80/20 rule: learn any language with the Pareto principle

Summary

The video discusses the Pareto Principle, or the 80/20 rule, in the context of language learning. It explains that a small percentage of high-frequency words accounts for a large portion of language use, suggesting that focusing on these can accelerate learning. The presenter shares personal experiences with learning Turkish, emphasizing the importance of balancing 'big picture' language absorption with targeted study of challenging aspects. The video also stresses the need to enjoy the learning process and adjust focus based on personal interest and frustration levels.

Takeaways

• 📚 The Pareto Principle, or 80/20 rule, suggests that a small number of high-frequency words (500-1000) account for 70-80% of any language's vocabulary, implying efficient language learning can focus on these.
• 👨‍🏫 Vilfredo Pareto, an economist, first observed the 80/20 distribution in wealth and land ownership, which later was applied to various fields including language learning.
• 🔍 The principle is used in problem-solving, where addressing the most significant 20% of issues can resolve 80% of problems, an approach that can be mirrored in tackling language difficulties.
• 💻 In software, fixing the 20% most serious bugs can resolve most issues, paralleling the idea that mastering key language elements can greatly improve proficiency.
• 🗣️ The speaker emphasizes not over-focusing on high-frequency words as they naturally appear in language use, suggesting a balanced approach to vocabulary acquisition.
• 📈 The speaker's language learning approach involves a mix of 'big picture' learning (absorbing language broadly) and 'bits and pieces' learning (focusing on specific grammar points).
• 📊 A graph from the speaker's experience with Turkish shows an initial focus on listening to build a foundation, followed by an emphasis on vocabulary expansion.
• 🔄 The importance of revisiting and varying learning materials is highlighted to maintain engagement and to notice new aspects of the language.
• 🧠 The speaker notes the elusive nature of language retention, advocating for a mix of broad exposure and focused practice to reinforce learning.
• 🎯 Enjoyment is key in the speaker's learning strategy, adjusting the balance between challenging and easier content based on personal engagement and frustration levels.

Q & A

What is the Pareto principle, also known as the 80/20 principle, and how does it relate to language learning?

The Pareto principle, or the 80/20 rule, suggests that a small number of factors (20%) often account for the majority of outcomes (80%). In language learning, this principle implies that a relatively small set of high-frequency words (e.g., 500 to 1000) can cover 70-80% of any given language's vocabulary, allowing learners to achieve a functional level of understanding by focusing on these common words.

Who was Vilfredo Pareto and how did he contribute to the understanding of the Pareto principle?

Vilfredo Pareto was a professor of economics at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland in the early 1900s. He discovered that in Italy, 80% of the land was owned by 20% of the people. This observation led to the formulation of the Pareto principle, which has since been applied to various fields, including economics, business, and, as discussed in the script, language learning.

How has the Pareto principle been applied in the context of production and quality control?

The Pareto principle has been applied in production and quality control by focusing on the most significant issues first. For instance, addressing the top 20% of problems or defects can often resolve 80% of the issues. This approach helps prioritize efforts and resources to maximize efficiency and effectiveness.

What is the speaker's personal approach to language learning using the 80/20 rule?

The speaker's approach to language learning involves focusing on high-frequency words and structures, which naturally occur in the language they are learning. They emphasize spending 80% of their time on broad, input-based learning (big picture learning) to acquire a large vocabulary, which allows them to access more interesting content and understand language structures. The remaining time is spent on specific, more challenging aspects of the language (bits and pieces learning).

Why does the speaker believe it's not necessary to make a special effort to focus on high-frequency words?

The speaker believes that high-frequency words will naturally appear frequently in any language context, so they will be encountered and learned without specific effort. This allows the learner to gradually become accustomed to these words through exposure, freeing up time to focus on less common words and more complex language structures.

How does the speaker balance big picture learning with bits and pieces learning in their language learning process?

