This Isn't At All What I Was Expecting

Lucky for me, two of my good friends at university happened to sign up for the same German class I did.  We visited the book store to buy our books - bright green and cheerful looking filled with comics and lots of pictures, they weren't too scary looking - and headed to class.  It was great to know, once again, that I wouldn't be alone in my new language learning experience, but despite the presence of my two friends, I entered that first class a bundle of nerves.  All the old feelings came rushing back in waves.

I hoped the professor would be easy to understand, that he would be nice, that he wouldn't come in and start speaking German immediately and expect us all to keep up.  I hoped all of this, but I didn't want to get my hopes too high.  After all, I'd tried this language thing a few times now, I'd pretty well established that learning a foreign language was well beyond my capabilities.  I just needed to get a passing mark in 3 German classes so I could graduate.

But Mr. Hammond was nothing like I expected.  He was easy going, quick to laugh with, and never at, his students.  He encouraged us to make mistakes.  He never put his students on the spot.  If you didn't know an answer, that was OK- there was no lecture about needing to study more, just remember it next time! There were no endless grammar drills, no standing at the board in front of your classmates struggling to remember what to write.  He understood that some of his students were more outgoing than others but he made sure his quieter students (like me) got a chance to try the language, too.  And most importantly he made learning a language fun and accessible.  He told us stories about his own experiences learning German, how he had struggled.  He told stories about visiting Germany and saying the wrong things and the amusing situations that happened because of it.  And he told us how he had never imagined he would be standing in front of a classroom teaching others anything, especially a language that was not his own native one!

The man completely changed my perception of foreign language learning.

It wasn't all perfect, of course.  I still became very nervous whenever I spoke German.  My speaking and grammar skills were horrible, but my reading comprehension was passable.  I still struggled, but, as I was beginning to realize, this was my own fault.  I didn't spend enough time studying or trying to speak to ever get a very good handle on the language.  In short, I was too lazy. But I satisfied my language requirement and passed that last German course with a B.

I learned some important lessons in Mr. Hammond's classes:

1.  I really am capable of learning a foreign language - all it takes is some effort.  
2.  If I want to improve at a language, I have to force myself outside of my comfort zone in a huge way.
3.  Grammar is important, but it shouldn't be the main focus.
And
4.  Learning a language is actually a lot of fun!

A good teacher can make all the difference in students' lives.  Its not just true for languages, but for any subject.

Some days I think about relearning German, this time improving my skills beyond what I did in the classroom, but it isn't where my passion lies.  I'll always be grateful, however, for this class and the things things I learned in it.

So, surely, with this new knowledge, soon I'd be speaking at least one other language besides English... surely...