The Oslo Challenge: Interviewing Norwegian Speakers After a Few Months

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From the blog’s origin era (2009–2014), kept as lived proof of the method. See all the missions.

This guest post is from Mariola Czupowska, a Polish learner who documented her Norwegian project as the Language Wanderer. She challenged herself to record videos in the language and used a trip to Oslo to motivate further progress. Her story is worth sharing, especially because she recorded the interviews linked below.

Over to you, Mariola!

I began studying Norwegian in October 2012. It was a spontaneous decision: I had never thought about learning the language before, nor did I have any particular interest in Scandinavian countries. However, that month I met some Norwegians in my city in Poland, and my new passion was ignited!

I remember feeling baffled the first time I heard the language. Its sound surprised me, but at the same time I wanted to understand what the Norwegians were saying. I made up my mind on the spot: “I’m going to learn Norwegian.” There’s no more to it. It’s as simple as that!

I still remember taking out my Norwegian textbook for the first time. The list of beginner vocabulary was staring me in the face, and I felt that Norwegian pronunciation had to be a joke! “How on earth can anyone pronounce words like this?” I asked myself, discouraged. Part of me didn’t want to continue. This wasn’t a good start to my journey!

A note from the Fluent in 3 Months team before we get started: You can chat away with a native speaker for at least 15 minutes with the “Fluent in 3 Months” method. All it takes is 90 days. Tap this link to find out more.

Gaining confidence

The next day, I took out my textbook and tried to memorise the vocabulary list and dialogue from lesson one. I focused on pronunciation by repeating the words slowly, and this worked well. I realised that I could overcome what had discouraged me, one step at a time.

I had studied Spanish and Russian before, and in both languages I reached a point, usually after about three months, where I gave up. But this time something was different. I said to myself: No! You can’t let it happen again! Don’t give up. Continue, one step at a time. This time you’ll give yourself a real chance!

It was and still is a constant battle, not only with the language but also with myself. I’ve realised that my own habits are one obstacle I can work on while learning Norwegian.

Internet access has made it easier for many of us to find information and connect with speakers. Real barriers still exist, but it’s worth asking which obstacles you can change and which ones require a different plan.

Motivation is important, and many people find it difficult to maintain. I’ve always had trouble sticking to new hobbies, and Norwegian was no different. I want to emphasise that continuing was difficult because I know many other learners go through the same thing. Sticking to things was clearly not my strength, or so I thought.

Getting into it

After three months of studying Norwegian, I started to enjoy my routine as it became an important part of my day-to-day life.

I invested a lot of time in learning the language, and with that in mind I made a deal with myself to keep going until I reached what I considered a satisfactory level.

What’s a satisfactory level for me? To be able to converse with Norwegians on a variety of subjects, to understand the news on TV and to read books without needing to constantly look up words. I’m not aiming for native-like fluency. Of course, I’d love to speak like a Norwegian, but I don’t want to set unrealistic goals because they discourage and spoil the pleasure felt from making progress.

So I came up with the idea of a One-Year Challenge. It was my personal journey towards the degree of Norwegian fluency described above. I wasn’t going to abandon the language after that period, but the deadline gave me a target and motivated me to work each day.

You may wonder how I went about starting my study of Norwegian. The language was completely new to me and wasn’t closely related to the other languages I spoke. I also didn’t have much experience teaching myself a language!

I started with a beginner textbook and, after finishing it, switched to På vei. Next, I tackled Stein på stein and Her på berget. At the time of writing, I was still working through some chapters of the last two books.

I’m a strong believer in learning through natural use of the language, so I added speaking practice to my routine early on. It was challenging because there weren’t many Norwegian speakers in my town, but I didn’t let that stop me!

I started by uploading videos of myself speaking Norwegian on my YouTube channel, and I found it a great way to practise using the language.

After uploading a few videos to my YouTube channel, I felt like trying something new. I wanted another jolt of excitement because I was starting to feel fed up with my routine.

The idea was to create smaller challenges on my meandering path to fluency. These challenges would serve as checkpoints on my journey and they would be a way to measure my progress. That’s when I came up with the idea of the Oslo Challenge.

So… what’s the Oslo challenge all about?

It became clear to me that immersing myself in Norwegian would be a great motivator, even for a short period of time. I booked a flight to Oslo to interview Norwegian speakers about dialects and the importance of learning foreign languages. Of course, I decided to conduct the interviews in Norwegian! Recording videos can provide useful practice and progress evidence.

Here's the first example (you can enable the subtitles if you don't speak Norwegian)!

Watch Mariola’s first Oslo interview on YouTube.

All the Norwegians I met were encouraging and curious about my project. I recorded six interviews in Norwegian, although three had sound problems that made our conversation impossible to hear. I had expected difficulty persuading people to take part, but everyone I approached was helpful.

Here's the second interview:

Watch Mariola’s second Oslo interview on YouTube.

The first question I asked was Hva synes du om fremmedspråk læring? (“What do you think about learning foreign languages?”). The people I interviewed thought learning several languages was important. My impression from those conversations was that time held many people back.

I was curious about their answers to my question about dialects. Norway has no single official spoken standard, and regional dialects vary considerably. The people I interviewed were used to hearing this variation, while learners might find unfamiliar dialects challenging.

Of the three interviews that turned out well on video, two were recorded with people at a bookshop in the centre of Oslo and another at the airport. Here's that third video:

Watch Mariola’s third Oslo interview on YouTube.

How do I feel about the Oslo challenge?

First of all, I’m extremely happy that I flew to Oslo to speak with all these Norwegians! My purpose was to test my language skills and renew my motivation after about seven or eight months of learning. In that respect, the challenge was a huge success.

Following and understanding Norwegian speakers was challenging, however. Ordering a coffee was tricky, and I had to take my time to work out what my waitress was saying until she switched to English 😛

I didn’t expect it to be so hard! Several people switched to English when they realised it would make communication easier. They intended to be helpful, but I wanted Norwegian practice. A polite explanation that I was learning and wanted to continue in Norwegian often helped.

I’m not sure how to assess the level I had reached in Norwegian, perhaps A2 or B1. However, the mission showed me how valuable real conversations with fluent speakers could be, whether in person or online. Recordings made for learners had helped me prepare, but they could not replace interaction.

As scary as it may seem, taking the plunge and talking to people in the language you’re learning is one of the most useful things you can do. You may not feel ready, but speaking practice is how you begin to get over that hump.

This project has taught me that this is just the beginning of my adventure and that I still have a long way to go; learning a language is a long-term project. Small missions such as mine can help you keep track of your progress, and can also provide you with valuable feedback, which you can use to adjust your approach to learning languages.

Well said, Mariola! You can still see her historical Norwegian videos on the Language Wanderer YouTube channel. You don’t have to buy a plane ticket to create your own challenge, but regular time with fluent speakers can provide practice and motivation.

What small challenge could give your own language project a clear target?