Problems in Learning English

8/12/2019 Problems in Learning English

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o 1.2 English within English-speaking countries

o 1.3 Umbrella terms

o 1. !ystems o" simpli"ied English

2 #i""iculties "or learners

o 2.1 $ronunciation

o 2.2 %rammar

o 2.3 &ocabulary

o 2. #i""erences between spoken and written English

o 2.' &arieties o" English

3 E(ams "or learners

o 3.1 The )ommon European *ramework

+uali"ications "or teachers

o .1 ,on-natie speakers

o .2 United !tates uali"ications

o .3 /ritish uali"ications

o . !outh 0orea uali"ications

o .' )hile uali"ications

' $ro"essional associations and unions

cronyms and abbreiations

o .1 Types o" English

o .2 ther abbreiations

4 !ee also

o 4.1 5anguage terminology

o 4.2 %eneral language teaching and learning

o 4.3 English language teaching and learning

o 4. )ontemporary English

o 4.' English 5anguage !chools

o 4. ther

o 4.4 #ictionaries and 6esources

7 6e"erences and notes

8 *urther reading

19 E(ternal links

[edit]Terminology and types
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#English_within_English-speaking_countrieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Umbrella_termshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Systems_of_simplified_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Difficulties_for_learnershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Pronunciationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Grammarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Vocabularyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Differences_between_spoken_and_written_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Varieties_of_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Exams_for_learnershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#The_Common_European_Frameworkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Qualifications_for_teachershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Non-native_speakershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#United_States_qualificationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#British_qualificationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#South_Korea_qualificationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Chile_qualificationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Professional_associations_and_unionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Acronyms_and_abbreviationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Types_of_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Other_abbreviationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#See_alsohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Language_terminologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#General_language_teaching_and_learninghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#English_language_teaching_and_learninghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Contemporary_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#English_Language_Schoolshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Otherhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Dictionaries_and_Resourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#References_and_noteshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Further_readinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#External_linkshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#English_within_English-speaking_countrieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Umbrella_termshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Systems_of_simplified_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Difficulties_for_learnershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Pronunciationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Grammarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Vocabularyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Differences_between_spoken_and_written_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Varieties_of_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Exams_for_learnershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#The_Common_European_Frameworkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Qualifications_for_teachershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Non-native_speakershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#United_States_qualificationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#British_qualificationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#South_Korea_qualificationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Chile_qualificationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Professional_associations_and_unionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Acronyms_and_abbreviationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Types_of_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Other_abbreviationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#See_alsohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Language_terminologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#General_language_teaching_and_learninghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#English_language_teaching_and_learninghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Contemporary_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#English_Language_Schoolshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Otherhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Dictionaries_and_Resourceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#References_and_noteshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Further_readinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#External_linkshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=1


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&he many acronymsandabbre%iationsused in the field of English teaching and learning may be

confusing! English is a language $hat has great reach and influence+ it is taught all o%er the $orld

under many different circumstances! n English*speaking countries, English language teaching are

essentially e%ol%ed in t$o broad directions- instruction for people $ho intend to li%e in an English*

speaking country and for those $ho don.t! &hese di%isions ha%e gro$n firmer as the instructors of

these t$o /industries/ ha%e used different terminology, follo$ed distinct training 0ualifications, formed

separate professional associations, and so on! Crucially, these t$o arms ha%e %ery different funding

structures, public in the former and pri%ate in the latter, and to some etent this influences the $ay

schools are established and classes are held! Matters are further complicated by the fact that

the 2nited 'tatesand the 2nited 3ingdom,both ma4or engines of the language, describe these

categories in different terms- as many elo0uent users of the language ha%e obser%ed, /England and

America are t$o countries di%ided by a common language!/ "Attributed to Winston Churchill, 5eorge

6ernard 'ha$,and )scar Wilde!# &he follo$ing technical definitions may therefore ha%e their currencycontested!

[edit]English outside English-speaing !ountries

EFL, English as a foreign language, indicates the use of English in a non7English*speaking region!

