Author: Nageshwar Das

  • Do You Need Both Beginning and Advanced?

    Do You Need Both Beginning and Advanced?

    Explore the differences between beginning and advanced language programs. Find out which one is the best fit for your language learning journey.

    Do You Need Both Beginning and Advanced?

    Your perceived needs as you begin studying your target language will significantly influence how you answer this chapter’s title question.  If you decide that you need beginning lessons when you start your language study — meaning a simplified form of the language — you will expend much time looking for such a program.  You will find that your target language does not have a beginner’s level of language.  On the other hand, if you decide that the language of the daily newspaper is what you want to learn, you will find that language all around you.

    You will certainly need to begin on a rudimentary level.  But the simple sentences and vocabulary you will use should, nonetheless, be sentences and words you would hear in daily conversation.

    All target languages are different in structure, and can’t be analyzed individually in this book.  Therefore, let’s use English as an example and try to analyze this same question from the perspective of a non-English speaker who is trying to learn English.  You should then be able to apply this information to your own needs as you learn another language.

    The need for beginning and advanced lessons in English:

    Can both beginning and advanced students in our target group of university students and young professionals use the same level of lessons to learn spoken English?  Before you give an intuitive answer, let’s ask the question another way: “Does English have multiple, specialized language divisions?”

    The answer is, “No, it does not.” There is no high English language spoken by the gentry versus a low language spoken by commoners.  Historically, many languages such as Greek and Chinese, to mention only two, have indeed had multiple divisions of the language used within the same society.

    Modern English, however, does not even have a specialized construction for folklore.  Many languages in which oral tradition has been preserved have a storytelling form of the language that is distinct from everyday conversation.  In these language groups, there are often specialists who recount the folklore in public gatherings.  Common English has none of that.  Though Ebonics — and more recently Rap — are sub-classes of English that would not be broadly understood, all English-speakers within that general target language group understand everyday English.

    In fact, English is so simple in regard to multiple divisions of speech that we do not even have two forms of address for people of different social standing.  French, for instance, has strict conventions regarding the use of “TU” or “VOUS” when addressing another person.  A U.S. citizen, however, would address both a person of higher social standing and a young child as “you.”

    English has a wide spectrum of language variances including regional accents and dialects.  It also has many specialized vocabularies.  Any student who has taken courses in anatomy, law, physics, automotive technology, psychology, engineering, geology, or anthropology has spent a great deal of time learning specialized terminology.  Nonetheless, the essential English syntax that holds even these specialized words together in a sentence is still the language of common speech — or the language of the daily newspaper.

    So, aside from specialized vocabularies, English has no divisions representing increasing levels of language complexity.

    The exception to the above paragraph would be found in technical documents such as legal briefs, real estate transactions, and the like.  However, this style of English is far removed from the language used in normal conversation.

    For any one target language group, there is only one kind of English that needs to be learned.  A student will not need two — or more — different course levels.  This is not to say that English is a simple language to learn.  Far from it.  Strange grammatical constructions, abstract concepts, idioms, and literary language can prove to be difficult for anyone.  However, the same complexity is found in all spoken English, not merely in some higher level.

    Why have traditional language programs insisted that there must be beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels of English study?  It is not because there are a beginning and advanced levels of spoken English.  It is because there are beginning, intermediate, and advanced explanations of English grammar.  This means that some rules of English grammar are easy to explain.  Some rules of grammar are more difficult to explain.  And some are complex enough to require a highly technical explanation.  But spoken English is one subject of study, whereas the formal rules of English grammar are quite another.

    A second perspective:

    Let’s ask our question again.  “Do international English students need both beginning and advanced English lessons in order to learn the language?”  No, they don’t.  There is only one level of spoken English.  Beginning students must start by speaking normal English sentences.  Advanced students must continue until they are able to fluently pronounce the words in those same normal English sentences.

    There will be a great difference in the levels of fluency between a beginning and advanced students, and as such, it may be entirely appropriate to group students accordingly.  But there is no difference in the level of English sentences they must study.  They must both use the same English sentences to initiate — and then to master — the process that will develop the necessary cognitive, motor, and auditory skills used to speak English fluently.

    Let’s clarify a potential area of confusion.  English grammar lists simple sentences (sentences with one main clause), compound sentences (sentences with two or more main clauses), complex sentences (sentences with one main clause and at least one subordinate clause), and compound-complex sentences (sentences made up of two or more main clauses and at least one subordinate clause).  An example of a compound-complex sentence would be, “The Saturday afternoon program was like a two-ring circus. While one part of the TV screen carried the professional football game, the other part showed scores from collegiate games.” 

    Of course, this is not a sentence we would expect beginning English students to use.  However, the language itself is not what makes the sentence complex.  It is grammatically defined as a complex sentence simply because of its grammatical construction.  With very little change, the sentence could become three simple sentences: “The Saturday afternoon program was like a two-ring circus.  One part of the TV screen showed the professional football game.  The other part of the TV screen showed scores from collegiate games.”  Aside from vocabulary, any one of these three sentences is a beginning level sentence.

    Thus, when we say that there is no difference in the level of English sentences a beginning and advanced student must study, we are not talking about a grammar definition.  We are saying that there is not one language that would used by commoners and another that would used by an upper class.  Even though the example sentence about the TV’s split screen is not a sentence that we would want to include in the first lesson, it does not represent multiple, specialized language divisions.

    Finally, however, if beginning students stumble across something equivalent to an English compound-complex sentence in a newspaper. They could skip it for the present time and focus on the sentences they are able to use.

    Appendix A: Introductory Lesson was included to illustrate the first lesson a non-English speaking student will encounter in the Spoken English Learned Quickly course.

    As you look at Appendix A, you will see that even though only simple sentences cast in the present tense used, they are, nonetheless, complete sentences.  The first lesson in this course requires that non-English speaking students start their language learning experience with complete sentences used in everyday speech.

    Making this model fit your own language study:

    Up to this point, the attempt has only been made to show that so-called beginning and advanced sentences are unnecessary in an English language program.  You will likely discover very little in your target language that would require two levels of language study any more than would required in English.

    You will need to learn normal greetings and salutations when you begin your target language study. Also, You will want to learn how to ask basic directions, how to find a store or office, what bus to take, or how to make the change.  Yet, all of the vocabulary and phrases you will use are a part of the everyday language used by everyone, not just beginners.

    Therefore, you should understand that the spoken language you want to learn not divided into levels.  Throughout the entire time, you will be learning your target language, you will essentially be adding vocabulary and new syntax to a single level of language complexity.

    If you understand this concept, it will help you immensely.  Your task is not to learn a beginning language, progress to an intermediate language, and finally, pass an exam on the advanced language before you can finally begin talking to real people.  Your task is to immediately begin speaking your target language even though you may use short, simple sentences and limited vocabulary.  Language learning is a continuum.  Everything you learn to say correctly in your first week of language study should be just as useful in normal conversation as the things you will learn later as you become more fluent.

    There may be exceptions:

    Your target language may use specialized language for folklore, proverbs, weddings, funerals, and when addressing individuals from a higher class of society.  If that is the case, you will need to learn those forms at some point if you aspire to that level of fluency.  Nonetheless, most of those specialized forms (excepting possibly those used when addressing someone from a higher class of society) will used very infrequently in daily conversation.

     Designing the early lessons:

    A language course using the Feedback Training Method would normally begin with at least one introductory lesson for students who are just beginning their study of a new language.  The first lesson would use simple sentences, a limited vocabulary, and restricted verb tenses.  The first Spoken English Learned Quickly lesson uses complete sentences that limited to the present tense.  However, beginning with Lesson, all lessons use verbs in past, present, and future tenses, and newspaper-quality sentences.

    Nonetheless, even though this course uses normal — though simple — everyday English sentences in the early lessons, there is another way in which the audio portion of the course accommodates the student who has no previous knowledge of English.  This demonstrated more easily than explained.  This example comes from the text exercise in Appendix B.  The narrator records the phrase outside of the ellipses (….).  The student then repeats this phrase during the pause.

    Audio recordings for the first few lessons would structured like this:

    A long time ago, (A long time ago,) there was a wise man (there was a wise man) living in a mountain country.  (living in a mountain country.)  A long time ago, there was a wise man living in a mountain country.  (A long time ago, there was a wise man living in a mountain country.)  The country was beautiful.  (The country was beautiful.)  But it was always difficult (But it was always difficult) to find enough food.  (to find enough food.)  But it was always difficult to find enough food.  (But it was always difficult to find enough food.)

    Audio recordings for later lessons would use longer phrases like this:

    A long time ago, there was a wise man living in a mountain country.  (A long time ago, there was a wise man living in a mountain country.)  The country was beautiful.  (The country was beautiful.)  But it was always difficult to find enough food.  (But it was always difficult to find enough food.)

    The variation, therefore, is not in the complexity of the sentence itself, but in the length of the segments used to build the sentence.  Thus, a beginning student with no prior knowledge of the target language and a student who has gained considerably greater fluency may use the same kinds of sentences.  The structure of the audio exercises will take into account these varying levels of fluency, though in later lessons the student will forced to manipulate the language to a far greater degree.  Though the beginning student will spend more time learning the proper pronunciation of each sentence, and the more advanced student will spend more time substituting tenses and component parts of the exercise sentences, the end result is that both the beginning and advanced student will be speaking the same language that used in normal conversation.

    But it’s too difficult to start with normal speech:

    Not really.  Once you understand the greetings and salutations, you are ready to begin practicing with normal sentences.  Say, for instance, that you are reading a newspaper article as you study.  Aside from the sentences that contain specialized vocabulary, most sentences will use common verbs and syntax construction.  This is the language you want to speak.  Use it from the very start of your language study.

    This will explained more fully in Studying the Verb and Making the Feedback Training Method Work.

    Therefore, you can assured that the spoken language you want to learn is everyday language.  It will reduce stress if you realize that, in the very first week of language study, you are learning normal speech.  By and large, the language will never become any more difficult than it is when you first begin because you will be studying normal spoken language throughout your formal study.

