Number 7, exercise 47.0:10
Listen to the dialogue.0:14
Are you happy with the way you are taught English?0:16
And try to read it in the same manner.0:20
Anna, I know you have been learning English for almost five years and you are planning to become an interpreter.0:25
What do you feel about learning grammar?0:33
Do you think your teacher spends too much or too little time on it?0:36
Of course you must learn grammar in any language.0:41
After all, you can't build a house without foundations.0:44
But that's all we do at school.0:48
Grammar, grammar and more grammar.0:50
For half an hour, four times a week we have too many drills.0:53
So grammar is important, but not too much of it.0:59
But should it be taught in isolation?1:03
No, you need to practise grammar together with vocabulary.1:07
It's not good when you learn new words but don't have much practice using them.1:12
With the grammar you've learnt.1:16
With vocabulary, is it better to learn a few words at a time and practise them rather than a lot of words by heart?1:18
Practice helps you to memorise the words.1:28
Also, I remember words better if they are related to my interests.1:31
I have no problem learning words connected with my hobby, which is animals and wildlife.1:35
One of the problems for learners of English is phrasal verbs, to get on, to get along with and so on.1:41
And of course, idioms.1:50
Is it a problem for you?1:52
Have you learnt enough to cope with idioms?1:54
They're very difficult and you have to keep yourself up to date with them too.1:58
For example, when I first came to England, I used the idiom it's raining cats and dogs very broadly and everyone laughed at me because it's so old fashioned and the average English person doesn't use that expression.2:03
So make sure the idioms you learnt are up to date.2:19
Now, how about pronunciation?2:24
A lot of students find that hard English intonation is awful.2:27
I mean, I think it's the most difficult part of pronunciation because if you get it wrong, people think you're rude.2:33
Intonation is far more difficult than learning to pronounce words correctly.2:41
It's important to learn both formal and informal English.2:45
How to ask for information, how to be polite.2:50
Let me give you an My English teacher phoned me yesterday asking about something he wanted to know and I just said no.2:53
Then when I thought about it afterwards, I realized that I had sounded rude.3:03
I should have said I'm afraid I don't know, or something like that.3:08
Learning social English is very useful.3:13
Take writing letters in English, for example.3:17
What advice would you give to people who are just beginning to learn English?3:21
I find reading very helpful I read books, newspapers, magazines and other periodicals.3:27
I try to guess the meaning of words I don't know from their context.3:33
This helps me to read more quickly.3:38
But I also look up words in the dictionary and make a note of the most useful ones.3:40
How about listening to pop music?3:45
Yes, that can be useful.3:49
I was a bit disappointed actually, because some songs have such silly words.3:51
Although the music is lovely.3:56
Listening to the radio and watching videos and educational TV programmes in English helped me too, especially listening to the news.3:59
I was very proud when I realized that I could easily get the idea of what I was listening to.4:07
As I can see, learning a language isn't as simple as all that.4:13
You can learn rules for grammar and pronunciation and also for vocabulary.4:19
But the most difficult feature of any language is perhaps learning the elements for which there are no written rules.4:25
For example, social English.4:32
This means learning about expected ways of behaviour, knowing what sort of English to use in different situations, formal or informal, and how to understand what is said.4:35
All that is so easy and natural in your mother tongue.4:47
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