Best and Worst Way to Learn French Vocabulary for TEF Canada

Summary

In this video, Viom Sharma discusses the challenges of learning French vocabulary for the TEF Canada exam, especially for beginners. He emphasizes the importance of vocabulary and grammar in language acquisition but highlights that memorizing vocabulary lists is not effective due to the lack of contextual understanding. Sharma suggests that the best approach to vocabulary acquisition is through increased language input, such as reading and listening, which allows for passive learning and retention over time. He also advises patience and consistent practice, sharing his own experiences and teaching methods to help learners track and understand vocabulary in context.

Takeaways

• 📚 Learning vocabulary for TEF Canada is crucial, especially for beginners, as it's one of the two main components of language learning alongside grammar.
• 🚫 The worst way to learn vocabulary, according to the speaker, is by making a list of words without context, which often leads to forgetting them quickly.
• 📝 The speaker suggests that memorizing vocabulary lists is ineffective because it lacks the contextual understanding necessary for true language acquisition.
• 🔄 Forgetting vocabulary is common when learned in isolation; words need to be repeatedly encountered in context to be retained.
• 📈 The best way to learn vocabulary is through increased language input, which involves more reading and listening in French.
• 📖 Reading, even at a basic level, can significantly improve vocabulary over time due to the repeated exposure to words in context.
• 👂 Listening to French, in addition to reading, helps in passive learning of vocabulary as words are encountered repeatedly.
• 🔑 The key to vocabulary acquisition is patience and consistent exposure to the language over a longer period, not quick memorization.
• 📝 While vocabulary lists can be useful, they should include the full phrase or sentence in French and only the English translation of the targeted word.
• 👨‍🏫 Viom Sharma, the speaker, shares personal experience and teaching insights after clearing the TEF Canada exam and emphasizes the importance of context in vocabulary learning.
• 🌟 The speaker's student's analogy of learning the pathway to school without intention but through daily exposure illustrates the power of repetition and context in language learning.

Q & A

What is the main focus of the video script provided?

The main focus of the video script is discussing the best and worst ways to learn French vocabulary for the TEF Canada exam, especially for beginners.

Who is the speaker in the video script?

The speaker in the video script is Viom Sharma, who has cleared the TEF Canada exam and now teaches French for Canadian immigration.

What are the two main components of language learning mentioned in the script?

The two main components of language learning mentioned are grammar and vocabulary.

Why is grammar considered a structural component in language learning?

Grammar is considered a structural component because it helps in understanding how the language is organized and structured.

What is the speaker's opinion on the worst way to learn vocabulary?

The speaker believes that the worst way to learn vocabulary is by making a vocabulary list, as it lacks context and is not effective for long-term retention.

Why does the speaker suggest that making a vocabulary list is not effective for learning vocabulary?

The speaker suggests that making a vocabulary list is not effective because it does not allow for contextual understanding and the words are often forgotten after a short period of time.

What is the speaker's recommended method for learning vocabulary?

The speaker recommends increasing language learning input by doing more reading and listening in French to passively learn and retain vocabulary.

How does the speaker describe the process of learning vocabulary through reading and listening?

The speaker describes it as a process where commonly used words are repeatedly encountered, leading to passive learning over time, similar to how one memorizes a daily commute without intentionally doing so.

What is the importance of context when learning vocabulary according to the speaker?

According to the speaker, context is important because it helps in understanding how the vocabulary is connected with the whole sentence and overall meaning, which aids in better retention.

What advice does the speaker give regarding the creation of a vocabulary list?

The speaker advises to create a vocabulary list not for memorization, but to track down vocabulary. It should include the full phrase in French, highlight the word to learn, and provide its English translation.

What is the speaker's view on patience in the process of language learning?

