How To Learn Any Language With An App 如何用app學習語言
Apps are all the rage nowadays, and for good reason. They can
help you out in just about every area of your life, whether it's keeping fit,
organizing your schedule, communicating with friends, or even learning a
language. Just like any tool though, you need to know how to use it properly to
really benefit. Here's a user guide for optimal app use, provided courtesy of
an app-addicted superuser.
應用程式近年非常流行，是為了些好的原因。它們可以在生活中任何領域幫助你，不論是要讓你保持苗條、安排行程、跟朋友聯繫，或甚至是學習一種語言。就像是任何的工具，你需要知道如何適當的使用，才能真的從中獲益，以下是為了讓app的使用最佳化的使用者說明，教你如何成為一位app成癮的超級用戶。
Technology is wonderful.
Put it in the hands of someone like Elon Musk and it can send people into
space, make a future of clean, renewable energy a reality, or build electric
cars. Put in your hands it can help you achieve all sorts of things, from learning
to code to learning a language.
科技非常美好，把它放在某些人手中，像是伊隆·馬斯克（Elon Musk），而它就可以發送人們到太空、讓未來變得乾淨、可再生能源成為現實，或是打造電動車。而放在你手中，你可以完成各式各樣的事，從學寫程式碼到學一種語言。
Educational apps are
becoming increasingly popular as a supplement, and sometimes as an alternative,
to traditional education. Why? Well, for starters, it’s supremely convenient to
learn on a pocket-sized device that you already carry around with you at all
times. The best apps are also highly intuitive, interactive and adaptive,
coaxing you in and getting you hooked on learning.
作為補充的教育性質app變得日益受歡迎，而對於傳統教育，有時候是一種替代方案。為什麼呢？嗯…對於初學者們而言，能透過一個你已經總是帶在身上的口袋大小的裝置學習，這非常方便，這些最棒的app也都富有高度教育意義、互動性及適應性，讓你循序漸進的投入，並讓你陷入學習之中。
But apps, just like
textbooks and language lessons, are a medium through which a language can be
studied. The way you use them will affect how successful you are. If you flick
nonchalantly through a textbook and don’t dare say a word in your language lessons,
you’ll make slow progress. The avid reader who repeats each exercise in the
textbook and engages the teacher in conversation will power ahead. So how do
you ensure you get the most out of your app, and what should you consider
before clickinginstall?
但是app就像課本和語言課程，是一個一種可以被鑽研的語言的中間媒介，你使用它們的方法會影響你學習的成功與否，如果你漫不經的打開教科書，而且在語言課程中不敢說任合一個字，你會進步非常慢，急切重複課本裡每一個練習的讀者並參與與老師對話的人將會全速前進，所以要如何確保你從app李學習到最多東西，還有在你按下安裝之前，有什麼你需要考慮的？
Before that, a very quick
intro: I developed the following five points from my experience as both a
language teacher and learner, and from working in startups in the field of
language. I spent six years teaching in Germany and Spain as well as developing
a video learning startup. I first came to language learning late, however. I
started learning Spanish at twenty-two, and had reached working proficiency in
Spanish and German by about twenty-eight. I’ve been using apps for the last few
years, and participated in two grueling and ultimately successful one-week
challenges to go from zero to hero in Italian and French. If you’re interested,
you can see the French challenge here.
在那之前，一個快速的介紹：我從身為一個語言教師和學習者並且在語言領域的新創公司工作的自身經驗中發明了以下五點，我花了六年在德國和西班牙教書，並發展影音學習創業。我一開始學習語言較晚，然而，我22歲開始學習西班牙文，並在28歲之前，達成精通西班牙文與德文。前幾年，我一直在使用app，並投入兩個令人疲憊並完全成功的一週挑戰，讓我在義大利文和法文中，從零變英雄，如果你有興趣，你可以看看這個法文挑戰。
So, just before
downloading an app, here’s what you should think about:
所以在你下載一支app之前，這些是你應該想想看的：
1. Beware the app which sells
itself as the Holy Grail of language learning, the one-stop-shop, the
answer to all your troubles. This is the commendable and very genuine aim of
the educators and developers behind the best apps (and the globular marketing
drool of the worst), but it’s also out of kilter with those same educators’ ideals.
Confused? The people behind the apps are driven to build the best product
available, but, and bear with me on this one, they’re also passionate language
learners themselves.
1.當心這些把自己當作語言學習的聖杯一般販售的app，像大型量販店，回答你所有問題，這是app背後的教育者與發展者真正值得讚揚的目標，（也是讓人流口水最糟的行銷術）但這也與教育者的想法失衡，覺得被搞混了？這些app背後的人的目的是為了建造最好的產品，但容我說一句，他們自己也非常熱衷語言學習。
Any seasoned language
learner will tell you that the beauty of striving and reaching proficiency in a
language is the world which it opens up to you. This is a world of diverse sources
of information, from newspapers and books to TV, radio, music and, yes, even
real people. Would you limit yourself to one medium in your native language?
Probably not, so why refrain from doing so in your new language? I encourage
you to use apps extensively, but not exclusively.
任何經驗豐富的語言學習者會跟你說語言學習裡努力的成果與達成精通的世界是要由你自己打開，這是一個充滿著各種資訊來源的世界，從報紙、書籍到電視、廣播、音樂，還有，對，甚至是人，你會限制自己只用一種媒體來學習自己的母語嗎？應該不會，所以為什麼要這麼限制你在學習的新語言呢？我鼓勵你們密集使用app，但不要只用app。
2. Establish your purpose
and plan your habits: do you want to be fluent in weeks or are you in it for the
brain training? The good apps are structured to help you fit your studies
around your timetable. The best apps adapt themselves based upon your behavior.
