Language Immersion: A Game Changer for Language Schools

Learning a language is a deeply enriching journey. The joy of being able to understand poetry, literature, movies and art in another language, to learn about its vibrant history and culture, and to be able to connect with interesting new people is a joy like no other. However, this fulfilling journey undoubtedly comes with its own set of challenges. 

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As someone who has studied Mandarin, French and Spanish in a country where none of these languages are spoken, I've faced the common, frustrating struggle of not being able to put my learning into practice, only to eventually lose touch with the language. If there’s one thing I’ve realized about language learning, it’s that constant exposure to the target language is a must, be it through conversational classes, reading books, a mobile app or any other way that works best for you. 

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Consider a scenario where two people wish to learn about wildlife. One studies biology in an esteemed university, learning about species, ecosystems and animal behaviors from knowledgeable professors in top-tier facilities and laboratories. The other lives in a remote jungle village and spends all day observing and interacting with wildlife and other forms of nature firsthand. While the biology student must be dedicated to their study of flora and fauna, the forest dweller will develop an intuitive understanding of the natural world simply by virtue of his lifestyle. 

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Similarly, language immersion provides learners a comprehensive understanding of the target language, far beyond the pages of any textbook. So let’s dive into the world of language immersion, its many benefits and the best ways to learn a language using the immersion method.

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What is language immersion?

immerse

[/ᵻˈmərs/] verb

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Oxford Languages defines “immerse” as ‘to involve oneself deeply in a particular activity.’ Cambridge Dictionary defines the word as ‘to become completely involved in something’, and  Merriam Webster, ‘to engross, absorb’.

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Thus, language immersion is the simple act of immersing oneself in the study of a language—to be completely involved, engrossed and absorbed in its pursuit. It is an educational approach to language learning that involves intensively exposing yourself to the target language in real-world contexts. Language immersion is the most organic and authentic way to pick up a language—to expand vocabulary, improve fluency and deeply understand its cultural nuances.

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Is immersion the best way to learn a language? 

Think about how you acquired your first language as a child. Did you begin with the ABCs? Were you handed a thick textbook full of complicated grammar rules and a set of prescribed exercises? No. You learn it almost intuitively, growing up in an environment where you were encompassed by it. Hearing your family and those around you speak the language, surrounded by it in every context day after day, you organically assimilated its grammar, vocabulary, expressions and cultural cues. We learnt our first languages by interaction, imitation and repetition, without formal instruction, without rote learning conjugations and grammatical concepts. 

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This is the essence of language immersion. By making the target language the hero, by placing it in the center of all activities, you are more likely to develop a natural understanding of the language. In other words, the practical, everyday use of the language makes language acquisition and retention easier.

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Benefits of language immersion 

Research has shown that language immersion can greatly improve a learner’s language proficiency. Here are 6 reasons why the immersion method is the best way to learn a language:

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1. Accelerates language proficiency

Immersive language learning is a faster and more effective way of learning a foreign language. Being exposed to real-world language on a daily basis, instead of focusing on grammar and vocabulary in isolated contexts, greatly improves the ability to understand and use the language.

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2. Expands vocabulary

As a language educator, I have lost count of the times I have been asked for “a list of all the vocabulary I will need to know for the test.” My reply doesn’t change. There is no list or resource in the world that contains every word and phrase used in a language. I have been speaking English with native-like fluency for over 15 years, and I still occasionally have to look up an unfamiliar word that I come across in a novel in the dictionary. 

The immersion method exposes you to a lot of new words and phrases that you can naturally assimilate into your vocabulary. This includes slang, idioms and colloquial expressions that you would not otherwise find in a textbook. 

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3. Deepens cultural understanding

Immersive language learning helps gain a deeper understanding of the social traditions and cultural nuances of a people. Take, for example, the Spanish expression, ‘más bueno que el pan’, which literally translates to ‘even better than bread’. When you say someone is ‘más bueno que el pan’, it refers to a kind, good-natured person. Now, this may sound completely absurd to an English speaker. However, bread is a fundamental part of Spanish food, having great importance in Spanish culture, so it's like telling someone you are better than bread, which is such an important part of life. 

Immersion-based learning opens up your world to these subtleties of a language, which in turn helps you understand the culture, values and the way of life of a community.

