Category: vocabulary

The power of S l o w L e a r n i n g

tortoise-hare-1584395

Being busy and impatient

People are in such a tearing hurry to learn English. Being impatient doesn’t help.

The search for a quick fix

While conducting corporate training sessions, I noticed that many participants were not really keen to understand, absorb, and appreciate the language point being presented.

They were often looking for a quick fix solution. For example, they want a phrase they can  immediately use in the next conference call.

In their minds there are a finite set of phrases to be used in predictable situations.

In a sense, that is true. But do keep in mind this works only when the phrases and grammar points are directly related to those specific situations.

As you know, the demands of work are not always predictable.

Change happens.

You may suddenly have to make a presentation to a foreign client. Or you may have to describe a complicated technical process via an email to non-experts. Or you may have to give a nuanced response to a reporter.

Imagine this happening: one fine day, you get a promotion and have to communicate a sensitive issue to your senior management. ChatGPT may not fully understand your prompt. Then what?

You must have a direct relationship with the language. 

That relationship cannot be transactional: I’ll attend a business English course for two months and pay attention during the sessions. My English language learning is done and dusted.

Sorry, that won’t work. Language is far more demanding.

Commit to a long-term relationship

You need to build a long-term relationship with the language.

Yes, I’m talking years… Start taking an interest in how other people communicate.

How to improve by yourself

Spend more time reading–analyzing the emails you receive.

  • Is there anything you can learn? (Perhaps a polite phrase that is used.)
  • Is there anything that you do not like about the email? Is it too wordy? Too vague?

When reading a report, step back to see the big picture.

  • Who is the intended audience? Will they understand?
  • Is the report organized logically?
  • How does it look visually? Is it easy to interpret the data from that chart?
  • Are all crucial points adequately covered?
  • Is there any unnecessary information?

Look at it from another perspective.

  • Are there any unstated assumptions?

You could take the same approach when reading your newspaper in the morning.

Read the headline. What is it about? Politics? Economics? The next scandal?

Now, look at the photo. How does the photo relate to the headline?

Spend a few seconds on the photo. Can you spot anything interesting? Out of the ordinary, perhaps? Does the politician’s face project confidence or insecurity?

Is the newspaper trying to make a point by choosing that particular headline to go with that particular photo? Think about it.

What do you think the article is going to be about? Will it have a negative, neutral, or positive slant? Go ahead and guess. Now, read the article.

By making predictions, you prepare your mind to better absorb the article. 

If you practice this way of reading, you will absorb and retain information more effectively. This is because you have prepared your mind beforehand.

If you are preparing for exams such as IELTS, this method of prediction will help you. 

Your takeaway from this post

S l o w    d o w n.

We are living in a world that places a premium on multi-tasking, skimming pieces of writing, and forming instant opinions.

And to get through the day, you may have to do all of that. But, there are moments when you can switch gears. These moments may last for as little as ten seconds. Make those moments count. 

Spend an extra minute or two over an article that interests you. It could be about sports, fashion, or culture. 

Similarly, linger for a few minutes extra over an important report. You might notice things you wouldn’t have noticed before.

When you start becoming mindful of  how language is used, you’ll start appreciating it–both the spoken and written word.

After some time your own language will improve. It will seem almost magical. 

How about that?

3 don’ts when learning English

stop

In India, it seems that we do not always have a love for learning. We ‘mug up’ before exams and then forget whatever we have ‘learnt’ after leaving the examination hall.

Learning a language is not the same as memorizing mathematical formula or historical dates.

It take time. It takes practice. If you are learning English, here are some of things I recommend that you DO NOT do.

3 things to avoid while learning English

1. Do not memorize lists to increase your vocabulary

This is a terrible, boring, counter-productive way to broaden the range of your vocabulary.

Words, like tigers, must be encountered in their natural habitat.

Words should be read in sentences which give overall meaning, within a broader context. That is, a word should relate to the sentence it is in. And that sentence should relate to the other sentences above and below it.

If you see a caged tiger, you cannot really appreciate its power and beauty. It’s the same with a word. You need to see the word in the real world on a real page, interacting with other words that are delivering authentic meaning.

When you memorize a list of words, you are operating in an artificial environment. The words are presented in an unnatural context. The example sentences are presented in a vacuum. Usually, they do not relate to each other. You may not be able to fully understand when and where to use the target words. And, you may end up using them incorrectly.

Remember, you need to come across a word many times (say, more than 10 times) before you can call it your own.