The speaker emphasizes that patience is crucial in language learning, as it takes time to see improvements and truly learn and retain vocabulary.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Learning Vocabulary for TEF Canada: The Pitfalls of Lists

The speaker, Viom Sharma, who has cleared the TEF Canada exam, discusses the challenges of learning French vocabulary for the test, especially for beginners. He emphasizes the importance of vocabulary alongside grammar in language learning, noting that while grammar can be structurally learned, vocabulary requires memorization. Viom shares his personal experience, indicating that creating vocabulary lists is not an effective method due to the tendency to forget words quickly without context. He suggests that understanding the connection between vocabulary and context is crucial, and he criticizes the lack of patience among learners, advocating for a more experiential approach to learning vocabulary.

05:01

🚀 Effective Vocabulary Acquisition: Beyond Memorization

Continuing the discussion on vocabulary learning, Viom Sharma explains that the best way to learn French vocabulary is through increased language input, which involves more reading and listening. He argues that patience is key, as improvements from this method may not be immediately noticeable but will lead to significant vocabulary growth over time. Viom illustrates the concept of passive learning through repetition, likening it to memorizing a daily bus route without intention. He also advises against solely relying on vocabulary lists for memorization but suggests using them to track and understand vocabulary in context, recommending that learners write full phrases in French alongside English translations to enhance understanding.

Keywords

💡TEF Canada

TEF Canada refers to the Test d'évaluation de français (TEF), a French language proficiency test required for Canadian immigration. It is central to the video's theme as the speaker discusses learning French vocabulary in the context of preparing for this exam. The speaker mentions having cleared the TEF Canada exam and now teaches French, emphasizing the importance of vocabulary for this purpose.

💡Vocabulary

Vocabulary in this context refers to the set of all words in a language that a learner must know to communicate effectively. It is a key component of language learning and is the main focus of the video. The speaker discusses the challenges of vocabulary acquisition and the methods to learn it effectively, especially for TEF Canada preparation.

💡Grammar

Grammar is the set of structural rules governing the composition of sentences, phrases, and words in a language. In the video, grammar is contrasted with vocabulary as a foundational aspect of language learning. The speaker explains that while grammar can be learned through structured study, vocabulary requires a different approach.

💡Memorization

Memorization is the act of committing something to memory. The speaker discusses the ineffectiveness of memorization when learning vocabulary, especially through vocabulary lists, as it often leads to forgetting the words after a short period. This concept is central to the argument against the 'worst way' to learn vocabulary.

💡Language Learning Input

Language learning input refers to the exposure to the language through reading, listening, speaking, and writing. The speaker advocates for increasing language input as the 'best way' to learn vocabulary, suggesting that it leads to passive learning and better retention of words.

💡Reading

Reading is one of the methods of language input that the speaker recommends for vocabulary acquisition. By reading in French, especially starting with basic storybooks, learners are exposed to words in context, which helps in understanding and remembering them. The speaker shares personal experience and student anecdotes to illustrate this point.

💡Listening

Listening, like reading, is a form of language input that contributes to vocabulary learning. The speaker emphasizes the importance of listening to French, in addition to reading, to reinforce the learning of new words through repeated exposure.

💡Context

Context refers to the circumstances or setting in which something occurs. The speaker argues that understanding the context in which a word is used is crucial for effective vocabulary learning. This is contrasted with the ineffectiveness of learning words in isolation through lists.

💡Repetition

Repetition is the act of repeating something several times to reinforce learning. The speaker explains that through increased language input, words are encountered repeatedly, leading to passive learning and better retention. The analogy of learning the pathway to school by seeing it daily without intentional memorization is used to illustrate this concept.

💡Patience

Patience is the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset. The speaker mentions that many learners lack patience, expecting quick results in vocabulary acquisition, which is why they struggle with the slow process of passive learning through increased language input.

💡FCF Exam

FCF Exam likely refers to a specific French language exam, possibly related to the TEF Canada. The speaker offers to help with preparation for this exam, indicating a specialized aspect of French language learning that may require focused study on vocabulary and other language skills.

Highlights

The importance of learning vocabulary for the TEF Canada exam and its significance in language acquisition.

The ineffectiveness of traditional vocabulary lists for long-term retention.

The speaker's personal experience with vocabulary learning and the limitations of memorization.

The contrast between grammar learning and vocabulary acquisition in language learning.

