Tips to Learn a New Language

Halifax-based historian Matthew Hefler teaches at Saint Mary’s University. He completed his PhD at King's College London, where he was a Commonwealth Scholar, and a Rotary International Global Grant Scholar for Peace and Conflict Prevention/Resolution. Matt Hefler’s interest in world cultures extends beyond their history; he also cultivates his language skills in Russian and French.

When getting started with a new language, it is more effective to set short-term, measurable goals. For instance, rather than working haphazardly toward the ultimate goal of reading a book in the original language, it may be more sustainable to aim to learn a certain number of words every week. Setting a range for the weekly goal also provides flexibility; even if you reach the lower benchmark, you get to enjoy the accomplishment of completing the weekly target, with the option of aiming higher in other weeks. To solidify this into a habit, writing the goal down somewhere visible, such as a bedroom whiteboard or a phone lock screen, helps with self-accountability.

Another strategy is to learn about the cultures that speak the language alongside learning the words and grammar. That will help you gain context behind the vocabulary, and eventually grasp some of the vernacular language practices. Travelling to be immersed in the culture is not the most feasible option for this but alternatives can be taking courses, or going to local businesses run by people who speak the language or are frequented by customers who do. These social interactions may even lead to meeting a conversation partner or friend you can practice with.

To test yourself on what you’ve learned, use paper or electronic flashcards. Use the language in your daily life by substituting words in your native tongue with those in your chosen one. Once you have studied your flashcards or other formal materials for the day, you can learn passively through podcasts or videos in your chosen language. You will learn the sounds and inflections, and pick out words you already know, used in a real-world context.

de Gaulle’s Complex Relationship

Matthew “Matt” Hefler, PhD, is a history instructor with Saint Mary's University (SMU) in Halifax, Nova Scotia, who completed his doctoral work at King's College London. Matt Hefler has presented in his academic community, and in 2019 lectured on the topic: “Intelligence and Grand Strategy: Churchill, de Gaulle, and the Failure of Anglo-French Relations 1943-45.”

A specialist of international history and intelligence studies, Matt's doctoral work examined how intelligence and clandestine diplomacy shaped Anglo-French relations during the Second World War. Previous research demonstrated that key British and French wanted close Anglo-French cooperation after the war. This would be a means to compete with the superpower and prevent the tired empires from being relegated to second tier powers. Yet Britain and France did not cooperate, and in fact relations were worse in June 1945 than at anytime of the Second World War. Most accounts blame General Charles de Gaulle, the 'ungrateful and intransigent Frenchman.'

Matt Hefler's research uses intelligence archives from the UK, US, and France to challenge the existing historiography. This material reveals that critical policies, strategic debates and personal relationships had been missing from earlier archival releases or intentionally obscured by figures at the time. Matt's work reveals that Winston Churchill conducted an unofficial policy against France in the Middle East. Intelligence records reveal not only that de Gaulle's forces had penetrated this operation, but that Churchill knew they had.

Matt's work challenges existing interpretations of Anglo-French relations, of Churchill-de Gaulle relations, and of the end of the Second World War.