'tudy can occur either in the student.s home country, as part of the normal school curriculum or

other$ise, or, for the more pri%ileged minority, in ananglophonecountry that they %isit as a sort of

educational tourist, particularly immediately before or after graduating from uni%ersity! TEFLis

the teaching of English as a foreign language+note that this sort of instruction can take place in any

country, English*speaking or not! &ypically, EF( is learned either to pass eams as a necessary part of

one.s education, or for career progression $hile $orking for an organisation or business $ith an

international focus! EF( may be part of the state schoolcurriculumin countries $here English has no

special status "$hat linguist6ra4 3achrucalls the /epanding circle countries/#+ it may also be

supplemented by lessons paid for pri%ately! &eachers of EF( generally assume that students

areliteratein their mother tongue! &he Chinese EFL Journal81and ranian EFL Journal8:are eamples

of international 4ournals dedicated to specifics of English language learning $ithin countries $here

English is used as a foreign language!

[edit]English "ithin English-speaing !ountries

&he other broad grouping is the use of English $ithin theAnglosphere! n $hat theorist 6ra4

3achrucalls /the inner circle/, i!e! countries such as the 2nited 3ingdom and the 2nited 'tates, this

use of English is generally by refugees, immigrantsand their children! t also includes the use of

English in /outer circle/ countries, oftenformer 6ritish colonies,$here English is anofficial

languagee%en if it is not spoken as a mother tongueby the ma4ority of the population!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym_and_initialismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbreviationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbreviationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_associationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Stateshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston_Churchillhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Bernard_Shawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Bernard_Shawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Bernard_Shawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Wildehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=2http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English-speaking_worldhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English-speaking_worldhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teaching_English_as_a_Foreign_Languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teaching_English_as_a_Foreign_Languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curriculumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braj_Kachruhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braj_Kachruhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literatehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literatehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-0http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=3http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=3http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglospherehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglospherehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braj_Kachruhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braj_Kachruhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugeehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigranthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigranthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Official_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Official_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Official_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_tonguehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_tonguehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym_and_initialismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbreviationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_associationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Stateshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston_Churchillhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Bernard_Shawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Bernard_Shawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Wildehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English-speaking_worldhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teaching_English_as_a_Foreign_Languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curriculumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braj_Kachruhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literatehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-0http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=3http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglospherehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braj_Kachruhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braj_Kachruhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugeehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigranthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Official_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Official_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_tongue


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[edit]Systems o% simpli%ied English

For international communication se%eral models of /simplified English/ ha%e been suggested or

de%eloped, among them-

6asic English, de%eloped byCharles 3ay )gden"and later also ! A! Bichards# in the 19>s+ a

recent re%i%al has been initiated by 6ill &empler8

&hreshold (e%el English, de%eloped by %an Ek and Aleander8

5lobish,de%eloped by ean*?aul


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the Chinese learners did not see classroom discussion and interaction as important but placed a hea%y

emphasis on teacher*directed lectures!8981

[edit]Pronun!iation

Consonant phonemes

English does not ha%e more indi%idual consonantsounds than most languages! Io$e%er, the

interdentals, //and //"the sounds $ritten $ith th#, $hich are common in English "thin, thing,

etc!+ and the, this, that, etc!# are relati%ely rare in other languages, e%en others in

the5ermanic family"e.g.,English thousandJ5ermantausend#, and these sounds are

missing e%en in some English dialects! 'ome learners substitute a [t]or [d]sound, $hile

others shift to [s]or [z], [f]or [v]and e%en [ts]or [dz]!

'peakers ofapanese, 3orean,Chineseand &haimay ha%e difficulty

distinguishing []and [l]! 'peakers ofKiang Chinesemay ha%e a similar difficulty

distinguishing [n]and [l]! &he distinction bet$een [b]and [v]can cause difficulty for nati%e

speakers of 'panish,Arabic,apanese and 3orean!

&o"el phonemes

&he precise number of distinct %o$elsounds depends on the %ariety of English- for

eample,Becei%ed ?ronunciationhas t$el%e monophthongs"single or /pure/ %o$els#,

eightdiphthongs"double %o$els# and t$o triphthongs"triple %o$els#+ $hereas 5eneralAmericanhas thirteen monophthongs and three diphthongs!8citation needed8dubious%discussMany

learners, such as speakers of 'panish,apaneseorArabic,ha%e fe$er %o$els, or only pure

ones, in their mother tongue and so may ha%e problems both $ith hearing and $ith

pronouncing these distinctions!

