You can never speak a language by just studying it

I have sadly met many students and friends who have told me how they have spent years at school studying a language but they still feel they can’t speak it.  This is often said with lots of shame as if there is something wrong with their capabilities.

But there isn’t anything wrong with their capabilities.  Nor is it the fault of their study materials or their teacher. 

The reason why they cannot communicate in the language is that it's impossible to improve your listening or speaking skills by looking at a grammar book alone. So the only thing ‘wrong’ is that they need to start practising the language.

You need to practice listening, speaking, reading and writing in your target language.   Don’t worry about the mistakes.  In time, you can focus on your mistakes and eradicate them.   When you were a child, could you communicate perfectly straight away?  Of course not!  It took time and that’s the same for learning a language now that you are older. 

So if you have learnt a language via the academic route but still feel terrible about your level, don’t worry, you are normal!  Now you have a good theoretical basis of your language and you only need to practice. 

One other thing, don’t forget to have fun with it too!

The finest language is mostly made up of simple unimposing words.
- George Eliot