Testing the “20x” Immersion Method for 100 Days

Summary

In this video, Josh recounts his 100-day Polish language learning challenge, where he tracked words from YouTube videos and vocabulary reviews. Despite interruptions, he consistently used Anki for vocabulary retention. The challenge revealed that immersion plus Anki was effective, with 80% retention of Anki-studied words versus 25% from immersion alone. Josh reflects on the importance of motivation and the long-term nature of language acquisition, concluding with insights for improving future language learning endeavors.

Takeaways

• 📚 The speaker, Josh, completed a 100-day language learning challenge in Polish, focusing on vocabulary acquisition through immersion and notecard study with Anki.
• 🔍 Josh's challenge was based on linguistic research suggesting that one should know a word after 20 exposures, which he tested through watching YouTube videos and vocabulary reviews.
• 📈 The challenge evolved from a 7-day to a 100-day endeavor, influenced by audience votes and including notecard study via Anki, with plans for a more scientific approach in the future.
• 🎥 The 100-day challenge involved watching Easy Polish videos, creating and reviewing vocab cards, and researching word conjugations, with a strict rule against other Polish study to track exposure accurately.
• 📉 Despite some disruptions like travel and holidays, Josh maintained consistent Anki reviews, but his YouTube viewing became sporadic, affecting the challenge's consistency.
• 🎉 Josh experienced several positive highlights, including the Easy Polish team's delightful content, quick alphabet and pronunciation learning, and the ability to understand a Polish meme and pick out individual words.
• 🌐 Lingopie, a language learning platform, was mentioned as a potential resource that could have further enhanced the challenge with its interactive subtitles and notecard-making features.
• 📊 After 100 days, Josh was tested on over 1000 words, knowing 62% of the 707 words he should have known based on 20+ exposures, and learning additional words through the process.
• 📉 Josh reflected on the effectiveness of Anki vs. immersion, noting that 80% of Anki-studied words were known compared to only 25% from immersion alone, suggesting the need for a more scientific approach to study selection.
• 💡 Two key lessons were highlighted: language learning is a long-term investment with lagging indicators of success, and motivation is crucial when immersing in unknown territory.
• 🛠 For future challenges, Josh plans to improve by structuring daily content, incorporating reading, using resources for language basics, vocalizing Anki reviews, and randomly selecting study materials for a fair comparison.

Q & A

What was the main objective of Josh's 100-day language learning challenge?

The main objective was to track every single word Josh heard across YouTube videos and vocab reviews in Polish to determine if he could learn a word after 20 exposures, as suggested by linguistic research.

How did Josh track his language exposure during the challenge?

Josh tracked his language exposure by watching Easy Polish videos, making and reviewing vocab cards, looking up word information and conjugations, and ensuring he accurately tracked how many times he was exposed to each word.

What was the result of Josh's 1000-word vocabulary test at the end of the challenge?

Josh knew 439 out of 707 words he should have known based on 20+ exposures, which is a 62% success rate. He also learned 71 words with fewer than 20 exposures.

What was the daily rate at which Josh introduced new words during the challenge?

Josh introduced new words at a rate of 4 new words per day, with 8 new Anki cards daily, which included both Polish-to-English and English-to-Polish reviews.

How did Josh's language learning process change after the first month of the challenge?

After the first month, Josh's consistent viewing of Easy Polish videos was disrupted due to travel, holidays, and other distractions, leading to sporadic viewing but consistent Anki reviews.

What was the role of Lingopie in Josh's language learning challenge?

Lingopie was mentioned as a helpful resource that could have further enhanced Josh's challenge. It's a streaming platform for language learners that allows for interactive subtitles and easy notecard creation.

What were some of the highlights Josh experienced during the 100-day challenge?

Highlights included the enjoyment of the Easy Polish team's content, quick mastery of the alphabet and pronunciation, understanding a Polish meme, and starting to pick out individual words without visual aids.

What lessons did Josh learn about language learning from his 100-day challenge?

Josh learned that language learning is like investing, requiring long-term commitment and patience, and that motivation while immersing in a new language is crucial for maintaining progress.

How did Josh plan to improve his language learning approach for future challenges?

For future challenges, Josh planned to incorporate more structured content viewing, reading at his own pace, using resources for language basics, vocalizing Anki reviews, and randomly selecting words for Anki to better understand the effect of studying versus immersion.

What was the total amount of Polish words Josh was exposed to during the 100-day challenge?

Josh was exposed to around 80,000 words in Polish, with 3/4 of that through YouTube and 1/4 through Anki.