Can late learners or adults learn to speak French really well? As we saw in a previous post, if you want to speak impeccable French like a Jodie Foster, you have to start very young and go to school in French. For adult or late learners, it’s another story. Learning to speak proficient French is possible but neither quick nor easy.

As a teacher, coach, workshop facilitator and language conversation exchange organizer, I literally meet hundreds of adult learners of French every year. Most are at some perpetual intermediate level where they can understand quite well but find speaking fluently a constant challenge.

When I do meet people who speak great French, I’m always curious as to how they learned it. Individuals, of course, have different learning styles, motivations and aptitudes for languages, but in my observations certain factors stand out. Here then is my take on the secret to learning to speak French well.

The secret formula for speaking great French

Active immersion + Formal study + Good tools + Professional Coaching = Success

In essence, this formula says that success in learning French is a combination of a number of things. This is what I have called a multi-layered approach. You basically have to work on a four fronts.

Active immersion

You have certainly noticed that nearly all great speakers of any foreign language have spent time in the country of the language. The foremost benefit of immersion is massive exposure to the language in action. The language is alive and surrounds you. Simple activities such as using public transport, eating out, shopping, going to the market, reading signs and advertisements and just listening to people are all rich learning experiences.

Immersion in a language is also immersion in the culture. You inevitably learn some history, geography, politics, sociology, cuisine, literature, music, songs, dance, folklore, traditions, etc. This is important to understanding what people are talking about.

But there is more than just observing and absorbing the language. I use the term active immersion to describe an immersive environment where the learner has to actually use the language with native speakers. Studying, working in French and living with native speakers are common examples of active immersion.

In short, any sort of activity where you can observe native speakers and where you yourself have the opportunity to speak the language will lead to rapid progress.

This is easier said than done. Most readers of this blog do not live in a French-speaking environment. Actual active contact with French may be limited to activities organized by the local Alliance française or conversation exchange groups.

Where actual contact with French is limited, movies and television with subtitles and captions are very valuable because they give some idea of the use of the language in context.

Something that is quite popular today, and that I highly recommend is language exchanges with native speakers over the Internet.

But keep in mind that if you want to take your French to the highest level, you will have to spend some time in a French-speaking environment.

Formal study

I strongly believe that adult learners should not try to simply absorb the language without some formal guidance. The big problem of trying to learn on your own is the lack of correction. Native speakers are generally too polite to correct adult learners. It is very easy to develop bad habits or mistakes that you are totally unaware of. A common mistake is to learn some street slang that ends up being used inappropriately.

A good course, whether a traditional classroom with a live instructor or an online or software program, should provide structure, discipline and corrective feedback.

Good learning tools

Here are some learning tools that you should have in either paper or electronic version. Many are available for free on the Internet.

•  A bilingual dictionary. If you have not already done so, you should start using an all-French dictionary like Le Petit Robert or Le Larousse. Visual dictionaries are also useful.
•  A reference guide to French grammar. For learning purposes, I highly recommend the Grammaire progressive du français series published by Clé Internationale.
• A verb conjugation guide such as Le Bescherelle. There are many websites for verb conjugations
• Reading material that is rich in dialogues and spoken language. Comic books and plays are highly recommended
• Audiobooks in French
• Recordings of conversations with transcripts;
• DVD’s with subtitles in French;
• Recordings of songs with transcripts;
• Websites for newspapers, magazines, videos and subjects of interest
• Flash cards
• A pocket-sized notebook to jot down words and questions
• The Essential French wall chart calendar

Professional coaching for correction and idiomatic speech

I believe that working with a professional language coach is an absolute necessity in order to reach the highest levels of proficiency. I like to think of speaking French as a form of performance where your voice is the instrument. What comes out of your mouth says a lot about you.

Actors, athletes, authors, musicians and performers of all kinds often work with coaches, editors, teachers and mentors during their entire professional career.

The reason is pretty simple: you need the objective perspective of an expert to improve your performance. You can’t do it by yourself. For example, you can’t correct your own pronunciation. You are probably making all sorts of mistakes that you are totally unaware of.

Even if you are taking classes, you can only get so much individual attention.

Working with a coach can be intimidating and humbling at first. It’s not always easy to have someone correct your speech. But think of it this way: it’s better to have your mistakes corrected privately than to go around inflicting your mistakes on the listening public. Better yet, everybody will be commenting on your excellent français instead of whispering about your français approximatif behind your back.

I find that adult learners actually love being corrected. They know only too well that they often make mistakes but people are too polite to correct them. For example, maybe you’ve been mixing up the pronunciation of se lever and se laver for years but no one ever told you. Or  you have been saying la squelette when it should be le squelettte.

Coaching is not only about correcting mistakes. It is also about learning to use all the resources of the language to speak in a more idiomatic and natural manner with less translation from your native language.

The basic question here is: how would a native speaker say this? And a good coach would probably show you different ways of expressing the same idea.

It should go without saying that if you have to give a speech, a presentation or an interview in French, you should rehearse with your coach. Professional presenters do this all the time. You might be able to just wing it in your own language, but public speaking in a foreign language is very challenging.

I should warn you that coaching can be addictive. It’s great to know that you have the undivided attention of someone whose job is to make you a better speaker. When people comment on how good your French has become, you can graciously respond with “merci, merci, vous êtres trop aimable(s).”

Conclusion: there is really no secret to learning French

Truth be told, none of all this is a big secret. Unless you had the great luck of learning French as a kid, this multi-layered approach is basically the only way to achieve great results.

Although all the elements are important, I would like to stress the importance of active immersion and coaching. Actual daily contact with French is probably the most important success factor. If you are in an environment where you can use your French for real, you have an enormous advantage over those learners for whom the language is something they read in a book and hear in a classroom or over the Internet.

Coaching is particularly important for those learners who are not in an immersion environment. And even more so for learners who are studying on their own. If nothing else, independent learners should get some kind of language exchange with a native speaker. Better yet, a few coaching sessions will help eliminate major mistakes and set them on the right track.

Stanley Aléong is a polyglot, author, musician, language coach in French, English and Spanish, language workshop facilitator and organizer of French-English conversation meetups in Montreal, Canada. He likes to share his passion for languages and believes that anybody can learn to speak a foreign language well with the right methods and tools. He has also invented a cool visual learning tool called the Essential French Wall Chart Calendar. Reach him at info@langcal.com.