Applied linguistics for language learners? What is it & why does it matter? Find out what all polyglots need to know.

Applied Linguistics for Language Learners: 5 Reasons All Polyglots Need to Understand It

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After 2 and half years of part time distance learning, I finally completed my MA in Applied Linguistics in January 2023. I’ve learnt a lot in that time, and so much of what I learnt has impacted my language learning and the way I help others learn how to learn languages better too. In this article, I’m going to share 5 reasons all polyglots need to understand applied linguistics.

What is Applied Linguistics?

Linguistics is the science of language. How babies go from babbles to words, how words work, what we say with and without words, and (the big one for us) how we learn languages.

Applied linguistics then is (in my opinion!) where the fun happens! This is where linguistic knowledge gets applied to real life situations. Again, in our case, the scenario of language learning.

So, for me and the work I do with Lindsay Does Languages, it’s about applying linguistic knowledge to help you learn languages better.

What I love about this is that it allows for us to go way beyond anecdotal advice or surface level tips and really dig a layer deeper than most resources do or can.

Why is Applied Linguistics for language learners relevant?

There’s a few reasons, and we’ll get into them in this article. But overall, it makes you better at stuff when you understand a bit of the how and why behind that.

Let’s take food as an example. When you follow a restrictive diet because somebody told you it’s a good idea, you might find those Ben & Jerry’s cravings difficult to deal with when they come along. However, when you understand even just a little about nutrition or sugar or cravings, you know how to respond more appropriately for you in that situation.

Applied linguistics is like that. This means that applied linguistics is worth learning for language learners because it gives you a better understanding of what you’re doing, gives you more self-compassion, allows you to make better decisions, improves your speed and ability to learn languages, and demystifies learning multiple languages.

Let’s talk about each one in more detail.

Reason 1:

Applied linguistics gives you a better understand of what you’re doing

Knowing some basics of second language acquisition findings and how to apply this to your own situation really does help to give you a better understanding of what you’re doing, how to make it better, and why you’re doing it.

A lot of language learners start out with a resource or two and follow through in order like school taught us. They never deviate from the order provided in front of them, and as a result often find language learning boring, restrictive, too slow or too difficult.

Maybe you can relate to that? It’s not uncommon at all, so no shame if you’ve been there – me too!

As soon as I began to understand more about the activities I was doing to learn I language, I soon gained confidence in taking more control of my learning.

This means if I’m doing something language learning related, it’s with intention (yes, even the fun stuff like music and film can be made intentional without being made boring!)

A huge part of this is understanding why things work or don’t work for me too. And, honestly, you already have what you need for that bit because it starts with you.

Understanding more about applied linguistics has allowed me to give myself permission to put myself front and centre of any language learning experience. Which leads nicely to my next point…

Reason 2:

Applied linguistics gives you more self-compassion

It’s easy to dismiss this as a passing trend. There’s a lot of talk in recent years about mindfulness, self-acceptance, self-compassion and the like.

So I get it if you kinda skim over any mention of those words. Because it feels like you know what’s about to be said and you already know it matters and you’ll start doing it tomorrow, right? I get it.

It can feel distant when we think of mindfulness as this often exclusively white privileged woman who has time to meditate for an hour each morning complete with crystals and incense by her side. See also: Mood Ring by Lorde.

Don’t get me wrong, I love a Yoga With Adriene video as much as the next person, but there’s multiple ways mindfulness can show up in our lives beyond dedicating hours of our week to a downward dog.

So. I encourage you to read on with an open-mind. Self-compassion.

An example…

Imagine a friend of yours is learning Portuguese. It’s their first time learning a language, and so they’re updating you – their friend who loves languages – frequently. Almost too frequently. As in screenshots of their progress after every session on Duolingo. It’s a lot but you’re proud and never one to discourage language learning, so you reply when you can with at the least a supportive GIF or thumbs up emoji.

Then, it’s been about a week and you realise…”Huh, no Duolingo updates from Portuguese Paul. Hope he’s doing ok?”

So you drop a quick text checking in – “Hey Paul! How’s the Portuguese going? Missing your updates!”

