I studied German at uni for 3 years, took a summer course in it during that time, and have travelled extensively in germany and austria. I should also say that german is closer related to my native norwegian than english, so I had an advantage there.
The only time I actually learned german with any kind of high efficiency was when I worked one summer - travelling alone - as a volunteer farmer in the austrian countryside. Why? Because in the Austrian countryside the english skills were rudimentary or non-existent, so I had to speak German. I couldn`t support myself using English as a crutch. Neither could I seek “refuge” in co-students or friends who spoke my native Norwegian because I went to Austria by myself.
Granted, all the technical grammar and getting used to placing verbs at the end etc, had come into place in large part during my studying. But after 7 weeks soaked in the language every waking moment I went from speaking with a large degree of hesitation to almost not having to think about it.
If you`re not forced to speak the language in order to perform your daily tasks succesfully the learning process will be slow, no matter what language you`re learning.
