[0.05] Hello and welcome to this first episode of the ShiftEnglish Podcast! Thank you for being here and listening to this first episode. I hope wherever you are in the world, you are doing well!
[0.22] My name is Joseph, and I am a Scottish American currently living in New Orleans in the United States of America. I say Scottish American because I was born and raised in Scotland, in the United Kingdom, but I have been living in the USA for 14 years now. I am one of those lucky dual citizens. I have a passport to the United Kingdom, and to the USA.
[0.57] My background can be helpful for learning English, because you would be surprised to know how different the two languages can be sometimes! I am able to warn students of some English language difficulties that can also be quite funny.
[1.17] For example, don’t go to the United Kingdom and say ‘pants’ when you really mean ‘trousers’. And just for anyone not familiar with this one, the word “pants” in the USA means trousers. But in the United Kingdom., “pants” means underwear. A small mistake, but it could be embarrassing if you don’t know! I’m not sure why one of them couldn’t have just chosen a new word, instead of reusing another word that is confusingly similar but not the same…
[2.05] Unfortunately, there are a lot of these little difficulties in English. But the good news is that I will help you through this podcast to understand when to make the right word choice.
[2.21] The goal of ShiftEnglish is simple – a naturally interesting way for English learners to learn the language. No boring grammar. Just real, interesting topics, at a pace or speed easy to understand.
[2.45] I have been teaching English to foreign travelers for 10 years, especially those around the B1 to C1 levels, that is the intermediate levels. I have noticed that for intermediate English learners it is especially difficult to find interesting content at the right level that the English learner can return to again and again. Often the difficulty level of the books, the podcasts, the tv series, et cetera is either too simple, or on the other hand too difficult.
[3.32] Media made for native English speakers uses a lot of slang, or informal words, a lot of inside references and everyone generally just talks too fast to understand!
[3.51] That is part of the problem. The other problem is that often the subjects discussed for intermediate learners especially are really…boring. Like makes you want to cry type of boring!
[4.10] When I’m teaching English, or when I am learning another language, like French for example, I want to talk and to listen to subjects that are interesting and real. That is what is engaging and makes someone want to listen closely. And listening closely is a great way to learn a language.
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[4.45] Today is just a quick introduction to say hello and to present myself. Maybe introductions aren’t necessary anymore for podcasts, but I am a bit old school in this way. Ah yes, and when we say someone is old school, we mean they do things in a more traditional way. But if we say something or a place is old school it often means it looks or feels classic, usually older. Like an old school diner would be one of those American style cafes you see in the movie set in the 1950’s, with the high stools and the waitress serving coffee and pancakes.
[5.42] In the following episodes we will dive into other topics. My plan is to initially release one episode a week for 6 weeks and then change, as needed. I am planning to cover some real and authentic topics that I hope will be interesting to you, the listener. Such topics will include for example “Is America more dangerous than before to visit?” and “Should I try living in a tiny house?”. All while talking in a way that is clear and well-paced for an intermediate English learner.
[6.26] The idea will be to have the accurate transcriptions available for free on the website ShiftEnglish.com. No artificial intelligence approximations here! Having that accurate transcription to read at the same time as the audio is a really great way to learn English.
[6.49] We are generally not going to be discussing grammar. In fact, there are a million resources already that exist for learning English grammar. Also, I think learning grammar, learning the rules of a language, it’s overrated. When we say something is overrated we mean it’s not as good as people say it is. Like famous food that actually just tastes normal.
[7.24] Learning lists and lists of irregular verbs, for example, which is an experience most second language learners go through. Not only is it painfully boring. But I think it doesn’t even really help us that much when we try to talk to someone in a real situation. And for me, and I think probably for you, being able to communicate with someone in the foreign language is the main reason for learning it. Not to say that we shouldn’t learn grammar at all, a little bit of language structure can be helpful and needed sometimes. But here I want to create something for you that feels enjoyable to listen to, not like homework.
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[8.22] I wanted to spend this last part of the episode sharing some advice for how to use this podcast and for learning English in general. As we say in English – to leave you with some words of wisdom. Which simply means advice that can use in the future.
[8.41] Firstly, repetition. This is crucial, very important, when learning a language. To repeat and repeat. So, I will admit now I am a bit of a geek, I like to study the science behind why. Why for example is repetition important. It’s something that has been studied for a long time now, and there is for example an interesting drawing that you can see online if you search for something called the ‘forgetting curve’. And don’t worry anything I mention like this, I will put a link in the transcription at ShiftEnglish.com.
