Worksheet 1

WHY ENGLISH?
Discussion 1
1. How many languages do you speak?
2. Have you studied other languages? Which ones?
3. Do you want to study another language apart from English?
4. Do you like learning foreign languages?
5. Do you agree that English is difficult to learn?
6. Is your language more difficult that English?
7. How important is it to you to speak accurately? Why?
8. Can you learn a language all by yourself?
9. What makes a language easy to learn?
10. How long was it before you could hold a conversation in English?
11. Do you need a motivation to learn English? Make a list of three possible motivations.

Speaking 1
a) Speak for one minute about:
 your history of learning English (from what age, teachers, your progress, level of competence, etc.)
 what you use English for now and what you’d like to do better in English in the future
 other languages that you speak and what you use them for
 why you think English has become so popular in international communication
 what you like / dislike about Ukrainian

b) Express your opinion:

 In what ways are the following relevant to the history of communication?
a) The Tower of Babel b) Sanskrit c) Esperanto

 - Match the explanations with points a) b) c)

1. Many different languages, including English, originate from this ancient language. It was used for about 3,000
years in India until the 19th century when modern Indian languages such as Hindu and Bengali became more popular.
2. This is an artificial language which was invented in 1887 by a Polish doctor called Zamenhov. It has no irregular
verbs! Between 2 million and 8 million people can speak this language.
3. There is a story that says that a long time ago people used to speak one language. They worked together to
construct a building high enough to reach the Paradise. The God saw it and became angry. He stopped them by
giving them different languages so that the builders could not understand each other.

Discussion 2
a) 1. Would you like to be able to speak Esperanto? Do you think Esperanto is the language of the future? Why/not?
2. Why do languages die out (e.g. Latin)? Do you think English will ever die out? Why/not?
3. How different would life be if we all spoke the same language? What would be the advantages and disadvantages?
Do you think that speaking one language could bring people of different nations closer together and improve the
chances of world peace?
4. Approximately 1 in 4 people speak Chinese. In many countries Spanish is the first language. Taking this information
into account, do you think that English is still the best choice for the international language? Why/not?
5. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using English as a global language?

b) Work in pairs. Decide whether the sentences are true or false. Then check the answers on the internet.
o There are more than 6,000 languages in the world.
o English is the language with the largest number of native speakers.
o English is spoken by about 300 mln people as a native language.
 o One in every ten people in the world knows at least some English.
o There are about one mln words in English.
o An average native speaker of English knows about half a million words.
o You need about 2,000 words to be able to communicate in English in basic everyday situations.

Reading 1
Read “Things you need to know” and choose three facts that were unfamiliar to you or impressed you most.
Things you need to know
360 mln people have English as their mother tongue. This means that they are native speakers of English.
The number of people who speak some form of English will soon reach three billion – half the world’s population.
English used to be a small language, but it spread around the world when England started to establish colonies from
1660.
English became the native language of the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand because they were empty lands
that were filled with English-speaking settlers.
English became an official language in many other British colonies, such as India and South Africa. Most colonies still
use English even though they became independent in the 20th century.
The USA is the world’s largest English speaking country, with 290 mln native speakers.
Language experts believe that English will change a lot in the future. English grammar, spelling and pronunciation will
become easier.

Discussion 3
1. Would it be a bad or a good thing if the world spoke only three or four languages?
2. Do you think that having many languages in one country can create problems? Why?
3. How many foreign languages should be taught at school? Whish ones? How early should the learning start?
4. Do you see English as a threat to your native language?
5. Do many people around the world speak your language?
6. Do you think your language is in danger from other languages?
7. In your experience, are native English speakers good at speaking second languages? Why / Why not?

Attitudes
Think of 5 adjectives describing your opinion / feelings regarding the English language.

Reading 2
a) Do you agree with these statements about second language learning? Why / Why not?
1 It’s helpful to get feedback from native speakers.
2 New words are more memorable if you like the thing they describe.
3 Communicating in another language makes you behave a bit differently.
4 Grammar is a waste of time – I don’t even know it in my first language!
5 The biggest reward is being able to relate to people from another culture.
6 It’s possible to learn a language without writing anything down.
7 When you’ve learned one second language, it’s easier to learn another.

b) Read about four language learning experiences. Who might agree with each of the statements in 1a?
 THOMASINA MIERS, co-founder of Wahaca, a chain of Mexican restaurants in the UK
Native language: English Second language: Spanish
Thomasina first travelled to Mexico after finishing school. It was the beginning of a love affair with the country’s
world famous cuisine and its language. Basically, the learning of Spanish directed me to land in Mexico because I
wanted to go and speak Spanish. I wanted to talk to everyone, I wanted to eat everything I could see, I wanted to just
drink everything in. What I loved about the Spanish language is how guttural and earthy and unpretentious it was.
The chef explains how she picked up the language dish by dish.
When you’re travelling round the Yucatan coast you’re tasting achiote and you’re having habenero chillies and
having cerviches with pulpo … There’s this whole resonating language going on that draws you in. The avour and the
language are linked because you know the taste and the memory and the words are all kind of caught up and bound
into one, so there’s this whole language of food and emotion.

