Lauren Learns Luganda

As with most things in life, it seems that quality trumps quantity in language practice. Most of the reading that I have done about adult language learning emphasizes the benefits of short, deep, daily language study rather than infrequent cramming. I have been trying to integrate this strategy into my weekly language study by working on Luganda daily, with at least some success. (Weekends are still hard!) The result of this steady, slow work is slow, steady progress. Which is, of course, a good thing. The language gains I make weekly are (I hope!) durable and not just committed to my short-term memory. As I continue on, I notice all the ways in which my Luganda is improving. From this past week: - I am recognizing many more words while listening to Radio Simba , and sometimes even recognizing different verb tenses - Using the present tense verb conjugation feels more and more natural to me - My occasional exchanges with my officemate include a wider range of greetings Additiona...

When I think about the last couple weeks, this quote from Woody Allen springs immediately to mind. "Eighty percent of success is showing up." Showing up should be easy - I mean, it's just beginning, being present, giving something a try. Showing up isn't  finishing something, being perfect at something,  working yourself into a frenzy over something. But showing up can be really difficult. Not showing up could mean just not putting in the time. Or not really giving the task at hand your full attention. Or letting negative emotions get in the way of starting in earnest. These past couple weeks, showing up - as in, making enough time - has been a challenge for me. Amidst lots of competing priorities, I have struggled to make enough space for daily Luganda study. It's a challenge I encounter daily - and usually manage to overcome - but it's a challenge nonetheless. But when I do  begin, it feels good. I am making progress. It's slow and patchy, and...

Diving into the study of Luganda, I have been struck by the many ways in which cultural learning is embedded in language learning, and vice versa. This is a theme that has also come up a lot in our coursework. Since we are always using a language to gain access to a particular culture, of course it makes sense that we'll be learning more about that culture through language learning. And, it makes sense that a better understanding of the culture will help us become better learners of the language. Examples abound for me with Luganda. During my very first weeks of study, when I was just doing basic greetings, a common interaction to find in written descriptions of greetings was this exchange: "Mmmm." "Mmmm." Indeed, during my first session with my language mentor, I was taught when to insert an appropriate "Mmmm." Having lived in Uganda, I picked up an implicit understanding of what "mmmm" means, and how to sprinkle it into speech. However,...

After much thinking, some planning, and a little anxiety, I finally had my first conversation with my language mentor last Friday. It was overall a great experience - I think I gained more in that one hour than I have in my weeks of study to date.  My mentor, who teaches Luganda professionally, was ready to jump right into a traditional teacher/student relationship as soon as we connected on Skype. I asked him if it was alright if I discussed with him this course, my goals, my needs, and my prior experiences with learning Luganda. Of course, he said, and we discussed those things for the first part of our conversation. Though it felt uncomfortable to redirect him, I believe it was important to set the tone as being a little different than a traditional class setting, and to flag right away that I might be a bit of a different student. Indeed, throughout the rest of the conversation, we both referred back to the original discussion when necessary. It was just one small step, but ...

As I embark upon this independent language learning journey, I feel a bit disadvantaged. I haven't ever truly mastered any language I've studied (much to my chagrin), I haven't ever done an intensive course in Luganda, I'm not in  Uganda, I am a better visual and written learner than speaking and listening, the list goes on. However, I do have the major advantage of having someone in my network who has trod this path before me: Lindsay . While our language learning journeys are undoubtably very different, Lindsay has already been a tremendous help in orienting me to independent Luganda learning. In addition to sharing books with me and pointing me to some helpful online resources, Lindsay is sharing her mentor with me - perhaps the most invaluable language learning gift of all. Though I did ask around to around to other American friends who have learned Luganda, in the end, working with Simon, Lindsay's mentor, seemed to be the best option. For me, the mentor-fi...

This week has been a fun one! I've finished up the major planning of my course of study, and am beginning to put it into action. One of the experiments I am trying is to use a game to incentivize my study - both the frequency of it, as well as the diversity of methods that I'm using. The game is called Omuzanyo, which just translates to "Game," and its point is to track effort, not proficiency. Proficiency will still be assessed in the manner I described in my independent study plan, and is still important to measure. For Omuzanyo, I will keep track of my points on a daily basis. I have set a target of 70 points per week (which I am measuring from Monday - Sunday, in the same fashion that the Baganda consider the week). I don't know yet if this number is realistic while still pushing me to put in a lot of effort, or if it sets the bar too low, or if it's just right. I am taking the next two weeks to see how it goes, and will reassess then whether or not it...

This week I began my study of Luganda - starting with the most basic of basics. The first time I tried studying Luganda, in 2008, it was by studying a very long list of words, and trying to memorize them. Needless to say, it wasn't the best method for me. Though flashcard-style memorization has worked for me in the past (I loved it during GRE study!), within the context of an entirely new language, it was not the right way for me to learn. So, I am using the beginning of my language study to institute a new way of learning - one that's better suited to who I am as a learner. Accordingly, I wanted to spend a lot of time gathering knowledge of the basics of the language. How is it organized? What rules exist for speaking and writing? Is it tonal? What tenses exist? By having a general understanding of these types of questions, I think I'll be much more ready to understand what I'm taking in when it comes to learning individual words, phrases, and pronunciations. I...