Hello everybody
Following a bit the discussion between women-men learning of a language, I have come across a very difficult case myself.
I have a student (in his forties) who's an engineer. We have been struggling for over a year now. He made some progress but then halts and it's like starting all over again. To make matters worse, the company he works for is American and he's pressed for results. (and so am I)
I've tried thousands of things, videos, listenings, readings....but I don't know what to do to make him "sound" a bit better, to acquire more vocabulary
One thing he's not doing is homework or some kind of work after class, and that is a disadvantage (a big one, I dare say) Apart from that, he's so anxious that I think he's "blocking" himself, and he's making me feel under a lot of pressure as well.
Any comments, pieces of advice? They are all welcome!
Thanks in advance!
Kari
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Fluency is a big thing and it is hard to break down. With my students who say they want to improve their fluency we discuss what it actually means and then try to identify specific things we can do to improve it.
This means working on suprasegmental parts of pronunciation - how the sounds link together. It also means working on typical phrases that are used in different kinds of communication: on the phone, in emails. Above all the learners generally acknowledge it´s about practice - the more frequently the better! That way some parts of the language can become more automatic, requiring less pausing and thought! If it´s about sounding better, sometimes pure mimicry can be good practice. I´ve noticed that if we do a gap fill of a song (especially by famous groups like Queen or U2), I ask them to read it out loud before listening and then again when we´re going through the answers at the end - I always notice a significant improvement! Using his experiences at work effectively is another way to help him gain the vocabulary he needs - by him listening to his colleagues and seeing what strategies and expressions he can copy and use.
Hope that helps!
Thanks!
I've done most of what you are suggesting!
I think it's a question of him being kind of "blocked"...I don't know. There are days when he's great, but most of them he's not performing OK.
We've talked about this and how his "problem" affects his work, and his possibilities of growth in the company. At the same time, it's a bit frustrating for me, since it's the first time in many years as a teacher that this happens to me
The latest attempt I've made was to provide him with links (we always do this) but I've also asked him to download the listenings to his MP3 and to listen to them while he's in the gym (he goes there practically every day almost 2 - 2 1/2 hours each day)
So well, thanks for sharing and reading....I think that I also needed to let all these feelings go out!
However, I keep on accepting ideas and suggestions!
Thanks!
Kari
You have mentioned very clearly that your student is not putting in the desired effort. It is very clear from this that he is not keen to hone his speaking skills. Gaining fluency by itself is a long term process and you need to be at it continuously. Your student is around forty years of age and if he does not understand the importance of practice, there is absolutely no point in wasting your time with him.
I come across such cases in all my batches. The common excuse is the same which you have mentioned above. You need to take a very tough stance and tell him to do his part of the job. Lastly let him not try to speak in an American Accent. The bottom line is speak globally understandable and comprehensible English.