On the first ESL poll, voters chose "International English" and "Common Speaking Errors" as the two most important topics for discussion.
International English is the language spoken when a conversation is not possible in either persons' first language. It is different from the many native English dialects spoken around the world. Any English speaker can use and understand International English. However, two native English speakers in conversation will use more blended speech, local phrases and will often speak much more quickly than speakers of International English.
So far, my students have been Korean, German, French, Russian, and Hebrew speakers. The most common speaking error is the 3rd Person Singular Verb. It has an "S"! Even my advanced students forget that "S" sometimes. The next most common speaking error is misplaced determiners, particularly the articles: a, an, and the. Usually my students simply omit these. The meaning is still clear, but to an English speaking person, this is an obvious error.
One common bad habit that some of my students have is to find a "favorite" modal auxiliary verb and over-use it; most commonly, "should" and "must". In spoken English, "have to" and "have/has got to "<<'ve gotta, 's gotta >> are semi-modals that are used extremely often. These two semi-modal auxiliary verbs are less formal and not as strong. They are used for every day obligations. "I've gotta pick up some potatoes before I get home." "Fred has to clean up his act."
Next post - Language Functions... my passion.
International English is the language spoken when a conversation is not possible in either persons' first language. It is different from the many native English dialects spoken around the world. Any English speaker can use and understand International English. However, two native English speakers in conversation will use more blended speech, local phrases and will often speak much more quickly than speakers of International English.
So far, my students have been Korean, German, French, Russian, and Hebrew speakers. The most common speaking error is the 3rd Person Singular Verb. It has an "S"! Even my advanced students forget that "S" sometimes. The next most common speaking error is misplaced determiners, particularly the articles: a, an, and the. Usually my students simply omit these. The meaning is still clear, but to an English speaking person, this is an obvious error.
One common bad habit that some of my students have is to find a "favorite" modal auxiliary verb and over-use it; most commonly, "should" and "must". In spoken English, "have to" and "have/has got to "<<'ve gotta, 's gotta >> are semi-modals that are used extremely often. These two semi-modal auxiliary verbs are less formal and not as strong. They are used for every day obligations. "I've gotta pick up some potatoes before I get home." "Fred has to clean up his act."
Next post - Language Functions... my passion.