 CAROLINE WYATT, foreign correspondent

Native languages: English, German Second languages: French, Russian
Caroline had a bilingual upbringing. I struggled with the pronunciation of some words in English when I was very
young, and I still can’t say ‘lunch’ or ‘shoulder’ properly. Having another language from a very young age accustoms
your mind to the idea that there are many different ways or words with which to express concepts and objects, and I
suspect it must also shape the brain to make more connections between things.
Her ability to speak German fluently got her a job as a journalist with the BBC in Berlin. Speaking the language makes
a huge difference to how people relate to you, and the experience that you have of that country. It enables you to
relate to people in a different way, and understand vital nuances that are otherwise lost. She believes that using
different languages changes her personality and mannerisms. She says she involuntarily uses her hands whilst talking
in French, and in German becomes somewhat more direct.

 ELLEN MACARTHUR, round-the-world sailor

Native language: English Second language: French
Ellen MacArthur’s career forced her to brush up her schoolgirl French. I had to repair a boat there [in France] and
was working in a boatyard where nobody spoke English – you learn very fast when you absolutely need to in order to
get a job done. You could say that my life depended on understanding the language. I was certainly able to be more
competitive in the race as a result of speaking French – the experience was a great immersion. I’m now fluent,
though having learnt the language almost entirely by ear while living in the country my written French is terrible.
She refects on her acquisition of French.
It opened up the warmth of a culture to me; a way into a world that I didn’t at the time really understand, or even
knew existed in my early teens.

 CHRIS PACKHAM, TV presenter and naturalist

Native language: English
Second language: French
Having bought a house in the French countryside, Chris Packham had to work on his French. I bought some wildlife
books at a local bookshop and because I understood the context, I was able to read them cover to cover and grasp
some of what they were saying. Then I said to my neighbours: ‘Look, I’ll speak to you in French and I want you to
constantly correct me. I won’t be offended.’ And they were great, they did. Despite the shaky start, his confidence
has grown enormously. If I’m away for a bit, which I often am, I’ll get rusty … The longest stint I’ve had there has
been three months, and by the end of that I was thinking in French and putting sentences together in a French way,
and it felt really good. What’s brilliant is that I can meet up with my neighbours now and have a laugh with them …
People have been extraordinarily welcoming.

c) Read the texts again and discuss the questions.

1 Who do you think studies the most systematically?
2 Who do you think has/had the strongest motivation to learn? Why?
3 Whose language learning experience was the most challenging?
4 Which, if any, of the people do you relate to most?

Listening
a) Listen to language expert Susanna Zaraysky talking about second language learning amongst native English
speakers. Tick (✓) the points she makes.
1 Native English speakers don’t see second languages as being necessary.
2 Native English speakers lack opportunities to practise their second language skills.
3 Having to learn the grammar of a second language can be demotivating.
4 Being surrounded by different languages often helps people to learn a second language.

b) Listen again and answer the questions.

1 Why does Susanna think Brazilians are motivated to learn English?
2 How can media and music make it easier to learn a second language?
3 How did Susanna’s childhood exposure to Spanish impact on her formal learning of it as an adult?
4 Susanna says ‘your heart has to resonate with the language’. What does she mean by this? How does she suggest
people do this?
5 What three reasons does she give for believing it’s worth learning a second language?

c) Discuss the questions.

1 Do you agree with Susanna about the importance of media and music for language learners? What are your
earliest memories of English language media and music?
2 Are people in your country generally enthusiastic about language learning?

Speaking 2
How can these factors have an impact on second language learning?
• the right mentality
• financial limitations
• distractions
• opportunities for interaction
• first language interference
• natural competence
• the prestige of knowing a second language

Writing
Choose a person 1–3 and write five pieces of advice for them. Explain why you give such advice.
1 an English speaker who wants to learn your language
2 a friend who wants to pass a TOEFL or IELTS exam
3 a teenager who finds languages at school a turn-off