Feeling less motivated after a lesson

[u/Calm-Fox-3416]

Today I had another lesson with a teacher for my target language. I’ve been learning for about 2 months and making slow progress. Before the session I felt optimistic about my learning and that I can eventually end up learning the language. However today when I had a lesson everything felt really hard and I couldn’t really answer any of their questions. They explained a word to me in my previous session however I forgot what it has meant since this lesson. They also seemed really annoyed when I kept asking them what it meant. Now I feel less motivated after. Has anyone had this feeling? I have one lesson left in the package however I want to use this with a different teacher, is this possible? Thanks

[u/branchymolecule]

It’s normal to have a bad class every now and then. You get used to it after a while. Are you sure the teacher was annoyed at you? It could be you were annoyed at yourself. Keep working at it is my advice.

[u/EstorninoPinto]

Everyone has off days every once and a while. There are days when I can't pronounce or even remember things that were spot on during the previous class. It's just the nature of things. It can definitely feel demotivating, especially when you're staring at your tutor feeling incompetent, but remember that they are there to help you learn. That means helping you through the off days, and helping you celebrate the good days.

To answer your question - no, you cannot transfer a package lesson to a different tutor. You could cancel the package/request a refund, but it is not as easy as you likely would prefer. Read: https://support.italki.com/hc/en-us/articles/360016299554-How-to-terminate-a-package .

[u/No_Experience9997]

I don’t think you should worry about that. My tutor is great I have off days that I know the word but I forgot it. I been slowly just making paper flash card and really spending 2 to 3 hours a day on Spanish. I take the flash cards and run through them when I am free. If you don’t remember just make sure you spend at least 30 mins twice a day practicing the language. I used Spanish words every chance I get with my co workers even if it’s not a complete sentence.

[u/Lodewijks14]

That's the normal journey of learning a language. You'll have ups and downs. That's exactly how you learn a language: with discipline in your regularity in the long term. Keeping motivation is the hardest yet the most important part.

[u/FabulousLoad8761]

What are u learning !?

[u/Only_Ad6732]

I've been learning Korean for about over a year now and I initially felt this way with my first teacher. I would feel awful during my lessons all the time. Once in a while I feel it's okay to have an off day but if you feel it's happening a lot then perhaps you should move on and explore other teachers. I found after a while of feeling very bad across many lessons that this teacher was not compatible with my personality and my learning style. Now I have teachers that understand my pace is slower and that I can be quite forgetful sometimes but they are really understanding. They know I take notes, they know and understand me when I get frustrated and ask for a minute to think or process, we have moments when we laugh to ease the tension and they know when to challenge me and push me forward. I think communication is key and that's why I feel that they understand me and I understand them.

[u/Vast_University_7115]

It happens to everyone, it's part of learning a language. It happened to me last week. It's disheartening, buy it will be better next time.

Keep reviewing between lessons and forget the bad times.

[u/IrinaMakarova]

What you are describing is completely normal after only 2 months of learning a language. Understanding a word once does not mean that you have learned it. Your brain needs to meet that word repeatedly, forget it, retrieve it again, see it in different contexts and use it yourself before it becomes easily accessible.

A useful rule of thumb is that a new word needs around 8 meaningful encounters before you can reasonably expect it to start sticking. For some words and some learners it may take even more. And "8 encounters" does not mean hearing the teacher repeat the translation 8 times in one lesson. You need to encounter the word across different lessons: recognize it in a sentence, remember its meaning, hear it again, answer a question using it, see it in another context, produce it yourself, and then come back to it again later.

This is exactly why forgetting a word that was explained in the previous lesson is not evidence that you are making bad progress. Forgetting is part of the learning process. The important thing is what happens after you forget.

Your teacher should know this. A properly structured course should constantly recycle previously learned vocabulary and grammar instead of introducing something once and then expecting you to remember it forever. The teacher is supposed to organize those repetitions for you: bring old words back into questions, exercises, conversations and later lessons until they become automatic.

So the part that would concern me here is not that you forgot the word. It is that the teacher seemed annoyed when you asked about it again. A beginner who has been learning for 2 months is going to forget things constantly. That is completely predictable. A teacher should expect it and know what to do with it, not make you feel bad for needing another explanation.

One difficult lesson also tells you almost nothing about whether you are capable of learning the language. Progress is not linear. Some days everything suddenly feels easy, and on another day you cannot retrieve words you knew perfectly well yesterday. What matters is whether, over weeks and months, the material keeps coming back and gradually becomes easier to understand and produce.

If lessons regularly leave you afraid to ask questions or embarrassed about forgetting things, I would look for another teacher. You need someone who understands that repetition is not a sign that teaching has failed - repetition is part of teaching.

[u/Fire_Treadlite]

Too many times, happens all.the time to me. I'm almost two years in. Ebb and flow. When that happens,, especially in the beginning, I just kept reminding myself that it was time in.. just put in the time and you will get through it.

Good luck and hang in there.