E.S.L.
I know that I shouldn't laugh at anyone using English as a second language (especially since I speak French like a 6-year old French kid) but since I've been to Asia, I know that using bizarre English is par for the course. One of my home-stay sisters in Japan had this shirt that had a panda bear on it and talked about the wind blowing, in some weird nonsensical way... My roommate and I knew that there was something to all this (even back in 1992).
- MK sent me this site, http://www.engrish.com/ and it is almost always fabulous! I think the biggest issue they have in Japan and China is they don't have anywhere near enough native English speakers to proofread anything....
- Also, whenever I'm in France at any kind of touristy attraction they usually have signs in French, Spanish, German, and English. But of course the English is Great Brittan style, so they use "English" words that are the same as the French word. Like I can read the whole description in French and just not know one word, so I look to the English and they used that same damn word! ARGH! Languages are hard. We should take a page out of the European play book and TEACH OUR KIDS SEVERAL LANGUAGES STARTING WHEN THEY ARE LITTLE AND THEIR BRAINS ARE STILL LIKE SPONGES.
- I have a friend who teaches at an immersion school in California. That's the right idea!
posted by Phaedra @ 8:56 AM
6 Comments:
I've known a couple of people who raised their kids speaking a couple of languages. Unfortunately in both cases the kids are doing great in both languages until school, and then they refuse to speak anything but English (because all their friends only speak English). Unless it becomes part of the school system, it might not be too successful. Maybe if the parents keep up the second language exclusively at home...
I work with a couple of women who are raising their kids bilingual. The kids are still too young for school, so we'll see how that goes in the future.
Maybe this country needs more language and music programs in our schools instead of stupid blood-oil-wars!
I spoke Greek before English, and can speak French like a 2 yr old... how's that!
+1 for music ed. too!
althought I am a little biased
I saw a few minutes of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" on tv the other day and thought of your family John.
=)
Bilingual is the way to go! And yes, music counts as a second language too.
Your opinion that in China and Japan, they don't have nearly enough native speakers to proofread is not actually true. There are enough, but we rarely get asked, or even if we do get asked, they disagree with us and go along with their original idea anyway!!
Examples: "Let's Friendship!" Lots of laughs and jokes about "let's beer" and "let's computer" came out of this mistake, but it was embarrassing that my school had 3 foreign teachers working there, and we were not asked about the theme of this International Symposium until after it had already been decided.
One more example that I particularly like happened recently when my husband's company held their "going out of business" party. The theme was "Wonderful 37 Years." I suggested switching the words around, but of course, the sweatshirts, signs, invitations and posters had already been printed. They do have a foreigner working there as well, but did they ask him? I doubt it.
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