Compulsory Language Lessons

[West Ender]

You learned to speak English when you were little more than a baby. You learned by listening to other people and copying what they said to you. Did you know what a verb was when you were 3? Could you spell caterpillar when you told your mum you'd found one, when you were 4? No, of course not, but you could speak and understand the English language.

The way to teach children another language is first to teach them to speak it. The grammar and spelling can come later, just like your English did when you went to school.

 

[Billcat]

The way to teach children another language is first to teach them to speak it. The grammar and spelling can come later, just like your English did when you went to school.

While I was 11 when I started taking French, and we were instructed in the way you suggest, it was not a good method for all kids. They were using the ALM (Audio-Lingual method), where only the spoken word is used exclusively for an extended period of time. I had no idea what was being said or where we were headed until the written text of the French was finally shown to me. Once I was able to connect the sounds with the text, I improved rapidly. Certainly a strong emphasis on the spoken language is important, but I think that a teaching method that takes a more balanced approach is better suited to kids with a variety of learning styles.

 

[garinda]

My neice aged ten is being taught French and Mandarin at Westholme.

Agree with others, English should be taught to a higher standard before starting on other languages.

 

[West Ender]

While I was 11 when I started taking French, and we were instructed in the way you suggest, it was not a good method for all kids. They were using the ALM (Audio-Lingual method), where only the spoken word is used exclusively for an extended period of time. I had no idea what was being said or where we were headed until the written text of the French was finally shown to me. Once I was able to connect the sounds with the text, I improved rapidly. Certainly a strong emphasis on the spoken language is important, but I think that a teaching method that takes a more balanced approach is better suited to kids with a variety of learning styles.

Yes, I can understand that, at age 11. I am thinking of the 7 year olds, in fact I'd start them younger than that, as soon as they start school. It needn't be intensive but if a small child can speak and understand simple language it becomes second nature. I had friends where the husband was English and the wife was Dutch. He spoke English to their daughters, she spoke Dutch. The children's English was the better - they heard it all day at school etc. - but they could both converse in simple Dutch.

 

[cashman]

we did french from 11-15 yrs, E.R. verbs je touche tu touche etc etc, was total crap and not a bit interesting, cos felt it had very little value in speaking everyday french. so hardly anyone was interested in learning it, you could opt out after 3rd year and all the class did. that says it all. if they had made it more interesting! who knows?

 

[Mancie]

There's a big difference in learning to speak a another language and being made to go into the more difficult part of learning the grammer of that language.. when my kid was 4 he was coming home from nursery talking bits of french.. I loved it.. having half an idea of another language can only be for the good.

And it's plain to see from the spelling here that grammer comes second!

 

[AccyAlec]

I think that it is a bad idea. But they say that you learn better when your younger. When i did my language exam i only got a G for my exam.

I also think that they may learn it and then when it comes to high school they might have to learn something new for example if they learn french in primary, what happens it is German they have to study in high school!

Primary i don't think is suitable for other languages as it is really hard stuff to learn and i found it so stressful. And how will they assess the Kidd's?

 

[katex]

Agree with others, English should be taught to a higher standard before starting on other languages.

Don't find this one of your most wisest remarks Garinda .. I stand by my post that there are adequate lessons in English Grammar and Literature in the U.K. in school's curricula, but lots of students come to a standstill with this and cannot move on any further .. why should you anyway if you wish to do a physical job ? Surfeit to requirements for a brickie, isn't it ?

Might as well say .. learn more about History first.

Spoke to my colleague today, who runs the French office of our company and speaks four languages .. amazing. He is Lebonese, so his first language is Arabic, which went hand in hand with French when he was very young, as they spoke the latter at school, and was fluent in two languages from birth onwards.

Studied Spanish when at University in Spain, only 40 mins per week but, of course, was living there, so good opportunity to 'converse' and picked the language up within 6 months. Did some sort of footbally stuff with Real Madrid .. don't suppose mattered how you spelt "**** off Ref." in Spanish, only to get the message across .. Married an English lady and moved over here and now fluent in English just from conversing.

Commented that the problem in the U.K. was that most schools taught a foreign language in class in English and not conversational .. just grammar so held them back. From what I heard the powers that be are looking into the way we teach languages in schools and feel grammar/spelling first will be their first line of attack.

 

[garinda]

Don't find this one of your most wisest remarks Garinda .. I stand by my post that there are adequate lessons in English Grammar and Literature in the U.K. in school's curricula

I can only go by own experience, and hopefully it's better now, but I doubt it. My own early schooling was very liberal, and old fashioned things like grammar and punctuation weren't taught that thoroughly. I never really caught up with others at my school who'd had a more formal foundation in English. That's all I meant, that English should be taught well before embarking on other languages, which do of course also benefit in the understanding of English as well.

As for my self, I speak conversational French. Well, enough to order a meal, get drunk, and seduce someone.

Oh, and I know enough Japanese to make someone a shirt and talk about the weather...as long as it's sunny. I never learnt the Japanese for it's raining.

 

[katex]

As for my self, I speak conversational French. Well, enough to order a meal, get drunk, and seduce someone.
/QUOTE]

Like to see a guy get his priorities right ... once asked my colleague in which language he made love to his wife ? Somebody said a groan was the same in any language ...

 

[panther]

is it french that they are wanting to learn? or something else?

 

[West Ender]

From what I heard the powers that be are looking into the way we teach languages in schools and feel grammar/spelling first will be their first line of attack.

It has to be conversation first or it won't work. We don't say, to a 2 year old, "What is the past tense of To See?". We say, "I saw." The child learns without thinking about it. It learns to communicate.

When I'm in Malta I am always impressed by the Maltese children who, at a very early age, can speak English though their native language is Maltese. They learn from their parents and friends and at school. They learn to speak English and it's not until much later that they learn the spelling and grammar, by which time the grammar is second nature anyway.

 

[tosh]

MY SON DID WELL AT SCHOOL IN FRENCH HE GOT AN A, SORRY I WAS NOT TAUGHT ANY WHEN I WENT TWO SCHOOL
:thanka:

 

[Yolanda25]

i learned english at school when i was younger and came handy, pass the subject as i had a brilliant english teacher, people says that i speak good english because my mother is english but its not true, never learned a word from her because i wasnt interested when she tried to, it was after that i felt stupid for not learning the language so im gonna make sure my son and the one on its way speak perfect spanish

 

[blazey]

Mandarin is the way forward. Teach that instead of french, spanish, urdu, german...

 

[panther]

handy going to the chinese i suppose

 

[lancsdave]

handy going to the chinese i suppose

Don't they speak English then ?

Mandarin has been touted as the language to learn for at least 10 years and still hasn't taken off. Bit like the paperless office was going to be the big thing about 20 years, you would think that would be even nearer now with the advent of e-mail etc, yet you wouldn't believe how many offices have staff who print off all their emails and file them

 

[blazey]

I have a chinese friend over the internet who speaks perfect english. The reason I suggest mandarin is the suggestion that China is rumoured to be the greatest economic power in the world at some point. Or so I have been told!