The Actual Fluency Podcast for Language Learners · Kris Broholm

AFP 188: Cara Leopold - Expat Experiences, Listening Skills, and Movie Club

·1 hr 14 min·5 clips

Cara Leopold found her passion for languages in school despite growing up in a country where few care about learning them.

This episode features host Chris Broholm interviewing Cara Leopold, an English listening specialist who has lived in France for 16 years. They discuss her journey from learning French in the UK to her long-term expatriate life and her professional work helping learners through movies. Cara runs Leo Listening, a service that uses film clubs to help professionals improve their casual English listening and speaking skills. Cara began learning French in secondary school in 1997 after moving from Scotland to England mid-year. She excelled despite a late start, which led to her studying French and linguistics at university. In 2007, she moved to Besançon, France, through a university teaching exchange program, initially working as an English teacher with minimal experience. Early challenges included navigating a leaking apartment, a break-in during a party, and understanding French university administrative requests from students. She emphasizes that moving abroad involves adapting to different systems, citing distinct cultures between "Latin" and "Anglo-Saxon" countries. A key insight is that reaching a functional language level before moving, as Cara did with French, drastically eases integration and handling administrative tasks. She argues against relying on a romantic partner for language instruction, stating it can strain the relationship. Cara believes even dedicating two hours weekly for a year can build a strong foundation, potentially reaching a B1 level, which is sufficient for residency in countries like France. She shares a cautionary tale about a friend who moved to Seville based on a local's nostalgic advice and faced a difficult living situation. The conversation is conversational and anecdotal, blending personal stories with practical language learning advice. Listeners interested in expatriate life, language acquisition strategies, or improving listening skills through media would enjoy this episode. Those seeking highly structured linguistic theory or debates on language pedagogy might find it less relevant.

As heard by us

A grounded conversation about listening, expat life, and how movies can help speech stick.

Cara Leopold and Chris keep the discussion grounded in the daily work of language learning. The episode is strongest when it separates business English from the looser speech people need once they are living inside a language, then ties that idea to Cara's movie club and her…

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Why you'd press play

Press play if fast English feels fine on paper and slippery in real life.

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