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Feb 2016
11:47am, 18 Feb 2016
3,100 posts
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Ceratonia
The numbers taking Spanish GCSE (~90k in 2015) are much higher than for German (54k) then a big leap down to ~5k for Italian & Polish and 3-4k for Chinese, Arabic, Urdu. French was over 150k.
Welsh had ~5k for Welsh as a first language GCSE and ~11k for Welsh as a second language GCSE.
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Feb 2016
11:51am, 18 Feb 2016
3,101 posts
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Ceratonia
Just picking up on Sharkie's "Spanish is much easier" comment. I've also found that, but wondered whether it was just because I'd learned several languages before Spanish, or whether others also found it easier? I think the grammar & vocab came quite easily, but also native speakers are used to a range of accents (from S. America etc.) and are tolerant of their language being spoken badly.
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Feb 2016
11:52am, 18 Feb 2016
21,760 posts
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McGoohan
To my shock and horror (well a bit), I took the first Test Your Skills test on Danish last night and failed abyssmally. Despite my initial annoyance at myself, I soon realised this was because I'd been pushing ahead too fast and wasn't actually *learning* as much as I thought.
One of the problems is that the mobile app throws you straight in and you only get the hints & tips, i.e. the lesson, if you go into the full site.
New approach then: last night I printed off all the 'Hints & Tips' bits and this morning went back to Basics Lessons 1, 2 and 3 after reading these notes. I'm going to repeat all of this first section before retaking the test.
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Feb 2016
11:54am, 18 Feb 2016
8,797 posts
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Sharkie
I think it's very easy to read - and even to translate back in written form. But quite difficult to understand - that's the case to some extent with most languages I guess, but I find Spanish particularly so.
French and Italian (obviously similar in many ways) I find much easier to hear and follow.
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Feb 2016
12:00pm, 18 Feb 2016
8,798 posts
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Sharkie
Absolutely McGoo. I'd noticed that in my race to get through as fast as poss. I'm defintely going to go back to my Beeb books. I have picked up the language bug again.
I found the BBC courses from the 1990s very good. ('world' French 'world' Spanish and Italian) I remember being in Italy and saying delightedly to Raffo, 'They're talking from the book!'
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Feb 2016
12:10pm, 18 Feb 2016
3,102 posts
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Ceratonia
BBC website has some superb language learning resources on the website even now. I really enjoyed watching their GCSE level Spanish drama "Mi Vida Loca" a couple of years back.
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Feb 2016
1:32pm, 18 Feb 2016
360 posts
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Flatlander
Even though I've been learning Doulingo Spanish and Norwegian for 13 and 3 months respectively, I'm only on levels 17 and 10 because I keep going back to earlier lessons to consolidate what I'd learned previously, which is giving me confidence and a very good basis when I progress to new lessons.
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Feb 2016
4:41pm, 18 Feb 2016
12,692 posts
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jennywren
I just found BBC Sueñtos in the Oxfam bookshop for £3.99. Bargain.
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Feb 2016
6:38pm, 18 Feb 2016
27,938 posts
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Bintmcskint
Today's French done
Tempted to do more but I have my other February newt jingle - yoga - to do next
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Feb 2016
6:42pm, 18 Feb 2016
22,779 posts
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Night-owl
Done my italian
and watched an NCIS episode in Italian and did actually recognise a few words
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