Many companies in the IT sector offer German courses for foreign workers as part of the position benefits or the relocation program. But visible results in the workplace are hard to achieve, and the classes are the first benefits to disappear when cutting out expenses. Their contents and schedule are not to blame. Instead, we should focus on the unfavorable situation of the recently relocated employee.
In Germany, companies recruiting overseas assume that people will not speak the language. English became the universal tool for those organizations. However, many companies concerned with long-term development and integration are interested in present or future german speakers. During the interviews, recruiting managers will ask the candidates if they are willing to learn the language, to which almost everybody invariably answers affirmatively. Long after completing the relocation process, the worker is comfortably established, and the course started, the results in the office do not show up. It seems that in most cases, both management and worker’s expectations are not realistic.
Let’s consider the environment first. If you work in an English-speaking office, — at least eight hours a day —you will be speaking English. Regardless of how fast you learn, if there is only one person in the team who cannot communicate adequately in German, you will be forced to speak English. The same usually happens at home, where your family will most probably not be assisting in a course like you do. Additionally, their skills, motivation, and objectives may be very different from yours.
Next comes the issue of practicing. You cannot practice a language while you are working. The company cannot delay or interrupt a project just because you need to test your skills; furthermore, misunderstandings are potentially expensive. It would be chaotic and ultimately unproductive. The minimum level required to be professionally efficient is relatively high – B2 -, and most people need more than a year to get there.
How much knowledge do we need to be able to communicate effectively in an IT Project? As per the “Common European Framework of Reference” charts, B2 is the required level. With B2 “you have a command of the essentials of German. You practice reading, writing, and discussing difficult topics and work-related issues.” Assuming that you started with no knowledge and are following the standard schedule, you need to pass four exams to get the certificate, after you assisted to five hundred and forty lessons throughout seven months. Those ninety-minute a week office courses organized by your company look a little insufficient.
Let’s move on to time, availability, and stress. You will have to study and practice outside the office and after an entire day of work. Maybe you remember how good you were in French in High-School or that time you spent learning Italian while vacationing in Rome. Those days are long gone. Then you were focused, relaxed, and careless. Now you have to make time out of all your other tasks and responsibilities precisely at that time of the day when you are tired, stressed, and you would be better off lying on the couch.
With stress, tiredness, and distractions, the learning curve gets accentuated in a way that most people cannot endure. If you made a promise or your job position actively requires you to be proficient in German, you might get in trouble.
Learning a language is not like learning Math. Although there is a systematic approach, it requires much more memory, experience, and repetition. Courses assume a natural development that requires you to do your homework, read, and speak as much as you can. During the first months abroad, with so much going on around you, your chances to learn at a steady pace are low.
What can you do about it?
1. Set up the right expectations with your employer from the beginning
Willing to learn and learning are entirely different things. If your position requires concentration and focus, you will not achieve much after leaving the office; the shortest required period to learn the basics could be months. A good option is to set the classes to start a few months after relocation and not right after the first week.
2. Establish “working agreements” with your family/partner from the start
Moving abroad with your partner or family requires an immense extra effort. Each person has its set of skills, motivations, expectations, and ideas about the language. That is not a minor issue. Whatever the objectives and requirements are, discuss them carefully before moving. Learning together and having similar goals will be a great help.
3. In the beginning, avoid hard deadlines and commitments
Assisting a course does not guarantee results at all. When you are under pressure, putting it up with only one hour a week could be challenging.
4. Keep on getting a formal education
Never underestimate courses. Even when you think that you are not getting anywhere, lessons add up in the end. Sooner or later, all that information will become available. Whether in-house, remote, or at school, always assist in as many courses as you can.
5. Find your learning partners
The number one rule is practicing as much as you can. Lunchtime and casual conversations are perfect because there are no minimum standards required and, nobody gets hurt if they cannot understand you. Everything counts; even ten minutes a day are better than nothing. Do not get trapped in closed circles of people speaking English for convenience or laziness. That is a dead-end. Get out and practice. Find colleagues who are willing to support you and spend time with them. In this way, you learn and network at the same time.
6. Keep the focus and intensity
Whether you have to read, do homework, or learn vocabulary, keep the session under forty-five minutes, and aim for long-term results. Word lists, listening to audio-books while sleeping, or boring texts will only increase stress and frustration. Instead, set short time-boxed sessions and get things done, then move on. In this way, you will keep the motivation and concentration while saving energy for other activities.
7. Practice, practice, practice
“Learning is not attained by chance. It must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence.” Abigail Adams
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