Sylla$le stru!ture

n its syllable structure, English allo$s for a cluster of up to three consonantsbefore the %o$el

and four after it "e.g.,stra&, des's, glimsed#! &he syllable structure causes problems forspeakers of many other languages! apanese,for eample, broadly alternates consonant and

%o$el sounds so learners from apan often try to force %o$els in bet$een the consonants

"e.g.,des's/desks/becomes /desukusu/ or mil' sha'e/mlk ek/becomes

/mirukushLku/#!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-8http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-8http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-9http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=7http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=7http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consonanthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consonanthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germanic_languageshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiang_Chinesehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiang_Chinesehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiang_Chinesehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowelhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowelhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Received_Pronunciationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Received_Pronunciationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monophthonghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphthonghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphthonghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triphthonghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Americanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Americanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_neededhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_neededhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_neededhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Disputed_statementhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Disputed_statementhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Disputed_statementhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Dubioushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Dubioushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syllablehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consonant_clusterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-8http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-9http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=7http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consonanthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germanic_languageshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiang_Chinesehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vowelhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Received_Pronunciationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monophthonghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphthonghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triphthonghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Americanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Americanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_neededhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Disputed_statementhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#Dubioushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syllablehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consonant_clusterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_language


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(earners from languages $here all $ords end in %o$els sometimes tend to make all English

$ords end in %o$els, thus ma'e/mek/can come out as [mek]! &he learner.s task is

further complicated by the fact that nati%e speakers may drop consonants in the more

comple blends "e.g.,[mns]instead of [mns]for months#!

#nstressed 'o"els*


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n English there are 0uite a number of $ords * about fifty * that ha%e t$o different

pronunciations, depending on $hether they are stressed! &hey are /grammatical $ords/-

pronouns, prepositions, auiliary %erbs and con4unctions! Most students tend to o%eruse the

strong form, $hich is pronounced $ith the $ritten %o$el!

Conne!ted spee!h

?honological processes such asassimilation,elisionandepenthesistogether $ith indistinct

$ord boundaries can confuse learners $hen listening to natural spoken English, as $ell as

making their speech sound too formal if they do not use them! For eample, inB?eight

beetles and three ants/et bitlz nd ri nts/becomes [etbitlznijns]!

See also:ccent reduction

[edit](rammar

Tense) aspe!t) and mood* English has a

relati%ely large number oftense7aspect7

moodforms $ith some 0uite subtle differences,

such as the difference bet$een the simple past

/ ate/ and the present perfect / ha%e eaten!/

?rogressi%e and perfect progressi%e forms add

compleity! "'eeEnglish %erbs!#

Fun!tions o% au*iliaries* (earners of English

tend to find it difficult to manipulate the %arious

$ays in $hich English uses auiliary %erbs!

&hese include negation "e!g! /e hasn-t been

drin'ing.#, in%ersion $ith the sub4ect to form a

0uestion "e!g! /as he been drin'ing#, short

ans$ers "e!g! 0es, he has.# andtag

0uestions"has he#! A further complication is

that the dummy auiliary %erb dodoesdidis

added to fulfil these functions in the simple

present and simple past, but not for the %erb to

be!

+odal 'er$s* English also has a significant

number of modal auiliary %erbs$hich each

ha%e a number of uses! For eample, the
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assimilation_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assimilation_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epenthesishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epenthesishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epenthesishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Received_Pronunciationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Received_Pronunciationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accent_reductionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accent_reductionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=8http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tense%E2%80%93aspect%E2%80%93moodhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tense%E2%80%93aspect%E2%80%93moodhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tense%E2%80%93aspect%E2%80%93moodhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_verbshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_verbshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_verbshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auxiliary_verbhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_questionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_questionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_questionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modal_auxiliary_verbhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assimilation_(linguistics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epenthesishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Received_Pronunciationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accent_reductionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=8http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tense%E2%80%93aspect%E2%80%93moodhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tense%E2%80%93aspect%E2%80%93moodhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_verbshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auxiliary_verbhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_questionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_questionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modal_auxiliary_verb


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opposite of /You must be here at / "obligation#

is usually /You don.t ha%e to be here at / "lack

of obligation, choice#, $hile /must/ in /You must

not drink the $ater/ "prohibition# has a different

meaning from /must/ in /You must not be a

nati%e speaker/ "deduction#! &his compleity

takes considerable $ork for most English

language learners to master!

Idiomati! usage* English is reputed to ha%e a

relati%ely high degree of idiomaticusage! For

eample, the use of different main %erb forms in

such apparently parallel constructions as /try to

learn/, /help learn/, and /a%oid learning/ posedifficulty for learners! Another eample is the

idiomatic distinction bet$een /make/ and /do/-

/make a mistake/, not /do a mistake/+ and /do a

fa%or/, not /make a fa%or/!

