Immersion is all you need. Or you can’t learn a language if you don’t spend time abroad.

Immersion is the process of surrounding yourself with the language you are attempting to learn. We talked a little about how you can incorporate the concept of immersion into your learning experience.

Do you need an immersion Spanish program?

Taking this a step further and spending extended time in a Spanish-speaking country is always a great option if you want to excel your language ability.

However, thinking that immersion is the only way you will learn a language is one of the things that prevents so many people from becoming successful.

They get discouraged--maybe moving to Spain is too expensive or maybe you have a life, work, and a family and picking up and going to Costa Rica for three months just isn’t a realistic option.

Don’t fall prey to the belief that immersion is the end-all-be-all of language learning. And here’s why:

Myth: Immersion is all you need.

While immersion is a great tool and a wonderful way to learn things like slang and set expressions, you need more to be able to become fluent in a language. Without those (sometimes) annoying little things like grammar and syntax and a working knowledge of basic vocabulary, it doesn’t matter how much you immerse yourself in the language--you won’t understand what’s going on!

If you try to learn Spanish only by surrounding yourself with it, you will find yourself making more mistakes with things like verb conjugations and word order. Your vocabulary will be smaller and more limited and your ability to communicate your own thoughts will suffer.

By making immersion a PART of your language-learning experience, you are ensuring that you are exposed to a large amount of Spanish. But you still need to remember to set aside time to go over the basics. Without the basics, you will not have a base on which to lean.

Myth: You can’t learn a language if you don’t spend time abroad.

Yes, living or spending time in a Spanish-speaking country will do wonders for your language ability. But as mentioned before, that’s simply not an option for a lot of people.

That’s okay, though! Because, through using what are called “authentic materials” (books, newspapers, movies, etc. produced in a Spanish￾speaking country or region for a Spanish-speaking audience), you’ll still get the benefits of immersion. You will still be exposed to real-world, real-time, real-life Spanish.

If implemented into your study routine properly, these authentic materials will, in essence, replace the need to spend extensive time abroad to learn Spanish.

Myth: The best way to learn a foreign language is through speaking it.

This idea that many have about the journey into learning a second language fits in well with what we’ve been talking about immersion.

To address this commonly held belief regarding language learning, we need to discuss two very important elements of the language-learning process:

Input vs Output.

Input-the information that we receive

Output-the information that we produce

What it comes down to is this--when you speak, you’re imitating what you’ve heard. You’re taking the input you’ve received and turning around and using that to create your output. However, if the only way that you’re receiving input is through conversation or immersion, then you’re not getting enough input to be able to produce NEW, original output.

If you only know how to say a phrase because you’ve heard someone else say it, how can you know how to break down that phrase and use the elements that make it up to create your very own phrase later on?

As we’ve mentioned before, immersion is a great tool that can, and should, be incorporated into your language-learning process. However, if you don’t take the time to find other sources of input, the information you absorb will be useless unless repeated under identical circumstances and in the same situation in which you received said input.

If you want to be able to reach a level of fluency in Spanish, you have to be able to create your output. You have to be able to take the information you’ve gained and mold it to fit your personal needs in a large variety of settings.

More speaking won’t give you the grammar comprehension and extensive vocabulary you need to be successful in attaining your goal. However, including elements of immersion into your study routine will help you take the input you’ve gotten from your grammar lessons and vocabulary lists and hear them used in real-life scenarios. This combination will make it easier for you to produce your output along the way.

Myth: People can’t learn a foreign language after the age of 16.

If that’s true, then I must be an anomaly! I didn’t start learning Spanish until I was just a few months shy of my 16th birthday. It’s taken a lot of work, but over the years, I’ve been able to take my Spanish all the way up to fluent level.

Yes, learning a language once you’re older does make things a little more difficult. But impossible? Not even close to being true! You learned your first language through immersion and everyday situations.

Learning a second language needs to be done differently to account for the decreased neuroplasticity in the brain. When you’re younger, you can absorb information more quickly. As your brain develops, however, a variety of different cognitive processes start to take place. This, in turn, makes learning a new language more challenging.

One of the biggest challenges facing adults when trying to learn a foreign language isn’t the condition of their brains, however. It’s simply finding the time and opportunity to learn! As children, learning a language is built right into our curriculum. We have reading classes and grammar lessons. As an adult, you don’t have those external forces pushing you forward to learn.

You have to be self-motivated, which can be hard when you’re juggling work, family, and the plethora of other responsibilities that come along with being an adult.

As an adult learning Spanish, keep in mind that the process is going to be different for you than for children, and success is measured differently as well. Any time you get the chance to study is an achievement. Any progress you make is worth celebrating. Pace yourself. Take your time. And remember, learning a foreign language is not only you working towards achieving a certain goal--it’s also helping your brain stay healthy and active.