- About The Site
- About Me
- Master Japanese
What is Foreign Language Mastery?
I created Foreign Language Mastery to help adult learners reach their foreign language acquisition goals as quickly, cheaply, and enjoyably as possible.
As a seasoned language learner and teacher, I have seen the carnage caused by traditional language education first hand, and strive to help learners avoid the common pitfalls caused by bad methods, bad materials, and bad attitudes. I am a strong advocate of “self-guided immersion”, and believe that language classes and teachers are not necessary to reach a high level of fluency in your target languages (though they can be of great help if used correctly). Learning a foreign language well does of course require an investment of time, energy, and money, but if you are smart about it, the process will take far less of all three currencies and evolve into a ridiculously rewarding process you look on with joy instead of dread.
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read moreWho am I and why did I create this site?
My name is John Fotheringham and I’m a languaholic.
I love learning, speaking, and teaching languages, traveling the globe, making corny puns, and gaining a deeper understanding of foreign cultures through their language, people, and history. The deeper into languages I have got, the more I have come to believe that languages cannot actually be “taught”. Rather, I believe that fluency ultimately depends on how much time you have spent actively listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
With this in mind, I have structured Foreign Language Mastery around the tips, tools, and tech you need to maximize your exposure to (and practice using) your target foreign tongues.
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read moreYour Step-by-Step Guide to Learning Nihongo
This is your year to learn Japanese the way you’ve always wanted: quickly, affordably, and without boring textbooks, teachers, or tedious methods.
Give yourself Master Japanese: Self-Guided Immersion for the Passionate Language Learner, and learn on your own time, reach your own goals, and use tools you’ve chosen. Master Japanese is not a textbook that will “teach” you Japanese: no book, course, or teacher can ever get a language into your head (this is not The Matrix). Only you can acquire Japanese by getting enough exposure to (and enough practice using) the language. Fortunately, the modern learner has more chances than ever to do just that. The problem today is not a lack of resources, but an over-abundance. It can be hard to know where to start. Master Japanese is a navigation system that helps you negotiate the wild waters of independent language learning, saving you time and money while maximizing fun.
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