Paul replies, deflated – “Well, I missed a day after a stressful and busy day at work and then the next day I was too tired. And I felt kinda ashamed that I’d broken my streak so I don’t want to start again until I’m ready to keep a streak longer than before…but I dunno. Maybe I’m just not cut out for this language thing like you are…”

Do you reply with…

A – “That’s right, Paul. You freaking suck. I can’t believe you missed a day. And then ANOTHER day right after? Do you have zero willpower? Do you even want to speak Portuguese? Because if you did, you’d be like me and be fluent already. What a loser.”

B – “Oh no! I know the feeling, but hey – missing a couple of days isn’t the end. I know you’ve got what it takes to get back on that horse! And this time, if you miss a day, know that it’s ok. It happens. We all get busy and tired from time to time. The best language learners know this and know when and how to dive back in. I know that’s you! Go for it, Paul! Waiting for your next Duolingo screenshot!”

You’d reply with B, right?

Now think about how you’d respond if Paul was you. If you missed a day, and then 2 days, and then a week. Do you talk to yourself with more A or B?

Too many of us talk to ourselves with A style speak. Which sucks.

Because as we’ve seen, we don’t treat others with that level of denigration.

So why to ourselves?

The one person we spend our entire lives with.

When you understand the basics of applied linguistics and have a better understanding of how language learning works, self-compassion is the first thing to grow within us. And it’s a beautiful change.

Reason 3:

Applied linguistics allows you to make better decisions

How often have you sat down with an hour or so to dedicate to language learning? Finally, the time you’ve been after! Just you and your languages!

And then when that time comes to an end, you feel like you actually didn’t achieve all too much.

A lot of this has to do with the decisions we make during that time.

For example, we overestimate what we can do in that hour and sit a huge pile of books next to us. This leaves us feeling down when at the end of the hour, we only had time for one chapter from one book.

Or perhaps, you think you can listen to Friends in French in the background as you write your response to your next French prompt. And then it’s that episode that guest features that person from that other show you vaguely remember. So you get distracted and check the IMDB page for the episode to find them. Ahh! They were in that show! Now I remember! You open the Wikipedia page…huh, never knew they married that person. Interesting!

Interesting perhaps, but your French prompt has gone unwritten.

Now, hey, I’m not gonna claim that understanding applied linguistics eliminates procrastination. Not at all. And besides, procrastination can be a good thing.

But what I will say is that understanding applied linguistics leads to us making better decisions as language learners.

So if you do still want to listen to Friends in French, if you go down that guest feature rabbit hole, you at least do it in French.

Reason 4:

Applied linguistics improves your speed and ability to learn languages

We want it fast and we want it easy. The modern obsession of instant gratification hasn’t done the world of language learning many favours.

Resources feeling pressured to claim that this one will finally get you to the level you want in X hours, days, week, months. (Never years. That’s too long, you understand.)

And not only that, it’ll be easy. Not hard and boring and frustrating like back in school.

But more often then not, having these promises presented to us from the get go means that when after X days/weeks/months, we’re still no further along that an “hola” and a “gracias”, we blame ourselves.

Because the book said it! Right there on the cover! So I must be the problem.

Not quite. First of all, again with the self-compassion. Be kind to yourself and recognise that you did nothing wrong. You likely did what you could as your pace. You’re still further along than you were at the start, even if that further along doesn’t feel much further along at all.

Secondly, taking a moment at this stage to learn how to learn a language and discover all of the things you can do to make language learning fit you better? That’s what makes it truly easier and quicker. Again, because you are at the centre, not someone else’s agenda.

Reason 5:

Applied linguistics demystifies learning multiple languages

Do you have to wait until you’re B2 in German before starting Dutch? Should the multiple languages you learn even be from the same family like German and Dutch? Will that be too confusing or would German and Korean be a better combo?

There’s endless questions about learning multiple languages. And the more you understand applied linguistics as a language learner, the more those questions become demystified. And the more confident you feel to learn multiple languages. Quite the win!

The truth is that there’s no magic level that unlocks the ability to add in another language. There’s no secret way to not mix up multiple languages. There’s no surprise combination of languages that can be learnt perfectly at the same time.

Instead, there’s science and research that can help you make informed decisions about how you want to approach multiple languages in ways that suit you.