- “Say what you want to say, and let the words fall out. Honestly, I want to see you be brave.” -Sara Bareilles
Hey Leute! It’s Monday and, as promised, I’m blogging again! I’ve had a great “last week of no classes” hanging out with friends, touring the Ritter Sport chocolate museum (an unbelievable experience for a chocolate freak like me), getting lots of sleep and preparing for the upcoming week (scheduling, e-mailing and meeting with professors, etc.).
A new semester always presents new challenges and lessons, especially in a new country. It’s mid-October, and classes are just starting here in Germany, which for me is both exciting and intimidating. For the most part, I’m excited. I’ve put together a schedule that, for me, sounds really intriguing. I am taking Baden-Württemberg Church History, Art History, 20th Century Argentinian Literature (in Spanish!), and another class to be determined in the next week. I am taking the approach to scheduling courses that most German students use. German students schedule more courses within the first week of classes than they plan on taking in the semester. After visiting various lectures, they decide which courses to keep.
Despite how much I am looking forward to my new courses, I am still intimidated by the challenges they will present. The start of classes means more for international students than just the beginning of an abundance of studying and reading. Exchange students will have a lot more interaction with “real” Germans in classes and student groups. The professors will speak German quickly, without accounting for the fact that some students may not understand. Exchange students learning German will be graded beside native speakers and expected to perform. I know that a “normal” amount of reading for a German student will take longer for me, since I will have to spend time looking up words and patching together grammar concepts.
The transition from a language course designed for exchange students into regular university classes will also be a challenge. Until now, I’ve been in an “international bubble” of the students from my German intensive course. This course has been a wonderful experience to improve my German and make amazing friends for a lifetime, but spending time with only international students has allowed me to build myself a new “comfort zone”. I am not afraid to speak German with my Deutsch-Kompakt friends since they speak at or below my level. We take all of our mistakes in speaking and living in Germany, learn from them, and help each other. Having such a supportive group of people around who pardon my Sprachfehler (speaking errors) makes it easy to avoid speaking with people who may be less patient and understanding. I’ve been getting around just fine spending a half hour hunting for the printer in the library instead of asking someone where it is, double-checking every German word I need to type in an e-mail, and strictly sticking to “the script” of words I definitely know.
As the start of classes draws nearer, I am realizing that I need to change my cautious ways in order to really become fluent in German. Earlier today I decided to re-read the blog that I kept while living in Chile two summers ago. I remembered that I had similar problems learning Spanish to my experience here in Germany. I had figured out that I could “just get by” with speaking as little as possible to avoid embarrassment. I became frustrated with my slow learning pace until I realized that my unwillingness to practice speaking was my biggest problem. I read further through my blog and realized that I had given myself (and hopefully other readers traveling abroad) some good advice that I had practically forgotten. “The only way to get better at a language is to go out on a limb and say something, anything,” I wrote. “If you don’t understand something, ask for clarification. If you want to use a word you don’t know, explain what you’re trying to say in other terms. You might learn something useful.” I learned so much after committing myself to not be afraid to speak Spanish in Chile, and I hope to do the same here in Germany. Although I know that my new classes here at UniTübingen will be difficult, I won’t let intimidation get in the way of my goals. At the end of this academic year, I will be able to speak German fluently because I made the effort to speak up. Alles kann ich durch Christus, der mir Kraft und Stärke gibt (Philliper 4:13).
P.S. Listening to music helps with the language too! Here’s some fun songs trending in Germany 🙂 Enjoy, und bis nächste Woche!
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