Arti!les* English has an appreciable number

of articles, including the /the/ definite articleand

the /a, an/indefinite article! At times English

nouns can or indeed must be used $ithout an

article+ this is called the ;ero article!'ome of

the differences bet$een definite, indefinite and

;ero article are fairly easy to learn, but others

are not, particularly since a learner.s nati%e

language may lack articles or use them in

different $ays than English does! Although the

information con%eyed by articles is rarely

essential for communication, English uses them

fre0uently "se%eral times in the a%eragesentence#, so that they re0uire some effort from

the learner!

[edit]&o!a$ulary
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idiomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idiomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_(grammar)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A,_anhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A,_anhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero-marking_in_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero-marking_in_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=9http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idiomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_(grammar)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A,_anhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero-marking_in_Englishhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=9


10/29

Phrasal 'er$s* ?hrasal %erbsin English can

cause difficulties for many learners because

they ha%e se%eral meanings and different

syntactic patterns! &here are also a number of

phrasal %erb differences bet$een American and

6ritish English!

,ord deri'ation* Word deri%ationin English

re0uires a lot ofrote learning!For eample, an

ad4ecti%e can be negated by using

the prefiun"e!g! unable#, in"e!g! inaroriat

e#, dis"e!g! dishonest#, or a"e!g! amoral#, or

through the use of one of a myriad related but

rarer prefies, all modified %ersions of the firstfour!

Sie o% le*i!on* &hehistory of Englishhas

resulted in a %ery large %ocabulary, essentially

one stream from )ld Englishand one from

the


11/29

English is spoken in normal situations! &his can

often be difficult and confusing for learners $ith

little eperience of using English in Anglophone

countries! Also, slang terms differ greatly

bet$een different regions and can change

0uickly in response to popular culture! 'ome

phrases can become unintentionally rude if

misused!

[edit]Di%%eren!es $et"een spoen

and "ritten English

As $ith most languages, $ritten language tends to

use a more formalregisterthan spoken language!&he ac0uisition ofliteracytakes significant effort in

English!

Selling- probably the biggest difficulty for non*

nati%e speakers since English spelling doesn.t

follo$ the alphabetic principleconsistently!

6ecause of the many changes in pronunciation

$hich ha%e occurred since a $ritten standard

de%eloped, the retention of many historical

idiosyncrasies inspelling, and the large influ of

foreign $ords "mainly from Oanish,


12/29

they may see a $ord $ritten but not kno$ ho$

to pronounce it or mislearn the pronunciation!

Io$e%er, despite the %ariety of spelling patterns

in English, there are do;ens of rules that are

@P or more reliable!81:

For urther discussion o English selling

atterns and rules, see1honics.

[edit]&arieties o% English

England, the historical home of English, has

significant regional language differencesin

pronunciation, accent, %ocabulary and grammar!

&he thri%ing communities of English nati%e

speakers incountries all o%er the $orldalso

ha%e some noticeable differences in

pronunciation, %ocabulary and grammar!

English has no organisation that determines the

most prestigious form of the language * unlike

the French language$hich has thecademie

de la langue ran2aise,'panish

language.s3eal cademia Esa4ola, the

6ra;ilian ?ortugueseAcademia 6rasileira de

(etras, or the talianccademia della Crusca!

&eaching English therefore in%ol%es not only helping

the student to use the form of English most suitable

for his purposes, but also eposure to regional

forms and cultural styles so that the student $ill be

able to discern meaning e%en $hen the $ords,

grammar or pronunciation are different to the form of

English he is being taught to speak!

[edit]E*ams %or learners

See also:Categor+:English language tests
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonicshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonicshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonicshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_language_in_Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_language_in_Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglospherehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglospherehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglospherehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_Academia_Espa%C3%B1olahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_Academia_Espa%C3%B1olahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academia_Brasileira_de_Letrashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academia_Brasileira_de_Letrashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academia_Brasileira_de_Letrashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accademia_della_Cruscahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accademia_della_Cruscahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=12http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:English_language_testshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:English_language_testshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language#cite_note-11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonicshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_language_in_Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_language_in_Englandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglospherehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_Academia_Espa%C3%B1olahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academia_Brasileira_de_Letrashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academia_Brasileira_de_Letrashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accademia_della_Cruscahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=English_as_a_foreign_or_second_language&action=edit&section=12http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:English_language_tests


13/29

(earners of English are often keen to get

accreditation and a number of eams are kno$n

internationally-81>

2ni%ersity of Cambridge E')(

Eaminationsoffers a suite of eighteen globally

a%ailable eaminations including 5eneral

English- 3ey English &est "3E,?reliminary

English &est"?E, First Certificate in

English"FCE#,Certificate in Ad%anced

English"CAE# and Certificate of ?roficiency in

English"C?E#!

