Conversation Questions
Learning a Foreign Language

A Part of Conversation Questions for the ESL Classroom.

Related: Languages

  • What is your mother tongue?
  • How many languages do you speak?
  • How did you learn your second language?
  • What's the best way to learn a foreign language?
  • What methods do you use to remember vocabulary better?
  • Is it necessary to write words down?
  • Is it possible to understand and write well but not be able to have a conversation?
  • What is value of learning languages?
  • Why do some people have more difficulty than others when learning a language?
  • To what extent do you agree that it's better to learn language as a child? Why or why not?
  • To speak its language well, how important is it to know something about the culture of a country?
  • Are there some words that are similar in different languages?
  • As a beginner, what are the first things that you need to be able to say?
  • What are the problem areas that an intermediate learner may have?
  • What are the problem areas that an advanced learner may have?
  • When you travel to a foreign country, is it always easy to use your foreign language?
  • How can the Internet be a helpful tool when learning a foreign language?
  • Some people say that if you can teach something about your foreign language, then it you to understand it better. Do you agree?
  • Have you ever tried learning a new language from a textbook with audio tapes?
  • Is it good to sit an exam that shows your level in English?
  • What do you know about IELTS and TOEFL?
  • Can you learn a language by watching television?
  • Do you use free language-learning exercises on the Internet?
  • Have you ever paid for 1:1 lessons?
  • Would you like to be a translator? Why? / Why not?
  • Is the classroom the best place to learn?
  • Can a good teacher influence how well you enjoy learning a language?
  • Is it possible to teach yourself a language?
  • What careers are possible if you speak a foreign language?
  • What languages would you like to learn in future?
  • What different techniques do you have for learning vocabulary?
  • Do you need to write in a foreign language?
  • Do you need to use your foreign languages at work?
  • Do you think that knowing a foreign language might encourage you to live abroad in future?
  • Is it a good idea to learn a language from a non-native speaker of that language?
  • Do you know how large your vocabulary is in your foreign language?
  • Could you teach your mother tongue to someone else?
  • What personal qualities do you need to be an effective language learner?
  • What tools can help you learn a foreign language?
  • Have you ever made a telephone call in a foreign language?
  • Do you ever read websites in a foreign language?
  • Is it possible to learn a language without studying grammar?
  • Is knowing grammar more important than knowing vocabulary?
  • Have teaching methods for language learning changed over the last 50 years?
  • To speak a language well, why is it important to have an understanding of idioms?
  • How did your best language teacher help you?
  • Have you had any particularly poor language learning experiences?
  • How old should a child be when a school introduces the first foreign language?
  • Are teenage language exchange programs useful? Why? / Why not?
  • Some people say "I'm no good at learning languages".
    If you can think of another good question for this list, please add it.
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