Studying German for Research
While this video is specifically about my experience with German, this approach to language learning is applicable to any language. Learning languages to read texts certainly requires some different strategies and methods than learning languages for other purposes. Rote memorization is needed much more when it comes to learning languages for the purposes of reading, such as conjugation tables, vocabulary used solely for writing/rhetoric, and so on. The idea is to learn Grammar very well and then theoretically, one could simply look up unfamiliar words in a dictionary. Here I talk about how I learn German in graduate school to conduct research in German secondary literature regarding Islamic Studies. I show books written by German authors, like Schacht, Bergsträsser, and so on that are relevant to Islamic studies. This information is useful to any avid reader who learns languages for reading novels, texts, manuscripts, etc. Learning languages for reading literature is a whole different ball-game. Typically the trendy method in current language pedagogy is prioritizing communication with a smaller focus on grammar. This is great if your main goal is conversational skills, but not if you want to engage literature in a foreign language.
https://levytherapy.academia.edu/Hamz...
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