俚语和成语，让你走出英语学习的黑暗
俚语和成语，让你走出英语学习的黑暗Ｄａｖｉｄ Ｂｕｒｋｅ
Should Teachers Teach Naughty Words?
After years of presenting to numerous teachers and leading discussion groups, I have found that the vast majority of teachers feel that familiarizing students with slang, idioms and even some vulgarities is much more desirable than having students pick up this type of language haphazardly on the street.
The main concern is that students often hear vulgar or provocative words used loosely and gratuitously and, therefore, don’t understand the full weight and connotation of a particular term or expression. The unsuspecting student may find himself in an embarrassing situation. However, having first been exposed to this type of vernacular in the classroom, these potentially embarrassing situations may be avoided.
In addition, being able to recognize vulgar language is essential for one’s own safety or survival. When I lived in France as a 15-year-old, I met a group of teenagers who eagerly took me under their collective wing since I was a curiosity for them, being an American who knew very little French. I could only understand about two percent of what they were saying, but they always seemed upbeat and friendly. When I started to repeat some of the new words I had heard from my new friends, the French family I was living with at the time said that I should never repeat these words to anyone nor should I ever see those teenagers again. Having never been taught this type of slang, I was completely unaware that I had just been befriended by members of a gang.
As educators, we need not promote the actual use of slang, idioms, and certainly not vulgarities, but we do have a responsibility to familiarize the nonnative speaker with this type of language. After all, whether we like it or not, this nonstandard English has existed for years and will continue to exist. Knowledge of slang and idioms is fundamental to nonnative speakers’ understanding of the language that native speakers actually use. It is also essential for those who want to integrate into our culture; without slang and idioms, students will always be outsiders. This nonstandard English may even be important for students’ safety and well-being.
SIDE BAR
How Do You Teach Slang and Idioms?
Throughout my 15 years of writing self-teaching books on slang and idioms and speaking to numerous groups during lecture tours around the world, I’ve been able to interview the teachers and students who have used my original books. Through these interviews, I have been fortunate to hear from teachers first-hand which techniques worked and which ones fell short.
The consensus has been the desire for a text with 1) with fewer slang terms and idioms packed into each chapter; in other words, they want more “bite-size” chunks of information; and 2) more classroom activities. My newest classroom edition (Street Speak,1998) is based on hundreds of these helpful comments. This new format is already being used at Berlitz, Duke University, Aspect International, Boston University, EF International, ELS Language Centers, and American English Academy, among other places.
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