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 Speaking & Listening Updated: 2010.07.21. i * Speaking and Listening * Explore the language of movies * Speaking : Mastering Culture * Resources * Study of English dialects and Folk Life * How to tell a Story * Resources * Speaking and Listening
One of the most foequently asked questions is 'How can I improve my speaking quickly?' The simple answer is, that unless you live with native English speaker, 24 hours a day, you can't! There are, however, things that you can do to help yourself.
You need to speak English regularly every day. It is often suggested that students might speak English socially, amaugst them selvel. Realistically, I don't think that's a practical option. Naturally, Chinese students are going to speak Chinese when together. It was even suggested at one student where I worked, that it should be made 'a rule'. That's not an option either, as it is impossible to monitor. Students playing on a sports friend, may comply with a regulation for a fleeting few moments as a patroling teacher passes by, but when they have gone, students will naturally revert to their native tongue.
A practical solution is to speak as much English as you can in class. Ask your teachers to speak only English. It can cause Chinese Teachers of English problems or even embarrassment as they may be unsure of their level of competence. In any case. It is more convenient to explain problems in Chinese.
When I was a student, we had a wonderful Welsh teacher of Spanish. He rarely spoke anything other than Spanish during lessons, so, for 45 minutes, three times a week we were entirely immersed in a different language. 'Ole!'
Now! Here's the controversial bit. Close the teachbook 'Look and Listen!' I'll explain what I mean
When you were a child, growing up, you learnt to speak Chinese by talking to your mother, relations and friends. Your parents didn't give you a book and say 'There you one. Learn to talk!' You didn't say, 'Fine thanks, and you?' when they asked if you were alright. You said, 'I'm hungry!' 'I've hurt my finger.' 'I want to go to the toilet,' and other sentances.
The solution in learning to speak a foreign language should be the same. Collect words to be able to communicate with natural conversation
Listening is , I think, the biggest single problem students face. It requires a great deal of concentration, which is why I say, close the textbooks, look and listen to your teacher!Listen to English as much as possible, for a short time everyday. A useful source in a small radio with short-wave-SW and you can listen to broadcasts from native English speakers. BBC world Service in excellent, but reception in often indiistiuct or poor, VOA(Voice of America ) is also very good although the dialogue if frequently very fast and masked by background music. VOM( voice of Moscow ) has good reception and is very clear with British English pronunciation. It's contant tends to be rather more formal. OK! I'll be blunt. It is mostly news and students find it boring. SW radios are available from as little as 30RMB in a market. 60RMB+ from a high street store. (China. Other countries look at availability in markets and discount stores).
You won't understand everything you hear because of the difficult vocabulary. However, you should be able to get a general idea or picture of what in being saiol. If you don't understand something, then guess. Generally speaking, if your guess makes sense, it is probably more or less correct.
You need to feel confident; confortable, warm, and relaxed. The place which fulfils all these conditions is when you are in bed, before you go to sleep.
With both speaking and listening, be confident! Li Yang(crazy English) a man I greatly admire we have worked with and that I greatly admire, says, 'If you think you can, you can!' In my view, I think it generally to be true. Alan Cooper & Wang Bo. Revised and updated 2009.07.21. Explore the language of movies.
WATCHING classic Western movies is a good way to learn colloquial English. They are set in certain historical periods, and often show social problems and various customs.
However, some viewers find them hard to follow. One reason is a lack of historical back-ground. Another problem is that actors often speak too fast. They also use old phrases, figure of speech, slang, and dialects.
Not all English movies are useful to practice listening. So, it is important that you choose something suitable. The English is easier to understand if it is standard. It is better to start with family movies like 'The Sound of Music', The Lion King' or 'Sleepless in Seattle' . These movies have simple plots and not so many characters, which is useful for getting used to the pronunciation.
Here are some ways to understand the dialogues in English movies better:
1). Following fast English.
A knowledge of sounds can help us a lot in understanding the English of movies. This is essential for correct pronunciation to understand dialogue. Word association is important in understanding a dialogue, for example that between Rochester and Jane, in 'Jane Eyre'. Rochester is used to giving orders and says, 'You must allow me to give orders, Miss Eyre. If, for no other reason than that I am 20 years older. Would you not agree?' She answers, 'Surely, sir, that depends on what use you made of your time.'
The pronunciation of “what use” is/w tju:s/instead of /w t//ju:s/, so it is hard to get it.
2). Understanding ellipsis
Ellipsis is the omission of a word or short phrase easily understood in context. In movies, subjects or direct objects are often left out. This is especially true with dialogue. So, we need to guess the implied meaning of that ellipsis. We can do that with the help of context. In 'The Sound of Music', the ellipsis is obvious when the Baroness Schraeder (the Captain’s friend) and Max Detweiler (also a friend) are talking about the possible marriage of the Baroness and the Captain.
Detweiler asks her, 'Have you made up Gerald’s (the Captain’s) mind yet? Do I hear wedding bells?' and she responds with 'Pealing madly.' What she means is, that wedding bells are pealing (ringing) madly (already). In this dialogue, the subject 'wedding bells' is left out.
