Why you forget what you study

Bonjour,

Do you say “J’ai oublié” more than “Je m’en souviens” in French?

Do you learn loads of vocabulary words only to find they aren’t popping out when you need them most in spontaneous conversations?

In this mini-lesson and discover WHY WE FORGET:

• Why you can’t remember what you study

• The two types of learning and how you might be stuck in the ‘long way round’ only

• How to adjust your learning so that you can understand and speak French more easily 

Why you can’t remember what you study

One of the main reasons our brain does not digest what we learn is because it does not think it is important.

Indeed, it is discarded as clutter. After all, it’s not a question of life or death. 

Another factor is our memory. Each time you learn something, you create new connections. Then, your job is to consolidate these connections with practice in order to be natural.

That explains why we can’t recall the words we want to use if they are brand new.

The two types of learning

Did you know that there are 2 main ways of learning? Let’s have a look at both of them:

• Learning and memorisation
• Language acquisition

First, you have learning and memorisation. In other words, you deal with your conscious part.

Basically, you are aware that you learn because you make an effort to store information.

Here are some tangible examples:

• Analysis of rules of grammar

• vocabulary

• expressions

• exercises

The other way of learning is language acquisition.

This time it’s different. Your memory is not required. Instead, you instantly apply what you know.

We are going to dive into these 2 ways in the next sections.

However, think about children who can speak but don’t know the rules. They start with language acquisition, then by learning and memorisation. 

How do we acquire a language?

Let’s describe the illusion of learning. Imagine that you know all grammar rules, you can do an exercise perfectly and pass a test easily but…you can’t even have a conversation with someone.

Some people use some apps and are excited because they go to the next level and get all the points but…when it comes to talking to a native person, they are incapable of it.

So, what is going on?

What is missing in your learning?

The goal is to be able to recall the words you need in a live conversation. How can you practise this?

With the same apps, we were talking about. It’s a great way to learn words and grammar rules as long as you do something with them after.

Increase your focus.

If you can, don’t be a passive student but rather an active one.

Instead of using examples of someone or listening to the explanation of a grammar rule, make your own analysis.

You can observe examples and try to find the grammar rules and understand how the language works. 

If you make the effort to understand the language, you will memorise it better.

Gaining understable input.

Do you remember how you learnt your native language?

You repeated as a parrot and you were always corrected by others.

You didn’t learn to speak from a book but with instant input from your environment.

The context matters.

Just as a baby or toddler, you need to learn in context.

Someone older corrected you at the exact moment you made a mistake. As a result, you understood it in that context and memorise the correction maybe after one or several times.

You need exposure.

If you want to learn French or any other language or skill, you need understandable exposure. Why?

Because if you see, read or listen to something just once, your brain will just let it slip it in one ear and out of the other.

2 ways of learning.

There exist multiple ways of learning.

Here are 2 ways:

• Listening practice
• Listening and reading practice.  

As far as the first one is concerned, you can build it up. Start simple and try to identify sounds, then words, then groups of words, expressions, full sentences.

No one expects you to grasp everything.

Where can you find the material to practice your listening?

You could listen to the radio, to some podcasts of your level, to audiobooks, to watch television, to listen to some conversations…

Now, let’s see what listening and reading practice involves.

As always start simple and build it up.

Find a text where you can understand 95% of it because otherwise you will spend more time in the dictionary or being frustrated.

If you feel comfortable with the material, your brain will digest it more easily and you will avoid overwhelm.

Since you are supposed to understand 95% of the text, you can focus on the few new words. Create your own examples with them and play with them.

Be patient with yourself.

Remember to lean in context because words are significant for you.

That way, you experience exponential “subconscious” learning.

Most importantly, be patient with yourself.

Never assume to memorise a word by seeing it one time only. Scientific research proved that you need at least to see 7 times something to memorise it.

If words make sense to you, you will naturally remember them. But if you plan to memorise them for the sake of it, you will easily forget them in the long run.

Memorising is short term while acquisition is long term.

Have you ever learned something for an exam? Maybe you got the best grade for it but do you still remember it now?

The same happens with languages.

When you learn a language, you want the words to stick in your brain. Therefore, choose language acquisition because it’s deeper.

Indeed, you will recall words without thinking when you’ve gained experience in their contextual placement. 

Here are some tips for you to practice. Listen to a piece of short French. Then explain it to another student what you think you have understood.

When you are ready, look up the words you want to know in that text and discuss together.

That way, you will use your intuition in the first place.

Yes, it takes more effort to acquire but the good news is that once acquired, the words stay!

Remember to enjoy your French conversation along your learning journey. Everything is easier when you have fun.

How to adjust your learning so that you can understand and speak French more easily.

Today, you have seen that memorising alone takes longer and reduces vocabulary recall in conversation because it’s short-term memory. 

Instead, opt for language acquisition where you become an active student. Read or listen in multiple contexts at your level to get a better feel for French.

That way, your brain has room to wor out the new word for you in material at 95% comprehension.

The result will be exponential comprehension and the instant use of it.

If you also want to know more about your French learning, have a look at these mini-lessons:

How long does it take to learn French?

How to overcome perfectionism in French and avoid pain

So, do you think you are a passive or an active student?