Observations – problems faced by language students.

Cantonese-speaking students in Hong Kong face a number of problems when trying to learn the English language, not least of which is the incorrect pronunciation of words as taught by educators who themselves are not native English speakers.  For example, at least one teacher pronounced “horizon” as “HOR-ee-zon”, rhyming with “Amazon”.  An understanding of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) will help students and teachers of the English language learn how to pronounce words by following the IPA symbols in a dictionary.

Another problem is that of vocabulary.  The guidelines given to teachers and students by Hong Kong’s education authorities say that appropriate vocabulary with suitable elaboration should be used for the written and speaking tests.  Unfortunately, some educators mistake this to mean that students should build up their vocabulary by learning difficult and complex words.  This results in students using inappropriate vocabulary when trying to express their ideas.

There is an important difference between a large vocabulary and a strong vocabulary.  A large vocabulary simply means knowing many words.  A strong vocabulary, on the other hand, means knowing how and when to use words, phrases and idioms to correctly and clearly express an idea.  Using simple, everyday words to express oneself clearly will score higher marks than the incorrect use of “big” words.

For example:

INAPPROPRIATE:         I opine that it will be detrimental to the members of the aforesaid group.

APPROPRIATE:            In my opinion, it won’t be helpful to them.

A third problem faced by students is that they do not know why they need to understand the English language.  There are students who think that learning a second language is a waste of time.  These students might feel that their future lies in mainland Chinese companies, in which case an understanding of English is unnecessary.  They fail to realise that English is still the international business language, and that advancement in their chosen field could well be restricted if their standard of English is below par. 

One last problem I have noticed is that students often don’t know how to improve their language skills.  They treat English as nothing more than a subject to be passed in the public exams, along with all the other subjects that they struggle with.  They fail to realise that English – like any other language – is a living thing that needs to be used every day in order to improve.  By focusing on just one aspect of the language, such as grammar, they ignore other factors that would help to strengthen their use of English.

These are just a few of the problems faced by Chinese students in Hong Kong who are trying to learn the English language, but they are the ones I came across the most often and so decided to mention here.