Precerpt from My 20th Language: Hares, Tortoises, and I

 

Precerpt (excerpt prior to publication) from My 20th Language by Dr. Betty Lou Leaver -- 

HARES, TORTOISES, AND i

You know the story: the hare dashes off and the tortoise plods along. In the classic fable, the tortoise wins. But in the world of language learning, things are more nuanced.

I've met both types of learners many times over. The hares are the ones who shoot out of the gate — fast starters, quick to speak, full of confidence. They reach what I call the “awfully fluent” stage early on. You’ve probably heard it — learners who sound great at first blush, but when you listen more closely, you hear gaps, fossilized errors, awkward phrasing, or missing nuance. They’ve got the rhythm down, and even the accent, but it’s a bit like a beautifully frosted cake with a sunken middle. I say this with no judgment — because I am a hare.

Then there are the tortoises. They move more slowly at the beginning. They're deliberate, careful, often hesitant to speak early on. They spend more time listening, reading, checking forms, refining pronunciation. Their progress can seem painfully slow — even to themselves — but give them time. Their investment in accuracy, precision, and form pays off in the long run. Many tortoises, if they persist, reach native-like command of a language. Not flashy, but solid — deeply rooted and often indistinguishable from native use.

There’s a deeper layer to this story, though. Hares and tortoises aren’t just personalities — they reflect different cognitive styles. In language learning terms, we might say hares are synoptic learners. They favor breadth, rapid pattern recognition, and early global communication. Tortoises are ectenic learners. They work with detail, precision, and system-building. Their strategies lean into structure, not speed.

I’m a strongly synoptic learner — I get up and running quickly. I can usually reach an ILR Level 1/1+ in a new language with just two weeks of part-time study. I can get around, manage social interactions, and even do some light work in the language. But then comes the danger zone: I plateau. I get comfortable — too comfortable — at a semi-functional level.

What saved me in languages like Russian and French, where I reached near-native levels, was style awareness. I didn’t just rely on my synoptic strengths. I learned to switch gears. When my speed stopped serving me, I deliberately shifted to ectenic strategies. I slowed down. I focused on accuracy. I reviewed grammatical systems. I did controlled practice. I sounded less fluent — temporarily — but the payoff was tremendous. I traded in the smooth, superficial fluency of the hare for the deeper, durable fluency of the tortoise.

This awareness has made a difference in every language I’ve learned. It’s not about choosing to be one or the other. It’s about knowing who you are — and knowing when to borrow from the other camp. Sometimes hares need to learn to slow down and dig in. Sometimes tortoises need to take the leap and just start speaking, even imperfectly.

The secret isn’t in being a hare or a tortoise. The secret is knowing how you learn — and knowing how to switch tracks when your dominant style stops working. That’s the real race — not between the hare and the tortoise, but within each of us as learners, switching gears to become the most adaptable language learner we can be.

For more posts about language learning, click HERE.

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