&rinity College (ondon E')(offers ntegrated

'kills in English "'E#, series of eams, $hich

assesses Beading, Writing, 'peaking and

(istening accepted by academic institutions in

the 23! &hey also offer 5raded Eaminations in

'poken English "5E'E#, series of 1: eams,

$hich assesses 'peaking and (istening and

E')( 'kills for (ife and E')( for Work eams

in the 23 only!

E(&'"nternational English (anguage &esting

'ystem#, accepted by academic institutions in

the 23, Australia,


14/29

reflect international English for academic

admission into any uni%ersity re0uiring English

proficiency!

&)EF("&est of English as a Foreign

(anguage#, an Educational &esting

'er%iceproduct, de%eloped and used primarily

for academic institutions in the 2'A, and no$

$idely accepted in tertiary institutions in

Canada,


15/29

?rofessional N Authentic "IB tool research N

e%idence*based, designed, de%eloped and

administered by E


16/29

6! ndependent 2ser

C! ?roficient 2ser

Each of these le%els is di%ided into t$o sections,

resulting in a total of si le%els for testing "A1, A:,

61, etc!#!

&his table compares E(& eams according to the

CEF le%els-

C

E

F

Le

v

e

l

AL

TELev

el

N

QFLe

vel

P

T

E

Gen

er

al

TC

L

ESOL

GE

SE

TC

L

ESO

LI

SE

UB

ELTex

am

IE

LT

S

Ca

mbr

idge

ESOL

BU

LAT

S

Cam

bridg

e

ESOLBE

Cdisam

biguation

needed!

Ca

mbr

idge

ESOL

Gen

eral

Ca

mb

rid

geES

OL

"L

E

Ca

mb

rid

ge

ES

OLS#i

lls

$or

Li$

e[1

]

C

%

5eel '

5eel

3

5ee

l '

%rade

12

:&.9-'.9

7.

'-8.

9

89-199

n;a )$E n;a n;a

C

&

5e

el

5e

el

2

5e

e

l

%ra

de

19! 5&he 6asic 'kills Agency

D! 5'askatche$an (earning

! 5Cf! )gden, Charles 3! "19>D#, The S+stem

o 5asic English,


27/29

5lobal English/, Journal or EuroLinguisti7:-

DD*D, and 5r;ega, oachim

":#, R&o$ards 5lobal English %ia 6asic

5lobal English "65E#- 'ocioeconomic and

?edagogic deas for a European and 5lobal

(anguage "$ith Oidactic Eamples for


28/29

1>! 5'ources for this are found at the uni%ersity

$ebsites! 5i%en that there are thousands of

tertiary institutions that accept one or more of

these for entrance re0uirements, they simply

can not be footnoted indi%idually here

1D! 5http-$$$!cambridgeesol!orgeamsgener

al*englishsflle%els!html

1! 5/&E')( Certificates! &eaching or Oecei%ing

the EF(E'( &eaching ?rofession/ by &om

Oa%idson, March : %olume : TES!L La&

Journal

[edit]Further reading

(a ?erla, oann, /)rder, Chaos and 5entle

Be%olutions- A 6rief and ?ersonal Iistory of

E'( nstruction for mmigrants/, 19*1*:,

paper presented at 2nion County College.s

conference, /(iterature and the mmigrant

Eperience/ "Cranford,

[edit]E*ternal lins

nternational Association of &eachers of English

as a Foreign (anguage


29/29

&E')(academic!org * Qideo talks from leaders

in the field and others about issues in &E')(

English as a 'econd (anguageat the )pen

Oirectory ?ro4ect

Qie$ page ratings
http://www.tesolacademic.org/http://www.tesolacademic.org/http://www.dmoz.org/Arts/Education/Language_Arts/English/English_as_a_Second_Language/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Directory_Projecthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Directory_Projecthttp://www.tesolacademic.org/http://www.tesolacademic.org/http://www.dmoz.org/Arts/Education/Language_Arts/English/English_as_a_Second_Language/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Directory_Projecthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Directory_Project

Documents

Problems in Learning English