Spoken English

Since I came to China, three years ago, probably the most common question I have received is “how can I improve my spoken English?” I think this is very interesting, since I really know less about this than many Chinese people. I learned to speak English as a very young child, so I don’t even remember how I practiced my own spoken English! I am sure that many Chinese students, and teachers, know much more about this than I do.

Still, since I have been teaching English, and talking with so many English learners, I have formed some ideas about this. I agree with many of the experts, who study the process of language-learning. They say that the best way to learn a new language is the most natural way. That is to say, the easiest way to learn a new language is to practice the way babies and young children do.

Babies do not study grammar from boring textbooks. They also do not memorize new vocabulary from long lists of words. In fact, babies do not learn to read at all, until long after they have become accomplished speakers. Babies begin their study of language simply by listening. Later, much later, after they have spent a long time simply listening to their parents, relatives, and other people, they begin to experiment with speaking.

The words they listen to are not all alone, but usually belong to sentences. The sentences are not spoken simply to teach the baby, but are spoken in natural, everyday situations. Babies are exposed to this new language in a completely natural, living environment. This is ideal, for a couple of reasons.

First, there is real content in the sentences they hear. When people study a second language, they often read and hear sentences that are artificially constructed, made up only for the purpose of students to learn them. They are not alive, and I am sure that they are less interesting because of this. Learning and interest are closely connected – something interesting is much, much easier to learn.

Second, the words are connected with other words, the ideas are connected with other ideas. Memory works by association – that is, links or connections between the things we don’t know and the things we already know. Memory experts tell us that we should connect new ideas to old ones, so that we can remember them easier. Put the words into a sentence, put the sentences into a paragraph, and so on.

When babies begin to practice speaking, they are not worried about passing any examination. Usually, they do not have any serious problems to solve – most babies receive food, attention and love, whether they speak, or not. So, they are free to do what babies and children love to do most – PLAY. Very young children play with the words they have learned, and so they are doing what they love WHILE they practice speaking. This is very important, and not enough language students understand this well.

When we are trying to do something that is very boring, it is difficult to pay attention for long. We easily become restless, and tired. However, when we are doing something that we really enjoy, we often forget about everything else around us, because we are so focused on this activity. This high level of concentration is ideal for learning. Play is probably the most efficient tool we have, for learning new things. The more interesting and enjoyable something is for you, the easier it will be for you to understand and remember it.

As simple as this idea is, it is the exact opposite of the way most people try to learn a foreign language. Traditional language study is attempted by memorizing complex rules of grammer, and repeating endless lists of new words, in a completely unnatural and artificial environment. To say the least, this is an inefficient way to learn. It would be much better for us to naturalize our study, to make it similar to the way babies learn.

In my opinion, the first thing to do, to increase the efficiency of studying a new language, is to listen. Take every chance to hear people speak this language. Listen to radio programs, TV shows, music, films, everything. If you don’t understand what you hear, don’t worry – at the beginning, neither do babies! By listening, listening, listening, we become familiar with the sounds of the language, and this will help us to understand later.

Next, listen to (and read) words that have real meaning for you. That is, find a book, a film, a TV show that contains information that is truly interesting. Fashion, sports, science-fiction, music, whatever is most interesting for you, find something in your new language that discusses this. If the words carry actual meaning, if they discuss some subject you love, it is much easier to pay attention to them, and remember them. If they are simply isolated sounds with no interesting message, they easily forgotten.

Then, play with language. Don’t treat your study as a totally serious thing. Songs, rhymes, games, jokes, riddles, poems, stories, whatever is fun for you, do this with your new language. The old idea that learning should be painful to be effective has been proved to be wrong. Having fun is the most efficient way to retain new information – this is a proven fact.