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4. Improves pronunciation

Different languages have different phonics rules, which can be quite challenging to pick up since you're used to speaking a certain language in a certain way. Take, for example, the sounds of the letters ‘t’ and ‘d’ in Spanish and French. In both Spanish and French, the ‘t’ and ‘d’ sounds are pronounced differently than in English, being dental rather than alveolar. By regularly hearing the target language, learners spontaneously pick up native-like pronunciation and intonation.

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5. Improves listening skills

Comprehending a foreign language, especially while simultaneously listening to it, is certainly not an easy task. Moreover, the same language can have varying accents, with unique pronunciation patterns and even distinct vocabulary owing to geographical and social differences. Consider, for instance, the word for ‘car’ in Spanish, which is ‘coche’ in Spain and ‘caro’ or ‘auto’ in Latin America. Or the word for ‘potato’, ‘patata’ in Spain and ‘papa’ in Latin America. 

Language immersion exposes a learner to different dialects, accents and even speaking speeds, sharpening listening skills and comprehension.

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6. Builds confidence

Learning a foreign language can be a demanding and daunting task. However, the constant practice and exposure reduces fear and hesitation and helps you feel more confident while interacting in the foreign language.

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How to immerse yourself in a language

Today’s globalized, digital age has made an abundance of resources effortlessly available for learners looking to practice their target language. With the many hours we spend in front of a screen (the average person spends more than 6 hours on screens!), we really could make good use of all this screen time.

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Each language consists of 4 components—reading, writing, listening and speaking, and developing language proficiency requires acquiring competence in each of these skills. Remember, Rome wasn't built in a day; the goal is to start small and eventually move on to more complex tasks, be it reading texts or listening to audios.

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Of course, the best way to hone all these skills is beyond the four walls of a class, in the real-world. Spending time in the country that speaks the target language offers total language immersion, because you are quite literally surrounded by the language. From street signs, cafe and bar menus, billboards, people you meet, and all around you, you will see, hear and speak your target language, making sure that learning is taking place everywhere, all the time. 

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However, not everyone has the opportunity to travel or study abroad. So worry not! Here are some ways language teachers and schools can employ the immersion method to help learners gain proficiency in each of the language skills:

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1. Reading 📖

• The easiest way to start is by asking students to change the language settings on their phones or frequently used electronic devices. Since they are already familiar with the way the devices function—the settings, apps, widgets—it’s easier for their brain to comprehend these in the target language. With the many times they pick up our phone or plug in their laptops everyday, they’ll notice the date, the weather, email and text alerts and many other features in the language they’re trying to learn.

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• Encourage learners to follow social media accounts that post content in the target language. When I was learning Spanish, I followed a lot of Spanish accounts—La Liga, Spanish football clubs, actors from Spanish-speaking countries, news outlets and other pages that covered a wide range of themes and topics. Every post was accompanied with Spanish captions, which I would try to decipher the meaning of. I would then use the Instagram translate feature to check my comprehension of the subject matter. Well, who knew there could be benefits to doom-scrolling? 😝 

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• Ensure learners set aside a dedicated time to read in the target language everyday. They could start with easy articles and blogs or children’s books, and eventually progress to more complex material like newspaper articles or movie reviews. They could even pick up a translated novel that they’ve already read in your first language. It's a great way to pick up local expressions, words and phrases.

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2. Writing ✍️

• Before students jump into long-form writing, advise them to start simple by participating in online discussions, either on forums, video comment sections or on social media. Not only is this great writing practice to begin with, but reading others’ responses will also expose them to different structures and styles of writing. Plus, there will always be kind, helpful people who earnestly correct mistakes and provide valuable feedback to improve.

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• Encourage learners to maintain a daily journal in your target language. This could be as simple as writing about their day every night before bed or recounting a fun experience they had. You could even give them writing prompts to help them diversify their topics. At the end of each week, you could even check their work to identify common errors and suggest areas for improvement.

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• Eventually, you could ask your students to start translating slightly longer texts in their first language to the target language. To test both comprehension and writing skills, they could also try summarizing them.

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• Ask your students to find a native pen pal or language partner and regularly correspond with them via letters, email or text messaging. Ask them to have the pen pals review their work and give them detailed feedback. Not only does this help to practice writing longer, structured texts, students also receive invaluable insights from a native about natural phrasing, style and tone. 

