130TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND FOREIGN LANGUAGE
Nargiza Zairova
Karakalpak State University,
English teacher [email protected]
Anjella Reymova
Karakalpak State University, 3rd year student anzhell [email protected]
ABSTRACT
The present article is dedicated to the investigation of the process of teaching English as the second foreign language. The study requires taking into consideration the linguistic experience of students. We have found out that this process should be based on the results of the comparative-contrastive analysis of the contacting languages: English, German and Karakalpak (the Mother Tongue of the students). In order to overcome the transference and to develop the educational process, comparative study of language phenomena is necessary.
Keywords: second foreign language, first foreign language, native language, comparative-contrastive analysis, transference, interference, transposition.
INTRODUCTION
Language is the primary means of communication, through which people share ideas and thoughts with each other. In modern incessantly developing society it has become essential to be aware of two or more foreign languages. The need for a global language is expanding as the global communication getting enlarged as well. Over the past decades, English has taken the place of the world language, which now has a great impact on many areas of human life, including the global network - the Internet. Therefore, in all educational institutions, both in secondary schools and in higher educational institutions, two or more foreign languages are taught in accordance with the curriculum. Teaching two or more languages is rather a laborious process, and requires a different attitude and approach to the educational process from the foreign language teacher.
The subject of the research is ways of increasing the effectiveness of the methodology of teaching English as a second foreign language based on the use of transposition, limiting the interference of the first foreign language and the Karakalpak language.
The purpose of the work is to study the process of teaching two foreign languages - English and German, which is considered to be based on a comparative
analysis of the studied languages, the results of which form the basis of the educational process and help teachers coordinate their work and achieve positive results.
The similarities and differences of phonetic, lexical and grammatical systems of languages studied in parallel not only help students to better understand and assimilate the studied language phenomena and processes, but also contribute to the development of linguistic conjecture, the improvement of thinking skills and increasing motivation. Comparative study of two foreign languages is also useful for a deeper understanding of the linguistic phenomena and processes occurring in German and the students' native language.
LITERATURE REVIEW
"Each language should be considered as something completely self-sufficient, and only then, to facilitate mutual learning, for methodological purposes, one can compare the two language systems" [6, p. 318]. As many scientists have mentioned, the inclusion of comparative analysis in the process of teaching two or more foreign languages contributes to the acceleration and deepening of the process of understanding, memorizing and automating the language and speech skills and abilities of students. (V.D. Arakin O.S. Akh-manova, V.G. Gak, V.N. Yartseva, R. Yu. Badger, L.S. Barkhudarov).
The use of comparative-contrastive analysis for linguodidactic purposes requires, first of all, methodical determination of relevant similarities and differences between the languages being compared. Then it is necessary to identify the type of interlingual interference, and what difficulties may occur as a result of interlingual differences. At the final stage, it becomes necessary to create a system of exercises based on interlingual comparison as a technique for teaching a non-native language.
Comparison of the studied languages for didactic purposes allows the teacher to identify the difficulties associated with the features of languages of different systems, and find ways to overcome such difficulties. Furthermore, for those studying a second or third foreign language, a textbook that is based on the results of a comparative analysis, and that takes into account the differences and similarities of the languages being studied is required, which would be reflected in the system of exercises and material presentation.
The theoretical issues of simultaneous teaching of two or more foreign languages are studied in "multilingual didactics, i.e. the theory of teaching multilingualism, the subject of which is the study of optimal methods, techniques, ways of teaching several foreign languages simultaneously or sequentially in different conditions and for different learning purposes "[3].
Underlying the professional training of a modern multilingual linguist Baryshnikov N.V. defines the following principles of teaching multilingualism:
- the principle of integrative teaching of several languages;
- the principle of co-learning of several languages;
- the principle of reliance on the linguistic and educational experience of learners;
- the principle of the cognitive orientation of the FL learning process;
- the principle of intercultural orientation of the FL learning process, etc. [4].
The acquisition of a foreign language by students does not occur spontaneously,
like the assimilation of their native language, but is carried out in an organized manner, in three stages - preschool education (kindergarten), school education (junior, secondary and senior secondary schools) and higher education. Unlike the native language, a foreign language presents for students a certain social, cultural and cognitive reality, with which they do not have the opportunity to constantly be in contact. Therefore, many scientists define this type of multilingualism as an artificial emerging educational multilingualism [5]. One of the main requirements of the methodology has always been the creation of natural situations in the lesson for foreign language communication. However, at present, widely using multimedia and technical teaching aids, the teacher has the opportunity to create an authentic language environment in foreign language classrooms.
