3 months and no where near fluent. Normal or not?

cali2sdq

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Jan 28, 2013
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I arrived in Santo Domingo January 7th as part of a study abroad program. When I arrived I spoke very little spanish and understood even less. As part of my program I take 3 hours of spanish class a day, 5 days a week and now 3 months later my professor (who speaks no english, only spanish) is telling me that I have progressed well. When I am in the classroom I can understand her almost entirely and in my host families house I can understand about 75 percent of what is said. That is about where it ends. While I do feel like my spanish speaking and understanding has improved, I still can not go out into public without a spanish speaking companion and hold a conversation with a native, aside from simple tasks such as grocery store runs and the like. I understand more words and am able to guess what is being said more but there are frequent times when I don't understand a single word, and with one month left here I do not feel comfortable at all with what I accomplished what I came for. My host mom tells me that all of her students left speaking near fluent, so I feel like I am behind. However, it wouldn't be the first time she has exaggerated facts. Can someone please tell me, am I on track, or am I completely spanish stupid?
 

cobraboy

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Different people's brains are wired differently.

And the older you get, the more the brain struggles with new learning.
 

Chip

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Santiago
The definition of "fluency" is about as wide as the Atlantic.

Nonetheless, learning Spanish can depend on a lot of factors. I would say the number one factors are age, drive and shyness or lack of fear of failing.

With regard to understanding Dominicans, just like in your native country some won't speak the language too well or have a heavy accent and thus aren't understood too easily.

In my own case I've been speaking Spanish for 13 years and probably have done better than most at my age and I would say it was three years of studying and practicing before I could understand most of what was being spoken to me. Now 10 years later I understand a lot more but not always 100 percent depending on the education of the person and whether or not I have been thinking a lot in English.

My recommendation is to keep studying hard in a classroom session for as long as you are willing as this will create a solid foundation for the future and don't expect to be able to understand the most of what everyone tells you for a another couple of years.
 

Africaida

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I don't think it s possible for anyone to become fluent in a language in 3 months unless you are 4 yrs old.
 

cali2sdq

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Jan 28, 2013
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Because many of the responses have mentioned age, I will add that I am 19 years old and a sophomore in college. And just to add details, I understand reading extremely well. I actually have started reading stories in Spanish in these last few weeks, nothing too challenging, but not quite elementary either. It's hearing people speak that stumps me. I just can't seem to make out what people are saying to me, and they look at me like I am an idiot, but often it just sounds like mumbling to me. It's so frustrating because I really am eager to learn.
 

Aguaita29

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Jul 27, 2011
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I arrived in Santo Domingo January 7th as part of a study abroad program. When I arrived I spoke very little spanish and understood even less. As part of my program I take 3 hours of spanish class a day, 5 days a week and now 3 months later my professor (who speaks no english, only spanish) is telling me that I have progressed well. When I am in the classroom I can understand her almost entirely and in my host families house I can understand about 75 percent of what is said. That is about where it ends. While I do feel like my spanish speaking and understanding has improved, I still can not go out into public without a spanish speaking companion and hold a conversation with a native, aside from simple tasks such as grocery store runs and the like. I understand more words and am able to guess what is being said more but there are frequent times when I don't understand a single word, and with one month left here I do not feel comfortable at all with what I accomplished what I came for. My host mom tells me that all of her students left speaking near fluent, so I feel like I am behind. However, it wouldn't be the first time she has exaggerated facts. Can someone please tell me, am I on track, or am I completely spanish stupid?

Becoming fluent in a language takes a while and 3 months is not that much! Your instructor may be teaching you standard Spanish but when you go out what you hear is slang and that?s why you feel frustrated. That doesn?t mean your instructor is doing a bad job!
 

Chip

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Jul 25, 2007
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Because many of the responses have mentioned age, I will add that I am 19 years old and a sophomore in college. And just to add details, I understand reading extremely well. I actually have started reading stories in Spanish in these last few weeks, nothing too challenging, but not quite elementary either. It's hearing people speak that stumps me. I just can't seem to make out what people are saying to me, and they look at me like I am an idiot, but often it just sounds like mumbling to me. It's so frustrating because I really am eager to learn.

