Hi Karlo!

I think i might be able to give you some advice….i’m a linguist (in training) and spend all my time devoted to the study of languages and studying them!

HERE IS MY PROBLEM: When a teacher says something new, I can understand her but 5 minutes after that when we are doing something that will test what we have learned just 5 minutes ago I am just blank page

This is normal. I have a couple of questions first:
1) what is your native language? (or the language you feel most proficient in?)
2) What are your current study habits?
3) How long are your classes, since it’s intensive i assume anywhere between 3 -6 + hours a day?

Once you have answered these questions, i can give you more suggestions; until then i will give you the low down on language learning.
Firstly, language learning is a skill, so don’t put yourself down and call yourself stupid. Language, especially German are not easy languages, heck Chinese is easier than German [i study korean and chinese] (no gender, grammar similar to English). German is only superseded by Russian, which is like an angry beast!! You have proven in the past that it’s not so much that you can’t memorise or intake what your learning, it’s just that those methods you used to pass Engineering courses are not effective when they come to German language learning. A different approach is needed. What that approach is, well that’s up to you. The most effective learning method is the one that works for you (don’t let anyone tell you otherwise), so try different ways; online tutor, online language forums like (italki & duolingo), specific german language websities etc.Look up learning methodologies. Ask your teacher.

Secondly, most learning may occur in the classroom, most understanding and reinforcement occurs outside the classroom. So, don’t feel bad or anxious about not being able to answer something that you only learnt 5 mins ago. Your mind is NOT geared to uptake (learn) everything it hears and sees. That would be impossible, our minds are more like computers, both have limited memory space, computers are just better at prioritizing what to know and learn. As long as you take some notes, and reflect and review after the class, don’t worry about answering the questions in the class. Take your class time as a way of ‘learning’ the materiel and ‘review’ afterwards. You can blow them away during testing times 🙂 You have 4 months which is heaps of time, don’t focus on the exams in a negative or ‘doom-gloom’ light. Many language learners do this (i’m in the lang. building right now with them and it’s only first week, emotions are running high 😉 !!) and they put so much pressure on themselves to perform to a level higher than they can realistic achieve in a certain time frame.

I am a part of a program where I am obligated to pass the exams of A1, A2 and B1 Levels of foreign language

What will the exams be like? written i assume, but what else? because if you are aware of what ‘kinds’ of exams you will be doing in the future then you can actually prepare to ‘pass’ the exams. Anyone can pass an exam, passing exams is a skill in of itself. Also don’t look at the exams as the end point, exams only test your ability to recall information that they want, not the knowledge you have gained! We always have more knowledge, but in most cases we can’t always recall it.

I will end my advice on this last note, once you answer the above questions i can help out some more.
Try to monitor your emotions. Even though your saying you don’t care that others say things about you in the classroom (which i highly disagree with and the teacher should be stopping this, they are after all not German! stick a native speaker in front and watch them breakdown!!) just be aware that in language learning, no matter the language, our emotions provide stability, if our emotions (concerning the learning process) aren’t stable it can make us anxious and perform under the level you can achieve.

Am I just simply stupid? I just can’t get the things right away anymore!

Like this, this is destroying your confidence! There are many ways to control your anxiety within a classroom (technically a teacher trained, no matter where should try to create a ‘good’ learning environment that promotes learning):
1) Focusing on your goals (motivation)
2) People are still people (sameness) –> Whether they be teachers or students everyone is still human, they want you to pass, they want you to give it a shot. ask questiond, talk to your teachers in german, if you make the effort, it can open doors.
3) Check your emotional temperature (monitor) –> if you get a little too over your head, you start getting angry at yourself in class, take a walk outside for a couple of miniutes, take a break, refocus. When do you feel like you have conquered the world? When do you feel happiest? try to duplicate these feelings to make your learning more enjoyable.
4) Ask questions (if unsure, just ask, even if its already been covered there will always be someone else that will benefit)
5) evaluate your learning (being unbias, what’s your current ability? how could you improve? what are you trying to achieve? etc.

We learn this stuff and more at university, but type into a search engine indirect strategies in language learning and this will probably give a better overview.

Once again, it’s not that your wired differently, just that learning a language in a classroom can be often times be quite stressful and not always the most effective way of learning a language. Everyone is at different levels, different skills etc. Try not to put yourself down, or compare yourself to other students. Ask other students who you think are more advanced than you, “what/ how do you learn?”, you can learn a lot among your peers too! Also don’t let your ability to learn a language be a reflection of your worth or value. If learning a language was easy, everyone would be polyglots.

