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#2999 That's how I've improved my English for the last 6 years. I started watching series with spanish subtitles and without noticing my listening comprehension got quite enhanced.
I strongly believe that If in Spain the tv was in English, we would grow up speaking English far better because we would have acquired all the English sounds since the "window" for learning a foreign language is open since we are babies until 12-14 years old. After that it's not impossible but I'd say is more difficult to sound like a native.
#3001 The teaching system in school is awful as well. Quite a lot of people finish Bachillerato with a rather pathetic level.
#3002 It also depends on the school, I think. I've taught English for 3 years and, of course, it also depends on the kids and how they can handle the learning of another language, but there were some kids of specific schools that were more prepared than others.
Right now I am teaching extracurricular English in a private school, and there's this thing that is making me sick, really. I have a group of ESO, all the courses: three students from 1st, three from 2nd and one from 3rd. The thing is that last week they had to do the mock exams for KET and PET. They had to get at least a 7 to be able to take part in the official test. There was this boy from 1st of ESO, he got a 16/60 of the KET (A2) exam. Then, this other boy from 2nd, he got a 45/50 in the PET (B1) exam. And that's what really annoys me. It is really unfair for them both that I have to teach this two boys in the same class. I try to prepare the lessons as neutral as possible and according to the level A2-B1 but sometimes it's really difficult.
I just wanted to vent a little xD but this situation just points out that another problem of English learning in schools is that most of them don't divide the class according to the levels, but according to their ages. And I don't think that's a good division.
#3003 Of course. One of the main aspects of the problem, in my opinion, is that you can easily pass English in Primaria, and even ESO, just by memorizing lists of vocabulary and grammar structures. That's far from learning the language. So, as time goes by and pupils grow, a wider and wider gap is created between those who pass without learning and those who actually learn. When you reach ESO, you have people that will have a hard time introducing themselves, while other people will have a pretty decent level, being able to hold a conversation. That's even worsened when parents realize the poor level and pay private academies to properly teach their children.
When I was 17 I went to Sweden in an exchange. Swedes were very surprised when we told them how early we start to learn English in Spain. Needless to say, they wouldn't have been surprised if they had fet that our English was good.
#3004 the problem is that with 30 pupils/students per class, the only ones who are going to answer your questions are the ones who know their level of English is acceptable .
You can't hold conversations with all of them and you can't prepare a game for them to speak and last more than five minutes. They go wild, they start speaking in Spanish. When I was studying English at school our speaking time was ridiculous but I think that's changing now, I gave private lessons to an 8yo and he had a brief speaking part inside the test.
Privaye language schools are not the holy trinity. They think that by paying it their child is going to master the language in a short period of time. What they don't know is that most private language schools are not for reinforcement but to provide more vocabulary, listening and speaking. So, when the kid fails their test at school, the parents stop paying.
#3005 Nowadays the educative approaches are focused on communication, they give more importance to fluency than to accuracy. That situation where a teacher is the only one asking questions is over, a good teacher today have to promote comunicative situations in real contexts and his/her role is just to act as an observer and source of knowledge when it is required.
This is the theory, then the practice can be slightly different xD
#3006 that's waaaay different from what I had.
I always try to do more speaking by trying different methods and games. It sometimes work, it depends on the students' mood haha
#3007 There are plenty of resources to make fun lessons and get the students interested, the problem is when young pupils have to deal with old fashioned teachers...
2 fast samples about what I'm talking, they are quite simple but really effective:
Board games
Peer to peer ask and answer activities:
#3008 hahahaha I've got both.
But, again, I think in a class that's nearly impossible. You'll need to separate the class in various groups(4 minimum), then give the instructions, next you'll have to wander between groups to make sure they have the rules clear and to make sure they speak in English and you'll have to keep wandering to correct any mistakes you may hear.
You need another teacher to make this happen (otherwise it will be chaos), and that's not gonna happen haha.
I agree that most of the time the bad thing about English is the teacher.
Most of them have been sitting in that chair for more than 30 years and they don't try (or they just don't care) to keep on researching new techniques or methods.
Sometimes is both things, the teachers and the class because, as someone said three or four posts above, we have age groups not level groups.
#3009 Whoa!! thanks to you I've just got an idea of how to manage and control several groups without another teacher.
We could use "spy" students randomly chosen every week to observe whether their classmates behave well and whether they follow the instructions/speak english properly!
I knew this method from a class which were really really bad and talkative (in spanish) and it worked because the students hated to get a "red" point in the behaviour list.
21 días después
-My favourite drink's tea. / My favourite drink is tea.
-My mother's a teacher. / My mother is a teacher.
Son correctas?
#3012 Jamás había visto esas contracciones en esos casos, siempre las veía sin contraer. Thanks.
You can even use them if the last word of the subject ends with "-s", but then only the apostrophe is written and not the final "s"
Williams' a great team/Williams is a great team.
#3016 Hum, I think you're right but I've just been reading about it and it's a little bit messy. It seems that what I said can be done with plural words ending in -s with the possessive, and that's quite clear. Regarding further uses (With singular names ending in -s, or with the verbe "to be") there seems to be disagreement. We have to remember that English is not a regulated language like Spanish is, so we have no "RAE" to ask when we have doubt.
I see no linguistic reason not to use it the way I say. However, it seems to be widely regarded as incorrect, so I'd follow your advice and avoid using it, keeping the -s' for plural words and possessive only.
#3017 Could you please post where it says that?
I can't find anything like that anywhere.
The only use I know regarding the "-s' " is with plural nouns in the possessive.
The boys' ball -> more than one boy.
And I've seen it too if the name of the person is "biblical" like Jesus'.
But never as a contraction of the verb To Be.
#3018 I don't know, I just spent some time googling and read random links. I don't remember exactly what I searched. Essentially, you're right. I've seen some people defending what I said but it's mostly regarded as wrong.
#3019 I hope I didn't sound harsh, that wasn't my intention at all.
I only wanted to know because if that becomes a trend and then is standardised I want to know and read why.
#3020 Nah, nevermind. I don't think it's going to become a trend. Probably I've just mixed things in my head and it's a coincidence that I'm not the only one to have done so xD
7 días después
Hi everyone! I may use some advice overhere. I'm writing some notes for a marketing subject and I feel like I write "too spanish". I'll explain myself with an example:
It goes further than the simple purchase-exchange process to making stronger contact by providing a personalized purchase, creating stronger ties.
I have marked where exactly I think I'm making some kind of mistake, not writing it correctly or just in a "spanish" way. I am very used to write a lot in gerund and as I did not ever recieve proper english classes I am not able to know if this kind of thinks are good, bad, or just unnatural.
#3022hamai:It goes further than the simple purchase-exchange process for making stronger contact by providing a personalized purchase, in order to create stronger ties.
Take a look to the bolded words. That might be a solution.
Guys, I need some advice.. I'm living and working abroad for a bit more than 2 months (Slovakia). Mostly I use English to interact with the people and I realized that I don't have a rich vocabulary which doesn't mean that I can't speak fluently. What could you recommend me?
#3029 but like specific vocabulary for business purposes or vocabulary in a general sense?
Try to read or watch some TV series/movies
