoolchildren to listen and talk is either completely forgotten or fades into the background.
4. Ignorance of colloquial vocabulary. Idioms, phraseological units, figurative meanings of words. Speaking in their native language, people use them unconsciously. When it comes to a foreign language, either ignorance of colloquial expressions or an inability to use them is revealed.

All of the above is true only for the concept of a language barrier in its direct, linguistic meaning. If we talk about language communication barriers in general, then the reasons for their occurrence are as follows:

• an external environment that is not conducive to communication;
• negative attitude towards the interlocutor or his image, stereotypes;
• inability and unwillingness to listen to the opinions of others.

Types of language barrier

Depending on the factors affecting the mutual understanding of people, there are several types of communication barriers.

• barriers erected environment, including technical;
• sociocultural barriers.

Language communication barriers

This type of barriers in communication is divided into the following subspecies.

1. Phonetic barriers. These include everything that makes it difficult to understand speech by ear - stuttering, too loud or too quiet voice of the speaker, monotonous speech. Not conducive to understanding and accent, contamination of speech with foreign words.
2. Semantic. Language barriers of this type of communication arise because the interlocutors belong to different cultural strata or social groups. In this case, one of the participants in the conversation may use words that are either completely incomprehensible to the other, or give them a meaning different from that to which the interlocutor is accustomed.
3. Stylistic. In this case, misunderstanding arises from a discrepancy between the style of speech and its meaning. For example, the use of scientific style in colloquial speech.

Language barriers in intercultural communication.

Scientists have not come to a consensus on how to classify barriers in intercultural communication. According to one version, in addition to the language barrier, that is, the psychological inability of a person to speak a foreign language or speak it clearly, the following problems are distinguished:

1. Confidence that all people think the same way and are guided by a similar system of values.
2. Errors in the assessment of gestures and facial expressions of the interlocutor.
3. Stereotypes of thinking, people's tendency to generalize (one representative of this culture behaved badly, so the rest of its representatives are also bad).

Language barrier in relationships

In a relationship, the language barrier can manifest itself in different ways.

1. Partners from different countries do not speak any common language. it a difficult situation, since to the standard barriers of male and women's worldview and value systems are added different mentality, religion and language. Since most people tend to believe only their own point of view is correct, the process of building mutual understanding in such a pair will be long and difficult. And learn one mutual language won't be enough.
2. Even if a couple was born and raised in the same country and speaks the same language, this does not guarantee the absence of a language barrier with a husband or wife. Features of the upbringing of boys and girls, physiological differences in the structure of the male and female brains are such that certain efforts must be made to achieve mutual understanding. For example, it is typical for women to think things out loud, while men prefer to voice only the results of their thoughts.

Language barrier in business communication

In the process of negotiations and other official situations, obstacles to constructive communication also often appear. The most obvious is the fact that the negotiators belong to different cultures (for example, the Japanese never give a direct refusal, which is not always clear to Europeans). The language barrier prevents people from communicating, whether they are representatives of different departments, social strata, scientific schools and cultural movements.

The language barrier is the lack of a student studying a foreign language and trying to speak it, the ability to understand and spontaneously respond to the speech of the interlocutor, even though he owns the necessary arsenal of language tools. This problem can be attributed to the problem of the language barrier.

It is impossible to talk about a language barrier, when a person cannot speak, just because he has not developed any language skills, when there are no necessary grammatical structures, when there is ignorance of one or another vocabulary to display a particular topic, it is impossible.

Reasons and ways to overcome the language barrier when learning English

To talk about ways to overcome the language barrier, you need to understand the reasons that cause it:

Psychological uncertainty

Speaking about the reasons for the language barrier, it should be noted that one of the main reasons is the psychological insecurity of a person, the fear of making a mistake, the feeling of discomfort when communicating in English. In order to overcome the language barrier caused by this reason, it is necessary to create such conditions in English courses in which a person would feel comfortable, in which potential internal capabilities person, so that a person can relax psychologically and speak spontaneously on a particular topic. If such conditions and a student-centered approach are observed, accordingly, part of the problems causing the language barrier will be removed.