The speaker maintains a balance between big picture learning and bits and pieces learning by dedicating the majority of their time (around 80%) to broad, input-based learning, which involves consuming a lot of the language and acquiring words. The remaining time is spent on more focused, detailed study of specific language elements, such as verb forms or case endings.

What role does enjoyment play in the speaker's language learning strategy?

Enjoyment is a key factor in the speaker's language learning strategy. They adjust their learning materials based on their level of enjoyment and frustration. If they find the content too challenging or uninteresting, they move to easier or more engaging materials to maintain motivation and continue learning effectively.

How does the speaker use the Pareto principle to decide what to focus on in their language learning?

The speaker uses the Pareto principle to decide their focus by identifying the most common words and structures that account for the majority of language use. They then allocate their learning time accordingly, with a significant emphasis on general language absorption and a smaller portion dedicated to specific, challenging language elements.

What is the significance of the speaker's mention of Google and looking at frequent errors or difficulties in language learning?

The speaker suggests using Google to research common errors or difficulties that language learners face, which aligns with the Pareto principle. By focusing on the most frequent issues, learners can address the majority of challenges they are likely to encounter, thus optimizing their learning efforts.

How does the speaker's language learning approach reflect the idea of 'top-down' learning?

The speaker's approach reflects 'top-down' learning by starting with broad exposure to the language through listening to stories and consuming content, which allows them to acquire a wide range of vocabulary and get a sense of the language's structure. This method contrasts with 'bottom-up' learning, which focuses on mastering individual elements like grammar rules and vocabulary before attempting to understand larger language structures.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Introduction to the Pareto Principle in Language Learning

The speaker introduces the Pareto principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, and its application to language learning. They explain that a small number of high-frequency words account for a large percentage of vocabulary usage in any language. The principle's origin is traced back to Vilfredo Pareto, who observed the unequal distribution of land and wealth in early 1900s Italy. The speaker then relates this principle to language learning, suggesting that focusing on high-frequency words can accelerate the learning process. The discussion also touches on how the principle is applied in various fields, including production, quality control, and software development, and how it can be used to address common language learning challenges.

05:01

🌐 Applying the 80/20 Rule to Personal Language Learning

The speaker shares their personal approach to language learning using the 80/20 rule, with a focus on vocabulary acquisition. They suggest that high-frequency words will naturally be encountered and learned through extensive language exposure, so there's no need to focus heavily on them. Instead, the speaker emphasizes the importance of spending 80% of learning time on broad, input-based activities to build vocabulary, while reserving 20% for targeted, 'bits and pieces' learning. The speaker's language learning journey, particularly with Turkish, is used as an example. They discuss their early focus on listening to mini stories to familiarize themselves with the language, and how they later shifted to concentrate on vocabulary expansion. The speaker also highlights the importance of balancing big-picture learning with detailed study and adjusting the learning approach based on enjoyment and frustration levels.

10:03

🔗 Conclusion and Invitation for Discussion

In the concluding paragraph, the speaker invites viewers to explore the Wikipedia article on the Pareto principle and to share their own experiences with applying the 80/20 rule in language learning. The speaker expresses curiosity about different strategies and encourages a community discussion on the topic. The paragraph serves as a call to action, prompting viewers to engage with the content and with each other to enrich their understanding of the Pareto principle's application in language learning.

Keywords

💡Pareto Principle

The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, is an economic theory that suggests 80% of outcomes result from 20% of causes. In the context of the video, it is applied to language learning, suggesting that focusing on a small number of high-frequency words can lead to understanding a large portion of any language. The video discusses how this principle can be used to prioritize learning efforts for more efficient language acquisition.

💡Vocabulary

Vocabulary refers to the words and phrases known to a person or used in a language. The video emphasizes the importance of learning high-frequency words, which make up a significant portion of everyday language use. It suggests that mastering a core vocabulary can provide a foundation for understanding and communication in a new language.

💡Language Learning

Language learning is the process of acquiring new languages. The video uses the Pareto Principle to discuss strategies for language learning, such as focusing on high-frequency words and structures. It also touches on the balance between learning the most common elements and not neglecting the less common but still important aspects of a language.