  • Grammar and Writing in Spoken Language Study

    Grammar and Writing in Spoken Language Study

    Discover the impact of grammar and writing on language development. Explore the role of proper sentence structure and pronunciation in effective communication.

    Grammar and Writing in Spoken Language Study:

    Personal experience about Grammar and Writing:

    I had the great advantage of growing up in a home in which grammatically correct English was spoken.  As I progressed through grade school and on into high school, my language ability matured as a result of my home and school environments.

    In retrospect, I believe that this is what happened. For the most part, I used proper sentence structure and pronunciation because that is what I heard in my home.  However, when I went to school, I needed to learn grammar in school in order to reinforce my knowledge of my own language.  I — like probably most of my classmates — did not learn to speak by studying grammar.  Rather, I was able to learn how to do grammar exercises because I already knew how to speak.

    Certainly, I learned many important things about my language through grammar study. But it was of importance to me only because I had already achieved basic English fluency.  I did not learn to speak English as a result of English grammar lessons.

    In contrast, I also took two years of Spanish in high school.  We started with basic grammar.  We wrote exercises almost every day.  But we almost never heard spoken Spanish and had even less opportunity to try to speak it ourselves.  (Language instruction in the United States has changed considerably since I was in high school.) After high school graduation, I could neither speak Spanish nor did I understand Spanish grammar.

    In my mid-twenties, I spent a year in Paris studying French.  I had the great fortune of enrolling in a French language school that emphasized spoken French to the complete exclusion of written exercises.  Not only did I learn French grammar — meaning that I learned to use sentences that communicated what I intended to say to a French listener — but, interestingly enough, because verb construction is similar in both French and Spanish, I also began to understand the Spanish grammar which had made no sense to me in high school.  Because I could read and write in English, I had no difficulty reading French.  It was a simple transfer of knowledge from reading in English to reading in French.

    Later, I studied another language in Africa.  Because school-based language courses were almost non-existent in that country, all of my language training was done by way of recorded language drills that I adapted from local radio broadcasts.  I also had a university student as my language helper.  Yet I learned how to structure a sentence in that language — which is applied grammar — and how to write much more quickly than had I been studying grammar and writing independently of the spoken language.

    Traditional language instruction:

    Traditional language instruction has reversed the process with poor results.  Most second language classes teach grammar as a foundation for spoken language.

    The quickest way to teach students to read a new language is to teach them to speak it first.  The fastest way to teach them sufficient grammar to pass college entrance exams is to build a foundation by teaching them to speak the language fluently.  Then as they build on that foundation, they will understand the target language’s grammar.  Finally, it is almost impossible to teach non-speaking students how to write well before they have mastered the basic spoken language.  Whenever the process is reversed, it takes a needlessly long time to succeed in teaching grammar and writing skills, much less spoken language fluency.

    Do not misunderstand.  One cannot speak any language — fluently or otherwise — without using the grammar of that language.  That is true because grammar consists of the rules used in that language to string words together as units to convey meaning.  (In English we call these units sentences or paragraphs.) In English, we can use a given number of words to make a statement or ask a question by the way in which we order the words and use inflection.  Simply stated, placing the words in the correct order applied grammar.

    The issue is not whether or not students learning a new language need to know grammar.  Language is unintelligible without it.  The question is, “How is grammar best taught?”

    The best time to study grammar:

    That effective spoken language instruction simultaneously trains all of the cognitive and sensory centers of speech.  To again resort to an English example, when is the best time to introduce the grammar rule that the sentence. “That is a book,” is an English statement, and “Is that a book?” is an English question? The best time is when students simultaneously learn to speak these two sentences. Inverting word order to change a statement to a question.  That would take place while they are learning many other similar sentences. So that they develop a cognitive sense reinforced by motor skill and auditory feedback that the order and inflection of the one sentence is a question, while the other is a statement.  The sound of the sentence is as much an indicator of its meaning as its written form.  Right? Right!

    There is also a relationship between good pronunciation and good spelling.  I am a poor speller.  I understand that I misspell many words because I mispronounce them.  At some point, everyone who expects to write a target language well must learn its spelling.  Yet, it will probably be faster for a student to learn good spelling after learning good speech habits. Than it will be for the same student to learn good spelling without being able to speak.  In practice, in a spoken language course, students should learn the spelling of new words as they added to the vocabulary of each new lesson.

    This is not to say that grammar and spelling are unnecessary for the new language learner.  Rather, what is being said is that grammar can be taught more effectively — and in less time — by using audio language drills.  Teaching grammar by means of spoken Learning to Speak a Second Language

    language has the great advantage of reinforcing the cognitive learning of grammar. While using two additional functions found in normal speech — motor skill feedback and auditory feedback.  Teaching grammar as a written exercise does develop cognitive learning, but it reinforces it with visual feedback.

    Though visual feedback through reading and writing has some merit, it is outside the context of spoken language.  Reinforcement through visual feedback outside of the spoken language context is far less effective. Than motor skill feedback and auditory feedback that are both inside the spoken language context.  The trade-off in gaining visual feedback at the loss of motor skill and auditory feedback is costly and retards progress.  Far more gained when the student identifies correct grammar, by the way, a sentence sounds, rather than by the way it looks. 

    Though it would not typically explained this way, it is also important on a subconscious level that the student learns how to correct grammar feels.  As a function of the proprioceptive sense, a statement produces a certain sequence of sensory feedback from the mouth, tongue, and air passages that feel different than a question.  A speech pathologist working with children’s speech problems will pay a great deal of attention to this part of speech during retraining.

    It would take considerably longer to teach a language student. How to manipulate the grammar of the new language and then speak that language correctly. Than it would teach the same student to first speak the language correctly and then introduce rules of grammar.  This gain would greatly augmented, however, if the rules of grammar were incorporated into the spoken language lessons themselves.

    A year spent exclusively in spoken language study will produce a marked degree of fluency.  With that language fluency, the student will gain a functional understanding of the grammar of the target language.  The same amount of time spent in grammar study will produce limited fluency and little practical understanding of that language’s grammar.

    Grammar study in your own language program:

    How you approach grammar study in your target language will depend on the language program you are using.

    If you enrolled in an established school program with written grammar assignments. You will obviously need to complete them just like every other student in the class.  However, as you will see in Making the Feedback Training Method Work, on your own time. You can then use the completed (and corrected) written exercises as spoken language drills.  If you focus more on using your grammar exercises as spoken language drills rather than simply as written assignments. You will find that your ability in your target language’s grammar will increase much more rapidly.  Of course, this will add time to your study schedule, but it will undoubtedly result in considerably higher exam scores.  You will also see an important caution regarding correct pronunciation when you are reading grammar assignments as spoken exercises.

    As also explained in Making the Feedback Training Method Work, if you design your own language course with a language helper. You can have much greater freedom in the way you study grammar.  In that case, you will try to incorporate your grammar lessons into your spoken drills.

    Nonetheless, there will be times when you will ask your language helper for clarifications regarding grammar.  For example, to again use an illustration from English, during the first week of lessons you would encounter the two articles “A” and “AN.” If your language helper explained that “A” used before a word beginning with a consonant, and “an” used before a word beginning with a vowel, it would certainly be a grammatical explanation.  With that knowledge, however, you could then ask your language helper to record an exercise with both “A” and “AN” sentences.  Your grammar study on “A” and “AN” would then done with a spoken exercise rather than a written assignment.

    International students struggling to learn English will often say that they want more grammar lessons.  But that is not what they are really asking for.  Many undoubtedly have a large vocabulary from studying written grammar for years.  They do not need more grammar rules to memorize — they need spoken language exercises that will teach them to organize the vocabulary they already know into fluent, spoken English sentences.

    Irrespective of the kind of language learning program you are in, the primary emphasis of this closing section is to encourage. You to study grammar by using spoken exercises rather than written assignments.

  • Focusing on the Target Language

    Focusing on the Target Language

    Learn about the importance of focusing on the target language for language fluency and success in both academic and professional settings.

    Focusing on the Target Language:

    It would be impossible to say that any spoken language has a neatly defined vocabulary and syntax, or that it can fully taught through a single language training program. According to Maria’s Choice; So Let’s illustrate that with the following example:

    Maria, a Bolivian national, wants to complete her undergraduate studies at a university in Santa Cruz, Bolivia.  Then she plans to enter the civil engineering program at the University of Texas because she wants to work in flood control in Bolivia.  In order to succeed, she will need to achieve fluency in the following six English forms:

    • Legal and technical English. Maria will need to be able to read and write legal and technical English in order to submit her university application, immigration forms, and financial paperwork.  In addition, she will also need to use this English form as spoken language when such things as textbook glossary terms and engineering legal matters are discussed in classes.  This English form will use specialized — and often unfamiliar — vocabulary.
    • Grammatically complete written English. Almost all of Maria’s textbooks will use this English form in which complete sentences containing a full complement of all necessary parts of speech are used.  Coincidentally, vocabulary will often consist of precise terms used in a specific field such as engineering, law, finance, etc.  Most of her need for this English form will be in reading, though it will occasionally be used in speech.
    • Grammatically complete spoken English. Many of her instructors will often use grammatically complete spoken English during their class or lab presentations.  Local newspapers will also use this English form in written format even though it will be on the reading level of the general populace.  The newspaper will use a simpler vocabulary and less complex sentence structure than more technical publications might. For our purposes, the term grammatically complete English means that sentences contain all necessary parts of speech. While conversational English means that sentences sometimes employ understood (but unspoken) parts of speech.
    • Conversational spoken English. Maria will need to master the English used by the ordinary people on the street in her American university city.  She will also need to communicate with fellow students using conversational English common to her own age group.  In English — and probably most languages — conversational spoken language often abbreviates sentences and alters vocabulary.  When properly used, conversational English is grammatically correct English, but it is not always grammatically complete
    • Slang, ethnic, and vulgar English. Maria will most likely watch American movies and television and will be involved in social contexts where unique vocabulary and sentence structure will be used.  Whether or not she chooses to incorporate these terms into her own speech. She will need to learn the vocabulary in order to avoid the risk of using socially inappropriate language.
    • Regional pronunciation and vocabulary. Though she will need to be familiar with standard American broadcasting English as it is used in national news casting, national media, and cinema productions, Maria will also need to be able to mimic the accent and vocabulary used at the University of Texas.