Similarly, be wary of all those vocabulary apps out there. They are not bad, but (like word lists) use them as supplementary learning tools.

If you want to be exposed to  unfamiliar words, absorb their meanings, and use them in a precise manner–go old school.

Read novels. Read newspapers. Read magazines. Read good writing, period.

Don’t forget vocabulary includes words, phrases, and idioms. 

2. Do not use highfalutin (or fancy) words, unless you really, really know what they mean. 

This point is related to the point above. Know your words. Focus on quality and not quantity. I have heard many people use words that they really do not know the meaning of.

Don’t be a show off.

Don’t be inauthentic.

Use the language you know. Not the language you think other people will be impressed to hear.

3. There is no need to acquire an accent

I find it amusing when someone has an American accent, and then says a particular word in a very Indian accent. There is no need to speak like someone from a sitcom based in LA or New York.

Your accent is fine.

What is important is that you pronounce words clearly, in a manner that people will understand. That means when pronouncing a word, you should stress on the correct syllable. It is all about clarity of speech, and not about having a twang in your voice.

To conclude: if you want to improve your language, start systematically improving your vocabulary. And be true to yourself and to others, while speaking and writing.

Best of luck!

Can a couch potato learn English? The answer may surprise you. 

Are you looking for free websites to learn English? These three websites are excellent.

Be a couch potato and learn English

Couch Potato

Source: vectorstock.com

The best way to a learn a language is to immerse yourself in it.

Be surrounded by it, every waking hour. Unfortunately, not everyone has the opportunity to stay in a foreign country. The next best thing could be watching TV.

Television (and now Youtube, Amazon, Netflix) gives us a window into other language worlds and cultures. Surprisingly in India, people do not seem to be taking advantage of this medium as much as they should.

Specifically, when it comes to learning English, learners see it as a distinct subject which is utilized in specific situations (e.g. while taking an exam, or making a presentation at work). This way of thinking limits the way one learns the language. Learning English is understood as learning grammatical rules and lists of words. This creates a narrow (and often fragile) language base.

Being a couch potato could be a part of the solution. (Ah… I see that smile on your face!) There are stories from around the world which highlight the link between TV watching and language learning. Two sisters in Isreal learned Spanish by watching an Argentinian telenovela with Hebrew subtitles. Read about them on CNN. In the short article, the sisters say that they learned English the same way.

And, you can learn English (or any other language) that way too.

Here are some tips to keep in mind:

  1. Choose a series that you enjoy. If you like the theme, chances are that you will be more willing to sit through it.
  2. Where possible, have subtitles. Even if the subtitles are in the same language, that is okay. In this way you are using two language learning skills – listening and reading. The two skills reinforce each other.
  3. Watch the programme again and again. A baseball player from Venezuela watched each episode of the serial Friends at least five times. And his level of English has improved dramatically.
  4. If there is some vocabulary you do not understand, reach out to your cellphone. Google the word and find out its meaning. Go ahead and do it. Don’t postpone it, as you may forget the word. This is a natural way to build your vocabulary, because you are encountering the word in its natural context.
  5. If there is a grammatical structure which is unfamiliar, try and find out more about it. Google. Don’t be lazy.
  6. You can have a varied diet as well. Watch a cartoon channel, a news channel, and a nature documentary channel. In this way, you expose yourself to different kinds of vocabulary. This will help you when you have to converse on different themes.
  7. Be consistent. (Remember point 3 in this list.)

Be an active, curious couch potato. Although your body may be immobile, your mind is all action!

For more on learning English, you can visit these 3 free websites.

Why do you make the same language errors, again and again?

Fossil

Why do people keep repeating the same grammatical and vocabulary errors, even after they have been corrected?

For example, language learners learn that one should say ‘equipment’ and not ‘equipments’. The reason behind it is that ‘equipment’ is an uncountable noun, and so one shouldn’t add an ‘s’ to it. The phrase three equipments is grammatically incorrect. When I say this in a session, people nod their heads in complete agreement. But, when they leave the room, and have a conversation, they are more likely to ask: Where are the equipments?

Why are they repeating this error? The clue is in the photo of this post. The photo is of a fossil. The language errors that we make are fossilized in our minds. This means that even if the trainer corrects you in a session, afterwards, when you speak with friends or colleagues, you are likely to return to making the same error.

Can you de-fossilize your language? Yes, you can. But you have to work at it.  Pay attention to how you speak and write. And mentally note down the errors which you know you are making. (I monitor my speech, almost, all the time.)

Over time, when you speak and write, you will use the grammar point or word, accurately and effortlessly.