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3. Speaking 🗣️

• Perhaps the toughest skill of them all. Initially, students could start by practising with themselves for a few minutes every day. They could speak about absolutely anything, but the key is to maintain consistency in practice. They could even try using a language app that offers speech recognition and record yourself speaking.

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• Help learners find a fellow learner (or even better, a native speaker) with whom they can converse regularly. Conversing with a native speaker offers learners the benefit of familiarizing themselves with the typical accent, common colloquial terms, and a more natural, conversational style of speaking.

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• Encourage students to opportunities that allow them to practice speaking in the target language, like joining a book club or a film club where they can engage in discussions in the target language. You could even organize reading sessions, movie nights and other cultural activities in your language school which provide students a chance to converse with their colleagues in the target language in a structured environment.

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4. Listening 🎧

• Learners can start with basic, beginner-level podcasts or YouTube videos to get accustomed to the pronunciation, intonation and accent.

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• With time, they could advance to more complex resources, like longer podcasts, videos, audiobooks, news broadcasts and radio shows. Initially, they could enable subtitles, reading along as they listen, to test comprehension and identify complex vocabulary. They could also try summarizing the audio you’ve heard, orally or in writing, to ensure they’ve understood the content and to practice producing their own output in the target language. You could recommend the same audio resource to all learners of a particular batch or language level and have discussions on the same during class hours.

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• The next time your learners binge watch their favorite show or movie for the 10th time on a cozy Sunday afternoon, a tub of ice cream in hand, why not recommend them to switch the language settings? Since they already know the storyline, they’ll find it easier to understand what’s going on while also catching commonly used words and phrases in the target language. They’re also likely to catch a lot more conversational expressions and slang terms.

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• Search for and share playlists in the target language on music streaming apps with your students. This way, they can turn daily activities like their next workout or a long drive into a learning opportunity! They could even watch the songs on YouTube with videos that include the translation in their first language.

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💡 Pro tip: Recommend content that incorporates different regional accents and speaking speeds.

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Language immersion schools and programs

For those who may not be able to travel or study abroad, it might be tough to create a near-total immersion experience in your day-to-day life. You may struggle to find the right resources, you may be someone who learns better with structured guidance, or you may need to use your first language in the course of your personal and professional lives, hindering the process of immersive language learning. 

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Fortunately, many language schools offer structured language immersion programs, ranging from summer language immersion programs to full-fledged bilingual immersion programs, tailored to students’ proficiency levels. 

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Depending on their purpose, language level and other requirements and constraints, students can opt for: 

• ‍Total immersion: where the target language is the primary medium of instruction and students are encouraged to communicate exclusively in that language.‍
• Partial immersion: where only certain subjects are taught in the target language, providing gradual exposure.‍
• Two-way immersion programs: which combine native and non-native speakers, with instruction conducted in both the languages to promote bilingualism and cross cultural understanding.‍
• Cultural immersion programs: which involve intensive learning, often abroad. Students experience homestays, cultural experiences, field trips and language classes in a native environment, allowing real-world interactions in the target language. 
• Language camps: domestic or international, which offer short-term but intensive exposure.

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Why language schools should offer immersion programs

Ask any learner or language expert about the biggest hurdle while learning a foreign language. They’ll likely tell you that language learning is constantly punctuated with return to the learners’ first language, continuity is broken and there is a lack of opportunity to practice what you’re learning. 

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For those seeking faster and more effective language acquisition, language immersion programs and language camps provide a great opportunity to practice among fluent speakers. Students who learn through the immersion method tend to achieve fluency quicker than those in traditional courses. This results-driven approach helps language academies to attract more clients. 

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Moreover, learning a new language offers various cognitive benefits that results in higher student success rates. Learning through real-world experiences like watching movies, listening to music or connecting with native speakers makes learning enjoyable, engaging and effective. For language schools, offering language immersion programs certainly offers a competitive advantage in a crowded market.

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If you are a language school looking to enhance the learning experience for your students, try Classcard. Our feature-rich language school management software streamlines your administrative tasks—from scheduling classes to managing bookings, and tracking attendance and student progress to automating payment processes. We’ll do the heavy lifting while you focus on nurturing global, open-minded and culturally empathetic students.

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Language immersion is more than simply learning a language, it's about experiencing different cultures, expanding mental horizons and growing both personally and professionally. So whether you want to say ¿Cómo estás?, Bonjour! or こんにちは (Kon’nichiwa), a world of learning awaits!

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