Patience grasshopper. If you are able to read books in Spanish you are way ahead of the curve.

As far as understanding Spanish, there are certain idiosyncrasies to the Spanish spoken here the most influential being the speed that the language is spoken and the tendency to cut word endings.

With regard to your teacher saying you are fluent it was probably the Dominican standard of fluency regarding gringos whereby one is fluent if they can half understand you. :)
 

karlheinz

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Oct 2, 2006
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one of the main problems in understanding people in the DR is the use of slang, rapidity of speech and the uneducated who make no distinction in word forms - drop all the "S" is so common here - instead of Como Estas - they use como tu ta, etc....
sure makes it hard to understand at times.
 

Aguaita29

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Jul 27, 2011
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Because many of the responses have mentioned age, I will add that I am 19 years old and a sophomore in college. And just to add details, I understand reading extremely well. I actually have started reading stories in Spanish in these last few weeks, nothing too challenging, but not quite elementary either. It's hearing people speak that stumps me. I just can't seem to make out what people are saying to me, and they look at me like I am an idiot, but often it just sounds like mumbling to me. It's so frustrating because I really am eager to learn.

You can always ask people to speak slowly!
 
I've been here 2 months, no teachers and am totally fluent. Fluent in have no friggin idea what people are saying especially when they speak faster than fast!
It can be soooo frustrating!!
Since we have a lot of workers around the house that is helping since they speak NO english and I have to communicate somehow when the wife isn't around.
 

Chip

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Jul 25, 2007
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Hang in there. The US Army says it takes 600 hours of class room study plus twice that many hours of trying to sepak a new language. If you are at the point where you can understand 75% of what you are hearing with those who are used to your voice and style I'd say you're doing well.
Der Fish

Well that explains a lot.
 

dv8

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Sep 27, 2006
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listen, i've been learning english for maybe 20 years and i still need to see lyrics of songs because i cannot understand (hear) the words. and i do not understand old folks and kids, not even when they speak polish, my first language.

learning a new language takes time. people talk fast, they mumble, they use mental and phonetic shortcuts. reading is always the easiest part because everything is so clear and you can attempt to read out lound and pronounce words. living language is another story altogether. give yourself time.

on a chin up kind of a note, i know a girl here, rich spoilt brat whose parents invested some really huge money into her english classes including sending that halfwit to oxford for 9 months or so. she's just as dumb as when she left. incredible. :)
 

rogerjac

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Feb 9, 2012
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I am over 50 fluent in Portuguese (since birth) and it is similar to Spanish and I have a hard time. I think the Portuguese gets in the way, I keep mixing them up. To top that off I was married to a Cuban for almost 10 years and had no problem with her. Here in DR it seems to be sailing over my head also. After they speak two words to me that I don't get my mind just wanders off and I nod, smile and agree. It will get me in trouble one of these days. Just tell them if they want you to understand them to slow down.
 
Dec 26, 2011
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Because many of the responses have mentioned age, I will add that I am 19 years old and a sophomore in college. And just to add details, I understand reading extremely well. I actually have started reading stories in Spanish in these last few weeks, nothing too challenging, but not quite elementary either. It's hearing people speak that stumps me. I just can't seem to make out what people are saying to me, and they look at me like I am an idiot, but often it just sounds like mumbling to me. It's so frustrating because I really am eager to learn.

I was 18 when I first visited SD. I thought I knew Spanish. I read it and wrote it fluently. I spoke with Puerto Rican, Dominican and Mexican friends back home. I was lost during the first week. Despondent. Depressed. Frustrated. Exactly what you describe. Just hearing a lot of mumbling. Then a random conversation with a guy about my age that spoke some English brought it all together. He gave me the code. It was as if the heavens had opened up. He explained the way in which Dominicans "butcher" the language. I trained my ear to that and I was fine within days.

