tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4520017628666989475.post5237524620056603385..comments2012-04-24T04:24:52.306-04:00Comments on Seeking El Dorado: Language Teachers (Language "Teachers"? "Language" Teachers?)Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12042385757154431516noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4520017628666989475.post-30001029509021442502012-04-24T04:24:52.306-04:002012-04-24T04:24:52.306-04:00None of my French teachers were native speakers, t...None of my French teachers were native speakers, though there is some grey area with a couple who learned French at a very young age. I disagree that language has to be taught by native speakers, and I think there would be a lot less language learning in the world if that had to be the case. The key is to be at least close to fluent and to have excellent pronunciation, which I am not/do not in French and which many of my colleagues here, unfortunately, are not/do not in English. Vocabulary does not seem to me to be an insurmountable problem; that's why we have dictionaries. It's passing on grammatical errors and mispronunciation that's a problem. Would it be ideal to learn from native speakers all the time? Sure. But not being a native speaker does not in itself make one unqualified to teach a language. Being bad at that language makes one unqualified to teach it.<br /><br />What exactly is incorrect about calling high school students pupils?Ericahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12042385757154431516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4520017628666989475.post-56834383442862815232012-04-04T15:30:22.290-04:002012-04-04T15:30:22.290-04:00I should add that I feel very strongly that native...I should add that I feel very strongly that native speakers should teach a language and I am always confused when people ask me if I'd want to be French teacher. The fact is that as a native speaker you just learn how to say all sorts of random shit that second language speakers just don't learn because it's usually not essential. The fact is that when you learn a new language there is no reason to know words like "music stand" or "ramparts" (words I've been asked about) if you are not interested in music or castles. Also I think it's hard to shake the habits you get from your mother tongue. I've heard teachers refer to high school students as pupils rather than students because French has the eleve/etudiant distinction.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4520017628666989475.post-11693203486215900612012-04-04T15:23:13.256-04:002012-04-04T15:23:13.256-04:00There is indeed an exam (the CAPES or the AGREG). ...There is indeed an exam (the CAPES or the AGREG). I think the real problem is that languages are a use-it-or-lose-it kind of thing. So maybe some of these teachers were really good at English when they came back from being assistants or doing Erasmus in the U.K. but their English has declined in quality since then. I think this partially happens because they mostly speak English to their students and heck, I feel like my English gets worse from trying to speak it to me students. Also, the standards for the CAPES and the AGREG are (I think) based on how many positions need to be filled that year, so some years the standards may be higher or lower than others.<br />-TLAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com