Learning Dutch now?
Most Dutch learners encounter the same problems and issues. Naturally, many of my students say similar things about it.
For you, I summarized the most useful and practical responses!
1) “I am bad with languages”
I had three years of French, but I don’t speak French’, so ‘I must be bad at languages.
Many of my students have bad experiences with language learning, usually based on their high school language classes.
The good news is: most of you never really tried.
If you have never studied a language for over 4 hours a week for at least 6 months, you do not know if you are bad with languages or not. Two hours of French a week is simple not enough, especially considering the holidays. And all the classes you did not pay attention. And when you were late.
(And you were thinking about your crush, not grammar).
Theoretical note: If you have been following me, you know that it takes about 600 hours for an English speaker to get to the B2 level in Dutch.
The practical solution: If you still think you are bad with languages – and some people really are – then add 20% to your total study time. You’ll need 720 hours to reach the B2 level, because you are bad with languages
If you are good with languages – whatever that means – you’ll get there in 480 hours!
2) “I understand, but I can’t speak”
Is this you? You understand quite a lot when you read. You can follow even the news items, more or less. You understand random conversations of Dutch people. But…
As soon as you try to have a conversation, you stutter, gibber, hesitate.
So, you tell your Dutch friends: I understand Dutch, I just can’t speak.
My first response is always: you do not understand enough. Because, in my experience, students with a high-level of comprehension are always able to express themselves as well.
Just answer these questions for yourself – and be honest:
- Do I really understand the Dutch news, including the details?
- Can I understand a Dutch newspaper without looking up words?
- Do I understand a Dutch Netflix show without subtitles?
- Do I understand more than half of the jokes of a random Dutch comedian?
If the answer is ‘no’, you don’t understand enough to be able to speak well. Most of my students who say they ‘understand Dutch’, are nothing more than beginners.
They just know about a 1000 words. To be able to speak comfortably, you need about 3000 of them.
Theoretical note: you will always understand more than you can say. Think about your own language. How many old-fashioned words do you know, but never use?
Well, in Dutch it’s just the same.
The gap between what you understand and what you can express will only get bigger, not smaller.
Practical solution: focus on comprehension. Find content you love and read it, listen to it, engage with it. Count your hours. After 100 hours of listening and reading, you will be able to say more. Forget about speaking for the moment. Make sure you really understand the Dutch language!
If you are a beginner, my book is probably the best way to boost your comprehension in an enjoyable way.
3) “I can’t learn Dutch, because everyone speaks English”
If you live in The Netherlands, you’ll know. We love speaking English!
But you need practice. So maybe you try to order in Dutch, and then the waiter responds in English. Your partner and your friends also lack the patience to help.
This is annoying, I understand.
(I actually do try to change this habit of the Dutch by spreading the word. Expats need practice.) But…
We are not responsible for your language progress. You are. We don’t have to help you improve, you need to improve.
Many of my students use our English skills as their excuse.
They tell me: When all people speak English to me, I will never learn Dutch. You might as well not even try.
This leads to another big misconception:
Non-English speaking foreigners learn Dutch faster, because they have they need it.
This is false!
Theoretical note: Dutch is one of the easiest languages to learn for English speakers. They only need 600 hours to reach the B2 level. Arabic speakers, on the other hand, need 2200 hours. Russian speakers 1100 hours. Indonesian speakers about 800 hours.
If you are reading this article in English, you are in the best possible position to learn our little language. And you’re probably pretty smart, too.
Practical solution 1: Focus on what you can do: study. Listen more, read more, follow a course. And as always: count your hours.
Practical solution 2: Refuse to speak English. Don’t. Respond in Dutch, always.
I cannot stress it enough: you are the one responsible for your Dutch progress.
Not your teacher, your Dutch friends or your Dutch partner. If we love to speak English, we are very much allowed to do so!
And believe me: if your Dutch either gets really good or you refuse to speak English, we will love you for it :).
You’ll really get to know us, our culture and our jokes.
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Max Koedood from Neandertaal