Good luck. No te des por vencido. Nunca.
 

malko

Campesino !! :)
Jan 12, 2013
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My mother and father are taking a course in spanish at a swiss university. First class the teacher asks my mum why she wants to learn spanish. She answers its because her son got married with a dominicana (my mums a scot so french is a second language for both of them) and wants to be able to communicate with in laws. The teacher cries out "madre mio" but ure not in the right place, dominicans dont speak spanish.....
Other anecdote, my wife and I are in madrid airport a couple of years ago and there is no smoking rooms. A cleaning lady is hanging about so I say to my wife go and ask her where we can smoke. I had to go over and hand signal cos they couldnt understand each other!!!
To ansewer the thread I come to Dr 3 months every year for the last 5 years. I read local newspapers, I can shop, go for a drink, comunicate with my fellow campisinos.... but I ve never been able to have a real conversation here in the countryside.... I find it easier in santiago, where we have friends, they have studied so speak better spanish than in campo, and they understand the need to speak simple to me or rephrase when I dont u derstand.
 
May 29, 2006
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Learning Spanish in the DR is like trying to learn English in Brooklyn. Dominicans are notorious for speaking rapidly and omitting whole words from sentences, often asking in one word sentences that are enigmatic. When you hear two people arguing(esp two women), it can be a challenge to even make out even a word or two.

Learning from a native speaker is fine for pronunciation, but in my experience, you also need a native English teacher for learning grammar and the nuances of Spanish explained in terms that you would understand.

I've known several ex-pats who are close to fluent conventional Spanish, but when it comes to speaking to someone from the campo, forget it.

Watch movies and TV series in Spanish with English subtitles and work on memorizing songs in Spanish. This will help you with your hearing skills and cadence. On TV, you'll soon find that news programs are easier than telenovelas and telenovelas are easier than gameshows and other unscripted programs. Songs are good because they use more vernacular Spanish than you learn in books and you can learn numerous idioms. I've found Bachata is esp helpful in learning. I find the lyrics to a song I like then translate the lyrics into English.

Get a GOOD dictionary. Heavy, big.. doorstop sized. My test for a good one is check for dirty words. If it doesn't have co?o, look elsewhere.

Regardless of how you learn, speak conventional "book" Spanish. Don't try to mimic "street" or "campo" Spanish. It will sound awkward and it won't reflect well on you.
 
May 29, 2006
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When I was living with a Russian couple in Estonia, I met one of their young nephews, who was about six. He asked me something in Russian and when I didn't understand, he said, "You've been here three weeks and you still don't speak Russian??"

You're learning more than you realize. A year abroad is worth about three-four years of college level study in the US.
 

Chennifer

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Oct 18, 2008
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Moves to the D.R this summer
Don't worry, 3 months is a very short time to be fluent in a new language! I've been speaking Spanish as a second language on and off since I was a kid - argentine Spanish. If I've been away from a spanish speaking environment it always takes me a while to understand and speak properly again. But in the DR I had a much harder time. Since my husband and his dad have a kind of washed out Dominican Spanish for having lived in Sweden so long (my husband was born in Sweden like me) I just wasn't used to dominican spanish. They have a very different rythm from what I'm used to, which makes it hard for me to understand even though I usually have no problem understanding spanish.

What you're learning in the classroom is different from what is happening in real life (this is true whether you're in the DR, Argentina, Mexico and so on). What you're studying is only a base for you to stand on, don't be discouraged because you seem to have learnt a lot in the time you've been there! Keep on studying, but if you only have a month left try to forget about the books and just throw yourself out there and talk and talk and talk - that's the only way! I'm just now starting to study the language, at 30 years of age, I need it to perfect my Spanish, but at the beginning just keep on speaking it whenever you get the chance!
 
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Salsafan

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Aug 17, 2011
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And remember, learning a language is not a straight rising line, it goes in steps. You may be frustrated feeling you have no progress, then you make a brake, and some times later: wow.