A Creative Pursuit

I have been drawn to languages, as much as to art, all my life.

English was my first love. It came rather naturally during my primary school years, but I fell in love with it when I finished reading Theatre by Somerset Maugham. At the age of sixteen, I began learning French  - I wanted to read Molière in its original version. I took up German at the age of eighteen. At the age of forty, already a mother of three living in Dubai, I started learning Arabic.

I have been thinking lately about the way we learn. With every language I studied, it took time, effort, and persistency - working through dictionaries in search of the meaning of unknown words, laboring over idiomatic expressions, trying and failing and trying again to find those evasive foreign sounds, and practicing writing from left to right.

With the new AI-powered tools easily available now, many begin to believe there’s no need to do all that. Children can learn a new language using a “kids friendly” phone app, conversations can be interpreted in real time, documents can be translated within seconds, and even natural speech can be imitated with remarkable accuracy. Why invest years in learning a foreign language? Can AI replace the intellectual, cultural, and interpersonal benefits that language learning provides? My answer is absolutely not.

Language to me is far more than a collection of vocabulary and grammatical rules. Learning a language is learning to appreciate its literature, history, traditions, values, and identity of the people who speak it. Yes, AI can translate words with increasing precision, but it often fails to capture subtle cultural references, humor, irony, and emotional nuances. It also takes away from the challenge of mastering its pronunciation and idiomatic expressions and undermines the process of discovery. What do we think simulates our curiosity: an application's feed of pre-selected words and expressions or rather a book with character descriptions and a story unfolding as we read along?

At the age of sixteen, I decided I wanted to learn to speak French. While I savored the language’s grammar, that famous ‘r’ sound took a whole year of practice. I remember the frustration of not getting it right and the perseverance of not giving up on it. I couldn’t not learn it – it was a pivotal part of my being able to claim the language as my own.

Later in life, earning a Master’s degree in France presented yet another challenge. I still remember the hardship of working through my thesis. Learning how to speak French fluently was one thing, but to write a 50-page thesis was a different challenge all together. In the end, the time, effort and persistency it took led me to building a successful translation company on the French Riviera, so needless to say, all of it was worth it.

Not all my language encounters ended in fluency, however. I studied German for a year in my teen years and I took 30 hours of Arabic at a Language Institute in Dubai where I was teaching English at the time. None of these two languages I speak fluently, but both left an indelible mark and continue to be a part of my life. My favorite German expressions, for example, are now part of my children’s vocabulary. Certain words and phrases that I learned to say in Arabic always brought out a smile in native speakers who we encountered during our expat life in the UAE or when we travel.

Learning another language, or at least getting exposed to it, is one of the most enriching human experiences. Languages shape us and make us who we are. For children, they open up a whole new world and help mold their perception of it. For adults, they foster meaningful personal connections and professional relationships. Learning a different language demonstrates respect, empathy, and a genuine willingness to engage with a different culture. Even minor efforts to communicate in another person's language often leave a lasting positive impression. We all appreciate when someone tries to speak our language, don't we?

As an educator and mother of trilingual pre-teens, I have learnt and seen firsthand the benefits of exposing children to other languages. Numerous studies suggest that bilingual or multilingual individuals tend to demonstrate greater mental flexibility, improved problem-solving skills, enhanced memory, and stronger executive functioning. The process of mastering a new language requires that learners recognize patterns, adapt to unfamiliar structures, and think critically—abilities that are carried well into adulthood.

Unlike for children, however, moving to a different culture and learning a new language bears different consequences for an adult. For me, that meant that speaking three languages was no longer sufficient. Now that we live in Italy, learning Italian (my fourth language) requires time, consistent effort and long-term commitment. My grammar structures are simplistic, and my accent is rather strong, but after decades of studying languages, I have learnt to regard both as my strengths rather than weaknesses.

I love accents. To me, every accent reflects a person's cultural heritage. Every accent has a story behind it, where we come from and the languages we learnt along the way. Speaking English with an accent reminds us that we are human, not machines. Besides, the variety of English language accents, for example, is mind-boggling.

Linguists recognize over 160 distinct English dialects and accents. In the UK alone, there are nine major regional and social accent categories (Received Standard, Midlands, Northern English, Scottish, Welch, etc.). The American accents are divided into six big categories (General American, Southern, Midwestern are among them, for example, not to mention Boston and New York). The same goes for French, Spanish, Russian or any language for that matter.

With so many language applications easily accessible today, some parents argue that learning a second language the hard, old-fashioned way is outdated. Most apps are indeed interactive, engaging, and designed with games, songs, and rewards that motivate young learners to practice regularly. They allow children to learn at their own pace and receive immediate feedback on their progress. For many families, they are also an affordable and convenient way to support language learning outside the classroom, as well as keeping their children busy.

Having said that, however, many parents seem to ignore the hidden disadvantages of such learning, especially for young children. I have seen the negative effects firsthand as a parent myself who believed those applications might do no harm, but I was wrong.

Learning a language is not simply about memorizing words or completing exercises; it is primarily about communicating with other people. Apps cannot fully replicate natural conversations, cultural interactions, or the emotional aspects of communication that children experience when speaking with real people. Moreover, there’s also an addictive component to online games and exercises that may lead to excessive reliance on screens and less social interaction and collaborative learning. Yes, children acquire new vocabulary and the application suggested pronunciation faster, but they also lose the self-expression component which is unique to each child. Do we want to grow a generation of English-speaking children all of whom sound the same?

There is no single way to speak the language. Instead, it belongs to people from every continent, each bringing their own pronunciation, expressions, and perspectives. Accents remind us that communication is not about sounding identical, but rather about connecting with others. They reflect the rich cultural exchange that takes place whenever people from different backgrounds meet, study, work, or travel together.

As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, learning another language remains a meaningful and powerful means of fostering cultural understanding, developing cognitive skills, building authentic human relationships, and telling our story in our own unique way.

As I begin the seventh year of my creative pursuit, I have found that painting has demanded the same kind of process from me as learning a new language. It asks for patience, observation, experimentation, and the courage to follow an idea without knowing exactly where it will lead. In both, understanding grows through repetition, mistakes, and moments of unexpected discovery. Perhaps this is where language and art meet: not simply in what we learn or create, but in the way these pursuits change how we see, think, and experience the world. In a time when so much can be made easier, I find myself increasingly drawn to the value of learning the hard way.

So, as I push through my painting practice as much as my Italian, I emphatically believe in the power of old-fashioned pursuit of learning. And since I've been doing it for a rather long while, let me tell you with absolute certainty that you'd be amazed at what you can achieve with time, dedication, and consistent effort. 

And if you need assistance, Anya B. Academy is here to help. With over a decade of English teaching and art making experience, we currently offer a variety of learning workshops that have made a difference in life of children and adults in France (Nice), UAE (Dubai) and currently in Italy (Montoggio and Valle Scrivia). Learn amore about Anya B. Academy here.

This article has been written by Anya Baboyedova with no use of generative AI. Anya Baboyedova is a founder and educator at Anya B. Academy. Anya offers a variety of confidence-based English learning workshops as well as personalized pathways to children of Valle Scrivia, Genova and around the world. 

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