Transfer in related Slavic languages
In the field of teaching Polish as a foreign language, transfer plays a major role. Positive transfer helps the users of closely related Slavic languages learn more quickly, while negative transfer should be closely monitored. Intercomprehension is a phenomenon which consists of guessing the meanings of related words and linguistic forms, and the ability to quickly understand languages which are closely related to the mother tongue of learners; in other words, it is a case of positive transfer. Intercomprehension in teaching related languages is directly associated with the phenomenon of language transfer. In the practice of teaching Polish as a non-native language in Slovakia and Czechia, teaching methods related to intercomprehension, including a contrast-based approach, have been applied for a long time. However, more focus has always been placed on negative transfer. In this article we provide examples of the impact of transfer, usually negative, at several linguistic planes in learning Polish by Slovaks and Slovak by Poles. The first author indicates two planes, those of inflection and syntax, using examples from the works of Polish students; the second author discusses the problems associated with lexis and indicates three planes: those of word formation, lexis, and style. Their discussions indicate that similarities help master a language more quickly and how important highlighting the differences for learners is.