💡High-Frequency Words

High-frequency words are those that appear most often in a language. The video suggests that by focusing on these words, learners can quickly gain a functional understanding of a language. The speaker uses their experience with Turkish as an example, highlighting how high-frequency words naturally become familiar through exposure.

💡Low-Frequency Words

Low-frequency words are less common in everyday language use. The video contrasts these with high-frequency words and discusses the challenge of learning them. It mentions that while high-frequency words are important, learners should also allocate time to understand and remember less common words for a more comprehensive language proficiency.

💡Big Picture Learning

Big picture learning refers to a holistic approach to language acquisition, where learners focus on understanding the language in its broader context rather than individual elements like grammar rules. The video suggests that spending the majority of learning time on this approach can lead to more organic language acquisition and a larger vocabulary.

💡Bits and Pieces Learning

Bits and pieces learning involves focusing on specific aspects of language, such as grammar rules or verb conjugations. The video contrasts this with big picture learning and suggests that while it's important, it should not consume the majority of a learner's time. The speaker recommends a balance between the two approaches for effective language learning.

💡Input Learning

Input learning is a method where learners consume large amounts of language material, such as reading, listening, or watching content in the target language. The video describes this as a top-down approach, where learners absorb language through exposure rather than focusing on individual elements like grammar or vocabulary.

💡Top-Down Learning

Top-down learning is an approach where learners start with an overall understanding and then move to the details. In the context of language learning, this means starting with exposure to the language in its natural context and then gradually focusing on specifics like grammar or vocabulary. The video suggests that this approach is more effective for building a broad understanding of a language.

💡Enjoyment

Enjoyment in language learning refers to the importance of maintaining interest and motivation. The video emphasizes that learners should focus on materials and methods that they find enjoyable to sustain their motivation and make the learning process more effective. It suggests that when learning becomes too frustrating, it might be time to switch to more engaging content.

Highlights

The Pareto principle, or 80/20 rule, suggests that a small number of words (500-1000) account for 70-80% of vocabulary in any language.

Vilfredo Pareto, an economist, discovered the principle observing that 80% of land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population.

The principle is applied to address problems in production and quality control, popularized by professor Juran.

In language learning, focusing on high-frequency words can short-circuit the learning process.

The principle is observed in various fields like crime, health, and computing, indicating a pattern of minority causes affecting the majority of outcomes.

Language learning involves a balance between acquiring high-frequency words and understanding low-frequency words.

The speaker's personal language learning strategy involves 80% big picture learning and 20% focused learning on specifics.

High-frequency words are acquired naturally through extensive language exposure, requiring less focused study.

Grammar difficulties like verb forms and case endings are better understood through varied language exposure rather than isolated study.

The speaker emphasizes the importance of enjoying the learning process and adjusting content difficulty based on enjoyment.

A mix of big picture and bits and pieces learning is crucial for effective language acquisition.

The speaker's experience with Turkish learning illustrates the application of the 80/20 rule in practice.

Listening to mini stories repeatedly helps in language absorption but may require revisiting for new insights.

Sentence review is an effective method to focus on language structure and verb usage.

The speaker's approach to language learning involves consuming a lot of language content to acquire new words.

The enjoyment factor is key in deciding when to move between easier and more challenging language content.

Maintaining a balance between big picture and focused learning is essential for language learning progress.

Transcripts

Hi, today I want to talk about the Pareto principle, or the 80 20 principle, and

how it applies to language learning.

We often hear it said that a small number of words, 500, 1000,

account for 70 80 percent of the vocabulary in any given language.

And therefore people suggest that if we focus in on these high frequency

words that we will be able to short circuit our language learning.

So that's what I'm going to get into.

First let's look at the Pareto principle, where it came from.

So Pareto, Vilfredo Pareto was a professor of economics at the University of Lausanne

in Switzerland back in the early 1900s.