The fear of making a mistake may develop due to improper teaching or improperly created conditions for teaching English. Often this is the fault of the teachers with whom the student once studied: perhaps the teachers constantly corrected the student's mistakes, preventing him from expressing his point of view, which is wrong. Speaking about correcting mistakes and removing students' fear of mistakes, one should take into account as much as possible psychological features every student. Accordingly, some errors can be corrected in the course of speech, while some errors can be corrected only after the person has finished his statement.

Negative previous experience of learning English

Another problem that can cause difficulties in spontaneous speaking is the previous learning experience, the rejection of new teaching methods, this is the habit of the grammar-translation method of teaching. Difficulty arises when a person comes to learn a language in English courses, and because of negative previous experiences, perhaps unpleasant associations that appeared due to the fact that a person studied the language at school or university according to some other approach.

In this case, the task of the teacher is to conduct a conversation with the student, to show that the communicative technique is more effective, to show that any material learned in the lesson can be used at the same moment, and also to show the practical applicability of everything that students do in the lesson. In such ways, it will be possible to remove the psychological difficulties and the language barrier, which are caused by the negative study of the English language, or attachment to the grammar-translation method of teaching a foreign language.

Lack of student motivation

Another problem that can cause a language barrier is the student's lack of motivation. Motivation is very important and the desire to speak, the desire to communicate, the desire to express one's ideas is the main point for a person to be able to speak calmly and not feel any language barrier. In an English lesson, it is necessary to create such communicative situations that will be of interest to the student. This is especially important when studying business English: the teacher must be very well versed in the specifics of the activities of their students.

It is also necessary to emotionally influence, appeal to emotions, to the feelings of a person, create such situations of communication in which a person wants to express his opinion, agree or disagree, argue. When an emotional background is involved, a person begins to speak spontaneously: he begins to forget that he speaks a foreign language. For him, the very goal of communication and the goal of expressing some idea, and not the means by which one can express one or another thought or solve one or another communicative task when learning English, is of paramount importance.

Lack of communication practice in English

A person may know grammatical structures, may have a good passive vocabulary, but due to the lack of speech practice, a person cannot use them in spontaneous speech. There should be automation of both language skills and speech skills so that a person can apply in real life everything that is studied in English lessons.

In connection with the issue of communication practice, it should be emphasized that the entire learning process in English courses should be built in such a way that situations are created as close to reality as possible. It is necessary that all speech patterns, language skills, and abilities be introduced, trained, practiced in conditions as close to reality as possible. A person must understand that each specific word, each specific situation, each specific structure is necessary for him to solve a particular communicative task both in the classroom and later in real life.

Training the language in situations close to reality then allows a person to quickly transfer everything that was covered in English classes to real life. If the lesson trains the situation at the airport, then a person, being in real life at the airport, will be able to respond faster if this situation has already been played out in the lesson.

Tips for overcoming the language barrier from our students and teachers

conclusions

Summing up, it is worth saying that the main tactic for overcoming the language barrier is the teaching methodology and the approach that this or that school of English uses.

The most effective for removing the language barrier is a communicative approach to learning English, which allows you to take into account the personal characteristics of students, allows you to give maximum practice of all language skills and speech skills, which allows you to set situations close to reality, allows you to influence emotional world students, call and encourage the student to communicate.

Another way to remove the language barrier is intensive courses with a native speaker. Such classes can be held in English so that a person feels that he is communicating with real people, that he can speak fluently. This removes the language barrier and enables a person to communicate freely in English.

One of the most common problems that arise in the way of learning a foreign language is the language barrier. Sooner or later, most people who study English face this problem. In this article, we'll show you how to deal with it!

What is a language barrier or fear of communication?

Imagine this situation: you start learning English at school, then continue at the institute, maybe in courses or even on your own. And now you know the rules, have a large vocabulary, read, translate and write letters. It would seem that everything is going well, you speak the language well, but then you realize that you are completely unable to express your thoughts in a conversation. This problem is the language barrier or fear of communication: the inability of a person, knowing the language at a certain level, communicate on it.

Reasons for the language barrier:

• Lack of conversational practice and difficulty in understanding English speech.
  Basically, when learning a language, we are taught first of all grammar, reading and writing, forgetting that we learn a language in order to speak it.
• Fear of making a mistake in conversation and lack of confidence in their knowledge.
  A person is guided by the principle: if I do not say anything, then I will not make a mistake.
• Shyness in dealing with people.
  For some people who have little contact even with their surroundings (family, colleagues), it is difficult to communicate in Russian.