    Assuming that Maria is able to fulfill her goal of completing an advanced degree at the University of Texas. By the time she graduates she will most likely have learned to adequately communicate in the six English forms listed above.  But an important decision she will need to make while she is still a student in Santa Cruz is which of these six English forms she should begin studying first.

    Selecting a precise language for study:

    Before going further, a point of reference needs to be developed that will aid a student like Maria in selecting her language study program.  As already discussed, there are six English forms that she must choose between.  She needs to choose wisely at this point in order to avoid wasting time in her English study. 

    Students using the Spoken English Learned Quickly course have commented that they have studied English for a number of years without learning the technical English vocabulary they needed to enter their chosen field of study or employment.  Others have said that their poor pronunciation has been a hindrance to their employment opportunities.  These students spent years in “English” study, but it was not tailored to fit their future need.

    The question Maria or any other language student must ask is, “What language do the people with whom I will be communicating speak?” A simplistic answer like “Polish,” or “Chichewa,” or “English” is inadequate.

    Propose the following terminology:

    • The term target language in its customary sense will indicate the language that will be learned.
    • The term target language group — and a synonym needed for comparative purposes. General target language group — are loosely defined terms that simply identify those who speak a particular language. This group will typically be spread over a wide geographical area with members having dissimilar socioeconomic status.  Nonetheless, speakers within this group will use syntax and pronunciation that is understood by all others in the same target group when the speaker is using non-regional or non-technical vocabulary.
    • The term general target language group will then be contrasted with a new term specific target language group. It is this second term that has the precise meaning we want.  A specific target language group will more likely be in a particular geographical location, and will. Because of the similar socio-economic status of its members, use vocabulary, syntax, and pronunciation that is generally common to all in that group.

    Could classify all Americans who speak fluent English as being included in a single general target language group because, in spite of regional differences in dialect and vocabulary, they can readily communicate with each other.  It is the specific target language group that is important to Maria because she will need to learn an English form that will allow her to communicate with instructors and Texas-raised students in the Engineering Department at the University of Texas.

    Strongly encourage you to gain as much information as possible about the specific target language group with which you will be communicating.  Carefully plan your language learning program so that the pronunciation and vocabulary you learn will be useful to you.  This may save you a great deal of wasted effort.

    Maria’s choice:

    A first observation can now be made.  Maria will need to learn the same English which is spoken by her future classmates at the University of Texas Engineering Department.  The majority of her American fellow students will be able to correctly use the six English forms above as they have been described.  Many writers in the field of English-as-a world-language make a distinction between forms of English which are grammatically complete, written, conversational, slang, and the like — often identifying them as separate kinds of English.  We will simply state, however, that the language we are defining as the target language for any language student is the one spoken in a single location by the specific group of people with whom the student will be communicating. 

    In Maria’s case, that will be the English that her future fellow students in Texas will use both inside and outside of the classroom. Whether talking to each other, listening to an instructor’s lecture, buying a hamburger at McDonald’s, taking an exam, watching a movie or television, or reading an assignment.  This will be the specific target language group she will want to communicate with.  On the other hand, there will be other groups of people living in her university city who will use English speech. Which Maria may not need to learn.

    What has been said so far actually simplifies Maria’s choice?  Even though she will eventually want to gain fluency in each of these six English forms, they are now defined for her.  For now, she must only decide on which of the above six English forms to focus as she begins her study.

    There is a surprisingly simple second suggestion we can make.  Because of her three years of grammar-based English classes in Bolivia, her ability to read and write English far exceeds her ability to speak it.  Therefore, she should try to find an English course which would include a strong foundation in grammatically complete spoken English (English form 3), but which would also include a mix of colloquial conversational spoken English (English form 4).  The accent used in this ideal language course for Maria would be Texan.

    However, it is highly unlikely that Maria would be able to find an English course that would fit her need this precisely.  The closest thing she might be able to find would be a course that would use grammatically complete spoken English with American national broadcast pronunciation.

    Because the Spoken English Learned Quickly language course www.FreeEnglishNow.com was developed for university students and young professionals, it uses grammatically complete spoken English along with some colloquial conversational spoken English.  Furthermore, the audio recordings provide the option of either American or British national broadcast accents.  We feel that this level of English syntax and vocabulary will best serve the needs of most of our students.  It will also allow them to acquire with the least amount of difficulty the other English forms of spoken English that are not included in the Spoken English Learned Quickly lessons.  We clearly understand, however, that there is no universal spoken English, so there can be no single English course that can be used to simultaneously teach all of the worldwide varieties of English.  We are certainly not saying that there is only one kind of English that is used worldwide.

    As you consider the target language you want to learn, you will need to evaluate the materials and courses that are available to you.  You will need to decide how you can best use them to reach your fluency goals.  You will need to focus on a language study program that will teach you to fluently speak the language that is spoken in a single location by the specific group of people with whom you wish to communicate.

    Where to start:

    Finally, you will need to begin your language study by using some kind of vocabulary and sentences.  We strongly suggest that you do not look for a beginning level of language but that as quickly as possible you begin by using simple sentences and vocabulary in the everyday language of your specific target language group.  You will want to begin your language study using the same sentences that you will want to perfect as you become fluent.

    This topic will be covered fully in Do You Need Both Beginning and Advanced Lessons?

  • The Proprioceptive Sense in Language Learning

    The Proprioceptive Sense in Language Learning

    Understanding the proprioceptive sense in language learning: explore the neurological responses involved in speech production for effective language instruction programs.

    The Proprioceptive Sense in Language Learning:

    In order to teach adult students to speak a second language fluently, it is necessary to understand how the human mind produces speech before it is possible to design an effective language instruction program for them.

    However, before looking at speech, drawing an analogy from machine control will be helpful because the analogy closely parallels neurological responses in spoken language.

    Open-loop machine control:

    Wikipedia describes an open-loop control system as follows:

    An open-loop controller also called a non-feedback controller is a type of controller that computes its input into a system using only the current state. of the system.  A characteristic of the open-loop controller is that it does not use feedback to determine if its input has achieved the desired goal.  This means that the system does not observe the output of the processes that it is controlling.  Consequently, a true open-loop system.  cannot correct any errors that it could make.

    For example, a sprinkler system, programmed to turn on at set times could be an example of an open-loop system if it does not measure soil moisture as a form of feedback.  Even if rain is pouring down on the lawn, the sprinkler system would activate on schedule, wasting water.

    The control could be a simple switch, or it could be a combination of a switch and a timer.  Yet, all it can do is turn the machine on.  It cannot respond to anything the machine is doing.

    Closed-loop machine control:

    Wikipedia then describes closed-loop control as follows:

    To avoid the problems of the open loop controller, control theory introduces feedback.  A closed-loop controller uses feedback to control states or outputs of a dynamic system.  Its name comes from the information path in the system: process inputs (e.g.  voltage applied to a motor) have an effect on the process outputs

    (e.g. velocity. . . of the motor), which measured by sensors and processed by the controller; the result (the control signal) used as input to the process, closing the loop.

    Wikipedia’s definition of a closed-loop system subsequently becomes too technical to use here.  However, as Wikipedia suggests above, a sprinkler incorporating a soil moisture sensor would be a simple closed-loop system.  The sprinkler system would have both a timer and a control valve.  Either could operate independently, and either could shut the water off, but both would need to be open in order for the sprinkler to operate.

    If the soil is already moist, the sprinkler will remain off whether or not the timer is open.  When the moisture probe senses dry soil, the valve opened.  However, after the sprinkler is on if the soil becomes moist enough, the valve will close even if the timer is still open.  Thus, the sprinkler uses feedback from its own operation to control itself.

    Notice that also shows a calibration function.  Irrespective of whether it is a soil moisture sensor on a sprinkler — or a counter on a machine — there must be some way of setting the control so that it will respond in a predetermined way.  In a machine application, the calibration function could be a counter that is set so that the machine will shut down after producing a certain number of finished parts.

    Human speech is a closed-loop system:

    Human speech is a complex learned skill and is dependent on number of memory and neurological functions.  Speech is a closed-loop system because sensors within the system itself give feedback to the control portion of the system.  The control then corrects and coordinates ongoing speech.  In this case, the mind is in control of the closed-loop system, the mouth produces the desired product (speech), and auditory feedback from the ears and proprioceptive feedback from the mouth allow the mind to coordinate the speech process in real time.

    The inter-relationship of these functions shown in the table below.  The meaning of specialized words given below the table.

    The Organ or SensePrimary Function(s)Comments
    The mind provides;1.  Vocabulary memory

    2.  Partial syntax control

    3.  Feedback coordination

    4.  Calibration by the speaker to give meaning to the sounds

    		The mind is the storage bank for vocabulary.  Memory is also involved in structuring syntax.  In addition, the mind uses both auditory and proprioceptive feedback to monitor and calibrate speech in real time.
    The mouth and related organs provide;1.  Sound production

    2.  Breath regulation

    3.  Proprioceptive feedback to the mind in real time which regulates pronunciation and provides partial syntax control

    		The proprioceptive sense is involved in both pronunciation and syntax feedback.  It is essential for speech control.
    The hearing provides;1. Auditory feedback to the mind in real timeAuditory and proprioceptive feedback are combined in the mind for essential speech control.

    Table 1: The three components of human speech and their primary functions. 

    Proprioceptive.

    The human speech would be impossible without the proprioceptive sense.  (Proprioceptive refers to the sense within the organism itself that detects or controls the movement and location of the muscles, tendons, and joints which used to create speech.)  Our mouth, vocal cords, diaphragm, and lungs incorporate thousands of nerve sensors that the brain uses to control their movement and determine their position.  Imagine the complexity of pronouncing even a single word with the need to coordinate the tongue, breath control, and jaw muscles.  Now multiply this complexity as sentences are constructed in rapid succession during normal speech.

    Real time. 

