Bad English

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

• pass it on
• coaching
• ESL
• gonna

• actually
• stutter
• quoting
• colloquialism

• curb

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

When you are learning another language, it is difficult to blend what you learn in books with how people actually talk.

In every language, people stutter, insert extra words and use expressions that are not in the dictionary.

English, baby! members sometimes comment on the “bad English” of our cast members. For example, they say we shouldn’t be saying “like” so much. But “like” is very common in the spoken language. Of course, you would never use the expression in writing unless you were quoting someone.

Listen to Amanda and Kevin talk about bad English.

3. Watch - Watch the video without reading the dialog.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

Log in to Listen

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Amanda

Kevin

Amanda:  So what’s interesting is I have a four year-old son…

Kevin:  OK.

Amanda:  ... and so we’re trying to teach him the language. The English language. But it’s very difficult to realize that, how we speak with all the slang and the poor construction using “like,” “um,” the pausing…

Kevin:  The colloquialisms.

Amanda:  Yes. Pausing, “um,” “Like, well”... It’s so difficult to curb that while you’re teaching a child because you don’t want to teach that or pass it on. It’s near impossible.

Kevin:  Well, it is but his English will eventually get good. But it does take sort of coaching, right?

Amanda:  Absolutely.

Kevin:  And, and good teaching, both from the parents as well as in school.

Amanda:  You don’t realize how much you do it yourself.

Kevin:  Mm hm.

Amanda:  You know which mistakes are mistakes and you just, that’s how you’ve taught yourself.

Kevin:  Yeah.

Amanda:  You’ve trained yourself incorrectly.

Kevin:  It’s very interesting.

Amanda:  And it’s so hard to rewind and go the right way even though you know what’s right.

Kevin:  I used to be an ESL teacher and a lot of students would write in essays the word gonna... g-o-n-n-a.

Amanda:  Oh no.

Kevin:  Which they didn’t realize was OK verbally but written, is, is not appropriate.

Amanda:  Right.

Kevin:  So it takes a lot of practice.

Amanda:  It does. I’m working on it…

Kevin:  It will come.

Amanda:  ... still!

Quizzes

Go Super to take Quiz

Lesson MP3

Go Super to download full lesson MP3