7 tips to help you overcome the language barrier:

1. Start talking in English

it the most efficient way! Talk, talk and talk again. Think about how you learned to swim. At first you felt uncomfortable, swam only near the shore, afraid to swim into the depths. But the more you practiced, the freer you felt in the water. And soon all your fears passed, and nothing prevented you from swimming as far as you want.

The same will happen with your communication skill. The more you have speaking practice the more confident you will feel. It is better not to start with native speakers. Try to start practicing with those for whom English is also not their native language. This will help relieve stress and fear.

2. Stop being afraid of mistakes

The main thing to understand: all people make mistakes, and there is nothing wrong with that. Only those who do nothing do not make mistakes. If you allow yourself to make mistakes, you will improve your English communication skills much faster.

3. Relax and smile

Communicate in a positive way. After all, a smile is universal remedy, which will help you in any dialogue. Show goodwill, and the interlocutor will only be happy to help you, even if you make a mistake when trying to formulate your request.

4. Don't be shy

Do not be afraid to admit that you do not understand the interlocutor well enough, do not hesitate to ask again or ask him to speak more slowly. Of course, he will begin to express himself more simply, because it is also important for him to be understood. In the end, your interlocutor is the same person as you, and also often worries and thinks about how to say his thought so that it is understood.

5. Read aloud

Read books, articles, magazines in English exactly aloud: learn words and expressions - repeat them in full voice. Such an exercise will help you get used to the pronunciation of these words and not be afraid to do it already in a dialogue with the interlocutor.

6. Use your knowledge

Use what you already know every day. Remember that the sooner you start practicing English communication, the better. No need to get hung up on a thorough study of grammar and rules. It is enough to learn some words and phrases and start using them, learning additional words along the way. By the way, you can subscribe to our newsletters in the form after the article. There we send 1 word and 1 expression once a week. Learn and immediately apply in life!

7. Get rid of the fear of looking stupid

In most cases, our interlocutors think about our English better than we do. Many often underestimate themselves. So why not cast aside those unnecessary fears?

Remember - all your fears can be overcome. The main thing is to start communicating in English!

How did you overcome your fears of speaking a foreign language?

The language barrier in English is the difficulty that arises when speaking in a non-native language. Almost every person studying a foreign language has experienced this unpleasant phenomenon. The barrier can arise not only for beginners, but also for people with good knowledge. Moreover, the latter are especially offended: you know grammar well, you calmly read articles in English, you watch The Big Bang Theory in the original, and when it comes to talking, you hardly squeeze out a couple of sentences.

What is the language barrier, and how to overcome it, figured out the edition Englex.

The psychological component of the language barrier in English

Fear of the unknown

It often happens that if we need to say something in English, we fall into a stupor. This may be because we find ourselves in an atypical situation for ourselves: we need to talk to a stranger in a non-native language. In addition, we do not know how such a conversation will turn out: what topic the interlocutor will talk about, what phrase he will say next, etc.

Fear of error

Of course, the main enemy in a conversation in English is the fear of "blurting out something wrong." When talking with an English-speaking interlocutor, we are so afraid of seeming stupid or funny that we prefer to remain silent or speak only Yes or no. Psychologists explain this fear by the fact that we have been accustomed to since childhood: we are punished for mistakes. Therefore, even adults subconsciously try to avoid mistakes, so they prefer to keep their mouths shut in the truest sense of the word.

Shyness caused by an accent

Some people are embarrassed by their English accent. Moreover, this psychological problem sometimes takes on universal proportions: a person cannot achieve the perfect British pronunciation, so he prefers to remain silent and communicate using gestures. This is because of the fear of showing that we do not belong to this society We do not know how others will react to our speech. In addition, it seems to us that they will laugh at our accent, we are afraid to look stupid. At the same time, we completely forget how much we like it when foreigners try to speak Russian, their accent seems cute to us and does not interfere with communication at all.

Fear of speaking slowly

Another common phobia sounds something like this: “What if I pick up words for a long time, speak slowly and with pauses. A foreigner will think I'm stupid." For some reason, we think that the interlocutor expects us to speak at a speed of 120 words per minute, and not a normal conversation. Remember, when speaking in Russian, we also pause, sometimes we select the right words for a long time, and this is perceived quite normally.

