Does passive listening work in language learning?//Technology and the future of language learning 

I like the fact that Steve is prepared to be interviewed in a language that poses some problems for him. He makes mistakes, forgets some words and - the least important aspect - his pronunciation could be better. But overall he speaks very well, explains complicated ideas and understands everything. Too many polyglots like to give the impression that they speak each of their languages perfectly and it's discouraging to other learners. However, in relation to speaking, I wonder why there isn't much more emphasis on simply speaking to yourself aloud - when you don't have access to native speakers, that is. I've done that with several languages and have found it a very useful exercise.

My daughter studied Russian for three years in high school, never getting less than A's. She said she learned to read quite well, but did not learn to speak well. The teachers would not let students speak without interrupting to correct grammar errors or incorrect declensions. So students wouldnt just start chatting like Steve did. It was an example of the "perfect being the enemy of the good". (She became a nurse and a mom, so it all worked out.)

Большое спасибо за грамотно построенное интервью. Многие вопросы были оригинальными и интересными. Чувствуется огромное уважение к собеседнику. Атмосфера самая тёплая и дружеская. Успехов Вам в трудах ❤️

I only had time to listen to this now. I do most of my language learning by passively listening (and reading subtitles and elsewhere wherever possible). I have spent hundreds and hundreds of hours listening over the last three years. Probably close to a thousand hours (if not more). I make it a daily habit anyway. I have had very little conversational practice (perhaps in total literally only a few hours). It doesn't bother me too much at this stage. I agree that if the level of vocabulary is high enough, the ability to speak becomes almost automatic. The trouble is that when you are at an advanced beginner or lower-intermediate level, if we try to say whatever we want, we soon get to a word that we don't know. So it's not possible to say whatever we'd like straight away. Even 2000 words is not enough for this type of conversation. This time I had to look up about a dozen words in this particular conversation. I'm personally aiming for about 5000 words. Then I might hit some books too. Hopefully then I'll be better able to communicate. I just try to keep my learning positive, don't ever give up. If I find myself a bit reluctant to speak, my plan is to add a little alcohol. I've noticed that chemical usually overcomes any foreign language speaking inhibitions... Also w.r.t. speaking, it depends on whether you are an introvert or an extrovert. I prefer to listen and understand first before speaking my mind. I think overall technology is a big big help. I tried to learn Russian about 20 years ago and it was a big fail. Looking back, technology has helped and I was probably doomed to fail without it anyway. For example for me, I like to check my pronunciation with google translate. If I come to a word that I don't understand, I say the word in russian, then I get the word in English. Also nowadays you can watch Netflix with dual subtitles (with an app). That doesn't hinder, that helps IMHO.

I've been studying Russian following a Comprehensible Input / Mass Immersion Approach with vocabulary training for the past 4 months and I can understand quite a bit of this conversation. Of course I've seen a number of Steve's interviews so I have a lot of background context to help me understand but it's still very rewarding and motivating.

Очень интересное и приятное интервью. Спасибо🤗

Αννα μου γειά σου, I wish you a happy new year and all your wishes come true!! I would like to thank you for the amazing lesson! You deserve the praise!! Хорошего дня!! ☘🌼🍃⚘☘

Как обычно, ваш видео очень мне помогло. Я люблю Стева - он так обнадеживайюшуй. Спасибо большое, и я надеюсь што вас всё впораядке.

Уровень у него русского языка неплохой. Словарный запас отличный. Произношение надо улучшить, но это самое трудное. И большинство речи понятно. Некоторые фразы совсем его обходят, когда использует, и поэтому чувствую с ним трудности речи. Но он хорош, и отлично понимает методы, чтобы с каждым днем делать лучше и лучше. Мне очень понравилось видео

Спасибо большое 🙆

I very much liked the format of this video. Inviting people who is learning the language brings some reality to the table for us, the beginners. Many Russian teaching channels focus on methods designed for Russians speaking people whereas for the non-Russian speaking people they are hard, we need different techniques sometimes cuz features of the Russian language doesn't exist in our native tongues. Thank you very much for the huge amount of work you've put out for us. May your year end well 🤗

Я обычно использую платформ LingQ . По-моему , mini stories очень полезны! Это отличное видео и я совсем согласился с Стивом!!

Very good

Can you add English captions? Not quite at the level of understanding everything yet lol

Как просто сказала Анна "Чтобы научиться говорить, нужно говорить"

Интересно

It does, but only to a certain extent

First part had English subtitles, this is all Russian subtitles. That sucks, I wanted to listen to the rest of the interview but I don’t know Russian yet.

Анна большое вам спасибо за полезный разговор, желаю скорейшего выздоровления; тебе кажется немного холодным, не так ли?

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Стив упомянул 3 миллиона слов - суммарный объем текстов, прочитанных им в процессе изучения русского языка. Именно эту цифру называют в качестве рубежа, за которым начинается уверенное понимание чужого языка. От неё отталкиваются при использовании методики "extensive reading". Это равно примерно 60-70 книг среднего объема. На этот объем работы, думаю, и следует ориентироваться после того, как (обычно достаточно быстро) достигнут уровень Intermediate.

12:20 dodged that bullet

hi there Anna, the link to the 35% discount on linq is not working

I understand what Steve is talking about, but I don't speak Russian as pretty well as he does. I speak German. My German is as fluent as Steve's Russian.. I had a lot of opportunities to speak German. Language is a matter of habits and habituation...

Add English subs, please

То, что Стив говорит на многих языках, в данном случае на русском, лучшее доказательство того, что его метод работает.

In The Police State of America, I encountered non-native English speakers every week, so we are used to it. I live in Ukraine these days, and every person I speak to, I assume I am the first non-native Russian speaker they have ever communicated with, especially since they dont know how to slow down, "dumb it down", and speak отделно, not sure how to say in English, maybe speaking without running words into each other