Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Monday, November 29, 2004
English Fluency Degradation: How Come???
Some students, having been studying abroad before, can not stop thinking why their English fluency (particulary in a formal writing) degrades significantly when they have returned to and lived in the home country ("Indonesia") for a couple of months. This phenomenon usually raises whenever they have to make report to their school as a part of their internship assignment, a little while since their arrival. Many of them, whose IELTS score is as high as 7, make grammatical mistakes that cannot be considered as misstyping in any way and some typical errors that usually made by intermediate (or even lower grade!) students.
It is not that they do not know the cause (the "why"); it is generally believed that the lack of condusive environment plays the major roles. Instead, it is more about the "how", ie. how could it happen whereas at the same time they are still capable, according to a less-than-2-years-old English test score and their previous years of international atmosphere exposure, to communicate their thoughts in the target language?
Presuming there is nothing wrong with the existing English proficiency test they have taken, I guess it is all about motivation, which is of course partially influenced by the environment. Motivation decreases and increases as a function of some factors. At the first time they plan to study abroad, students do their best to pass the selection phases and make reasonable language preparation in order to survive in the crowd of strangers out there. In other words, the uncertainty factor of living and studying in the land they have never been to has encouraged them to do their homeworks: enriching their vocabs, improving the grammar, shaping their style, which in turn help them express their thought to others clearly yet correctly.
Unfortunately, the story goes different as they come back to Indonesia. Being an overseas educated students, they finally find their previously missing comfort on being sorrounded by people peering at them with admiring look. Facing this situation, they might lower the standard, reducing from a highly dynamic, applicable working language to a static, words-per-words translation pattern of language.
Those who lack of motivation to stay consistent in learning will suffer unpleasant consequences. Taking this matter lightly, they might think English proficiency is only a matter of speaking English along with original British/American accent, and writing is as simple as transforming those spoken words into a piece of paper. This way, they have left the important aspect of written languange: understandability. People listening others talk can immediately ask and/or clarify which points they are missing, while in the written English, they do not have such luxury. Therefore, those who are highly motivated to keep learning and shaping their fluency are more likely to be alert to common mistakes in writing, as they are in spoken English to correct spelling and proper intonation.
It is essential for students studying a foreign language take precautionary actions whenever they are not exposed to the target language any longer. I am talking about re-studying and reviewing. Just because you have been graduated from Advanced 4 of a reputable English course in the world or having been going abroad for a few years doesn't mean you become an English language expert. You are still students, and this level you are now standing might degrades slowly but sure unless you are willing to learn more and more. You are still students in the "real" school of language.
Some people do not see my point. They think joining formal grammar reinforcement program (or things like that) will solve the problem; In fact, it will definitely not. Formal education is not the key factor at this stage of learning. You have already had all you need, all the theories and those grammatical stuffs (and even better, you have had the chance to use it in the "battlefield"). Learn informally through the real cases, from any means available. Compare it with what you have got. Not only will you have more experience and fun, you will also be a eye witness of the evolving language, noticing something new added to the language and pondering the old stuffs that removed from it. It is something like "living in the language", and may be one solution among plenty of others.
Well, it's a matter of opinion. The rest is yours. ^___^
It is not that they do not know the cause (the "why"); it is generally believed that the lack of condusive environment plays the major roles. Instead, it is more about the "how", ie. how could it happen whereas at the same time they are still capable, according to a less-than-2-years-old English test score and their previous years of international atmosphere exposure, to communicate their thoughts in the target language?
Presuming there is nothing wrong with the existing English proficiency test they have taken, I guess it is all about motivation, which is of course partially influenced by the environment. Motivation decreases and increases as a function of some factors. At the first time they plan to study abroad, students do their best to pass the selection phases and make reasonable language preparation in order to survive in the crowd of strangers out there. In other words, the uncertainty factor of living and studying in the land they have never been to has encouraged them to do their homeworks: enriching their vocabs, improving the grammar, shaping their style, which in turn help them express their thought to others clearly yet correctly.
Unfortunately, the story goes different as they come back to Indonesia. Being an overseas educated students, they finally find their previously missing comfort on being sorrounded by people peering at them with admiring look. Facing this situation, they might lower the standard, reducing from a highly dynamic, applicable working language to a static, words-per-words translation pattern of language.
Those who lack of motivation to stay consistent in learning will suffer unpleasant consequences. Taking this matter lightly, they might think English proficiency is only a matter of speaking English along with original British/American accent, and writing is as simple as transforming those spoken words into a piece of paper. This way, they have left the important aspect of written languange: understandability. People listening others talk can immediately ask and/or clarify which points they are missing, while in the written English, they do not have such luxury. Therefore, those who are highly motivated to keep learning and shaping their fluency are more likely to be alert to common mistakes in writing, as they are in spoken English to correct spelling and proper intonation.
It is essential for students studying a foreign language take precautionary actions whenever they are not exposed to the target language any longer. I am talking about re-studying and reviewing. Just because you have been graduated from Advanced 4 of a reputable English course in the world or having been going abroad for a few years doesn't mean you become an English language expert. You are still students, and this level you are now standing might degrades slowly but sure unless you are willing to learn more and more. You are still students in the "real" school of language.
Some people do not see my point. They think joining formal grammar reinforcement program (or things like that) will solve the problem; In fact, it will definitely not. Formal education is not the key factor at this stage of learning. You have already had all you need, all the theories and those grammatical stuffs (and even better, you have had the chance to use it in the "battlefield"). Learn informally through the real cases, from any means available. Compare it with what you have got. Not only will you have more experience and fun, you will also be a eye witness of the evolving language, noticing something new added to the language and pondering the old stuffs that removed from it. It is something like "living in the language", and may be one solution among plenty of others.
Well, it's a matter of opinion. The rest is yours. ^___^
Friday, November 26, 2004
Happy Idul Fitri...
Happy idul fitri, everyone!!!
yeah... i know... calm down... It's been 13 days late for saying that, but I think we all agree that 365 days in a year are all-good-days to forgive and forget, to apologize for any mistakes that we have made in the past. Coz "to err is a human", say a proverb and a quote from Quran.
That's what this posting for: to conveniently beg for your forgiving, merciful heart; to apologize my accidental faults since i was present in the bloggerland and my presence in this world (if you happen to know me offline).
I also thank all people who bother themselves saying hi and wishing me happy idul fitri to me in the shoutbox, comment box, as well as leaving offline messages in Y!Messenger and Friendster's bulletin board, and I am really sorry if I've missed any one of you while wishing the same in return, one way or another.
Final words, let's make a hope together that from this beautiful day forward, we could become a better person for everyone we love and everyone we share this world with.
yeah... i know... calm down... It's been 13 days late for saying that, but I think we all agree that 365 days in a year are all-good-days to forgive and forget, to apologize for any mistakes that we have made in the past. Coz "to err is a human", say a proverb and a quote from Quran.
That's what this posting for: to conveniently beg for your forgiving, merciful heart; to apologize my accidental faults since i was present in the bloggerland and my presence in this world (if you happen to know me offline).
I also thank all people who bother themselves saying hi and wishing me happy idul fitri to me in the shoutbox, comment box, as well as leaving offline messages in Y!Messenger and Friendster's bulletin board, and I am really sorry if I've missed any one of you while wishing the same in return, one way or another.
Final words, let's make a hope together that from this beautiful day forward, we could become a better person for everyone we love and everyone we share this world with.
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