Fear of not understanding the interlocutor

The final phobia combines all the previous ones: “I can make a mistake, I speak too slowly and with an accent, and even I can not catch some words of the interlocutor. All this will not let him understand me. At best, this fear makes us speak too loudly with a foreigner (it seems to us that they will understand us faster), at worst, it keeps us from even trying to speak in English.

So why is it difficult for us to speak English and listen to non-native speech?

Small vocabulary

The larger your vocabulary, the easier it is for you to express your thoughts to the interlocutor, all other things being equal. With a narrow vocabulary, it will be more difficult for you to express yourself, as well as understand the words of an English-speaking friend.

Poor knowledge of grammar

Of course, even knowing the times of the group Simple will already allow you to chat on some simple themes. However, if you want to convey your thoughts to the interlocutor more accurately, the study of more complex grammatical structures cannot be avoided. In addition, in order to perceive English speech by ear in full, you need to understand all the subtleties of English grammar.

Lack of practice

If you only speak English for a couple of hours a month and listen for half an hour a week, the appearance of a language barrier should not surprise you. For the systematic development of any skill, whether it be speaking or listening to speech, regular “training” is needed, that is, English classes. Based on the experience of our school, we recommend studying with a teacher at least 2-3 times a week for 60-90 minutes and independently studying English daily or every other day for at least 20-30 minutes. Remember how people learn to drive a car: in order to feel confident behind the wheel, you need to constantly practice. One lesson a week or a month will not bring the desired result.

How to overcome the language barrier in English:

1. Calm down

First advice - main step for those who want to overcome the language barrier. Just accept the fact that the first conversations with foreigners can be difficult. At the same time, remember: it is difficult not only for you, but also for him. Your interlocutor is just as embarrassed and afraid of being misunderstood, so he will make every effort to make your conversation successful. In addition, foreigners always favor those who learn English, so even a simple dialogue will seem like an excellent achievement to the interlocutor, and he will help you in every possible way to carry on a conversation. Does the call to calm down seem banal to you?

Linguist Steven Krashen hypothesized that a person experiencing negative emotions has a deteriorating language ability. That is, if you are nervous or upset, it will be much more difficult for you to express your thoughts in English than in a calm state, in fact, your language abilities are partially "turned off" during a strong excitement. It looks like fear public speaking: you can know your speech by heart, but from excitement you forget everything completely.

2. Allow yourself to make mistakes.

Somewhat strange, but important recommendation: allow yourself to get rid of perfectionism. Remember how as a child you learned to write the letters of the Russian language: someone wrote them in mirror image, someone forgot to draw "loops" or "tails", someone wrote so crookedly that the teachers recalled the joke about the chicken paw with a smile. And, despite all these "failures", as a result, we learned to write in Russian quite tolerably, and some even legibly. In the same way, the process of communication in English will take place: at first you will make mistakes, but the more you practice colloquial speech the sooner you get rid of them. So do not be afraid to accidentally lose the article, native speakers will forgive you this oversight, after all, you are not an ambulance doctor or an airport dispatcher, so your mistake will not entail detrimental consequences.

3. Don't be afraid to "sound" wrong

Of course, one must strive to pronounce the sounds of the English language clearly and correctly, but do not be afraid to speak with an accent, otherwise it will be difficult to overcome the language barrier. English is taught in all corners of the world, and each country has its own "peculiarities of national pronunciation." By and large, a foreigner will be able to understand even our notorious “zeriz / zera”, so do not be shy about your accent, this is not a defect, but a feature of your speech.

4. Take your time

Of course, we all want to speak quickly from the very first English lessons, without thinking about words. However, in reality it turns out differently: the transition from the native language to the studied one is not given too easily. Be prepared for the fact that at first you will speak slowly, pause, choose words for a long time. There is no need to force yourself: the speed will come by itself as a result of practice. At first, focus on competent speech, not fast. Speak slowly, but build sentences correctly, choose the right words. In this case, your speech will be understood for sure, but speed does not contribute to understanding in any way.

