Job Discussion Forums

[Kelsie]

Hi, I have VIP classes with an advanced level student who would like to improve her English for her international clients. She has a good vocabulary and knowledge of grammar, but she speaks really slowly. I think this is because she translates everything in her mind from Chinese to English before she can speak. How can I help her stop thinking in Chinese when she's speaking English? She's a middle-aged business woman so goofy games are not really what she wants. Any ideas? Thanks!

[eslstudies]

At middle age, her learning style is going to prove resistant to change. Probably count your blessings, in that slow but accurate English is far preferable to Crazy English gibberish.

[peepertice]

something i've heard of (though never tried) is asking the student one question and telling them to reply in 4 or 5 different ways as quickly as possible. for example:

Q: where do you live?

A1: Beijing
A2: Nanjing Road
A3: China
A4: In the capital of China
A5: Round the corner from Tescos

Q: What's your favourite film?

A1: Star Wars
A2: A famous science fiction film
A3: A film starring Mark Hamill
A4: The first film I ever saw at the cinema
A5: A film released in 1977

sorry i can't give any first-hand experience of this but i remember my old senior teacher recommending it to improve speed providing you're willing to push her quite hard into answering quickly

[Malsol]

[Steppenwolf]

As you have said yourself, your student is preconceiving her English in Chinese, then translates it verbatim; since Chiense teachers fail to0 discourage their students from thinking in thei9r mother tongue while using English such an outcome is inevitable. This is somehwat unique in the world and it is the main reason for Chinglish to flo0rish as it does.

You can do little about it - or you can do something no one has thought of, without knowing with any certainty whether you are going to help her. I think your student needs practice in enunciating English that requires no translations. That way you can focus on her pronunciation, rhythm and intonation; with time she may actually learn to think in English as she speaks.
To help her with speed and a clear enunciation you could have her rehearse acts from dramas. Remember they are monologues so the mental pictures should be present for her to retrievbe as she speaks, without recourse to Chinese.
Contrast reciting slowly with reciting quickly and enable her to find her own rhythm and speed.

[vikdk]

OP - the problem you are wrting about can linked to a concept called language internalisation - being able to use an L2 automatically - switching instantly from L1 to L2 (mental coordination). This problem is common with mature learners - regardless of country of origin - but seems to be worse in China because of the cultural loathing of making ones self look a fool!
My 3 points on being able to combat the problem are
1. Don't just work on the language - but build up the confidence factor. Making the student feel at ease with making mistakes (being a slow-speaker) - is sometimes the route to making them more fluent, and in your case getting a student to develope into a faster speaker.
2. make sure they don't overdo learning English - short periods of language excercise - 20 mins at a time can often work much better than long lessons, without breaks or pauses. In such situations the brain seems to slow down and the speech becomes naturally slow with fatigue.
3. repetition - if the vocab is good - then it ain't new words she needs but the ability to use 'em. Like steppenwolf says some kind of roleplay - but make it short - repeat it - and when its mastered, vary it by making it more complicated with new situations. Going to a shop type scenario is a good one - and can be made more complicated with time.