On fluency

To some learners using a language like a native speaker is the Holy Grail of foreign language learning. I will not dispute the unquestionable benefits of interacting with native speakers at their level. If you want to go the whole nine yards I think that’s great. The truth is that, most of the Indiana Joneses and Lara Crofts of language learning do not end up finding that Holy Grail. Is that sad? The answer ought to be a resounding NO. Research shows that very few people achieve a native-like command of their target language which is why I believe that fluency is a more realistic goal. Granted. Being fluent demands a certain level of self-confidence but that confidence can be achieved because (remember this) it depends on achievable factors. Watch the video clip below and find out how you can do just that. The little secret I give away may actually boost your self-esteem.

Nihil volitum, nisi praecognitum

An old scholastic aphorism states that nihil volitum, nisi praecognitum, which in plain English means "nothing is willed unless it is first known", in other words, you cannot desire that which you don't know. This is, of course, quite a truism, but it goes a long way to explain certain attitudes.

Whatever your opinion about the video below might be, I believe it doesn’t aim to be representative of the current reality in the United Kingdom. As of this writing, only 13% of British surgeons are women and there is only one female pilot in the Royal Air Force (the one in the video). So, it is perfectly understandable that the kids in that classroom should have drawn men having those jobs. For the same reason, they would have probably depicted men had they been asked to draw a murderer. After all, statistics show that the overwhelming majority of murders are committed by men, not women. That said, the campaign was clearly not about representation, but rather about raising awareness of possibility. Little girls are only likely to pursue these careers if they can see that the path to them actually exists. In the meantime, little boys should become aware that girls can also have those jobs. In short, the message of the video is: "it is possible", which may be interpreted as an echo of Obama's famous "yes, we can".

So, let’s now turn to the English language. Is it sexist? Of course it is. Kinda, sorta... Don't roll your eyes. Most languages are sexist. Why? Well, the answer is pretty straightforward, isn't it? Languages are sexist because their speakers are (or were) sexist. Simple as that. In other words: the problem lies with the users. Words such as butcher and taxi driver are not marked for gender, but (and this I find uncontroversial) they tend to be "socially marked". Whenever we hear the word butcher we often think of a man. Something analogous happens when we hear the word nurse, which is also a gender-neutral noun even if it usually conjures up the picture of a woman. In fact, that is why many English speakers feel the need to use the job title male nurse when they refer to men in the nursing profession. Think about it: male nurse. Seriously? I personally take issue with that. The way I see it, male nurse is a silly case of redundancy. Like I just said, he term nurse is already gender-neutral. The "male" part is, therefore, completely unnecessary.

The good news for us, language learners, is that neutral words abound in the English language. Just consider nouns like painter, astronaut, secretary, teacher, architect, surgeon, scientist. You may think it is rather irrelevant, but I believe that it helps us all make progress in the area of gender equality. Now, isn't that great?

Still, some changes are definitely necessary. In my opinion, obviously sexist words such as mankind, manpower or expressions like the man in the street should be avoided for a very simple reason: we already have perfectly apt alternatives such as humankind, human resources and the average person. Funnily enough, when it comes to job-related vocabulary, controversy still exists. Some actresses, for example, are now partial to the gender-neutral term actor. Thus, at the Academy Awards there is a prize for the "best actress in a leading role". The organizers of the Golden Globes, though, describe the same category in a different way: "best female actor". One is led to assume that some people clearly feel there is something wrong with the word actress. Is that a passing fad or a lexical choice with staying power? As is usually the case, only time will tell.

Debating

Debating is an art form, isn’t it? Unfortunately great orators and polemicists are becoming a bit of a dying breed. Say what you will about Christopher Hitchens, for example. He was indeed a controversial speaker. You may agree or disagree with his opinions. You may consider his political and philosophical views debatable or even offensive but one undeniable fact is that he was exceedingly articulate. He made clear points and gave his opponents plenty of food for thought. I sometimes have the feeling that over the years speech-writing and speaking skills in general have yielded the stage to emotions and beliefs and, more recently, to "post-truths" and alternative facts. These days speeches tend to be mostly about “connecting with the audience” and much less about articulating a coherent discourse with cold facts, persuasive arguments and informed opinions. But I digress…

Be that as it may, in our courses (B2 and C1) we are only expected to politely agree and disagree, show support and question our interlocutor’s points, which is no small feat in itself. I'm afraid that the ability to be funny, aggressive, pompous, vulgar or creative is truly beyond our scope. So let’s keep it simple by considering an easy subject matter.

