Ask Dr. Katie: How long does it take to become "proficient" or "fluent" in a language?
In this blog series, EnGen founder Dr. Katie Brown applies her three decades of research on second language acquisition to address your questions about language learning – what works, what doesn’t, and why.
Q: How long does it take to become “proficient” or “fluent” in a language?
I get this question a lot – from learners, partners, and clients alike. My answer, which is likely very unsatisfying to the person asking it, is usually, “it depends.” And it does depend on a lot of different factors, but the first one we need to address is what the questioner actually means.
While many people use the terms “proficiency” and “fluency” interchangeably, they are actually two different things.
Fluency is often a technical term that describes the smoothness of spoken language. Used by speech pathologists and applied linguists, fluency can refer to the rate of speech, number of pauses, filler words, repeated words, and other “disfluencies.”
Proficiency describes ability to use and understand a language. It is generally measured by academically-focused scales, like the Test of English as Foreign Language (TOEFL), used in U.S. university admissions. Another internationally-recognized scale is the Common European Scale of Reference (CEFR), which is often used to describe language levels around the world. CEFR’s top level – the sixth level – is actually called “proficient.” But it is so difficult to reach that final level that most second language learners never achieve it!
Employers and partners and learners, take note: Even if a language learner is not deemed “fluent” or “proficient” on an official scale, they still may be perfectly capable of using and understanding their second languages.
Over decades of work with adult English learners, I’ve regularly encountered, for example, a learner who can perfectly understand all of the language needed to obtain a professional credential to work as an accountant or prepare patients for a blood draw or competently communicate with colleagues in a warehouse, even if their level of English on one of those formal tests or scales is “low intermediate,” or lower.
This reality illustrates why it’s critical that arbitrary, academic proficiency or fluency standards NOT create artificial barriers to access career pathways, training, and credentials – and that they not be used as the sole measure of a learner’s progress in an English training program.
The Case For Confidence
When working with adult English learners, it is most productive to measure success in terms of reaching real-world goals:
Do learners have the right English skills to communicate with a co-worker or their child’s teacher?
Can they apply their new English skills to do their job more effectively, perhaps getting a promotion or a raise?
Are they able to get a certification or credential in English?
Do they feel comfortable using English to meet new neighbors or participate in community activities?
These are all actual tasks that adult language learners in the U.S. often need to accomplish. And here’s the important part: They can be accomplished successfully at a wide range of proficiency or fluency levels.
This is why my preferred measure of success is confidence: Do learners have the ability to communicate effectively and confidently on the job and at home? Can they actually do the tasks they want to accomplish?
When learners are confident in using a language, they feel comfortable in practicing that language, which is at the heart of learning a language. Language, like any other skill, needs to be practiced. As with cooking or surfing or playing the guitar, when people first start learning a new language, they might be terrible. But then, if they keep at it, they can progress relatively quickly – especially if the content they’re learning is applicable to their lives and livelihoods and goals.
But learners aren’t going to become experts in all aspects of a second language without years and years and years of practice. And that’s why we need to stop using proficiency and fluency measures as the sole standards of progress for adult English learners. Academic assessments have their place, but they must be taken in concert with real-world measures of learner success.
The EnGen Solution
Platforms designed around learners’ real-world goals are great at building confidence. That’s why EnGen’s approach centers learners’ goals from the start. The very first time a learner logs in to the platform, they complete a Needs Assessment, focused on their reasons for learning English. EnGen then creates a step-by-step process to help learners reach their goals. Learners can access more than 130 courses – aligned specifically to real-world scenarios like getting a CNA license or starting a business or becoming a HVAC technician – that are tailored to their learning level and needs.
The approach works: 92% of EnGen learners improved their average English proficiency scores on an objective assessment.(Yes, we track language proficiency at EnGen. But that’s not all we measure.) Even more learners reported other critical gains in areas that are most applicable to using English in the real world:
95% improved their confidence in using English.
93% reported saving time at work as a result of improved English skills.
93% said their job skills have improved as a result of using EnGen.
Beyond impact statistics or test scores, working adult learners are most focused on what they’re able to actually do in English. Check out this inspiring testimonial from Blanca, an EnGen learner who works at a global supply chain and manufacturing solutions company.
Blanca is a beginning-level learner, but has been able to apply the real-world English skills she’s learning via EnGen to her life and livelihood in ways that surprise even her – and have boosted her confidence in a profound way. Beyond what any evaluation framework can tell us about Blanca’s proficiency or fluency, her feeling of “triumph” is the truest measure of progress and success.
Learn more about EnGen’s approach to building confidence, helping learners reach their real-world goals. Request a live platform demo: https://getengen.com/demo