5. Try to get the point across

To understand the speech of the interlocutor by ear, it is not necessary to catch every word of his, you need to catch the essence of what was said. A common mistake: you hear an unfamiliar word in a speech and “fixate” on it, not listening to what is being said to you next. In this situation, you will definitely lose the thread of the conversation and will not be able to understand what you were told at all. Try to catch the meaning of what was said without thinking about unfamiliar words, then it will be easier to overcome the language barrier. Exactly the same advice is given by teachers before an international exam: when passing a part listening(Listening) Do not dwell on unfamiliar words, the main thing is to catch the essence, then you can complete the task.

6. Repeat your words

Did your interlocutor not understand you the first time? Nothing terrible happened: repeat the sentence again, reformulate it, try to simplify it. You are just learning to speak English, so your interlocutor does not expect you to be eloquent.

7. Ask again

Do not be afraid to ask your interlocutor again. If a foreigner speaks too quickly and you do not have time to catch the words, ask him to repeat everything more slowly. Do you still not understand what the interlocutor is saying? Without a shadow of embarrassment, ask him to explain to you more and more in simple words. Remember, your request will be adequately accepted, because any person understands how difficult it is to perceive a non-native language by ear. How can you ask the interlocutor to repeat what was said:

Infographic: Englex

8. Be simple and you will be understood.

If this is your first time talking to a “live foreigner”, try simplifying your speech. For example, in a restaurant, simply say: tea, please”, do not complicate your life with long constructions“ I would like…” / “Could you please... ". A simple sentence will be understood, and it will give you confidence. To prevent simplified speech from sounding rude, do not forget to add polite words please and thank you, they are appropriate in any conversation. In addition to simplifying sentence construction, use simple vocabulary as well. At first, do not try to use all the idioms and slang expressions you know in a conversation. First, you can get nervous and confused about them. Secondly, some expressions may not be used in some territory or used in a slightly different meaning. Therefore, for anyone interested in how to overcome the language barrier, we recommend that you first speak as simply as possible. At the same time, try to gradually complicate your speech, add words, “build up” sentences. In this case, your speaking skill will develop systematically and without psychological trauma.

9. Increase your vocabulary

A large vocabulary will allow you to speak more accurately, pick up new words faster and at the same time better understand the interlocutor. Good fluent speech can only be a person with a wide vocabulary. In addition, remember that a native speaker can use various phrasal verbs, idioms, etc. To understand what they are trying to tell you, try to learn different words, including popular figurative expressions.

10. Learn phrases

Try to learn not individual words, but whole sentences or passages from them. In this way, vocabulary is remembered better, and useful phrase patterns will remain in your memory. From such templates, you can "construct" your appeal to the interlocutor.

11. Listen to audio content

In order not to worry about whether you can understand English speech by ear, develop your listening skill. How to overcome the language barrier with audio materials? To do this, you can watch news, movies, TV shows in English, listen to podcasts on topics that interest you, etc. Try to listen to something in English for at least 10-20 minutes a day. Do not stop your studies, even if at first you cannot understand half of what has been said. Your ears need to get used to the sound of unfamiliar speech, gradually you will adapt and be able to understand everything that is said to you.

12. Learn grammar

May you not use in every sentence Present Perfect continuous, but knowledge of grammatical constructions will allow you to specifically and accurately express your thoughts in English, as well as correctly understand what exactly a foreigner is telling you.

13. Find a companion

Remember the saying "Wedge knocked out with a wedge"? You will overcome the language barrier in English only if you have constant conversational practice. The more often you train your speaking skill, the faster you will improve it to the level you need and the less embarrassment you will experience when you need to use English in communication.

14. Speak everything in English

During self-study English language You can also practice speaking. To do this, just say everything out loud. Reading a book - read aloud, doing grammar exercises - pronounce what you write, watch a movie - repeat phrases after the characters. Such simple actions will bring tangible benefits in overcoming the language barrier. Many English learners report that words spoken aloud are remembered better than those learned silently.

15. Smile

It's time to dispel the stereotype of "gloomy Russians who never smile." Abroad smile - almost required condition for normal communication. A benevolent smiling interlocutor will be helped faster than a nervous and frowning one.

Probably, all of us have at least once been in situations where it was not possible to convey our thoughts to the interlocutor. “It’s like we speak different languages,” you might think, although you communicated in your native language.