3). Understanding figures of speech
Figures of speech are used in movies to liven up dialogue and make the language real. Similes and metaphors are used most often. Sentenced with figures of speech have hidden meanings which you need to discover. Let’s have a look at the dialogue between Jenny and Oliver in 'Love Story', when Jenny is dying:
Jenny: 'It doesn’t hurt, Ollie, really it doesn’t. It’s like falling off a cliff in slow motion, you know. Only after a while you wish you’d hit the ground already, you know'.
Oliver: 'Yeah'.
Jenny: 'Bullshit. You never fell off a cliff in your whole life'.
Oliver: 'Yes, I did, when I met you'.
When Jenny says…'like falling off a cliff', she compares waiting to die with the feeling of falling off a cliff, but as seen in slow motion. This is a popular simile. When the second 'fell off a cliff' appears, it becomes a metaphor, that says Oliver never took a risk in his life. The metaphor continues when Oliver says, 'Yes, I did, when I met you.'
His meaning is that he fell completely in love with Jenny. And, great changes took place in his life because he broke off from his family. The difference between simile and metaphor is that simile always has 'like' or'as' surrounding the phrase..
4). More slang, idioms and some bits of dialect
One of the things that makes movies English difficult is the use of slang. Slang is informal English for everyday use. For example, when you hear someone say that he needs some cash, or bread, or dough, he is using American slang words for money.
Idioms are also common.
Using 'Double Indemnity' as an example, during the second meeting between Neff and Phyllis, Neff realizes that Phyllis plans to get rid of her husband. So, he warns her 'Look, baby, you can’t get away with it.' To 'get away with something' means to succeed in doing something bad or illegal. When Phyllis pretends she doesn’t know what Neff is talking about, he asks, 'You want to knock him off, don’t you, baby?'. To 'knock somebody off' is to 'kill somebody'.
Non-standard English is sometimes used to represent uneducated people in movies. For example, 'ain’t' means 'am not', 'are not', 'is not' or 'have not'. Also, 'wanna' means 'want to', and 'gonna' is 'going to'.
To sum up, it is difficult for Chinese to understand English movies. The only shortcut is to watch them, listen to them carefully, and think about the speech repeatedly, while bearing the above in mind. Remember, 'Practise makes perfect.' As long as you get used to the language used in movies, you will enjoy them more! Speaking: Mastering Culture Standing on a stage, all alone, delivering a speech before an audience of hundreds is never-wracking even at the best of times. Doing so in a foreign language can be terrifying. If you really want to win over the international audience, you need to show a feel for the curiosities of the language and culture, according to Peter Clarke, a professor at Hong Kong University. Just speaking grammatically correct English isn't enough. Clarke was a judge at the 21st Century / Lenovo Cup English Speaking Competition regional final in Hangzhou last year.
'These guys are the cream of the crop and all did well,' Clarke said. 'The rhythm of the language, pausing in the right places, good use of body language, and use of interesting examples are all important.'
If that sounds like an impossible task, don't despair. These are the most enjoyable parts of a language and can be picked up easily through simple observation. Even by watching films or listening to the radio. However, speaking an international language, perfect pronunciation and intonation isn't the only thing to care about, though they are very important for sounding like a native speaker.
In congratulating the contestants, British Council representative Ewan Davies told the audience that he was delighted to hear such a variety of accents. He praised them for not simply using the Hollywood-inspired manner many English learners seek to imitate. Davies singled out one person who had done a wonderful copy of an upper-class English accent in her speech.
'Contestants have very good basic language skills and in-depth thoughts. But it seems they still lack knowledge of English culture.' said Liu Xiangyu, a professor from Beijing Normal University, who was a judge in public speaking. 'The skill is less important than the mastering of the language and culture,'
The experts said, that you don't need to worry about using long, impressive words it's not necessary. Words like 'immutably'. This sounded unnatural when spoken by one of the competitors. But, in fact, most English speakers wouldn't dream of using a word like this. Similarly, try not to rely on Chinese idioms and metaphors. A phrase like 'we must harvest the fruits of life' sounds a little odd in translation.
The biggest difficulty many of the judges pointed out was the failure by Chinese competitors to argue more strongly. Many just relied on generalizations instead of specific points.
Feng Zhilin, a professor of translation at Zhongshan University , had an explanation for this: it's cultural.
'If the answer seems spontaneous and forceful, it's an American habit. If the speaker gives a very balanced view, it's a British thing. And if he beats about the bush instead of coming to the point, it's Chinese,' she joked.
More seriously, she suggested, 'If you have something to say, then say it. Don't say maybe or perhaps.'
Study of English dialects and Folk Life - from The Guardian
The way we speak English varies from one part of the country to another, with local dialects and words. It is differnt in localised areas, and thre are differences between the way it is spoken in Wales, Scotland and Ireland - that's what makes us different, as well as our nationalities, traditions and culture. By comparison, it can likened to the way residentsin Beijing speak Mandarin with a 'twang', which is different from that by people in neighgbouring provinces. The same is true in that often, people in nortern China, cannot understand people from the south.
'The Guardian' (UK newspaper) has an interesting feature about Regional English Dialects, which is too long to reproduce here. Find it on: http://.www.guardian.co.uk/2009/mar/27/regional-english-dialects
Also of interest if you are studying English dialects aand Folk Law are: http://bl.uk/learning/langlit/sounds/ and http://.www.regional-voices/lexical-variation
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