The video below these lines shows a (deliberately) shallow approach to a commonplace issue: national stereotypes. Why have I chosen such a trite topic? Because I’m convinced that both upper-intermediate (B2) and advanced students (C1) should first master the obvious statements before they can move on to more versatile forms of expression. The girl in the video is in some ways an over-the-top version of an average American (her hand movements, her enthusiastic mannerisms, her facial expressions are a little on the nose) but, in terms of vocabulary, she offers gold to learners of English. Let me tell you why.

To start with, she uses many B2 level expressions, for instance, “to get to know each other and figure things out”. Pay attention to how she phrases an obvious statement “Germans can often be quite direct”. She resorts to a generalization but she doesn’t say “In my opinion Germans are direct”, which would sound too blunt. Before plunging into a sweeping statement she is smart enough to mention another platitude: “everyone is different and unique but…”. There is a good deal of C1 stuff as well: “looking back on it…”. Check out the idiomatic phrases: “As an American, I’m used to beating around the bush about things, softening the blow…”. All in all, I find this video quite practical for those of you that want to incorporate “standard idioms” into a conversation that (let’s face it) we are all bound to have from time to time.

 

Be inspired!

I got news for you! You already speak English. You can communicate. So congratulations everyone! That is a major achievement indeed. This time I'm not trying to be ironic. I really mean it. Congratulations. Can you imagine you could express yourselves in Arabic or Japanese they way you do in English? Wouldn’t it be great? Unfortunately (because you are learning English and not Arabic) you probably downplay your accomplishments a lot but the truth is... it remains an respectable feat. Still, I suspect many of you need to feel motivated. Don’t you worry about that. I can come to the rescue. How do I intend to do that? Well, before I address that you should read some more. Just bear with me for a minute.

In Europe we tend to be so skeptical of everything, don’t we? We often respect pessimism as if it were a good thing. That may be the reason why terms such as “inspirational” or “inspiring” are viewed with what I can only describe as smug disdain. The thing is... I find that utterly ridiculous (to say the least). One book, one movie, one speech, one conversation, one chance encounter can be truly inspirational. By that I mean that reading a book, listening to a lecturer, talking to a stranger… any of those experiences can make you feel the need to DO something (not just THINK about something). Grant Snider happens to be a great illustrator that keeps a beautiful blog which I find really inspirational. It manages to combine a fresh approach to creativity with a smart use of language. It’s quite remarkable. Trust me. And even if you don’t like his cartoons, just the vocabulary is worth a visit. This is his website: incidental comics. Have fun!

International English

Teaching language for communication or using the communicative approach used to be two of the most frequently used mantras in the realm of foreign language teaching. The power of simply communicating (no matter how) has been partially debunked. It may be a gross oversimplification, but the truth is that, for a number of years most foreign language instructors were obsessed with the idea that anything goes as long as a student gets the message across. Mistakes are unavoidable, accuracy is not critical providing that your interlocutors understand what you mean. Yes. I won’t deny that all that is true. As a matter of fact that's what so-called international English is all about: an imperfect, simple, un-idiomatic "dialect" which is clearly non-native but practical nonetheless. However, it must be pointed out that international English is only acceptable for a student until they reach the B1 level.

The B2 level requires an increasingly high degree of lexical accuracy (kill > murder > assassinate). A person, for example, can be a patient at the doctor’s practice but a client in a lawyer’s office and a contestant in a TV quiz show. Using basic terms such as person, man or woman in every context tends to be annoying to say the least. Still, even the B2 level is, for the most part, descriptive and therefore not too exciting.

The C1 level, of course, is slightly more demanding. As we have seen, a C1 speaker is expected to use colorful expressions, idioms, proverbs, phrasal verbs, similes, nuanced words that show an attitude, etc. Why? Just compare a cold boring expression like former lover with the more idiomatic old flame or the rather flippant ex. Do you feel the difference? I bet you do.

It goes without saying, the more you know, the wider your range of options is. Let’s suppose, for instance, you have walked in on someone stabbing another person. How do you refer to that (horrific) situation? You can say you caught the criminal red-handed (idiomatic), in the act (neutral) or in flagrante delicto (very formal). Since the nuances are different, your listener’s reaction will of necessity be different. For similar examples check out the following chart:

Plain	Colorful option # 1	Colorful option # 2
I was surprised	I got the shock of my life	I was caught off guard
Never	When pigs fly	When hell freezes over
No matter what	Come rain or shine	Come hell or high water
There’s no more to say	Period	End of story

All this comes to prove that, while communication remains a respectable aim, there comes a point in a language student’s life when relaying the message is just not good enough. That’s when you realize you want to be able to sound funny, folksy, agressive, elegant or distant. In other words, you want to be an advanced speaker.

Pronunciation

Hi there language freaks! I thought I might cheer up your Halloween break.