2.建立你的目的，規劃你的習慣：你想要在幾週之內就變得很流利或是你是為了做腦力訓練？這些好的app就是為了幫助你在讀書時可以跟上你的計畫而生的，最棒的app會依據你的行為自動調整。
These apps encourage
habit building, because the successful formation of a habit ensures your safe
and regular return. When would you like to return? Personally, I’m a reformed
early-morning-email-checker. Instead of cycling through emails I won’t answer
until I’m in the office anyway, I skip nimbly through a course or two and then
talk to myself in the shower. Weird, but effective.
這些app促進習慣的建立，因為成功養成一種習慣可以確保讓你穩定且規律的使用，你什麼時候會想再來使用？以個人來說，我改變了我早晨使用email的習慣，與其看著那些我進辦公室之前都不會回覆的電子郵件，我快速地瀏覽過一到兩個課程，然後在洗澡的時候跟自己對話，很奇怪，但很有效。
3.
Remember that an app is a tool — a great tool — but it’s not the greater purpose. A good app
will spur you on with implicit or explicit gamification. What does that mean?
App developers have taken the elements of game design which make video gaming
so addictive and applied them to educational apps. Sneaky? Maybe, but it’s all
for a good cause: to keep you learning! Rarely will you have heard someone bent
over a textbook remark, "I’m completely addicted to learning
Spanish!"
3.記得app是一個工具：一個很棒的工具，但他不會比目的還重要，一支好的app或多或少會像遊戲一樣激勵你使用，這代表什麼？app的開發商運用了一些遊戲的元素來設計，讓能讓電玩遊戲如此讓人成癮的方式，運用在教育app上，投機取巧嗎？或許，但這都源自於好的動機：讓你可以持續學習！你很少聽到有誰埋頭於課本筆記之中說「我完全沈迷在學習西班牙文之中！」
Among
all the rewards and extrinsic motivation, don’t forget your purpose and own,
intrinsic motivation: It wasn’t to complete level five and win some virtual
gooseberries of virtue, it was to shoot the breeze with the locals, perched on
a bar stall in Spain in front of a caña and an unhealthy portion of pimientos de padron.
在所有的回報和外在動機之中，別忘記你的目的和你的內在動機：這不是要過五關、可以贏得虛擬果實，這是為了要可以跟在蘆葦旁的西班牙當地酒吧的在地人一邊吃著大分量的帕德龍辣椒一邊輕鬆閒聊。
4.
We love your feedback! This isn’t a hollow call
to arms trying to decrease the social distance between faceless developer and
learner. Feedback is truly, madly, deeply golden. Why? For two main reasons:
Firstly, all that mumbo-jumbo about revolutions and changing the world does rub
off a bit. This means there’s a wave of motivation propelling the app towards
excellence, and app developers will be receptive to your input.
4.我們喜歡你的回饋！這並非只是為了拉近沒露面的開發者與學習者的距離空談才說的空話，回饋就像是非常非常深的金礦。為什麼？有兩個主要的原因，第一，那些說起來像是天書的革命和改變世界，這的確能改變一點點，意思是會有一波動力可以讓這個app越來越卓越，而app的開發者將會接受你給的回饋。
Secondly,
everything you touch within the app can be adjusted and improved quickly and to
the benefit of everyone. It’s almost Darwinian. If you’re not 100% delighted
with everything, there’ll be frowns on those faceless developers’… um, faces.
So say what you think, or even better, pop those thoughts in an email.
Everything can and will be better.
第二，所有你在app裡接觸的一切可以快速的調整並改進，讓每個使用者都受益，就像是達爾文的進化論，如果你不是100%對每個地方都滿意，這會讓這些沒露臉的開發者皺眉，所以把你所想的都講出來，或是把這些想法mail給他們，一切都可以也都會變更好。
5.
Make it social. No, I don’t mean posting your progress on Facebook. I mean
social for real.
I attribute the speed of progress I made in Italian to the competition/support
engendered by Jim, my partner in studytime. Find a friend to accompany you.
Supplement your studies with an evening class. Borrow a book. Buy a book. Book
a week away and attend a language school. Just don’t forget your phone!
5.讓學習變成社群，不，我不是要你把你的進步貼在臉書上，我的意思是「真正的」社群。我把我在學義大利文時進步的速度歸功於跟Jim（我在讀書時的夥伴）一起所產生的競爭/支持。找一個朋友陪伴你，上一堂晚間的課程來幫助你學習，借一本書或買一本書，或訂好一週的時間，參加語言學校，最重要的就是別忘記你的手機！
If I
may speak sincerely, the combination of app, language school, Jim, evenings
out, and a choice book or two proved extremely potent. It’s hard for an
Englishman to be so revoltingly saccharine, but I genuinely surprised myself
with what was possible that week. I walked away with friendships I’d
established in Italian. It was immensely fulfilling. I recommend it.
如果我要誠心誠意地說，有了app、語言學校、Jim、晚間課程，還有一或兩本精挑細選的書，就能證明很有用了，對一個英國人來說，很難做到這樣的程度，但我那個星期真的為自己的進步感到驚訝，我贏得了友情，我學會了義大利文，無限的充實，我推薦這種做法。
I
wrote this article entirely on my clever phone in a trendy orange aircraft in
the sky. Technology is wonderful.
我在一架橘色新潮正在空中飛的飛機上，透過我聰明的手機寫了這篇文章，科技真是太美好了！