And he discovered that in Italy, 80 percent of the land was owned

by 20 percent of the people.

He then noticed that the same was true in other countries.

And of course, inequality of wealth, inequality of incomes is a factor of

life today, and I'll show you these two maps, one for income distribution,

which is a little different from the maps of wealth distribution, but

in all countries, when it comes to wealth, 20 percent of the population

controls between 60 to 80 or more percent of the wealth in that country.

So that's.

Still is the case today.

However, the Pareto principle and this 80 20 rule has become more important

or more people pay attention to it today as a means to address problems

in production and quality control.

And that's because of a professor Juran immigrant from Romania, who in the

United States, States started using this 80 20 principle to address engineering

issues and quality control issues.

And he talked about the most useful 20%, but then also accepted the fact

that the remaining 80 percent were still important or at least helpful.

And that again, has application to language learning in terms of how we

deal with high frequency words and the very important low frequency words.

But insofar as the 80 20 principle, we've seen it applied

in so many different situations.

A small percentage of criminals.

Commit most of the crime, a small percentage of the population are

occupying most of the hospital beds.

In computing, it was said that if you can fix the 20 percent most serious

bugs in a piece of software, You'll have dealt with most of the problems.

Conversely, it said that 80 percent of the code can be

written in 20 percent of the time.

But the corollary to that is you spend 80 percent of your time trying

to finalize that 20 percent of the code that has to be written.

And so this again has application for language learning, where we will

end up spending most of our time dealing with low frequency language.

Words, even though the high frequency words account for the bulk of the

content of any particular context.

Let's move on then to how I use the 80 20 rule in my own language learning.

And I'm going to refer to my Turkish, but I think it applies to all languages.

So first of all, let's deal with the idea of vocabulary.

So the most frequent 500 words, 1000 words account for 70, 80%.

Of any given context.

What can we draw from that?

What I draw from that is I needn't make any special effort to focus in

on those high frequency words, because they're going to show up anyway.

I know that down the road, I'm going to have to focus and spend a lot of time on

learning the Less frequent words, the high frequency words I needn't worry about,

they're going to show up and I'm going to gradually get used to them anyway.

To some extent, the same is true with structures in the language.

You could Google and look at, the application of Pareto principle or

80 20 rule to language learning.

You can Google the most frequent errors or difficulties that people have in Spanish,

English, Chinese And you can say, okay, I'm going to look at examples of other

people who focus in on the main problems that they experience with the language.

But here again, my experience is basically in the Slavic languages.

I know it's cases it's aspects of verbs of motion that caused

me difficulty in Turkish.

It's the verbs.

There's so many different forms of the verbs.

I think verbs are usually there as a major area of difficulty,

but prepositions, case endings.

Pronouns, there's any number of different things that can cause the bulk of the

problems that we encounter in grammar.

But again, my experience has been that I will eventually come across

those in all kinds of different contexts and gradually get used to

them so that focusing in on those specifically may be of limited benefit.

However, 20 rule in my language learning is to tell myself, how

am I going to spend my time?

I have spoken before of what I would call big picture learning.

Input learning, consuming a lot of the language, top down learning.

And then there is this bits and pieces focusing in on, it might be

the case endings in Slavic languages.

It might be verb endings in Romance languages or pronouns in

Italian or whatever it might be.

It's not that I don't do that.

I do some of that.

I do look up grammar explanations online or in a book.

I have my lessons with my tutor.

So I do spend time on the nuts and bolts.

But 80 percent of my time is spent absorbing the

language and acquiring words.

And the reason for that is that if I have a lot of words, then I can

access more interesting content.

I can actually understand some of the examples of structures in the language.

So that as I go forward in the language, what's holding me back Is lack of

words and the words, which includes a lot of low frequency words, they are

acquired through the 80 percent big picture, top down input based learning.

So it's not that I don't do any sort of bits and pieces learning.

I do some, but I try to limit the amount of time.

I spend on that, for example, with my Turkish learning.