As I said at school, I have decided not to teach pronunciation like I used to do (i.e. 10 minutes every day). If I’ve learnt something over the past 25 years on the job that is the grim truth that teaching pronunciation is almost useless. No matter how hard I try. No matter the angles I use. On average, most adult learners in Spain dismiss pronunciation out of hand. For the most part, they are just not willing to go the distance. Part of the tragedy lies in the fact that, unlike children, grown-ups have a special gift for finding excuses. Here is a brief summary of the standard excuses learners use so they don't try hard.

Excuse	Truth
I feel weird when I say things right	That is your problem. Many speakers from other countries don’t have that problem
The Spanish media mispronounce words	Your teachers don’t. Native speakers on the internet don’t. Many speakers from other countries don’t.
People might laugh at me if I pronounce words correctly	(Some) people may laugh at you when you speak with an embarrassing accent. If they don’t, they might only patronize you. Not nice, is it?

Comedian John Oliver (the one and only) recently used the graphic below to illustrate a joke about a confusion. Now, in Spain that is not exactly a joke, but a common problem are for English learners. Yes.The dreaded [v] poses quite a challenge to those who learn English in Spain. Why? Because Spanish speakers (and Basque speakers, for that matter) are probably the only people in Europe that have trouble pronouncing that sound. What does that entail? For one thing unwanted mix-ups (best/vest, very/bury, blog/vlog, etc.). Another undesirable consequence of bad pronunciation is miscommunication. Suppose you’re on the phone and need to give someone your work email address, which happens to contain a “v”. Suppose you pronounce a [b] instead of a [v]. Chances are you'll never get an email from that contact. Finally there’s the “prestige thing”. Believe it or not, people react differently to speakers who don’t pronounce basic sounds… I could also comment on the widespread inability to articulate simple words like “she”, “English”, etc. So… what can you do about it? Just practice simple sequences like these: everybody, vibration, bravery. This website has a lot of minimal pairs (in case you're curious).

There is really no use trying to venture any further if you don’t master the basic problem areas first. In our case that means: the V-sound, the SH-sound, the initial sp- st- sk- clusters and the regular past tenses (played, worked, etc). Once you have that down, we can begin to wander into uncharted territory. Remember that even if the context makes it easy for people to understand what you mean, the impact of bad pronunciation is inevitable. I hope this is food for thought.

Today I would like to remind you all of your homework (which you should send to my email adress: rdelapena@eoilaredo.org)

C1 students: you were kindly requested to submit an essay expressing your opinion about the influence of a person’s name. Remember?

B2 crowd: I would like you to write a 250-word recount of a personal experience. Think of some unique anecdote, a funny experience you like to share at parties, etc. Just make it interesting, please. We have learned how to do that, haven't we?

Just remember this:

B2 students: watch out for avoidable mistakes, be careful with those verb patterns: (it prevented them from going to jail), go for natural combinations (a crowd gathered outsider the theater) and use several tenses (although she had been considering other options she ultimately decided to marry Archibald)

C1 learners: you are expected to use natural expressions. For example, if you’re discussing how important a person’s name is you may want to deal with the connection between one thing (the name) and another (their life). Many verbs come to mind: it has an impact on your life or it has an effect on your life. Alternatively, you may say that something makes a difference. Then you can proceed to embellish the expression: it had a great impact on my teenage years, it has quite a powerful effect on...

The speaker in the video I posted two weeks ago said all this: “can our names really influence our personalities?”, “can our names predict our futures?”, “there have been a ton of studies over the years trying to figure out how our names affect our lives”.

Let’s just dwell on that for a second. Check out the verb+noun combinations: influence-personality, affect-life. If you’ve been reading carefully you may have noticed that I have already given you a third collocation “to have an impact on you life”. We know that those combinations are safe because two different competent speakers have used them. The legitimate question might be can I say “it impacted me”? To which the answer is yes. I personally don’t like it (for reasons regarding style) so I never use it but it definitely is used.

Do you have to use those very words? Not necessarily. You can, of course, choose to define the kind of influence/impact something has. Check out these sentences: it has ruined my life, it has boosted the sales, it has limited my chances, it has forced me to come to terms with… etc. That might actually be the true difference between B2 and C1. The B2 speaker is happy not to make a mistake (it has influenced my life). The C1 speaker goes a little bit farther (the media has a powerful effect on people). A C2 speaker might choose from a wider gammut of resources ranging from the evocative (it has become the bane of my existence) to the prosaic (it the most critical factor for securing a job interview). All in all, one thing is clear, we should always aim for natural expressions, i.e. sequences that frequently used. “Grammatically possible” doesn’t cut it anymore.