The process of teaching two or more languages is difficult and time-consuming, because the study of the first foreign language is always based on the transference of some language and speech skills and abilities from the native language. In some cases, this phenomenon produces a positive effect (the phenomenon of transference), but in most cases it brings negative results (the phenomenon of interference), and disturbs the correct perception of the language material. What concerns the second foreign language, the skills and abilities acquired by students in the study of the first foreign language, as well as the linguistic experience formed by the learners on the basis of their native language, have a double influence on it.
When learning a foreign language, there is such a phenomenon as transposition. Transposition is a positive transference of students' knowledge, skills and abilities in their native language to the target language, and the use of existing linguistic experience during FL classes, not causing violations of its principles in the target language [2].
DISCUSSION AND RESULTS
During the simultaneous teaching of two languages, there is interference besides the transference, which manifests itself in the violation of the principles of a foreign language under the influence of linguistic phenomena of the native or other studied language. The more language systems differ from each other, the oftener the interference is observed.
The phenomenon of interference is observed in the process of teaching phonetics, vocabulary, grammar - language skills, and in the process of teaching speech skills as listening, reading, writing, and speaking. In addition, interference often manifests itself at the socio-cultural level due to insufficient knowledge of the peculiarities of the culture of the country of the target language.
Interference can be caused by realities, phenomena, behavioral norms similar in different cultures as, for example, different forms of speech etiquette. So in the Karakalpak language "iltimas" ("please") is used in a polite request. as a formula of politeness, meaning "not at all", used as a reply to "thank you". In English, the word "please" has also another meaning: Please (Here you are) - when a person gives something back.
The process of teaching the phonetic structure of the English language is often hampered by the influence of German. Such phonetic phenomenon as Glottal Stop, which is characteristic to the German language, and is absent in English, is observed in the speech of some students, and requires significant efforts from the teacher. Moreover, students' speech is characterized by devoicing of voiced consonants; non-observance of vowel length (Long and short vowels); replacement of interdental sounds with [t] [d].
Lexical interference is the use of foreign language vocabulary in dialogue or monologue in the native language or the first foreign language. When learning English as a second foreign language based on German, which is, in our case, is the first foreign language, the source of interference is usually the latter. Some lexical units of foreign languages are very similar. Therefore, the probability of such interference is high. For example, the German verb bekommen (to receive), by analogy with the English verb to become (to become), acquires the meaning of becoming in the speech of students.
In the two studied languages, there are a number of lexemes that completely coincide in terms of their meanings. These are the names of the days of the week, names of months, seasons, some numerals, some verbs, etc.
For example:
May (English) - Mai (German);
Monday (English) - Montag (German);
Winter (English) - Winter (German);
Hundred (English) - hundert (German).
The specified layer of vocabulary is not time-consuming and does not require special explanation, and is easy for students to remember.
In addition to errors caused by the interfering influence of the German and Karakalpak languages, the phenomenon of intralingual interference is observed in the English speech of students. A fairly large number of groups of lexical units can be distinguished, within which there is an erroneous semantization occurring due to the proximity of the sound and spelling of words. For example: live - leave; live - life; bed - bad; fall - feel; wonder - wander; hungry - angry; angry - agree; snack - snake; like -lick; mouse - mouth; lie - lay; and etc.
The grammatical phenomena of the second foreign language also require comparison with the already known phenomena of the first foreign language. When teaching English on the basis of the first German, i.e. two Germanic languages, learners can quite easily memorize the forms of regular and irregular English verbs by analogy with strong and weak German verbs. For example, the English verb to have -had -had corresponds to the German verb haben - hatte-gehabt (to have, to own something).
For example, comparing the English verb to be and the German sein, learners will have no difficulty in memorizing the forms, understanding the meaning of this verb and its function.
It is not difficult to memorize the degrees of comparison of adjectives. For example: English adjective many | much - more - the most corresponds to the German viel - mehr - ammeisten.
Some English grammatical constructions are also easily memorized by students by analogy with German.
It is warm... Es ist warm...
There is... Es gibt...
The use of some time verbs may not cause much difficulty, for example, the use of the present tense to express future actions in English, German and Karakalpak.