    Unlike an open-loop control system, a closed-loop control system monitors feedback and corrects the process as the machine is running.  The reciprocal path between the control, the feedback sensors, and the process itself is instantaneous.  That is, information not stored for later use.  Rather, it used instantaneously as the sensors detect it.  In this chapter, the term simultaneous used to indicate real-time feedback during language instruction.

    Calibration. 

    In human speech, the mind must constantly monitor the feedback information from both the speaker’s own hearing and the proprioceptive senses so that the mind can control muscles to create the desired sounds.  Thus, the speaker is constantly calibrating the feedback to control speech.  To change a tense, the speaker may change “run” to “ran,” or change the person from “he” to “she,” and so on.  These word changes achieved by precise control of the muscles used to produce speech.

    Thus, human speech is represented as the interplay between the mind, the mouth, and its related organs (represented in the figure by the tongue), two feedbacks systems, and conscious calibration as the speaker constructs each sentence. In addition, calibration continuously takes place within the control center — the mind.

    However, it acts on feedback from hearing and the proprioceptive senses. So calibration shown as acting on the source of the feedback.

    When children learn their mother tongue (First Acquired Language or L1). Their natural ability to hear and mimic adult speech builds complex proprioceptive response patterns.  A French-speaking child effortlessly learns to make nasal sounds.  An English speaking child learns to put his tongue between his teeth and make the “TH” sound.  A Chinese-speaking child learns to mimic the important tones which change the meaning of words.  Each of these unique sounds requires learned muscle control within the mouth.

    No apology needed for the intricacy of this explanation.  The neurological feedback and resulting control of the muscles involved in speech is extremely complex.  The mind plays a far more important role than simply remembering vocabulary and organizing words into meaningful sentences.

    When a new language being learned, all of its unique sounds and syntaxes must be studied.  This is not merely a memory function.  Each of these new sounds and syntax patterns requires retraining of the entire mind, proprioceptive feedback, and the auditory feedback chain involved in speech.

    The Even syntax is dependent on the proprioceptive sense.  The statement, “This is a book,” feels different to the nerve receptors in the mouth than the question, “Is this a book?” We can certainly understand that memory is involved in using correct grammar.  Just as important, however, is the observation that proprioceptive feedback demands that a question must evoke a different sequence of feedback than does a statement.  This is why partial syntax control has been identified in Table 1 as being a shared function of both the mind (memory) and the mouth (as a proprioceptive sense).

    If you doubt that the proprioceptive sense is an important part of speech, try this experiment.  Read a sentence or two of this article entirely in your mind without moving your lips.  You may even speed read it.  Now read the same sentences silently by moving your lips but making no sound.  Your mind responds to the first as simple information that is primarily a memory function. 

    However, your mind will respond to the latter as speech because of the proprioceptive feedback from your mouth.  The latter is not just cognitive — your mind will respond to it as speech that transcends mere mental activity.   Did you also notice a difference in your mental intensity between the two readings? The first would be the mental activity required of a student doing a written grammar-based assignment.  The second would be the mental activity required of a student studying a language using spoken exercises.  The effectiveness of language learning is in direct proportion to the student’s mental involvement.

    The best way to teach a second language:

    Two skill areas must emphasized while teaching an adult a new language.  The first is memory (which Involved in both vocabulary and syntax) and the second is the proprioceptive responses.

    Simple vocabulary-related memory skills may probably learned with equal effectiveness by using either verbal or visual training methods.  That is, they may learned either by a spoken drill or a written exercise.

    However, it is impossible to train the important proprioceptive sense without involving students’ hearing and voices at full speaking volume.  Thus, in my opinion, it is a waste of the students’ time to introduce written assignments for the purpose of teaching a spoken language.

    Surprisingly, it will take far less time for students to learn both fluent speech and excellent grammar by perfecting only spoken language first. Than it will to incorporate written grammar instruction into the lessons before a moderate level of fluency attained.  This does not mean, however, that grammar is not a necessary part of spoken language instruction.  It is impossible to speak a language without using its grammar correctly.  This statement simply means that the best way to learn a target language’s grammar is through spoken language exercises.  See Grammar and Writing in Spoken Language Study. 

    Inasmuch as spoken language involves multiple cognitive, muscle, and neurological components working cooperatively in real time. It is mandatory that effective spoken language methods train students to use all of these components of speech simultaneously.

    It is the important area of the proprioceptive sense that has been most overlooked in current grammar-based teaching methodology.  When any student over the age of 12 or so attempts to learn a new language, his or her proprioceptive response patterns must consciously retrained in order to reproduce all of the new sounds and syntaxes of that language.

    Further, to properly train the proprioceptive sense of the mouth, the combined feedback from the mouth and hearing must simultaneously processed in the   mind.  Simply said, the student must speak out loud for optimum language learning.

    Without the simultaneous involvement of all components of speech, it is impossible to effectively retrain the students’ proprioceptive senses to accommodate a new language.  Yet, this is exactly what grammar-based language instruction has traditionally done by introducing grammar, listening, writing, and reading as segregated activities.  It is not surprising that it takes students in a grammar-based program a long time to learn to speak their target language fluently.

    Grammar-based instruction has hindered language learning by segregating individual areas of study.  This segregation represented.  Grammar-based language training has not only isolated proprioceptive training areas so that it prevents simultaneous skill development, but it has replaced it instead with visual memory training through the use of written assignments.  Grammar-based language instruction teaches the target language as though spoken language was an open-loop system.  In so doing, gaining language fluency requires far more study time, pronunciation is often faulty, and grammar becomes more difficult to learn.

    Conclusion:

    Grammar-based language study traditionally teaches a spoken language as though speech is primarily a function of memory.  Consequently, grammar-based instruction has emphasized non-verbal (written) studies of grammar, writing, reading, and listening.  All of these activities may increase recall memory for written examinations, but they have little benefit in teaching a student to speak a new language.

    The only way an adult can effectively learn a new spoken language is by using spoken language as the method of instruction.  All lessons should be verbal, with the student speaking at full voice volume for the entire study period.

  • Learning Spoken Language for Rules

    Learning Spoken Language for Rules

    Discover the 4 essential rules for learning a spoken language effectively. From speaking exercises to cognitive learning, master the art of language acquisition.

    Learning Spoken Language for Rules

    Learning Spoken Language for Rules: Speak Loudly and Clearly. There are four simple rules to follow when learning a second language:

    To learn to speak the language correctly, you must speak it aloud:

    It is important that you speak loudly and clearly when you are learning your target language.  You must always use spoken exercises.  You are retraining your mind to respond to a new pattern of proprioceptive and auditory stimuli.  This can only be done when you are speaking aloud at full volume.

    One of the reasons that traditional language study methods require so much time to produce results is that silent study does nothing to train the proprioceptive sense.

    To learn to speak a language fluently, you must think in that language:

    The proprioceptive sense is not all you are retraining when you learn a new language.  There is cognitive learning which must also take place.  Traditional language teaching has emphasized cognitive learning to the exclusion of retraining the proprioceptive sense.  Nonetheless, cognitive learning is an important part of the language process.

    For speech to occur, the mind must be actively involved in syntax development.  The more actively the mind is involved, the more effective the learning process becomes. However, just as you will short-circuit proprioceptive training by silent study. So you will also limit cognitive learning if you simply read from a text rather than constructing the syntax yourself.  You must force your mind to think in the target language by using your recall memory when you are studying spoken exercises.

    This will discussed again in Selecting a Text because there will be times when reading from a text. Such as a newspaper is an effective language learning tool.  But when you are doing sentence responses using recorded exercises. You must force your mind to develop the syntax by doing the exercise without reading from a text; Learning Grammar.

    You are not thinking in your target language if you are reading a text.  Making your mind work to create the answer is an important part of learning to speak a new language.

    The more you speak the language aloud, the more quickly you will learn to speak fluently:

    Proprioceptive retraining is not instantaneous.  It will require many repetitions to build the new patterns in your mind.  As these new patterns develop, there will be a progression from a laborious, conscious effort, to speech which reproduced rapidly and unconsciously.

    When any of us speak our first language, we do so with no conscious awareness of tongue or mouth position and the air flow through the vocal cords.  In contrast, when we first attempt to make an unknown discrete sound — called a phoneme — in another language. It requires experimentation and conscious effort.  Some new sounds are relatively simple.  Others are more difficult.  A good nasal French “on” in bonjour will require some careful practice for the English-speaker, but it is within reach.  The six tones in Cantonese Chinese will be extremely difficult for the same English-speaker, and will undoubtedly require an immense amount of repetition in order to perfect their use. Do you learn How to Speak Fluently English in Week?

    To add to the complexity, each phoneme has other phonemes or stops adjacent to its which change its sound slightly.  (A stop is a break in the air flow.) The nasal “on” in “bonjour” is slightly different from the “on” in “mon frère.”  The objective is not to be able to write the letters representing the phoneme in the target language.  The goal is not even to be able to say it with reasonable accuracy. The objective for the English-speaker learning French is to be able to say, “Bonjour, mon frère,”. So perfectly that a Frenchman would think he had just been greeted by a compatriot.

    That degree of perfection will require thousands — if not tens of thousands — of repetitions.  Therefore — to be somewhat facetious — the more quickly you correctly repeat a particularly difficult phoneme ten thousand times, the more quickly you will be able to use it fluently.  That is what meant by the statement, “The more you speak the language aloud, the more quickly you will learn to speak fluently.”

    You must never make a mistake when you are speaking:

    When you are learning a language using this Feedback Training Method. You are strongly reinforcing the learning process each time you speak.  However, when you construct a sentence incorrectly, you have not only wasted the learning time used to construct your faulty sentence. But you must now invest even more time retraining your mind, mouth, and hearing so you can construct the sentence correctly.  The more you use a sentence structure incorrectly, the longer it will take for your mind, mouth, and be hearing to identify the correct syntax. Improve Your Spoken English How?

    Ideally, if you used only correct syntax and pronunciation, you could retrain your speech in considerably less time.  Consequently, you could learn to speak the target language more quickly.

    What is the 4 Essential Rules for Learning Spoken Language Effectively? Yet before you roll your eyes and declare this to be impossible, let’s look at a way in which it could actually done.  (Well, almost!)

