Learning German as an English Native Speaker

I have been learning German for several years now, and I feel as though I should be much further along with it than I am. That said, I do feel that that is a pretty normal feeling amongst people who learn languages. In my case, my native language is English. I am constantly comparing my German level to my understanding of English. More often than not, that is completely disregarding the fact that I have many more years of experience with the English language, in many different contexts — in comparison to my understanding of the German language.

Setting the bar too high

Yet, here I am, judging myself for the fact that I still have so much to learn. I'm still constantly worried that somebody might say a word that I don't know; I might completely freeze. I feel like that despite all of the evidence to the contrary. Particularly the fact that, if I don't understand a particular word or concept, I'm able to explain it so that my point is still coming across. In order to help myself with this, I also do think about how communication is about getting the message across; even if the grammar slips or the most precise words aren't used, the meaning and context are still there. Besides, I'm sure it's obvious to a native German speaker that German is in fact not my native language,  and therefore they would be more than understanding if I either didn't know how to say something, or have said something slightly wrong. To be honest, I do find that Germans (or any country, really),  are quite glad that you have at least attempted to speak in their language. I also find Germans tend to switch automatically to English if they feel that it's going to be better for both parties. In my experience speaking German, I haven't had that experience — so I'm taking that as a testament to my German ability.

False friends

There are many similarities between some English and German words, as well as ‘false friends’. For example, “Wasser” in German means “water” in English, which is perfectly easy to understand. However, “bekommen” in German sounds as though it should mean “become” but “bekommen” actually means to receive or get something in German. It can feel like walking on ice sometimes, because there are different topics or sentences that I am more familiar with discussing, but when I go into a topic that I'm not particularly familiar with I'm always scared that I am actually saying something different to what I think I'm saying. Even despite the fact that I only try to use words that I do definitely know, and resort to explaining around something if I need to, or asking the meaning of a word.

Grammar

 There is also the understanding that English stems from German, and for that reason some of the vocabulary is very similar. However, there are some very stark differences in German. To name a few, there are three cases: the genitive case, the dative case, and the accusative case. These essentially show the relationship between an object to another person and vice versa. They can also imply movement as well. The genitive case is considered the more formal case,  because it identifies an object as belonging to something else. We do have this in English, but I would say that it's much “weaker.” The cases are much more vital in terms of conveying understanding and meaning, particularly in a nuanced way. Every noun in the German language has a gender, and this is an important part of the sentence structure to remember, as well as the fact that the article can change depending on the case. There's lots to remember to convey even the smallest amount of information. This can be overwhelming for an English speaker because we use grammar differently (because, obviously, English and German are two different languages). 

The feeling of making progress during language learning 

It can be hard — especially if you're talking about a topic that you're not particularly familiar with. I sometimes rely on translating the English literally — which can still convey the meaning — but it doesn't always mean the same in German. That can be a difficult habit to let go because of — as discussed — it can be very difficult to feel as though you have made any progress in terms of language learning. On the other hand, if I strip it right back, I know that there was one day that I didn't know a single word of German. Now, I can construct multiple sentences and have conversations with people in German, and at the very least, convey my meaning. Again, I feel that the imposter syndrome — and the feeling that we're not making any progress in language learning — is a very common feeling and experience. I feel this is because we are comparing it to our understanding of our native language; we are aware that there is still so much of the language to learn, there is always going to be a word that I don't know. I want to feel comfortable in German, so that I can speak without feeling nervous, and speak without feeling as though I'm going to say something completely wrong. Then again, the doubt keeps me going, and keeps me focusing on what I can improve, expanding my grammar and vocabulary knowledge. In amongst all of this, it doesn't half make you appreciate your native language more: the way that the words just came to you, you know exactly what to say and when, and how to say it in order to convey your intended meaning. You become acutely aware of how much of an expensive vocabulary you have built throughout your life. These are all things that we take for granted because we use language every day, and yet when you start learning a new language you are forced to look at language as bare bones and start from square one. Whereas, at least in my experience, in the case of English, it feels as though English has simply filtered into my brain and I never had to learn it. But then, once upon a time,

It doesn't help, I suppose, that as adults we are expected to communicate like — and know the language of —  an adult. Whereas, when we are learning our native language, we are babies and toddlers. Therefore, we are only expected to have a very limited understanding, and then we build it from there. As an adult, it is almost the same process but there is this added pressure that we need to be able to communicate at a certain level — so that process needs to happen much quicker than it otherwise would. That's all the fun of language learning, and learning who you are as a person through the exploration of the second language.