To read this post in Spanish, visit: https://journaly.com/post/22009
Your new language is amazing! You're constantly learning new things about it and your vocabulary is growing exponentially until BAM! Welcome to the intermediate phase, or the "intermediate plateau," as some people call it. Language learners know it as the imbalance of input and output in learning a language. Lots of time and effort but little visible progress. It's a period marked by frustration, boredom, confusion, and doubt. And it's unavoidable.
It might last for a while since the intermediate phase is very broad. On opposite extremes of this term, you have people who seem like absolute babies in the language (but are technically intermediate) and others who seem qualified to be professors of it (but still technically intermediate).
But here's a hot take for you: people worry too much about the intermediate plateau. It's just part of the process, the thing that makes the intermediate phase truly intermediate. These are the dues you have to pay in order to pass to the advanced level. It's only a problem if you convince yourself that you have nothing to improve.
Many language learners often want to get through the intermediate plateau as quickly as possible. But my challenge to you is this:
Take your time and embrace the awkwardness.
People don't often talk about the change in priorities and strategy that the intermediate level brings. You're not just learning more about the language; the way you perceive it is changing as well. It's becoming its own distinct entity in your brain. If you're constantly frustrated by linguistic inconsistencies and untranslatable concepts, this is a sign of growth, and growth is good. Your mind is facing issues that it has never encountered before and thus doesn't know how to handle them.
I've been in this phase for a while. I recently realized that my intermediate phase is not just a continuation of my beginner phase. It has its own rules and logic. Thus, it was time for me to reevaluate what I'm learning and why/how. In the beginner phase, any learning for any reason got me somewhere because I was so new to the language. This is not the case anymore.
My Original Evaluation | My Current Evaluation | ||
What: learn Spanish 100% correctly and thoroughly | What: learn to present myself naturally and professionally in Spanish | ||
Why: it seems interesting | Why: I love learning it even when it frustrates me. Quitting never crossed my mind. | ||
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How: free online resources and speaking with native speakers | How: Journaly entries, tutoring sessions, niche content |
One thing this chart doesn't list is my change in language learning role models. In the beginning, my goal was to be like people who learned Spanish as a second language and now speak at an almost native level. I was frustrated that I hadn't reached their level of proficiency yet. (I had already been learning for eight years.) When I set myself free from linguistic perfectionism, I found more role models of a slightly different demographic. These individuals are not considered honorary Hispanics, unlike my previous role models. They make more mistakes, and they don't talk quite as smoothly either. However, native Spanish speakers still take their language skills seriously, being fully confident that they will be able to communicate what they need to communicate. I look at them and think, "I respect them greatly and I can achieve that level someday." Besides, the near-perfect role models themselves were once at the stage of the new demographic.
The word "plateau" is a bit misleading. Yes, visible progress might stagnate, but this is actually a phase of great change. You can't just persist in order to reach the other side; you have to find enjoyment in the current persistence. Caterpillar phase was fun, but you have to live in a cocoon before you can earn your wings.
To all of my fellow plateau-dwellers, I wish you the best of luck. You're doing great.
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I agree with you. I still see it kinda like a plateau, cause there is so much to learn. So I see a wide, seemingly endless plateau in my mind's eye, having to decide which direction I want to go. Haha.
Maybe I just forgot the awkward English phase I had, but I miss the ability to express myself in my third language. So, that is what I am working on, discovering new modern methods and tools.
I guess, when you don't narrow down what you want to concentrate on, it will be overwhelming. I am also currently thinking about which concrete goals I want to set. Becoming fluent is too lofty of a goal. I think I concentrate on my novels, the books that explain how to express emotions and thoughts in my target language and Kanji as well as more listening. Maybe I will put the time frame to end of the year so I have a better overview.
I guess that's also one of the problems of the intermediate plateau. The lofty goals.