apprendre à versus apprendre

Question

I came across this recently and had difficulty finding a definitive answer. Examples of usage would be helpful. I read that 'to teach someone' one needs either a noun or pronoun acting as an Indirect object. If you could kindly provide some pointers it would be great.

Accepted Answer

Hi Andrea, 
Apprendre quelque chose is to learn something -
e.g.
J'ai appris le français à l'école primaire = I learnt French at primary school
Mon fils apprend à nager = My son is learning to swim
For to teach you can use -
apprendre quelque chose à quelqu'un 
e.g.
Mon père m'a appris à conduire = My father taught me to drive 
Jacqueline apprend à Nathalie à jouer aux échecs = Jacqueline is teaching Nathalie to play chess
also enseigner is to teach  something
e.g.
J'enseigne l'anglais à la Sorbonne = I am teaching English at the Sorbonne
Nous enseignons le français aux étrangers = We are teaching French to foreigners
Hope this helps!

Answer

J’apprends le français — I am learning French.Le prof apprend le français aux étudiants. — The professor teaches French to the students.