When it comes to learning German, a common piece of advice is to “practice speaking as much as possible.”
While this advice is well-intentioned, it can sometimes lead to more harm than good, especially for beginners and intermediate learners.
The true path to fluency lies in the power of input—reading and listening—rather than focusing solely on speaking.
Let’s explore why this approach is more effective and how the sophisticated AI language model ChatGPT, can help illustrate this point.
The Pitfalls of Practicing Speaking
When learners are told to “practice speaking,” they often end up reinforcing incorrect language patterns.
This happens because, without a solid foundation of correct German, they tend to make and repeat mistakes. For example:
- Saying “Dann ich gehe zur Schule” instead of “Dann gehe ich zur Schule.”
- Saying “Wenn ich war jung” instead of “Als ich jung war.”
- Saying “Ich kann nicht erinnern” instead of “Ich kann mich nicht erinnern.”
These mistakes become ingrained, making it difficult to correct them later.
The more you practice incorrect sentences, the more they stick, creating bad habits that are hard to break.
Some students may even develop their own German dialect full of faulty speech patterns which they repeat over and over again.
The Power of Input
To truly master German, you need to immerse yourself in the language through reading and listening.
This method helps you internalize correct sentence structures, vocabulary, and grammar.
The more you expose yourself to accurate German, the more natural it will feel to produce correct sentences when you speak.
Consider how you learned your native language—you spent years listening to messages from your parents and your surroundings before you started speaking fluently.
The same principle applies to learning German.
ChatGPT: An Example of Input-Driven Fluency
A great metaphor for understanding the importance of input in language learning is ChatGPT.
This AI language model, like a human language learner, needed vast amounts of input before it could generate fluent, coherent responses.
ChatGPT was trained on a diverse range of texts, absorbing over 570 gigabytes of data, which amounts to hundreds of billions of words.
This extensive input allowed it to understand context, sentence structure, and vocabulary deeply.
As a result, ChatGPT can now produce fluent and accurate language responses.
Imagine if ChatGPT had been trained by practicing speaking incorrect sentences. It would not be nearly as proficient.
The same logic applies to human learners: without substantial input, your output (speaking) will be flawed.
Shifting Your Focus to Input
Here’s how you can apply this approach to your German learning:
- Read Extensively: Dive into German books, articles, and websites. Start with simpler texts and gradually move to more complex ones.
- Listen Actively: Engage with German podcasts, audiobooks, and YouTube videos. Pay attention to pronunciation, intonation, and context.
- Absorb Correct Usage: Focus on understanding how native speakers construct sentences and express ideas.
- Slow Down When Speaking: When you do practice speaking, take your time. Aim for accuracy over speed, and use simpler structures to avoid mistakes.
By prioritizing input, you’ll develop a strong foundation in German.
Over time, you’ll find that speaking correctly becomes more natural and intuitive.
Conclusion
The journey to fluency in German is not about how much you speak but about how much correct language you absorb.
Like ChatGPT, you need a wealth of accurate input to produce fluent and accurate output.
Shift your focus from practicing speaking to immersing yourself in reading and listening, and watch your German skills improve dramatically.
Embrace the power of input, and you’ll set yourself on the path to becoming a confident and fluent German speaker.
Here’s what to do next:
Whenever you’re ready, in our program “Double Your Confidence in Speaking” we’ll use exactly this strategy to go from “I feel nervous when speaking and afraid of making mistakes or being put on the spot.” to becoming fluent and confident in speaking in your day-to-day life by applying a learning system you can easily integrate into your busy life.
Click here to get on the waiting list so you don’t miss out.
Talk to you soon. Bis bald.
Gruß
Manuel