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The International Language Institute of Massachusetts (ILI) promotes intercultural understanding and diverse communities by providing high-quality language instruction and teacher training.

You are here: Home / News / The Rejection of Perfection in Learning a Language

January 20, 2022

The Rejection of Perfection in Learning a Language

If this were a perfect world, I’d be dead!  

Whoa! 

It’s not that I think it would be perfect if I were dead.  It’s just that I would not be able to live in a perfect world. 

 I don’t think anybody would.  Perfection is highly overrated. This is true whether you’re learning French recipes  or you’re learning Spanish grammar.

A Perfect World of Language?

At this stage of the game, (I actually prefer the Spanish expression – “A estas alturas” – at these heights), I don’t want to waste time on being perfect.  At these heights I know I need balance.  At these heights you need more balance than ever.  It’s easier to tip over. 

For me, a balanced life embraces imperfection.  I’m not talking disaster here, or lackadaisical work ethic or inferior products.  Many cultures include an imperfect detail in a product (Middle Eastern carpets and Japanese pottery for example), because only the supreme being is perfect (and I think s/he might have something to say about that, too).

Sometimes the perfect costs too much in time and effort to be worth it.  And what does it matter in the grand scheme of things?  What does matter?

Imperfect Worlds in Danish and Japanese

As I read “A Year of Living Danishly” two years ago, I came across thecreating a hygge home poster. Danish word hygge (pronounced hooga), meaning a cozy style design and more – a time for family and/or friends to be together in a warm, comfortable environment.  

The concept of hygge is cited as one of the reasons that Danes are supposedly among the happiest people in the world.  This really hit home as I have tried to make each one of my living spaces over the years cozy and inviting.  

This matters.  Whether I used wooden crates for bookcases or furniture I picked up at tag sales, I have always felt totally at peace in my living spaces.

But now I have a wonderful new expression that will help me keep my balance for the rest of my life!  It celebrates imperfections and authenticity.  

Ready?  Wabi-sabi!  

a sone with an imperfect hole through it that looks on a peaceful forest.Reading the Style at Home section of the Gazette a while back, I came across a brief article called “Wabi-Sabi is all about keeping things real.”  Whaaat? 

It started off talking about hygge, which had supposedly trended the year before, and went on to say that trending now is the Japanese wabi-sabi – organic designs and shapes, natural materials and lived-in, non-fussy elements.  It includes “worn or chipped furniture that make Type-A perfectionists nervous.”

It reminds me of the popular expression in Spain in the 90’s – “La arruga es bella.”  The wrinkle is beautiful.  Worked for me because I don’t iron.  I loved it.

So the crates I once used for bookcases and the tag sale furniture were not only hygge; they were also wabi-sabi.  Hygge and wabi-sabi will help me keep balance in my life.  

Have I expressed what I wanted to in this essay?  As we say in Spanish, quién sabe? (Who knows?).  Oh no, wait!  That’s wabi-sabi!

Put imperfection into learning a language

Put the wabi-sabi and hygge into your Spanish course, French classes, Portuguese lessons–whatever language you’re studying. You can keep your balance (and sanity) while learning a language and broadening your horizons.

If wrinkles are beautiful, so are mistakes. They’re natural, part of theA bonsai tree growing over the side of it's pot. grain, wabi-sabi-wise, of communication. 

When you learn Spanish or learn French as an adult, you’re discovering your own voice in a new language. Make your voice authentic. Pick peculiar interests of yours to talk about, try out odd new expressions, glom on to favorite idioms– whether or not your sentences measure up as “perfect” by some arbitrary standard.

Hygge matters too. A classroom needs to be cozy, figuratively speaking.  

A teacher holding a little plant in her classroom.If you’re taking the TESOL cert, it’s important to keep hygge in mind with classroom management. The best TESOL courses give you tools to keep the atmosphere welcoming and supportive.  And online Spanish classes or online French lessons can have hygge with the right TESOL certificate methods.

The bottom line is perfection has no place in the classroom. When you learn Spanish, study French, and take World Language Classes, you’re supposed to have fun and feel comfortable. 

An accent isn’t wrong–it’s interesting. A role play shouldn’t be perfectly executed–it should be wabi-sabi, because that’s how normal people talk. 

And so, let’s strive to discover new things – like languages – no matter how imperfectly we do it.

By Alexis Johnson with Chris Elliott

Adapted from an excerpt from the forthcoming book Dancing with Words by Alexis Johnson

Related articles about learning Spanish, studying French, taking Portuguese classes, and more:

  • Great ways to learn Spanish online and why it’s important.
  • Top 7 reasons to speak and learn Spanish fluently in the USA.
  • World of jazz: Interview with Andy Jaffe, a Portuguese and Chinese language student living in the USA.
  • Spanish is Darlene’s Superpower: Interview with Darlene, a Spanish language student living in the USA.
  • Kathy Learning Spanish (again): Interview with a Spanish language student living in the USA.
  • How Alice Flexes her Brain Through French film: Interview with a French and Spanish language student living in the USA.
  • Charles the language person: Interview with an Italian and German language student living in the USA.
  • Takehiro Rises: Interview with an ILI English student from Japan who built a career in the USA.