    Traditional language study:

    Traditional language study attempts to engage students in free speech as quickly as possible.  Though the goal is commendable, in practice it has a serious drawback.  A beginning student does not have enough language experience to be able to construct sentences properly.  More to the point, the instruction program seldom has enough personnel to be able to work with individual students so as to help them correct their errors.  Consequently, beginning students regularly use incorrect sentences having improper syntax and verb construction.  The instructor often praises them for their valiant effort. Despite the reality that they are learning to use the language incorrectly.  The student will now need to spend even more time relearning the correct syntax.

    Controlled language study:

    The better alternative is to derive all initial spoken language study from audio recorded (or written) materials that contain perfect syntax, perfect use of the verb, and perfect pronunciation.  This sounds restrictive, but, in fact, it could done relatively easily.

    Say, for example, that during the first four weeks of instruction, beginning students worked only from recorded exercises.  They would repeat the recorded lesson material that was accurate in every respect.  As an alternative, they could read aloud from a written text.  The disadvantage of the text, however, would be that the mind would be considerably less active, and a pronunciation model would be absent.  For the entire instruction period, each student would work independently while repeating the exercise lessons. What Common Mistakes to Avoid for Beginners?.

    Needless to say, in four weeks’ time, the students would have spoken the new language correctly far more than had they been somewhat passively sitting in a traditional language class.  But more to the point, everything the students would have learned would have been correct.  Their syntax would have been correct.  Their use of verbs would have been correct.  And, as much as possible, their pronunciation would have been correct.

    To continue the example, say that it was now time for the students to begin venturing into free speech.  Yet mistakes must still avoided.  Consequently, all free speaking would be based upon the many sentences they would have already learned.  Questions would be asked that the students could answer in the exact words of the sentences they would have studied.  Subsequently, they would be given questions to answer that would use the same structure as the sentences they already knew. But now they would substitute other vocabularies that would be in the same lessons.  

    Making the application:

    The assumption in this book is that you are a college student or a young professional and that you highly motivated to learn your target language.

    The above illustration was not given to suggest that you should be treated like a high school freshman, forced to sit at a desk by yourself, repeating sentences in Japanese, Swahili, or Gujarati.  Nonetheless, you should be able to see what is being said.  As you read through this book, you will see the repeated suggestion that you take a high degree of control of your language learning, irrespective of whether you are in an established language school or developing your own language study program.  You will do much better if you seek out ways in which you can speak the language correctly from the very start.  Strike a careful balance between venturing out into the unknown and forcing yourself to follow a pattern of correct language use.  Do everything in your power to use the language correctly.

    In the early weeks of language study, this may require that you spend more time reading simple material aloud than in trying to engage in free speech.  Later, however, you will need to spend a great deal of time talking with others.

    Nonetheless, every time you encounter new syntax in your target language, use controlled language drills long enough that your mind becomes thoroughly familiar with it.  As you progress in the language, searching a newspaper article for examples of the new sentence format can reinforce correct syntax.  Mark the sentences, verify the vocabulary, and then read — and repeat from recall memory — the sentences aloud until they become a natural part of your speech.

  • Learning Grammar: The Key to Language Acquisition

    Learning Grammar: The Key to Language Acquisition

    Achieve language fluency by mastering and learning grammar. Discover the importance of comprehensible input, communication, and focused grammatical learning.

    Learning Grammar: The Key to Language Acquisition

    I suggest that you will acquire language best when you study in such a way that you 1) listen to large amounts of comprehensible input, 2) have opportunities to use the target language to communicate with others, and 3) support your learning with some grammatical learning (focused on making input comprehensible and developing awareness).

    In days old, teachers and students spent countless hours talking about grammar. Often these students had a lot of knowledge about the language, but little ability to use it. In recent times, some teachers (mostly in the west) have claimed that grammar teaching is useless. Grammar will learned naturally through listening to comprehensible input and interacting with others. Often students taught in this way can communicate very well, but often do not speak accurately. What is the right way to study grammar?

    I believe grammar study should focus on two areas: 1) making input comprehensible and 2) developing awareness to help the learner notice the grammar of the input.

    First, a little knowledge of grammar can make input a lot more comprehensible. For example, when I studied Chinese, I had great difficulty with the passive voice. When I first heard it in a listening passage, I had no idea what the sentence meant. It was completely incomprehensible to me, and therefore simply noise. Now, if I listened to hours of input, I might have been able to eventually learn the passive voice. But that is too long and difficult. Instead, the textbook gave me a little information on passive voice sentences using “BA” and “BEI”. After reading the explanation, I could comprehend these sentences. A little knowledge of the grammar made the input comprehensible. I went on to learn the passive voice very well and much quicker than if I had not studied any grammar.

    Second, when learners are concerned only with communicating their meaning, they often do not need to be grammatically accurate in order to accomplish their goals. For the passive voice, I needed to know the grammar in order to understand what was being said. But for other aspects of language, this is not the case. For example, in English, subject-verb agreement is completely unnecessary to comprehend the meaning of the sentence. Thus, because a student can subconsciously ignore the grammar, he may not learn to speak accurately. This phenomenon called “fossilization.” Fossilization is when a student, though he may speak fluently, continues to make the same mistakes over and over again even though he has heard the correct way to say them a thousand times.

    Some scholars believe that when students learn about grammar, this knowledge can help them “notice” (pay attention to) not only the meaning of the input but also its grammatical form. Even though they might not yet speak the form correctly; if they are aware of the correct form, they can then “notice” it in the input. Eventually, after “noticing” a grammatical feature enough, they will use it correctly.

    Although unable to test this idea of noticing directly, I wondered if there was a difference between successful and non-successful students in the amount of time they spent studying grammar.

    Question: On an average DAY of study, how much time did you spend studying English GRAMMAR?A: 0 hours B: Less than 1 hourC: 1 hour or more
    Successful Learners;24.24 %66.67 %9.09 %
    Non-successful Learners;36.36 %30.30 %33.33 %

    Apparently, successful learners claim to spend more time each day listening to English than studying grammar. Therefore, a reasonable inference is that the majority of successful language learners in this study use grammar in a subordinate role; their primary focus is on communication, using English as a tool to receive and send messages.

    Accordingly, if the goal is to improve your spoken English, you would do well not to let the memorization of grammatical rules and such activities dominate your English study. Rather, make listening and using the target language the focus of your study. I recommend studying grammar for the following reasons: 1) to make input comprehensible and 2) to develop awareness to help the learner notice the form of input and their own output. This may help you eventually internalize these grammatical rules rather than storing them up in your short-term memory where they will quickly forgotten after the test.

    Remember, the advice for studying grammar here designed to help you improve the accuracy of your spoken English. You may need to study grammar in additional ways to prepare for certain exams or writing projects.

    How to Learn English Grammar Effectively

    Improving your English grammar is essential for effective communication. Here are some steps to help you enhance your grammar skills:

    1. Understand the Basics

    Before diving into complex grammar, ensure a strong grasp of the fundamentals:

    • Parts of Speech: Familiarize yourself with nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections.
    • Sentence Structure: Learn the standard structure of English sentences – subject, verb, and object.
    • Tenses: Understand the various tenses – present, past, and future; and their different forms like simple, continuous, perfect, and perfect continuous.

    2. Use Grammar Books and Resources

    Invest in reliable grammar books or online resources:

    3. Practice Regularly

    Consistency is key to mastering grammar:

    4. Read Extensively

    Reading various English materials helps you see grammar in use. Pay attention to how sentences are constructed and note different grammatical rules.

    5. Listen and Watch

    Exposure to spoken English through podcasts, audiobooks, movies, and TV shows allows you to hear correct grammar usage. Try to imitate the sentence structures and grammar you hear.

    6. Learn from Mistakes

    Use feedback from teachers, friends, or grammar-checking tools to identify and correct your mistakes. Learning from errors is a crucial part of improving.

    7. Join a Study Group or Class

    Being part of a study group or taking a grammar class can provide motivation and diverse perspectives. Participate in discussions and share learning experiences.

    8. Use Grammar Apps and Tools

    Leverage technology to aid your grammar improvement:

    • Grammarly: An AI tool that provides grammar, syntax, and style suggestions.
    • Duolingo: Offers grammar lessons integrated into language learning.
    • Quizlet: Allows for the creation and use of flashcards to study grammar rules.

    9. Set Specific Goals

    Set realistic and achievable goals focused on different grammar aspects. For example, work on mastering the use of past tenses over a set period.

    10. Stay Patient and Persevere

    Improvement takes time and persistent effort. Stay committed to practicing and don’t get discouraged by slow progress.

    Tips for Grammar Study

    • Study Grammar to Improve Comprehension: Understanding grammar helps you better comprehend written and spoken English.
    • Use Grammar to Notice Features in Input: Being aware of grammar helps you recognize it in different contexts, aiding natural learning.
    • Be Patient with Application: Over time, consistent practice will make the correct use of grammar feel more natural.

    By following these steps and tips, you can steadily improve your English grammar and become more confident in using the language. Happy learning!

  • Role of Communication in Developing Language Skills

    Role of Communication in Developing Language Skills

    The essay explains the Role of Communication; I suggest that you will acquire language best when you study in such a way that you 1) listen to large amounts of comprehensible input, 2) have opportunities to use the target language to communicate with others, and 3) support your learning with some grammatical learning (focused on making input comprehensible and developing awareness).

    Here is the essay to explain better Understand the Role of Communication.

    Listening to English will help everything. Listening will build your vocabulary, improve your grammar, and even help your speaking. In fact, there are some who believe that listening to comprehensible input alone is sufficient to develop complete oral proficiency, as mentioned before.

    However, though that may be possible, I do not think it is likely. On the contrary, I believe that using the target language (English) to communicate with another person greatly helps students acquire the English language. This belief is confirmed by the results of my survey.