The vastness and unlimited nature of vocabulary compared to the structured nature of grammar.

The ineffectiveness of memorizing vocabulary without context, leading to quick forgetting.

The speaker's own struggles with memorizing vocabulary lists and the lack of retention.

The recommendation to increase language input through reading and listening for better vocabulary acquisition.

The psychological process behind passive learning of vocabulary through repetition in reading and listening.

The analogy of learning a school bus route to explain the subconscious memorization of vocabulary.

The importance of patience in language learning and the gradual improvement over time.

The speaker's advice on not relying solely on vocabulary lists for learning French.

The suggestion to make vocabulary lists for tracking progress rather than memorization.

The method of creating a vocabulary list with context, phrases, and sentences for better understanding.

The emphasis on writing the full phrase in French and only the English translation for targeted words.

The speaker's offer to help with TEF Canada exam preparation for those learning French.

The conclusion that the best way to learn vocabulary is through increased reading and listening, not memorization.

Transcripts

when I started my my French Learning for

TEF Canada they are not patient with

this that's why they are not able to

stick to this approach and you know this

is going to piss off a lot of people

this is going to so what is the best and

what is the worst way of learning

vocabulary in French if you're preparing

for TEF Canada and if you're at a basic

level it's very important it's very

crucial to learn as many words as

possible as much vocabulary as possible

but there is something which we think it

works but it really doesn't but there

are are some things which we do not even

know as beginners that would that thing

work or not I mean we just don't have

any idea and that is something that

comes with experience so I'm going to

share my experience what is the best and

the worst way to learn vocabulary hello

everyone my name is viom Sharma and I

cleared my TEF Canada exam now after

clearing TEF Canada exam myself for

Canadian immigration I teach I teach

French today what we are going to talk

about is vocabulary it's one of the most

important components you know when you

are learning a language there are two

overall components behind the language

first one is grammar the second one is

vocabulary and grammar is more sort of

like a structural component which means

that you know the stronger your grammar

is the more you will understand how the

language is structurized on the other

hand vocabulary is something which is

very very vast and which is unlimited

you know in order to like you know all

the words in the French are vocabulary

the house the the pen the road all of

these things how to say these things in

French fruit fruits you know vegetables

whatever the things are that is

vocabulary see the thing is grammar we

can learn by watching lectures by

reading from the books by understanding

the concepts so that is not a problem

for example if you are trying to you

know if you want to understand what are

verbs there are three different groups

of verbs ER ending IR ending and r

ending and then you learn the

conjugations and what is future tense

past tense all of these things are easy

to understand and once you practice them

enough you are able to get the gist of

what the French grammar is but

vocabulary is something on which you

cannot have any approach because you

know vocabulary is not a concept it's

just you have to memorize a lot of

vocabulary to be better in the language

even if you know a lot of grammar unless

you don't know enough vocabulary you

can't progress in the language then the

question is what is the best and what is

the worst way to learn the vocabulary

okay in order to understand that first

let's let's cover what is the worst way

to learn vocabulary okay and you know

this is going to piss off a lot of

people this is going to it may be

contradictory in some of my videos

because I also say to do this thing but

I have a particular reason why I say

this so the worst way to learn

vocabulary is making a vocabulary list

okay like this is the worst way why

because when you are learning vocabulary

vocabulary is something that you know

that you cannot just memorize okay if

you have a list of 10 words or 20 words

and then you know 30 whatever the list

is if you are if you keep on

accumulating more new new words in that

particular list and you revise it on or

even learn it on daily basis I I don't

want to say that it's not going to

affect at all you may learn some

vocabulary but mostly what happens is

lot of the vocabulary that you learn

from there you lose it after 2 weeks 3

weeks okay even if you you have properly

memorized each and every word from that

particular vocabulary list you tend to

forget it after 2 3 weeks okay because

personally for me I I'll give you guys

my my example I was learning all ER

ending verbs all re ending verbs and I

was just learning the list of all the

verbs which is obviously also a

vocabulary and I was also learning

vocabulary on fruits vegetables and days

of the week and stuff like that okay

when I started my my French Learning for

TEF Canada what I used to do is I used