So I started back in 2018.

You can see from this graph that in an initial period, I

spent a lot of time listening.

You can see my statistics from my playlist that I've listened to the mini stories.

In fact, initially I spent most of my time with the mini stories to get a sense of

the language, to get some words in me.

to get a toehold in the language, listening 30, 40 times to the same

mini story, not at the same time, but eventually, because I go back

to them and I go back to them.

And so that was in a way, big picture learning because

the language was new to me.

So I was just bombarding my brain with the language, occasionally

looking at explanations.

Of course, I bought grammar books, but that was five years ago.

Now, when I started up again in preparation for my trip to Turkey,

I'm saying, I've got to dramatically increase my vocabulary because I want

to be dealing with things of interest.

And so that my major emphasis for the last little while has

been on increasing my vocabulary.

And yet, when I talked to my tutor, I realized how much difficulty I have

in some of the most basic patterns in the language, how much difficulty

I have in producing, verb forms.

As I'm now a month away from going to Turkey, I've decided to spend a little

more time on the bits and pieces.

And I do that by going back into my mini stories, where there's a lot of

focus on verbs, high frequency verbs.

And so when I go to them now again, I'm discovering things, noticing

things that I didn't notice before.

Because after a while, if we're listening to the same thing over and over

again, We are noticing less and less.

So after an absence, then I go back.

Another thing to remember is, even if back five years ago, I thought I had learned

something, or thought I could remember a verb, or a word, or a verb form,

chances are, I can't remember it now.

So we have to be aware of the fact that whatever we do, It's a little bit elusive.

We won't necessarily be able to grab it and hold onto it.

And so therefore I think it's very important.

And I always make sure that I mix the big picture with the bits and pieces.

So even now, when I say I'm going to spend more time with my mini stories,

it's still a small amount of time because by the time I'm on my third mini story,

my brain isn't paying much attention.

So when I switch back to my history of the Turks or the novel Havanen itch.

Cause even though I don't understand it all that well, I'm more motivated.

I'm more, I'm hanging onto the words and then I can go through them in LingQ.

Another thing that's useful, I find, again, varying that big picture

with the bits and pieces is to do, the sentence review where I

have to reassemble the sentence.

That's particularly good with the mini stories because the

mini stories sentences are short.

I have heard them many times and then I can start to put those sentences together.

It's a form of being focused in on how the language works.

How the verbs work, how the genitive works, all these things that I have.

So I try to maintain a good balance between big picture learning

and bits and pieces learning.

And perhaps beyond the idea that I want to maintain a balance of 80 whatever

it might be, between big picture and bits and pieces learning, at the same

time, I asked myself, am I enjoying it?

When we start out in a language, we have a high tolerance for

relatively repetitive, uninteresting content like the mini stories.

There's a sense of achievement as we understand a little bit

more and a little bit more.

We often think we've learned something that we can maybe now use and we discover

we can't use it because it's somehow back there in the brain somewhere, you

can't bring it out when you need it.

But am I enjoying it?

And when I stop enjoying it, then I move on to more difficult content.

And there again, going through in sentence mode, but.

Learning about the Turks, about Central Asia, about the Balkans,

about Anatolia, about whatever it might be, or as in the case of this

Three Daughters of Eve, learning about some of the, social and almost

psychological issues of modern day Turks.

So that's interesting.

So my guide is, am I enjoying what I'm doing?

And if I'm enjoying what I'm doing, then I keep doing it.

When I now find it Too frustrating to continue in content that has

so many unknown words and that I would be happier or feel more

comfortable being in easier content, then I move back to easier content.

But by and large, I think I try to maintain at least 80 percent of my time

with big picture top down learning, but not neglect the 20%, 10, 15

percent of time that I need to spend on focusing in on the bits and pieces.

So I hope that was helpful.

I've left some links here on the subject to a Wikipedia article on the subject,

and I'm curious how all of you use the 80 20 principle in your language learning.

Bye for now.