    Question: In an average WEEK of study, how much time did you spend using English to communicate with a NATIVE SPEAKER OF ENGLISH (For  example; A foreign teacher or friend)1 hour or less More than 1 hour
    Successful Learners;39.39 %60.61 %
    Non-successful Learners;84.85 %12.12 %

    Results of the Survey:

    The results of the survey show that a student is more likely to be successful if they spends at least 1 hour or more each week using English to communicate with a native speaker of English.

    However, this information is not new for most Chinese EFL learners. They are aware that communicating with a native English speaker will benefit their English acquisition. The problem with most students is that they either 1) do not have opportunities to communicate with a native English speaker or 2) do not have the confidence to do so. I will address these issues later.

    Why is Communication Helpful?

    Many scholars believe that interaction, the act of communicating with another person, plays a significant part in second language learning. First, Michael Long believes comprehensible input is of great value but believes it is best received through interaction. This is because when a fluent speaker and a less fluent speaker interact, they enter into a negotiation of meaning.

    As they use the situational context, repetitions, and clarifications to maximize comprehension, the more likely the learner will receive input just beyond his present competency, the I + 1 input (Ellis 1997, 47; Mitchell 1998, 128-129). This process is also described in terms of Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal.

    Development. The learner collaborates with the fluent speaker to scaffold (utilize discourse, context, or comprehension checks) to produce utterances he would not be able to produce on his own. Thus, learning (and input) takes place at the Zone of Proximal Development, the place in between what the learner could do independently and what he could not do even with help (Ellis 1997, p48).

    Very Helpful:

    While Long focuses on the value of the input gained through interaction, Merrill Swain (Ellis 1997) points out several benefits of learner output (speaking) in interaction.

    • First, with comprehensible input, meaning can often be attained without paying attention to the grammar of the input. She maintains output can help students notice a gap between what they say and what they hear; thereby raising their consciousness that some of their grammar is not correct.
    • Second, the output provides learners with an incentive to formulate and opportunities to test hypotheses. They can apply a rule to an utterance to see if it leads to successful communication or elicits negative feedback.
    • Finally, learners often reflect on their own output, discussing problems, and potential solutions.

    Many scholars agree that interaction, using the target language to communicate with another person, is beneficial for a variety of reasons.

    Who Will, I Speak with Communication?

    If you are fortunate enough to have the opportunity to speak with a native speaker on a regular basis, please grasp it. But unfortunately, many students do not have this opportunity. Whom will they speak with?

    Aren’t there highly fluent non-native speakers for them to speak with? Such as a Chinese friend who studied abroad, a relative who lives in Australia, or a Japanese or Korean business person who speaks excellent English? Or more importantly, what about fellow Chinese students?

    What we get:

    Asked students how much time they spent each week using English to communicate with highly fluent non-native speakers or their classmates. 

    Question: In an average WEEK of study, how much time did you spend using English to communicate with a HIGHLY FLUENT SPEAKER OF ENGLISH

    though they is NOT a native speaker of English (For example; A Chinese English teacher with great spoken English)?


    		A 0 hoursB 1 hour or less C More than 1 an hour but less than 3 hours D More than 3 hours but less than 6 hours E More than 6 hours
    Successful Learners;42.42%18.18%30.30 %3.03 %3.03 %
    Non-successful Learners; 

    42.42%

    		 

    48.48%

    		 

    9.09 %

    		 

    0 %

    		 

    0 %

    Question: In an average WEEK of study, how much time did you spend using English to communicate with FELLOW STUDENTS who are learning English (For example; a classmate or an older student)?A 0 hoursB 1 hour or less C More than 1 an hour but less than 3 hours D More than 3 hours but less than 6 hours E More than 6 hours
    Successful Learners;24.24%42.42%21.21 %12.12 %0 %
    Non-successful Learners; 

    24.24%

    		 

    48.48%

    		 

    27.27 %

    		 

    0 %

    		 

    0 %

    It seems there are more opportunities to use English than just with native speakers. Yet Chinese students do not seem to be taking advantage of them. This is a shame because most students cannot afford to be silent while waiting for opportunities to communicate with a native speaker. There simply are not enough foreigners in China to give every student such chances. Students, instead, must do what they can.

    Finding Opportunities to Interact with Communication:

    Here are some ways to practice your English that does not require you to speak with a foreigner:

    Speak with Fellow English Language Learners:

    I do not know why so many students do not speak English with their classmates. Most foreign teachers have students practice with each other in class. So why would one not speak with a classmate because he would rather wait for a foreigner?

    For when he does get a foreign teacher, the teacher will instruct him to speak with his classmates. I understand students are afraid of listening to poor English and acquiring bad habits. But remember, if you are listening to comprehensible input diligently on cassettes or TV programs, you will still be hearing native speakers every day.

    In this case, the benefits surely outweigh the dangers. In China, I knew of a class of students that would often have an “English Day.” A day when they would only speak to each other in English. This type of activity can be fun and helpful.

    Speak with Non-Native Speakers Who Speak English Well:

    There are many Chinese, Japanese, and Korean teachers and business people who speak English well. Perhaps they can speak to you. Besides, if you get a job that requires you to conduct international business, you will not just be speaking with native English speakers. Many business deals all over the world are conducted in English, even though English may not be the mother tongue of any person at the meeting.

    Therefore, speaking English with non-native speakers will not only help you acquire English but also will prepare you for international business communication; Also viewing “Common Mistakes to Avoid for Beginners”. It’s more strong your communication skill.

    Speak Over the Phone:

    Many Chinese friends I know have relatives living in English speaking countries that speak English very well. Perhaps you can speak to them in English over the phone. Speaking a foreign language over the phone is not easy, but can be very helpful. My sister speaks Spanish very well. I called her on the phone 2-3 times a week to practice my Spanish with her. I improved a lot from this.

    Read Out loud:

    This is not nearly as helpful as a true communication essay with another person. However, it can help you develop oral fluency and confidence.

    Strategies for Communication:

    • Do not be afraid of making mistakes. Mistakes are normal.
    • Realize you will not always be understood. When you are not understood, you may use the following strategies: 1) repeat yourself, 2) use gestures (hand movements and body language), 3) say the same thing in a different way, 4) use examples, and 5) give definitions or synonyms for words.
    • Realize you will not always understand what another person is saying. When you do not understand, you may use the following strategies: 1) Make guesses about what is being said. 2) Check these guesses by asking questions. 3) Check your understanding by restating what you think the person means. (i.e. Do you mean…?) (Amato 1996).

    Saving Face:

    Perhaps you know you should speak English in one of the above ways, but you do not dare because you are afraid of “losing face.” This is a big problem. In fact, I asked students the following question about-face. The results are not surprising; How to Improve Your Spoken English with Communication.

    Question: Which of the following statements best describes you?A; I am not afraid of losing face. Speaking English with foreigners is no problem.  B; I am afraid of losing face, but I know I need to practice to get better. So I force myself to speak English with others.  C; I am afraid of losing face. So many times I avoid speaking English.  D; My spoken English is so poor I dare not speak out. 
    Successful Learners;48.48 %39.39 %12.12 %0 %
    Non-successful Learners; 

    15.15 %

    		 

    33.33 %

    		 

    36.36 %

    		 

    15.15 %

    If we combine the results, they give us a better understanding of what is happening.
    Question: Which of the following statements best describes you?A & B 

    [Students who speak without or in spite of the fear of losing face.]

    		C & D

    [Students who avoid speaking because they fear losing  face.]

    Successful Learners;87.88 %12.12 %
    Non-successful Learners;48.48 %51.52 %

    These results are disturbing. Apparently, 51.52 % of non-successful students are avoiding opportunities to communicate in English for fear of losing face. In contrast, only 12.12% of successful learners avoid speaking in English. The results strongly suggest that if you want to speak English well, you must overcome your fear of losing face and begin speaking English with others.

    Communication is helpful for your English “How to Speak Fluently English in Week”.

    I have always found this ironic. Students attempt to save face by hiding their poor English skills, while this prevents them from gaining face by improving these skills. Which is better? To save face by hiding your mistakes? Or to gain a lot of face by improving your English skills, even though you may lose a little face along the way? The answer is obvious. The honorable thing to do is overcome your fear!

  • Comprehensible Input

    Comprehensible Input

    Improve your language skills with comprehensible input. Learn how to speak English fluently and understand complex language structures.

    Comprehensible Input:

    A suggest that you will acquire language best when you study in such a way that you 1) listen to large amounts of comprehensible input, 2) have opportunities to use the target language to communicate with others, and 3) support your learning with some grammatical learning (focused on making input comprehensible and developing awareness). The Way you want Improve Your Spoken English and  better understanding How to Speak Fluently English in Week.

    A Brief History of Linguistic Theory:

    For much of the 20th century in the West, language researchers thought that children learned the language simply by forming habits, by imitating what was heard. In response to this, Noam Chomsky declared that language was too complex to be learned simply through imitation. Furthermore, if children were simply imitating what they heard, how could researchers explain the mistakes of children? It appeared that children were making mistakes because they were applying “rules” where they did not belong, producing speech like “you hurt me.” A phrase they would never hear in their environment.

    Apparently, children did not simply imitate speech but were actively constructing “rules” in their mind from the input they received to govern their speech. More importantly, they did not receive enough information about language in their environment to give them all the knowledge they needed to know the things that they knew about language. How could children do this? Chomsky hypothesized that humans are born with a “language acquisition device.” This device is a part of the brain designed specifically for language acquisition and is separate from its other parts. He believed all that was needed to get this device to start working, was input, exposure to the language.

    Later, researchers began noticing that second language learners also produced language that contained mistakes, yet these mistakes were not arbitrary but governed by “rules.” However, these “rules” could neither simply be attributed to the influence of the native language nor the target language. Researchers refer to this system of rules as “interlanguage.” This interlanguage is transitional. As learners grow in the language, their interlanguage system becomes more and more similar to the target language. In other words, as they make progress their language becomes more and more correct. This “series of interim systems that a learner constructs in the process of acquiring an L2 [second language]” is called the “interlanguage continuum”.

    Listening:

    Stephen Krashen (1985) proposed the Input Hypothesis. The Input Hypothesis claims that learners make progress in English acquisition through exposure to comprehensible input. Comprehensible input is defined as “understanding input that contains structures at our next ‘stage’ – structures that are a bit beyond our current level of competence”.

