Tag Archives: Native language

English in International Trade: Britain’s Secret Weapon Post Brexit? 

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English in International Trade: Britain's Secret Weapon Post Brexit? With Brexit on the horizon, there are many discussions about the future of international trade. Former Italian prime minister Mario Monti has declared that English is ‘one of the very best products of Britain’ and that it should continue to be the main language of Europe for purposes of trade. He also said that Europe should ‘upgrade’ English after the UK’s departure from the EU to ‘increase its competitiveness’ on the world stage. The importance of English in international trade is obvious – so could this be Britain’s secret weapon post-Brexit? Continue reading →

Forgotten First Languages Leave Imprint On Brain, Study Shows

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Forgotten first languages - baby wearing headphones

You never forget your first language – even if you have never spoken it, scientists have discovered. Babies develop knowledge of the language they hear in their first few months of life and will always retain that knowledge on an abstract level. It has been discovered that your brain retains the hidden ability to recall forgotten first languages decades on. The findings indicate not only that you never truly forget your birth language but also that language acquisition as a baby is abstract in nature and not dependent on experience. Continue reading →

Do You Avoid Contact With Your Native Language When Learning English?

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When learning English, some teachers advise that students should avoid using their native language and interact primarily with those who speak their target language. The idea is that by practising total language immersion and by avoiding contact with your native tongue, you will get used to speaking your target language and will improve more quickly.

This technique could be applied for all language learners – but is avoiding your native language a practical way to learn a new language or even a good idea? Should you avoid your native language when learning English? Continue reading →

Should only the Target Language be used in EFL Lessons?

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One of the more heavily debated issues in TEFL is whether it can ever be a good idea to use the students’ mother tongue to help explain finer points in EFL lessons. There is no doubt it can be helpful for elucidating a subtle point, but some EFL teachers think that only the target language should ever be used in the classroom. Does using the mother tongue stop us from ever developing fluency in the target language?
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