The train starts at 5 o'clock. (English)
Der Zug fahrt um 5 Uhr ab. (German)
Poyezd saat 5te ju'redi. (Karakalpak)
In addition, in both English and German, the infinitive after some verbs is used with the particle to (in German zu).
For example:
He began to read. (English)
Er began zu lesen. (German)
Ol oqi'p basladi. (Karakalpak)
After modal verbs, the infinitive is used without the particle to in English and German.
For example:
She must read a book. (English)
Sie muss ein Buch lesen. (German)
Ol kitap oqi'wi' kerek. (Karakalpak)
However, some difficulties may occur in teaching English as a second foreign language, which are associated with the discrepancy of some grammatical phenomena. For example, there are 4 cases in German, 2 - in English; the number of times - in German 5, in English 16; articles of masculine, feminine and neuter in German (Der, Die, Das) and definite and indefinite articles in English (a / an, the).
In teaching English as a second foreign language all the groups of phenomena mentioned above should be taken into account. To make the learning process more effective, it is necessary to prepare special exercises and tasks, which will gradually help to reduce the interfering influence of the first and native languages.
To overcome the interference, specially selected exercises are needed, compiled in one foreign language, and requiring compulsory use of the second foreign language. Thus, the student will be able to project knowledge from one language into the second, identify their similarities and differences.
The followings are some examples of such exercises:
Exercise 1: Underline the suffixes and identify which parts of speech the following words refer to. Translate into Karakalpak and German and compare the ways of forming the following parts of speech in the compared languages.
Exercise 2: From the proverbs below, select the antonymic word pairs. Pick up Karakalpak and German counterparts for them, comment on the differences and similarities in their meanings.
Exercise 3. Form the degree of comparison of the following adjectives and adverbs. Translate into Karakalpak and German and compare the ways of generating degrees of comparison in the compared languages.
Exercise 4. Fill in the blanks with words in English. Translate into Karakalpak and German and compare the ways of forming forms of degrees of comparison in three languages.
Exercise 5. Translate from English into Karakalpak and German and explain the reason for the differences in the use of temporary forms, etc.
Exercise 6. Translate sentences from Karakalpak into English, then into German. Note (or compare) the use of prepositions with verbs in three languages.
Exercise 7. Ask questions about highlighted words in English and German sentences. Explain the difference in the formation of interrogative sentences in the target languages.
Such exercises contribute to the development of linguistic guesswork, facilitate the memorization process and speed up the study of the planned educational material.
CONCLUSION
It can be concluded that when teaching English as a second foreign language, a comparative analysis is required, which will help students identify both similarities and differences between the three languages functioning in the educational process. Comparison and contrast of linguistic phenomena should be carried out at all language levels and at all stages of learning.
Mastering several foreign languages is not an isolated process, but an interconnected and interdependent simultaneous study of languages based on the results of a comparative analysis of languages and on the linguistic experience of students.
REFERENCES
1. Barsuk R.Yu. Osnovi obucheniya inostrannomu jaziku v usloviyah dvujazichiya [The basics of a foreign language teaching in bilingual condition]. M.; Visshaja Shkola, 1970. 176 p.
2. Barsuk R.Yu. Sopostavitel'nie I tipologicheskie issledovanija kak lingvisticheskaja osnova obucheniya vtoromu I tret'emu jazikam [Comparative and typological research as Linguistic basis of teaching the second and the third languages]. M., 1971. P.I, pp. 24-30.
3. Barishnikov N.V. Metodika obucheniya vtoromu inostrannomu jaziku [Methods of teaching the second foreign language]. M.: Prosveshenie, 2003.
4. Barishnikov N.V. Multilingvodidaktika [Multilinguodidactics]. Inostrannie Jaziki v Shkole, № 5. 2004, pp. 19-27.
5. Dzhioeva A.R. Teoretiko-metodologicheskie I lingvisticheskie osnoviformirujushegosja uchebnogo mnogojazichija [Theoretical-methodological and linguistic foundations of developing educational multilinguism]. Vladikavkaz, 2004. 165 p.
6. Scherba L.V. O vzaimootnoshenijah rodnogo i inostrannogo jazikov [About interrelations of a mother tongue and a foreign language]. Jazikovaja sistema I rechevaja dejatel'nost'[Language system and speech activity]. L., 1974. P. 343.