    This is often designated with the equation “i + 1”. The “i” represents the learner’s current competence in the second language; the “+ 1” symbolizes the features of the input that are beyond the learner’s competence, and which he is developmentally ready to acquire. Accordingly, input that is either too simple or complex will not help a learner make progress in spoken English.

    To explore this, asked the following questions with the following results: 

    Question: On an average day of study, how much time did you spend LISTENING to spoken English?Less than 1 hour  1 hour or more
    Successful Learners 36.36 %63.64 %
    Non-Successful Learners 81.81 %18.18 %

    The results are clear. The great majority of successful English language learners in this study 1) listen to English for 1 hour or more and 2) listen to the right kind of input, input where they can understand the main idea but not some parts. There are many aspects of the full Input Hypothesis that are seriously questionable. Nevertheless, I believe it is safe to claim that exposure to comprehensible input greatly benefits the language learner.

    On the other hand, 57.58 % of non-successful learners are listening to this same type of input. Why are they still poor speakers? Most likely, the amount of time spent listening to this kind of input is insufficient to achieve a higher level of proficiency, as indicated by the previous question. Finally, 42.42% of non-successful students are not only spending too little time listening, the time they do spend is not much use because the input is too difficult for them to comprehend.

    Gaining Access to Comprehensible Input:

    Perhaps you are convinced that comprehensible input is indeed important, but you think “How can I gain access to comprehensible input?” There are many things you can do.

    1. The Internet:

    The internet can be a rich source of free input. The following websites loaded with input:

    • Randall’s ESL Listening Lab – http://www.esllab.com/index.htm. This website has short passages, grouped by level (easy, medium, and difficult). It has pre-listening warmups and questions to quiz your comprehension.
    • The English Listening Lounge – http://www.englishlistening.com/. This website also has short passages grouped according to difficulty with comprehension questions. However, only a few passages are available for free. To get full access, you must pay $20 dollars a month.
    • Brian Teaman’s Virtual University – http://home.hiroshima-u.ac.jp/~teaman/vu/index-e.html. This website is really cool. It has video interviews with English-speaking people from all over the world. It is full of vocabulary, comprehension questions, and more.
    • Story Archives – http://literacynet.org/cnnsf/archives.html. This website has many news stories. Perhaps more appropriate for high-intermediate or advanced students. It has audio and video options. Contains both vocabulary and comprehension questions.
    • Arlyn Freed’s ESL/EFL Listening Resources – http://www.eslhome.com/esl/listen/#nonauthentic. This website does not contain listening resources but provides information about several websites that contain listening resources. Some designed for EFL students and some are not.

    2. Radio:

    Many students in my study, both successful and non-successful speakers, listened to radio broadcasts, such as the VOA (Voice of America). This can be a good thing, especially for very advanced students, but one must be careful. The stories on the VOA are often very difficult; and since they are on the radio, you only get to hear them once. Most students will not comprehend enough of each story for this activity to be helpful. Of course, one can still listen to the VOA, but it should not be the primary source of listening input.

    3. TV/Movies:

    Many students also watch English TV and movies. Sometimes these are better than radio because they contain pictures. Pictures are helpful because they can help make the input more comprehensible. The problem with TV and movies is that they often long and difficult, so that you may lose concentration and comprehend little of what said. Perhaps the best way to view TV shows and movies are to view them in short periods.

    With friends, you can predict what you think will happen, then watch the segment, and finally discuss it. You can watch the segment again and again. Also, if you have a transcript of the program, you can read it to check your comprehension.  Also, you must not simply read the Chinese subtitles while trying to comprehend spoken English in movies. If you do, most likely you will ignore the English input and severely weaken the benefits of the activity.

    4. Wild English:

    Many students also listen to wild English. These are great short segments of language concerning topics that many students interested in. The great thing is that you can listen to the passages as many times as you need to. Plus, the transcript is available with English grammar tips.

    5. Purchased Materials:

    Perhaps some of the greatest (but also most expensive) forms of comprehensible input are instructional books with cassettes/CDs. For example, when I first came to China, I did not even know how to count to ten in Chinese. Soon, however, I bought Chinese for Beginners with the accompanying listening book and cassettes from the Beijing University and Cultural Press. These materials are wonderful. They provided me with vocabulary and grammar support to understand the reading and listening passages.

    For one lesson, the same vocabulary, and grammatical features would reinforced through several different listening passages about a similar topic, such as “going to dinner” or “Chinese history.” Then the next lesson would build on this knowledge and introduce new vocabulary and grammatical features while reinforcing the old ones. I studied my book, listened to the cassettes, and answered the questions every day and made great progress in the Chinese language. My progress was greater than many foreigners in China. However, I would not have progressed nearly as far if I did not have these materials. If I only watched TV or listened to stories on the internet, I do not believe I would now speak Chinese as well as I do.

    6. A Word of Caution:

    All of these: radio, TV, movies, and wild English, can be wonderful sources of comprehensible input. However, you must keep in mind your level and what comprehensible input truly is. If you find yourself simply hearing sounds and not comprehending the main idea of the passages, then you’re listening to practice is not helping you as much as it should. You can still engage in these activities, but you need to use more strategies to help you understand what you hear. Perhaps you need to look new vocabulary up in the dictionary or listen to shorter sections of the passage.

    The bottom line is that if you are not comprehending the main idea of your input, you either need to employ more strategies (i.e. dictionary, repetition, shorten the length, etc.) to make it comprehensible or find different, simpler sources of input.

    Strategies for Understandable:

    Strategies are helpful for comprehending a listening passage. Listening is part of Improve Your Spoken English; When you are listening, try the following:

    Before Listening:

    1. Look at the title of the passage and any pictures.
    2. Ask yourself questions: What do you know about this topic? What do you think this passage will be about? What information do you hope this passage will tell you?

    During Listening:

    1. Focus your attention on what is being said.
    2. Listen to the main idea.
    3. Listen for key words and ideas.
    4. Relate what you hear to what you already know. (Amato, 1996, p55)

    After Listening:

    1. Ask yourself: a) Did the passage match my guess? b) What did I learn from this passage? c) Summarize the main idea of this passage in 1-2 sentences.
    2. Write down any new words you feel are important.
  • Improve Your Spoken English

    Improve Your Spoken English

    Looking to improve your spoken English? This book is your ultimate guide to developing fluency and confidence in your communication.

    Improve Your Spoken English: 

    Every college student in China seems to be studying English. I see them listening to radio programs on their dormitory bed, studying the dictionary in the back of the classroom, and completing grammar exercises in the cafeteria; “This article Written by F.J. Noonan“. Now start how to Improve Your Spoken English by him.

    These same students come and ask the same question to teacher:

    “Teacher . . . my spoken English is very poor. How to improve my spoken English?”

    This short book is my answer to their question. This book will reference modern research, but it is not a book for scholars. This book will contain information that will benefit English teachers, but it is not a book for teachers. This is a book for you, the student.

    In my reading, much of the literature concerning language acquisition theory and research are designed for teachers. This is great for teachers. And I’m sure many students have benefited from this if their teachers have read them. However, I believe students should not be dependent solely on the ability of the teacher. I desire to give knowledge to the students themselves so that you will be empowered to take charge of your own learning.

    This knowledge is not given so that you can criticize your teachers. No matter who your teacher is; no matter what he does in the classroom, you can learn from him. My hope is that you will eagerly learn from whatever type of instruction you receive in the classroom, and then use this knowledge to guide your self-study efforts outside of the classroom.

    Improve Your Aptitude:

    First, let me be frank. There is no magic formula to becoming a fluent speaker of any language. One of the reasons this is so is that each individual is unique. Students learn differently. Moreover, just as some students are better at basketball or math than other students, some students are better at studying foreign languages than other students. One’s natural ability to learn another language is called language aptitude. The higher your language aptitude; the easier it will be for you to learn a foreign language. The lower your language aptitude; the harder it will be. However, no matter what your language aptitude, everyone is able to make progress.

    Improve Your Motivation:

    Motivation. The reason why we study. Though researchers describe numerous subtleties, two types of motivation reoccur throughout the literature: instrumental and integrative motivation. Instrumental motivation is one in which the learner desires to use the language as a tool to achieve some desirable ends. In contrast, an integrative motivation is one in which “learners may choose to learn a particular L2 because they are interested in the people and culture represented by the target-language group” (Ellis, 1997, p75). In various contexts, both motivations have proved important. Of course, students can have both types of motivation at the same time.

    Many students in China have a weak instrumental motivation for studying English. They just want to pass the CET-4 so they can get their bachelor’s degree. Others have a strong instrumental motivation. They study because they want to acquire a good job or study abroad. Some study English for integrative reasons. They simply enjoy it and want to make new friends. I recently conducted a survey among 33 successful and 33 non-successful English language learners in China. It produced the following results:

    Question: What best describes your motivation for learning English?Weak Instrumental (pass test)Strong  Instrumental (get job, study abroad)Integrative (make new friends, enjoyment)
    Successful Learners 9.09 %24.24 %54.54 %
    Non-successful Learners 42.42 %39.39 %6.06 %

    [12.12% of both successful and non-successful learners claimed they studied for “no reason”.]

    Debate surrounds the question of whether success is the result of one’s motivation or one’s motivation is the result of success. Nevertheless, these results are suggestive. Students who study only for the sake of passing a test are highly unlikely to be successful. Strong instrumental motivations are better. In this study, however, it appears that students with an integrative motivation are most likely to be successful.

    As one student responded, “If you learn English but cannot speak it fluently, you are like a blind being on the street. You [will] lose many precious opportunities to enjoy the beauty of this world. You are kept inside a dark box. But if you speak [English] well, you will learn about culture, people, and life. You feel your life colorful and meaningful. You are not isolated.”

    Before you finish the rest of this book, you ought to ask yourself, “Why am I learning English?” If you are only learning so that you can pass some test, you might as well stop here. First, you must realize that English is a key that unlocks doors to opportunities. Opportunities for jobs, travel, new friends, and much more!

