A Spanish immersion student practices the language at a local artisan's market in Peru.

Sometimes an academic approach to language learning is not the most effective method.

For many, immersion learning creates an atmosphere where they can master a language much more quickly.

By forcing yourself to “exercise” a practice every day and immerse yourself in the culture, your brain is able to adopt the principles quicker.

Europeans have discovered this secret and often use it to acquire fluency in multiple languages. They use their time in foreign countries to both fulfill travel desires and master new languages.

Here's why immersion works:

1. Singular Focus

When you remove distractions and focus on one thing, you can get a lot more done. When it comes to language immersion, you’re surrounding yourself with words, concepts, and repetition.

After four hours of intensive classroom learning each day, you and your classmates can venture out into the community where you’re forced to greet, ask questions, listen, and converse in the local language.

Although it may feel overwhelming at first, you'll be amazed how quickly using Spanish becomes second nature.

2. Constant Support and Teaching

Visiting a place filled with native speakers creates a worldly classroom. When you compound it with the classroom learning of an immersion program, you have multiple teachers and supporters at your fingertips.

They’ll help you master pronunciation, use the correct terminology, try out new phrases, and conjugate your verbs. You’ll find practice everywhere you go and have a host of places to try out your newfound vocabulary.

When you travel with a community of learners, you can continue your practice together, which can bolster confidence and forge new friendships. It can be very helpful to work with others in the same situation.

Comparing your struggles and issues with those of your classmates can help you to work through them together.

Spanish immersion trips are not just for the young.  Here, Andrew, a retired Canadian engineer, celebrates a birthday with the staff at Ecela Cusco.

3. Immediate Implementation

One of the best parts of immersion is the ability to practice your skills right away. If you’ve just read a passage about how to order in a restaurant, you can visit a local café to try it out.

Phrase books and outings give you new things to try in your new environment. This immediate implementation lets you take the knowledge gained in the classroom to put to use in a real situation.

This helps solidify the vocabulary in your mind so you achieve greater retention and faster progression through learning the nuances of the language.

4. Surround-Spanish

Children learn their native language quickly in their youngest years. This is primarily because they are surrounded by visual images to support the words and have ongoing examples of how phrases are used.

When you learn Spanish through immersion, it’s like having the same type of environment that a newly talking child has. In addition to the background learning in the classroom, you’ll learn by listening to native speakers and having visual reinforcement.

After class, you can watch TV, go to a play, or wander through museums while associating the words that you hear to the situation. It’s an ideal method for absorbing the language through all five senses.

5. Grammar versus Conversation

While foreign language grammar is essential, it tends to be the primary focus of traditional foreign language learning methods.

While this type of knowledge is crucial to achieving fluency in a language, it has been proven that conversations are every bit as important to learning Spanish, especially since your end goal is most likely to be able to speak Spanish and converse with others.

When you’re immersed in learning a foreign language, you’ll get to speak it constantly, which is an excellent way to get it down. Classroom lessons help to reinforce your conversation skills through deeper understanding of grammar and sentence structure.

6. The Power of Travel

Talk to seasoned travelers and you’ll hear a common sentiment—traveling makes you feel alive. When you are somewhere new, it’s easy to leave your worries behind. With a clear mind comes an optimal time to learn.

You’re not thinking about other things, only about the experience at hand.

Your brain is primed to take in the new vocabulary learned in the classroom so you can then apply it in the real world.

Cultural activities, like learning to prepare Argentine-style empanadas, enhance the immersion experience.

Taking Advantage of your Travel Plans

Whether you’re all set to go on a South American trip or want to design one around Spanish immersion courses, taking advantage of the possibilities for Spanish immersion is incredibly beneficial.

Instead of struggling for years over Spanish textbooks and in local classes, you could potentially master the language in mere months through the combination of classroom learning and real world experience. Not only will you gain the advantage of language learning, you’ll also be able to explore beautiful places that offer a wide range of activities and experiences.

The Europeans have it right—immersion is definitely an excelente way to learn a new language.