Hello everyone. I am self-taught in Italian, German, Spanish, French, and Chinese. My experience proves that it is not so difficult to reach a certain level (CILS B2 level) by self-study if you do not make a mistake.
The significance of learning foreign languages from native speakers
Especially in Japan, people should learn English from Americans and British people. There is a deep-rooted belief that native speakers should learn from Americans and British).
Certainly, there are many benefits to learning from native speakers, such as being able to acquire natural expressions, and making your pronunciation and word choices more natural. You will be able to express yourself naturally and naturally, and since the United States and the United Kingdom are popular study-abroad destinations, it will be easier for you to get an idea of what life is like there.
However, I want to tell you that there are better options for learning a foreign language than learning from a native speaker.
The significance of learning a foreign language from non-native speakers who know the teaching method
For example, in the case of the Filipinos mentioned earlier, their mother tongue is Tagalog (or there are over 180 other local languages). However, they have learned English since elementary school, and Filipinos are often bilingual in English and Tagalog.
In other words, they have the experience of learning English as a foreign language. This is of great significance in foreign language learning.
Not convinced? So I have a question for you.
You are a native Japanese speaker and have known Japanese since you were born. Having learned Italian, you are at a level where you can have a daily conversation with an Italian person.
So, even if I was told, “Yes, please teach me Japanese in front of Italians from tomorrow,” I think that almost no one would be able to teach. Because you don’t know any Japanese grammatical terms or their Italian translations! there is. Therefore, it must be very difficult to explain the mistakes that foreigners often make and the mysteries of Japanese that are difficult for foreigners to understand. So, let alone explain the subtle differences between the words A and B, you probably haven’t even considered what they are.
Therefore, if I were to be taught a foreign language by someone else, I would place more importance on how many years of experience they have taught that foreign language, rather than on their language ability or whether they are native speakers.
Foreign languages are not just for native speakers
English is not only spoken by Americans and British people. Japanese, Italians, Singaporeans and Indians all speak English. But, as I said before, their English has its quirks. In real life, you have to come into contact with a wide range of English, such as Singlish, which has a Singaporean accent, and Engrish, which has an Asian accent. Your colleagues at companies where English is the official language may not necessarily be American or British, and much more likely they are not. If you are too used to American English and do not understand Singlish, it will be difficult to communicate with Singaporeans. You will have to cut down a lot of people who could be good friends in the future because they don’t understand the language. No, that’s not all. If you can’t catch the English they speak, you’ll miss the opportunity to work in Singapore or Southeast Asia. Southeast Asia is no longer a poor country. There are many companies that offer jobs with much better treatment than in Japan.
In companies around the world where I work as a translator, I come into contact with, for example, Turkish and Ukrainian English on a daily basis, and the English they write is very simple. Because English is not their mother tongue. It is much more important to reduce mistakes and misunderstandings and write sentences that are easy for everyone to understand, rather than writing English that is easy for native speakers to understand. Because you are not a native English speaker, you need to write in a way that other non-native speakers can understand. And you have to get used to the sentences and pronunciation habits of the other person, and you have to get used to your own pronunciation habits. Therefore, it is necessary to use expressions and pronunciations that are easy to understand and convey, regardless of whether or not you have an accent. To do that, you have to practice a lot, but I want to tell you that the practice partner is not limited to native speakers.
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