[9.30] But essentially, it’s this line on a graph showing just how much we forget. It’s based on the research of a man called Hermann Ebbinghaus around 100 years ago. It shows just how much we forget, and how fast. Especially if we only hear or see that information one time.
[9.58] There exist many studied methods or strategies for how to remember more information, for longer in the context of foreign language learning. For example, the 7-3-2-1 method. For something like a podcast, this method recommends you listen again today (1), tomorrow (2), the day after tomorrow (3) and in one week (7). So, I guess they should really call it the 1-2-3-7 method, since it is in that order. But, hey, they don’t!
[10.40] My more general recommendation is listen at least a few times. Read the transcript which is on ShiftEnglish.com and listen again. Each time you do you’ll hear and understand a little bit more, and you also help your brain store that information in your long term memory instead of just the short term memory.
[11.08] Next point, or word of advice or wisdom is – make errors. Try to use what you hear, even if you don’t fully know how or when to use the word or phrase you learned. In fact, especially in those situations. Write it down in a sentence in your private study or try it out in a conversation. Because it is in making errors that we get feedback that helps us improve and even remember better. Feedback is when someone or something tells us if the thing we did was correct and how to improve for the next time. And again, there are studies for example by Kornell showing that this type of error learning is helpful in getting better at a second language. It pushes you out of your comfort zone and activates the part of the brain that deals with memory. All things that help with long-term remembering of a language.
[12.22] And I’ll admit this is one I can struggle with. In the United Kingdom we are very rational. Maybe even a bit perfectionist. We like to know all the rules, all the facts before we take even a little risk. It is really a bit opposite to American culture where people mostly just act and speak without thinking. But I am not really saying that the American style is ideal either.
[13.00] On top of, or in addition to growing up in the United Kingdom, I studied and worked as an engineer for a number of years, so that makes me even more rational. We are trained to be rational as an engineer, to be careful and not make mistakes. But what makes sense for engineering, is not the same for learning a language.
[13.30] We can make mistakes when talking a second language and it is ok, there is no risk that a bridge or a building will fall down! So, if you are someone that is maybe a little introverted, or just likes to get things right, I especially encourage you to make that little extra effort to try and communicate in English, even if you don’t think you will get it 100% right.
[14.07] And to this last point, how and where to practice English? Immersion is the best way of course. Being immersed or surrounded by a language is the best way to learn. For example, living or travelling in America or in the United Kingdom. When you are immersed in a foreign country, you are forced to work and communicate in that language to be understood.
[14.42] And that is the most natural way to learn a language. It is the same way a baby learns a language. They need to communicate to let their parents know they are hungry, or tired. In future episodes we will explore ways to have immersive English experiences. But for now, if you are not able to travel to an English-speaking country then there are also helpful resources online to buddy-up, or get paired with another English speaker or learner, so you can practice speaking.
[15.25] An example is free4talk.com, which is as of recording is still free. Again, that will be in the transcription notes at ShiftEnglish.com And of course, with artificial intelligence, or AI getting much more efficient there is also the possibility there for practicing in a more anonymous setting, talking with a chatbot. And of course, if you are looking for an English coach or just some other resources such as books and TV series at your level then you can also head to my website, ShiftEnglish.com and send me a message there. I’ve been coaching English for 10 years now and I would be more than happy to help you!
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[16.25] And there you have it, it’s the end of this episode! I want to thank you very much for listening to this first episode. I am happy to be sharing this learning journey with you. And that’s what it is – a learning journey, something that will take some time and some effort, but can also be enjoyable. I hope you will join me again next week where I will be discussing – ” Should I try living in a tiny house?”. Until then I encourage you to read, listen or watch something in English, at least a little bit, every day. Read the transcript at ShiftEnglish.com and relisten to this episode. Even if it doesn’t all make sense, have confidence that your brain is learning a little bit of new information each time! Thanks again, and have a great week!
Links:
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/20445911.2020.1711766?needAccess=true Effects of making errors in learning a foreign language
https://www.growthengineering.co.uk/forgetting-curve/ What is the forgetting curve?
free4talk.com free english conversations online with another person
Questions / comments? [email protected]