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Myths about learning foreign languages

Myth 1. "If I find myself in a language environment, I will quickly and well speak"


Many people live in England or the USA for 10-20 years, but at the same time they speak English very poorly. Words and expressions - tens of thousands of the most common. Each of them must be comprehended separately - they will not be deposited in some magical way. Words often have several meanings, each of which requires separate attention. And it is necessary after all somehow to keep all this colossus in memory. And the words often do not combine with each other, this also must be kept in mind. Literally with me, a Russian lady of about fifty said to her friend: “... and now he does pret-enzies to me!” Claims. Does. Native speaker!

Myth 2. “If a person knows a foreign language, he can speak it. And vice versa"


This is far from always the case. Someone quickly and confidently speaks on basic everyday topics, but:

1. With errors of the “mine to go to the bazaar yesterday” level (those around him are sure that he has “fluent English”)

2. Enters into a stupor when switching to some kind of then an abstract topic. Unusual topics are hard for even native speakers. Ask the average Russian-speaking person to describe in words (by phone, for example) the acrobatic figure "wheel", which we all performed in physical education classes. Lean back in a chair, enjoy. When a person speaks a language not native to him, he goes through such agony every five minutes.

The ability to talk comes from practice. Imagine that international masters of sports in sprint running were closed for a month in a small room. He will lose shape. Does this mean that he is no longer an international master of sports? No, he will recover in a short time. The same thing happens with the speaking skill - even a good translator can lose conversational skills while continuing to know the language well.

A person can professionally translate written into a foreign language from his native language, but at the same time speak slowly and with errors. Speaking face to face with a native speaker of a foreign language is always stress, and in a situation of stress only what is learned to absolute automatism comes out. Many people know stories about people with a discharge in boxing, who in a real street fight situation forgot about their skills and beat them, as they did in their yard. I remember myself about 10 years ago, when I was already reading the English classics in full, and in conversation with a native English speaker I forgot everything in the world and used 5% of my knowledge.

Myth 3. Mythical “language barrier”, which must be “broken”, “removed” or “overcome”


The expression “language barrier” was coined to describe a situation where both sides literally speak different languages.

Language schools have come up with one more mythical meaning for this expression, and they have been making good money for decades. Often people who know a couple of thousand words and phrases, have some idea of ​​grammar, usually of an associative nature, believe that they already know a foreign language, only this “language barrier” interferes. And they are looking for a teacher who will “take him off”.

Everyone has situations when it is difficult to find words even in their native language. This is despite the fact that we do not even think about grammar - all the available resources of the brain are occupied only with the search for the right words. Our grammar, as they say, is written in the subcortex. In no state will the Russian man say "the girl ran." But with the selection of the right words - yes, we often experience difficulties. I’ll tell you a terrible secret: when speaking a foreign language, even among professionals, such situations arise several tens of times more often than in a conversation in one’s native language. But at the same time you also have to control the grammar - the grammar of a foreign language is not written in the subcortex (if only at a very advanced level).

In a conversation in a foreign language a person lays down simultaneously two burdens: the choice of words and the control of grammar. Add to this the stress of fear of seeming to be an idiot in the eyes of the wearer - this is the whole “language barrier”. The task of a foreign language teacher is to make sure that a person does not even think about how to build a phrase and concentrates all his efforts on choosing the right words.

Myth 4. “A native speaker should teach a foreign language”


One of the most ridiculous myths. A carrier is needed when a person has already confidently mastered the principles of the connection of words in the language being studied. Up to this point, the carrier is simply CONTRAINDICATED! The carrier DOES NOT UNDERSTAND how the learner thinks, but he thinks, of course, in his native language! And those moments that the carrier seems obvious, on which he does not even consider it necessary to focus attention, are not at all obvious to the person he is teaching.

Hundreds of thousands of people are caught in the bait of this myth and go to a language school in England or America for 2–4 weeks, hire an Englishman or an American in Russia. Language schools tell them demagogic logic - young children learn a foreign language just by talking to foreigners!

In young children, the mechanisms of assimilationmany times more powerful than even in adolescents, and even more so in adults. And even these mechanisms will work only if the child deals with the language for several hours a day in different situations. At the age of 0 to 5 years, each person goes through agony, trying to understand how to speak correctly, how to understand adults. And already at 7 completely forgets what struggle he had to go through. If everything was as simple as advertising in language schools, there would be many people around us speaking five languages.

Myth 5. English is different.


Business English, colloquial, for passing IELTS, TOEFL, EGE, etc. This myth has been successfully introduced into the mass consciousness by marketers of language schools. In fact, there is only one English that needs to be studied specifically and for a long time. Business and spoken English work on the same principles, even the same words are used! The difference is in a small set of phrases and words.

If a person knows English as such, he only needs 4-5 days of independent work in order to master “business English”. Maybe a little more to prepare for some kind of international exam (a teacher is not needed, a good textbook is enough).

If you explain the specificity of the Unified State Examination to a competent Englishman in a couple of hours, he will pass it close to 100 points (it is impossible to guarantee 100, because living people evaluate with their views on some points).

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