Friday, 11th February 2011, 00:43 hrs
Language studies are never easy. This is a reality for anyone wanting to learn a language, which is compounded if one is older. And the difficulty further intensifies when one seeks to learn a language which is of a different linguistic family, without a good basic command of one of the languages of that linguistic family under which the new language is to be acquired.
When it comes to learning Greek, I am grateful that a good command of English over the many years preceding Greek learning was of enormous value to me. Still, it was not easy when I first set myself on learning the language. The last nearly ten years of teaching both introductory and advanced Greek have served as ingredients for reflection. Some general principles have somehow surfaced again and again in the course of my own personal history of teaching Greek. The first is that one must have a love or, if you like, passion for languages in general, and Greek in particular. For it would be foolhardy to try and learn something in which one has no interest, only distaste.
The second principle is time. Let us face it. Even when one has a good memory, it would not suffice without the time necessary to commit basic vocabulary, grammar and the like to memory. And while some people are endowed with a vast memory, most of us are not. Thus, it is necessary for those of us who want to study the Greek language, and I am here referring to New Testament Greek, to be realistic in terms of time. We have to ensure that we have time, time when we will be mostly fresh and not tired, to study the language.
The third principle is discipline. Language studies usually are made up of about 10%-20% of classroom instruction, the rest being one's own revision and hard labour. This includes going through the study material before each new lesson. Those students of New Testament Greek who think that they can simply sit and wait, passively that is, each week for the instructor to drill them will only be disappointed. And worse still if students care only for marks or grades - a sure and guaranteed sign of failure to successfully acquire the language to the point of being able to use it! Thus the principle of discipline here includes that of putting aside 'grades'.
The fourth principle is the refusal to make comparisons. The comparisons here take two levels. On one level, students must never compare themselves with their classmates. For you only get two possible results: you will either become complacent and very soon stop learning if you compare with someone weaker, or feel helpless and totally discouraged if you compare with someone far better. This sort of comparison itself reflects an unhealthy attitude. Such a comparison will likely generate jealousy or self-abasement, both of which are quite unncessary. The other level of comparison students should avoid is that between different instructors of Greek. In most established seminaries there will usually be a few instructors of different languages. But they are of different levels of competence, measured to some extent by their qualifications and/or experience. And seldom do you have the opportunity of studying the same course under two different instructors, unless both are teaching a same class at the same time, which is an absurd and non-extant situation! This being the case, students who make comparisons between different instructors of the same language tend to do so on the basis of hearsay. This will only spell trouble for their own learning.
There is yet another principle, that of not whining and groaning incessantly. The current class of students should beware of the psychological danger petulant whining can have on themselves and others. Psychologically, according to David Burns who wrote the by now popular book Feeling Good, what we say to ourselves directly affects us emotionally, which further affects our actions. In language learning, whining and groaning serve the same function and will only lead to increasing difficulty in the learning process itself.
How then can I learn Greek with joy? I think if we observe the above few principles, the joy of learning Greek will come naturally, without us pretending its presence. With this, I wish all students of NT Greek the best in their learning.
May God help you!