    Improve Your More Than Diligence:

    Everyone believes that one must be diligent to learn English well. However, in my research, I found that the diligence of the student is not as great a factor as one would expect. In fact, there was little difference between the diligence (according to their own perceptions) of successful and non-successful English students, as shown in the following chart.

    Question: How would you describe your diligence in studying English?  A: Extremely diligent – I followed my a study plans all of the time.B: Very Diligent – I followed my a study plan most of the time.C: Sometimes diligent – I  followed my study plans sometimes, but often I was too busy with other things.D: Not Diligent – I only studied when I wanted to and wasn’t busy with something else.
    Successful Learners 9.09 %33.33 %42.42 %15.15 %
    Non-successful Learners 6.06 %30.30 %51.51 %15.38 %

    Possibly many of the successful learners actually were more diligent than the non-successful learners. But this at least shows that whether or not learners feel they are diligent or not is of little consequence to the success of their English study. 36.36 % of the non-successful learners feel they have studied extremely or very diligently for two years or more but still speak English poorly. In contrast, 57.58 % of successful learners described themselves as only sometimes diligent or not diligent at all, yet they speak English very well. Why do some very diligent students speak English poorly, while other un-diligent students speak English well?

    Perhaps the story of Yu Gong, the foolish old man who moved the mountain, illustrates the point. English is your mountain. If you want to learn English well, you should have Yu Gong spirit, diligence. But there is another side to this story. According to the story, an angel has mercy on Yu Gong and moves the mountain for him. How we all wish an English angel would come down and give us the gift of English fluency!

    However, this is just a fable. Left to his own method, Yu Gong would not have lived to see his mountain moved. His children’s children would have had to work continually to reach the goal. It simply would have taken too long. Though Yu Gong possessed diligence, he lacked wisdom. If he had simply moved his house, he would have accomplished his goal much sooner and spared his family a lot of unnecessary hardship.

    The same is true for learning English. It is not sufficient simply to study a lot, one must study the right way. If one wants to learn English well, he must have the Foolish Man’s spirit, but the Wise Man’s method.

    How to Improve Your Spoken English: Tips and Guides

    Immerse Yourself in English

    One of the most effective ways to improve your spoken English is through immersion. Also, This means surrounding yourself with the English language as much as possible. Here’s how:

    • Watch Movies and TV Shows: Choose English-language movies and TV shows, and pay attention to pronunciation, intonation, and colloquial expressions. Subtitles can help you better understand the dialogues.
    • Listen to Podcasts and Radio: English podcasts and radio programs are excellent for developing listening skills. Also, Choose topics that interest you to make the experience enjoyable.
    • Read Aloud: Reading English books, articles, or even social media posts aloud helps improve your pronunciation and fluency.

    Practice Speaking Regularly

    Regular practice is key to improving spoken English:

    • Language Exchange Partnerships: Find a language buddy who wants to learn your native language. You can help each other practice by having conversations in both languages.
    • Join English Speaking Clubs: Look for local or online English-speaking clubs where you can practice speaking with others.
    • Use Language Learning Apps: Apps like Duolingo, Tandem, or HelloTalk provide platforms to practice speaking with native speakers.

    Focus on Pronunciation and Accent

    Accurate pronunciation is essential for effective communication:

    • Phonetic Exercises: Use phonetic charts and exercises to practice the sounds of English. Websites like the BBC Learning English provide resources for this.
    • Mimic Native Speakers: Listen to native speakers and try to mimic their pronunciation and intonation. Tools like YouTube can be very helpful for this.
    • Record Yourself: Recording your speech and listening to it can help you identify areas for improvement.

    Expand Your Vocabulary

    A broad vocabulary allows you to express yourself more clearly:

    • Learn New Words Daily: Commit to learning a few new words every day, and try to use them in sentences.
    • Use Flashcards: Flashcards can help reinforce your memory of new words.
    • Read Extensively: Reading widely exposes you to new vocabulary in context.

    Enhance Your Understanding of Grammar

    While it’s essential to practice speaking, having a good grasp of grammar helps improve clarity and correctness:

    • Study Grammar Rules: Review basic grammar rules and focus on common mistakes made by English learners.
    • Practice Writing: Writing in English can help reinforce grammar rules and improve overall language skills.
    • Get Feedback: Have native speakers or teachers correct your grammar mistakes to avoid repeating them.

    Build Confidence

    Confidence plays a significant role in your language learning journey:

    • Set Realistic Goals: Set achievable milestones and celebrate your successes, no matter how small.
    • Stay Positive: Remember that making mistakes is a part of learning. Do not be too hard on yourself.
    • Engage in Public Speaking: Join clubs like Toastmasters to practice speaking in front of an audience and boost your confidence.

    Use English in Daily Life

    Make English a part of your everyday activities:

    • Think in English: Train your brain to think in English rather than translating from your native language.
    • Label Your Environment: Label items around your house in English to help you learn new vocabulary.
    • Write a Journal: Keep a daily journal in English to practice writing and organizing your thoughts.

    By following these tips and consistently practicing, you’ll find that your spoken English improves significantly over time. Remember, the journey to fluency requires patience, persistence, and practice. Good luck!

    The rest of this book will help you develop a wise man’s method. I suggest that you will acquire language best when you study in such a way that you; 1. listen to large amounts of comprehensible input, 2. have opportunities to use the target language to communicate with others, and 3. support your learning with some grammatical learning (focused on making input comprehensible and developing awareness).

  • Speak Fluently English Week

    Speak Fluently English Week

    Want to speak English fluently week? This guide will show you how to achieve basic fluency in just one week through practice and hard work.

    How to Speak Fluently English in Week? 

    Now you may be thinking that learning English during the week is impossible…but with some hard work and practice, you can. This guide is your bible to learning how to speak and understand “basic” phrases so that you can carry out a conversation. This guide will not make you sufficient in every area of the English language. This takes a lot of practice. But if you follow the exercises contained within this book, you will be on your way to basic fluency!

    “This is a beginner’s guide and is not meant to teach you advanced conversational techniques.”

    English was brought to Britain from Germany and Netherlands. It originated from West Germanic Language and the Anglo-Frisian dialect. It has gone through various phases of evolution. There is the huge difference between Old English, Middle English, and Modern English. Middle English came about after the invasion of the German and the Norman’s.

    The language you are about to learn has a lot of German, Greek, Latin, Spanish, Hindi, French and Old Norse, just to name a few. It is a mix of languages. A huge number of words have originated from Greek and Latin. This eBook is based on the assumption that you are an intermediate learner and can read English. You are here because you have been trying to learn the language but cannot speak it well, or understand English speakers properly. I shall explain the fundamental principles governing the language and point out the common mistake that you should avoid. The end of each chapter will have an action you shall perform.

    Learning English involves listening, speaking, reading and writing. There are four components essential to learning English.

    Phonetics:

    Phonetics is a branch related to sound. Phonology is a branch related to the systematic organization of sounds in the English language. A phoneme is the smallest unit making up a language. The English language consists of 41 phonemes. Phonemes combine to make up words and syllables. According to Wikipedia, a phoneme can be described as “The smallest contrastive linguistic unit that may bring about a change of meaning”. Phonics is the method of teaching people to recognize different sounds.

    Reading Fluency:

    Fluency is the ability to read and speak without stopping. This means not looking at each word and trying to figure out how to read it. It should be accurate and precise.

    Vocabulary Development:

    Vocabulary is the body of words in any language. It is also the individual knowledge of words and their meanings and pronunciations. It is important to develop your vocabulary skills while learning a language. Of course, you are not expected to go through a dictionary in one day; it is a slow process.

    Oral Skills:

    Oral skills are is your ability to speak a language fluently. This requires correct pronunciations and the use of Grammar. Without development oral skills, learning a language would be utterly useless.

    “Speak Fluently English A Week? How to Learn”

    Nine Simple Method:

    English is a beautiful language. In fact, any language you decide to learn is a beautiful one. However, learning a brand new language is not always easy. Lucky for you, English is not considered to be the most difficult language! Now, if you decided to learn Chinese that would take some time. With around 430 million people around the world speaking English and these are only people with English as their first language your decision to learn it is a good one! It is considered the ‘universal language’.

    Additional tips and guides

    Speaking fluent English in just a week is quite a challenge, but with dedication and the right strategies, you can significantly improve your skills. Here are some key steps to follow:

    1. Immerse Yourself in English

    • Surround Yourself with English: Change the language on your devices and consume English media (movies, TV shows, music, and podcasts).
    • Engage in English Conversations: Find language exchange partners or speak with friends and family who are fluent in English.

    2. Practice Speaking Daily

    • Set Practice Sessions: Dedicate at least an hour each day to speak in English.
    • Record Yourself: Record your speech to track progress and identify areas for improvement.

    3. Expand Your Vocabulary

    • Learn New Words Daily: Aim to learn at least 10-20 new words each day. Use flashcards to help memorize them.
    • Use New Words in Sentences: Try to use newly learned words in your conversations or writing.

    4. Improve Pronunciation

    • Practice Phonetics: Focus on the correct pronunciation of words. Use online resources or apps that provide pronunciation guides.
    • Mimic Native Speakers: Listen to native speakers and try to mimic their intonation and pronunciation.

    5. Engage with English Content

    • Read Aloud: Read books, articles, or any content out loud to practice speaking.
    • Watch with Subtitles: Watch English shows or movies with subtitles to enhance your listening and understanding.

    6. Seek Feedback

    • Get Feedback from Fluent Speakers: Ask friends or teachers to provide constructive feedback on your speaking skills.
    • Self-Assessment: Regularly assess your progress and set achievable goals.

    7. Stay Positive and Confident

    • Avoid Perfection: Don’t worry about making mistakes. Focus on communication rather than perfection.
    • Stay Motivated: Maintain a positive attitude and remind yourself of your goals and achievements.

    By following these steps and committing to regular practice, you can make noticeable improvements in your English fluency within a week. Good luck!

    Note: So why waiting for, go get learn and speak fluently English week. One thing remember doesn’t care about mistake because it is human nature without mistake we did it best.