to make a list of them I used to

memorize them you know

Le and so forth but I was not able to

still learn it like you know after 2

days once I go back I would be like oh

you know what was it what was it I I

would just forget it same thing for the

verbs when I try to learn the vers from

a list I was never able to understand I

was never able to you know spontaneously

bring that out of my memory and I would

always forget it you know so this is

what I want to say that vocabulary lists

are not a good way why because they're

not able to you're not able to

contextually understand how the

vocabulary is connected with the whole

sentence with the whole context which is

very very important okay so one thing

you can cram vocabulary through vocabul

vocabulary list but it's not the best

way on the other hand now what is the

good way okay what is the good way to

learn vocabulary is by increasing your

language learning input what do I mean

by language input that means doing more

reading and doing more listening and

believe me when I say this when I

started reading in French even at basic

level like you just have to start with

basic story books and just basic you

know if you're learning French from edto

A1 or cosmopolit or seom whatever A1

level book is just start reading from it

it will take you know it requires

patience you won't see improvements in

your first few days but after few weeks

you are going to see tremendous

Improvement in your vocabulary you will

acquire a lot of new words now why why

this happens and what's the you know

what's the overall psychological process

behind this once you read something okay

there are certain words that you see

that you try to write it down on the

side but then you forget it but once you

read something else then those words are

repeated multiple number of times okay

and over the longer period of time once

you keep on reading French once you keep

on listening French as well those

commonly used words in French are

repeated a lot of times which eventually

makes you passively learn them rather

than memorizing now this is something

that is making you learn with more

repetition okay my student he's in A2 he

gave this an analogy like I was trying

to explain him you know how to learn the

verbs you have to repeat it like you

have to do it over the longer period of

time and he told me that you know you

know it's it's the same as when you used

to go to school in your bus in the

morning right you never you never

learned you never learned the whole

Pathway to go to school or to go to like

wherever you used to go on regular basis

in your school bus or School van it just

automatically got memorized in your

brain okay you used to see it regular

regularly on daily basis you used to see

the pathway but you never intentionally

memorize it but you were still able to

learn it okay this is the same thing

with vocabulary as well and the grammar

as well okay sometimes don't have to

memorize the things the more you just

increase your input the more you read

and the more you listen eventually over

the longer period of time the better it

will get the only sad part about this is

that we are not that much patient okay I

have seen my students as well like other

people as well as well those who learn

French they are not patient with this

that's why they are not able to stick to

this approach because I have uh you know

like lot of people on Instagram they

reach out to me as well they're like oh

you know I've been learning vocabulary

but the words are too difficult to learn

and I'm like okay how how much time have

you been studying French oh 2 weeks 3

weeks I'm like you know you still you

have to give time like you have to give

3 4 5 6 months over the longer period of

time it will be a lot better so that is

what I want to say that the bad the

worst way to learn the vocabulary is

just to make vocabulary list the good

way to learn the vocabulary is to read

more and to listen more now see I also

have said it in the P that you have to

make vocabulary list but you shouldn't

make it to memorize okay you should just

make vocabulary list to track down your

vocabulary and what I teach my students

is there is a specific there is a

specific way how I teach my students to

create a vocabulary list like they just

don't create a specific uh you know like

just a list of words it is very

important to write the context behind it

as well it is very important to write

the whole phrase and the whole sentence

and uh only write the English meaning of

that particular word which you want to

understand rather than that keep the

whole phrase in French when you are

making vocabulary list so yeah like what

I want to say is when you're making

vocabulary list never keep any french

word okay and just have its English

transl translation put the full phrase

okay and highlight the word that you

want to uh you know learn or memorize

and then have its English translation in

the next box or in the next column where

you know wherever you are making the

vocabulary list so this is how you

should be learning the vocabulary not

through memorization through the lists

but with more input with more reading

and listening I hope that was helpful if

you want to learn French you can reach

out to me for the FCF exam specific

preparation I'll see you in the next one