Sincerely,
Matty

Karlo,

No problem. 🙂

I Wake up at 7 am, studying from 8 am till 11 or 11:30 + 5h and 30min

So roughly speaking your studying an awful lot! the issue with intensive courses is that because they are intensive you spend a lot of mental energy in class, when you leave, your brain is mush, fried, destroyed; it’s tired and needs sleep. Waking up early is great, but then you study on top of that. I know many people and myself don’t learn well if your brain is always ‘working’ or in your case ‘over working’. Do you actually give yourself a break? Listen to music, watch movies, go out and have a meal? Your brain will still working when it’s not language related. To me it seems that the stress and your emotional stability rest on your ability to take time out of this schedule. before and after your classes give yourself and hour or two to relax and do what you want. More doesn’t equal better or more effective. It’s the hardest thing to do, force yourself to have some spare time.

And I have realised that the feeling of knowing something new after giving such effort feels so good and then I am proud of myself!

I have tutored students in English before and all they do is study, hoping that by studying more their result will be better. No matter what i tell them, they don’t listen. It’s hurtful when they fail that they blame me. They felt, especially one lady, believed that by doing what your doing they would be able to remember everything. But they didn’t give there brain’s time to ‘absorb’ and intake the information. You will struggle to remember/ recall sentences and words this way because it’s like all the words are compounding, crushing down on one another. By the time you learn new words, the older ones have been forced out to make room for the new ones. I’m not saying not to memorize words or sentences, but if all your doing is memorizing then testing, you will struggle.

You need to create ‘associations’ or ‘links’ with the words. So if you learn ‘eat’ in German ‘essen’ –> link it to other words, apple (apfel) etc. link to grammar that your learning (want to, can, cannot etc.). Using basic sentences you can use simple to advanced grammar points. Our mind is better at remember ‘chunks’ of language ‘sentences’ that are meaningful to us. One of the reasons your struggling is also because the words/ sentences whatever means nothing to you. If you are sick in Germany and need to see a doctor, you are going to need to know how to communicate. I guarantee you will more than likely remember what to say because you need to. If you’re in love with a German person or another person who can speak German, your going to learn and recall terms of romance and love better than anything else. Our brain loves things that are meaningful to it, otherwise it loses concentration. The only tip i could offer is to make the sentences, words more meaningful to you. You could use mnemonics, use pictures/ images of words (make your own up!), review rather than revise. When we ‘revise’ your trying to teach yourself to recall. Instead try ‘reviewing’, try to ‘look over’ your work, talk to yourself, put the German into Croatian/ English if you want. Your already studying enough in class, the best thing to do is reinforce it in a more effective way. Simply just reading over the words and speaking aloud may be better for you.

There are like 6 sentences of what I need to remember. I am blank. (Completely lost and unconcentrated)

Also, very important….we will always forget! Our brains forget, and we spend a lot of time trying NOT to forget. Some things will stick, others do not. If you are going to memorise, focus your attention on the words, sentences that DON’T stick. As for ‘being blank’ right down what you want to say, or just a couple of words. After class try to review how you would of said things differently etc. Your mind is so overworked –> creating anxiety and fear –> resulting in your poor performance. Get your sleep, especially in this situation, relax. I know this is easier said then done, but if you don’t you will just continue the same cycle. Think of your brain like a plant, you can sometimes water it too much that it kills it, too little and it still dies. Water the right amount 😉 If you want, in order to reinforce words and sentences use SRS (space repetition software) – Memrize, quizlet, anki. At least it’s more interactive.

Finally, the stronger your motivation the better your resolve. Why are you learning German? What is the end goal? What do you hope to achieve? You don’t have to reply back, its more for you. Once you understand your motivation, put it on a wall, in your diary on your desktop. Reinforce the positive!

If you have any other questions about techniques or anything feel free to contact me. But just know this, your very capable of studying German, you can do this, so stop being your own worst enemy, at least be your own rival, but not your enemy 🙂

“It doesn’t matter how slowly you go, as long as you don’t stop” Confucius

Sincerely,
Matty

Hello Karlo,

If learning German isn’t going very well. That means you aren’t meant to know the language. Try picking up another language that agrees with you and that is meant for you. 🙂

Have a great day/evening.

M.

Karlo,

That’s ok, no worries at all 🙂 As long as you enjoy it and you feel connected to the language is all that matters. I was siding with you/supporting you since you said it wasn’t quite working out for you but if it’s something that you see progressing and getting better and you’re happy doing it. That is all that matters. My aunt lives in Germany. Augsburg actually. So I know a lot about the country. Just never found the German language attractive but that’s just me. I support anyone who wants to learn different languages. Regardless of my opinion on how they sound. If it’s bettering your career, than that’s awesome too! 🙂

Have an awesome day!

M.