But what if you can't speak German fluently? There is uncertainty about own forces, embarrassment, all the words are suddenly forgotten, and you are involuntarily lost. This phenomenon is called the language barrier. How to fight him?

It may seem strange, but the reason for the emergence of a language barrier should be sought not in the level of your knowledge of the German language, but in the ability to communicate.

Someone likes to be the center of attention, someone prefers to remain silent even in noisy company. Some people find it easier to send text messages, while others spend hours on the phone. Such features are not very noticeable in Everyday life, but may cause some difficulties in communicating with the Germans.

Do not forget that communication includes not only oral speech, but also gestures with facial expressions. A sociable person easily uses these tools, compensating for a lack of knowledge, and a shy person can not only become silent in the middle of a conversation, but also get a negative experience of communicating in German.

Children overcome the language barrier more easily. They like to learn new things, make friends, and they perceive learning German as a game. Children are not afraid to ask again, they know how to be attentive and, most importantly, they are not afraid to make a mistake.

In contrast, adults perceive own mistakes much more painful. We prefer not to ask again once again, so as not to seem stupid, but we approach the study of the German language with all the seriousness that we are capable of.

Because of this, it can be difficult for adults to start learning German, and when meeting a German, there is a feeling of insecurity in their abilities.

Our Skype German teachers work to reduce the communication and language barrier in every lesson, provoking the student to use their knowledge not only in writing assignments, but also in oral speech.

Communication barrier and how to deal with it

With the active use of the German language, four communication barriers are distinguished. Let's consider them in more detail.

barrier of understanding - Difficulty understanding German speech by ear. It may appear partially when the listener does not understand individual words or phrases, but intuitively captures the essence; or completely, when the meaning of everything heard escapes.

The barrier of understanding most often arises in the initial stages, when German speech seems foreign to the ear. However, this problem does not bypass students with a good level of language.

To overcome the barrier of understanding, attention should be paid to listening: listening to German songs and radio or TV shows. The speech of each person is individual and unique, therefore, the more you listen, the easier it is to perceive by ear.

speaking barrier - that's what we mean when we talk about the language barrier. This feature may appear on initial stage learning German when the speaker does not have enough knowledge to express his thought, or when good level possessions German when some external or internal factors interfere with free speech.

At the initial stage, the speaking barrier can serve as a motivation for further study, but when the speaker has sufficient vocabulary and grammar, but communication does not occur at the proper level, some psychological problems may arise.

The first thing to remember is that no one will consider you stupid if they hear that you made a mistake. It is impossible to speak German immediately and without mistakes. Try to express yourself in short sentences, communicate slowly.

Speak clearly all the words, do not be afraid to correct yourself. If you forgot a word, try to replace it with a synonym or explain the meaning of this word in a few sentences.

Exchange students often ask their new German-speaking friends to correct them if they hear a mistake. This approach will not only make it easier to perceive a conversation in German, but will also help even the most shy to speak.

If you do not have the opportunity to talk with a native speaker, try to practice speaking as much as possible in your German lessons via Skype. If you add watching films in German to this, you will not only be able to freely express your thoughts, but also begin to think in this language.

It occurs when a student begins to encounter phenomena and concepts that are not in their native language. Fortunately, when studying European languages(of the German language in particular) the cultural barrier appears extremely rarely.

However, it can occur when directly exposed to a foreign environment. In order not to get into awkward situations, you should take the time to study the life, traditions, worldview of the Germans. You can get acquainted with all this in our online lessons via Skype, because regional studies are an obligatory part of learning the German language.

The school barrier is a kind of “residue” that could remain after learning German at school or in language courses. A negative attitude to the subject often prevents you from quickly learning the language in adulthood, when, for example, it becomes necessary to learn German and go abroad.

Such sediment also interferes when it enters a German-speaking environment; a person involuntarily, almost subconsciously, rejects the language.

In order to cope with the school barrier, you should be clearly aware that now you are learning German not because it is written in school curriculum, and by own will. There is no longer a class where your mistakes will be exposed to the public, and there are no grades for which parents can scold.

Our highly qualified teachers apply individual approach to each student, thanks to which German lessons via Skype are easy and relaxed.

It doesn't matter if you are a "mathematician" by ability or a "humanist". Learn, practice, surround yourself with German, and no barriers will come between you and fluency.