Hi, how long will it take for an average learner to learn French ? Are you taking class room training or online courses ? Please advise
French is so hard to understand, especially the native speakers. I think reading, writing could be handled after a couple of months but do develop the ear of french would take some extra time. Do you guys suggest any tricks for that?
I am taking self study courses: duolingo, Pimsleur, FSI (French Basic Course and French Phonology), lingvist, and some youtube videos. Pimsleur is almost all audio and helps a lot with the listening and speaking. The FSI courses have audio that you listen to while you read the textbook. The French Phonology course is also especially good for developing listening and speaking skills.
Once you reach at least an advanced beginner to intermediate level, you can learn and improve a lot by listening to French songs, watching French movies and videos, and reading and listening to the news in French. Turn on subtitles in videos. Look up words you don't know and keep a list, preferably in the form of flashcards. I use AnkiWeb which presents your flashcards in a spaced repetition way that is very helpful
https://ankiweb.net/decks/
How much time it takes depends on how much time and effort you can devote, but I would say minimum 6 months of serious study to reach a good enough level to score a few CRS points. A Canadian friend of mine went from scratch to professionally proficient in 1 year when he studied French full time (at least 6 hours a day) with courses offered by the Canadian government at no cost to Canadian permanent residents and citizens.
You can also join our French group, where we help each other out with learning, and chat more
https://chat.whatsapp.com/1HQROITB0p51B3kNAsVzAi