Article by ILI Staff / News

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“Music is the universal language of mankind.” “Music is the universal language of mankind.”
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

ILI English and French instructor, Josh Owsley is also a musician! He will be playing bass with @landownerband tonight at @thedrakeamherst . 🎶Hope to see you there!

📸Photo by @vagabundodeltiempo 

#ili #internationallanguageinstitute #massachusetts #northampton #landowner #livemusic #teacherfeature #thedrakeamherst  #community
Congratulations 🎉 to our graduates  Jeffrey ( Congratulations 🎉 to our graduates  Jeffrey (Peru), Azhar (Kazakhstan), Ruveyda (Turkey), Andrei (Russia) and Yasemin (Turkey). Every month we have an international potluck to celebrate our graduates. You might have seen Azhar’s cakes before, but the cake that she made, as you will say, is truly over the top! We are sad to say goodbye to the students, but excited about the next steps that they will be taking in their lives.

Cake by @_azhar_bakery 

#ili #internationallanguageinstitute #massachusetts #northampton #studentlife #azharbakery #potluck #education #internationalstudents #ialc #ialclanguages
“We must risk everything for the raw recipe of o “We must risk everything for the raw recipe of our passion” 

We had such an engaging afternoon at @parlorroommusic with ILI Board Member + former president of @gccgreenfield Bob Pura. Bob led a reading and discussion of his new book The Community’s College: The Pursuit of Democracy, Economic Development, and Success, which he co-wrote with Dr. Tara L. Parker. Audience members also got the chance to learn more about the process behind the creation of the book. 

Thank you for joining us! 📚

#ili #internationallanguageinstitute #massachusetts #bobpura #authorevent #reading #discussion #communitycollege #thecommunityscollege #northampton
Today Bob Pura and Tara Parker read from and lead Today Bob Pura and Tara Parker read from and lead a discussion of their book The Community’s College: The Pursuit of Democracy, Economic Development, and Success! 📚 Join us at @parlorroommusic at 2pm. 

In their book, The Community’s College: The Pursuit of Democracy, Economic Development, and Success, co-authors Dr. Robert L. Pura and Dr. Tara L. Parker explore the extraordinary impact of this country’s community colleges on people, communities, and our democratic traditions.

As the book’s foreword by Lynn Pasquerella, President of the American Association of Colleges and Universities, states: "[T]he analysis offered by Dr. Pura and Dr. Parker unveils how community colleges—distinctively American institutions—are more essential than ever to fulfilling our nation's historic mission of educating for democracy."

Pura, a member of the ILI board of directors, retired in 2018 as president of Greenfield Community College after 17+ years in that position. Parker is the recently appointed Dean of the College of Education and Human Development at UMass Boston.
 
#thecommunityscollege #authorevent #ili #bobpura #taraparker #theparlorroom #northampton #community
TOMORROW - Saturday, January 28th don't miss an Au TOMORROW - Saturday, January 28th don't miss an Author Reading & Discussion with Bob Pura + Tara Parker at @parlorroommusic at 2pm!

Bob Pura, former Greenfield Community College president (18 years) and now an ILI board member, was on the Bill Newman radio show yesterday discussing his new book. 

So many of our students have found success at @gccgreenfield . Here's a photo of all of ILI's students who were at GCC during Bob's last year...including former board member, Aimee Salmon. Aimee is at Mt. Holyoke and graduating this semester, Florice is at Tulane, Bene is at Smith, Orphee is at Western New England University, Flora just graduated from Western New England and is an electrical engineer in Connecticut and Lastone graduated from UMASS and works in Boston.

➡️Listen to the radio show here: https://whmp.com/podcasts/the-communitys-college/

#whmp #ili #thecommunityscollege #bobpura #taraparker #communitycollege #authorevent #northampton #internationallanguageinstitute #massachusetts
This past fall, ILI applied to #MassachusettsDepar This past fall, ILI applied to #MassachusettsDepartmentofElementaryandSecondaryEducation’s (DESE) competitive grant program to help fund our free English classes for immigrants and refugees. The hard work paid off. When DESE announced the recipients, ILI was on the list! ✨

“We were thrilled to get the good news,” said Macey Faiella, director of ILI’s English programs. “The pandemic shed new light on the disparities that face immigrants and refugees, and we reassessed our program to include greatly expanded offerings. DESE responded positively—all to the benefit of the students.” Starting this fall ILI will teach four levels of online and in-person evening classes and a new intensive in-person morning course. 

For 34 years, ILI has partnered with the state to provide free English classes in western Massachusetts. This award extends the partnership for an additional five years. It funds about two-thirds of the overall program. ILI is responsible for the remaining costs.

#ili #internationallanguageinstitute #massachusetts #dese #education #grant #nonprofit #freeenglishprogram #mass #community
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