How were you taught English?

last SG · 2006-06-07T19:08:40+00:00

probably an ISD agent, u neber know

the Bear SG

well, it's coz one of my colleagues asked me how she can teach her niece English...

i didn't know how to answer her coz i was "taught" by being grilled by mom who was an english teacher Razz

also, there was a matter of the BBC World Service which i loved listening to since young, music by various groups like The Beatles, The Hollies, Led Zeppelin and The Doors (hey! they sang in English Laughing )

most of all, it was reading... reading voraciously since i was able to read.. and mostly comics like Asterix and Beano...

so, mine was a mishmash and not a formal way of learning...

how were you taught English?

av98m SG

I can't remember. I slept through most of my English classes. Somehow my reading habit taught me I guess. Started with Enid Blython stuff, then Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, blah blah blah, with Beano and Dandy on the side, Sesame Street, etc. After a while you somehow figure out how sentences should be formed. Razz

elindra SG

Good question
My parents both spoke English when we were kids
Actually I think I speak and write better English when I'm younger
Now my speech and writing is very much affected by Singlish Laughing

When I was young I read a lot and there were those phonetics classes which I attended.

I think the best way to learn English is to read and listen to the BBC news

RaTtY8l SG

im taught by my teachers in pri sch cos i at home speak hokkien. Laughing

[email protected] SG

read a lot of books in sec sch and suddenly, ta da! english improved loads. in JC they kept trying to teach me the asian way of writing GP but would i listen? noooooo. so i kept getting C6. then come to a levels... im 1 of only 2 people in my class to get an A1 for GP the rest leh? diligent people who follow the whole taught procedure all get Bs n Cs. follow somemore la. Don't forget where the damned GP papers are marked. UK Laughing

jetta SG

Me too. Both parents spoke English to us. I fed off many Enid Blyton titles and lots of comics like Dandy, Beano, Bunty, Richie Rich, etc. Just loved to read. Mum used to have the radio on all day long. Back then there was only one station so I had a regular diet of all kinds of songs. Then there was TV too.

Sidetrack: My last few visits to Sg, I realise that more people speak Singlish and Mandarin.

av98m SG

high five! Laughing

I slept my way through GP too, but my GP tutor was a very nice and understanding man. He knew I'd always aim for the odd duck questions that cannot be prepared for in advance. I got an A1 too.

Say..what IS the asian way of writing GP? Razz

[email protected] SG

simple. whatever it is that singapore gp tutors teach.

personally i think all that crap about having to examine both sides of the argument is wrong. if u have a stand, make it clear, give your reasons, refute whatever counter arguments are in existance. above all, argue with passion, and write about a cause or a stand u truely believe in.

doesn't hurt to develop a slightly personalised style of writing. imagine the marker having to read thru a few thousand singaporean students all writing in the same bland asian way. if im them i also make sure u all dun do well enuf to ever come near UK. Laughing

elindra SG

The problem is alot of people cannot argue convincingly Mr. Green
I mean [email protected], just look at the way they argue in other threads Laughing

[email protected] SG

i know! Mr. Green

no wonder they cannot convince me. and then they accuse me of being unreasonable. Laughing

oh the irony

elindra SG

Laughing
What I find really funny is the way they start getting vulgar

av98m SG

Ah, I remember being given notes on the usual topics like poverty/3rd world, environmental issues etc and I refused to read them. Even for exams I'd just go straight for the goofball questions that few will dare touch, because there are no notes on them. I figured if the marker can read something interesting that stands out he or she would give higher marks just as a bonus to the student for not boring them with the same old crap. Twisted Evil

av98m SG

Laughing

field SG

reading newspaper watching news, watching tv?? Very Happy

[email protected] SG

wanna see one real life example now? Laughing

http://www.sgforums.com/?action=thread_display&thread_id=194308&page=3

[email protected] SG

it didn't matter what topic i choose, as long as its something i can write with a passon. Mr. Green

and write with flair.

elindra SG

Oh but Heng Heng, I saw that thread that was why I posted that. Laughing

alexkusu SG

from dad

perhaps its because of his academic background (mission school, university, etc)

mom is a ethic dialect speaker

laurence82 SG

hurhur

i learnt BM and mandarin before i came to singapore and picked up england

Laughing

primary three was terrible, my subsititute english teacher was trying to teach me grammar

then i picked up some books and read, and read..and read

dont have that kind of stamina nowadays, but at least readings helped me from the last guy in the class to lumber one

snobbish SG

When i was very very young instead of toys i loved books. Everytime my mum bought me out shopping (which was almost daily) i would buy story books. Thats how i started i guess Razz