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Question about language exchange buddies - Raedrob - 2014-06-27
Hi,
I have a quick question regarding language exchange buddies and/or pen-pals. At what level do you recommend I should be at before considering doing anything like this? I don't want to eat of someone's time, just to find out I'm not ready. At the moment I'm doing RtK1 (around 1250 atm), but that doesn't help at all when doing vocal/written conversation. I just picked up the Goi app to kickstart my vocab and I really like the way it works. I'm considering doing what I can to increase my vocab, grammar and kanji comprehension during the summer and try finding someone to communicate with once autumn's here.
If you'd like to share any advice or personal experiences on the matter it would be appreciated a lot!
Thanks
Question about language exchange buddies - gaiaslastlaugh - 2014-06-27
I wouldn't worry about level. I would get out there and start speaking as early as possible.
One of my first language exchange partners was a woman who spoke very little English, but was trying to learn. She was very good about wanting to talk and being extremely patient with me as I stumbled my way through conversations with minimal Japanese. It was amazing the extent to which we were able to communicate, given how little I knew at the time compared to now.
You'll find some people who may not want to stick with you at a low level, of course. But you'll also find some who will. And don't worry if, when you start out, the conversations are more English than Japanese. You're helping out your new friends, and most of them will gladly return the favor as your level increases. Plus, they'll help you learn new words and phrases along the way.
I also highly recommend iTalki when you're just starting speaking. It's cost-effective, and very beneficial to talk to someone who's essentially forced to spend an hour talking with you in Japanese.
Question about language exchange buddies - dtcamero - 2014-06-27
well without hearing you talk no one here will know.
why don't you try doing it now and see how it goes. if you're language exchanging then you're talking to a person who really just trying to speak your language (badly) anyway, so your failure would be their wild success. no need to feel guilty.
Question about language exchange buddies - Woodgar - 2014-06-27
Not exactly a language exchange buddy, but as a substitute for a pen-pal you could try http://lang-8.com
In short, it's a website designed for language learners, where you post some text which then gets corrected by other (Japanese) users on the site, and in return you can correct their (English) posts as well.