“English?I studied it for ten years and I can’t speak
a word!
”
Such is the self-critical lament heard everywhere people study English
outside of the English-speaking world (the “EFL setting”).
Is the setting itself interfering with the learner’s ability...
More
“English?I studied it for ten years and I can’t speak
a word!
”
Such is the self-critical lament heard everywhere people study English
outside of the English-speaking world (the “EFL setting”).
Is the setting itself interfering with the learner’s ability to “remember”
language well enough to use it competently and confidently? If so,
why should this be? What can be done about it? And, if English is so
hard to learn, why does everyone keep trying?
Today’s adult learner knows that in virtually any profession, English
is an essential skill.
World economies and cultures are increasingly
interconnected and interdependent—politically, socially, and technologically.
Multinational companies consist of confederations of
offices in numerous countries, and English has thus become a convenient lingua franca.
Indeed, according to Ricardo Schutz’s study, 75%
of all international communication in writing, 80% of all information
in the world’s computers, and 90% of Internet content are in English.
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