Ashyrova G., Igdirova M.
PROBLEMS IN LEARNING ENGLISH AND WAYS TO SOLVE THEM *
Аннотация:
this article explores the main problems and difficulties in mastering the necessary competencies when learning English, which most of the students face. The main task is to consider ways and methods of improving language acquisition and overcoming emerging problems when learning English, which are simple and effective in implementation and application in practice in the learning process.
Ключевые слова:
difficulties in English, problems in learning, language difficulties, development of language, methods of teaching
Today, English is the language of communication, which is globally and widely used throughout the world. The political, economic, and scientific life of the whole world is connected and proceeds in close connection with the English language. Knowledge of general English is insufficient in the conditions of modern global society, therefore, learning the language in professional or special areas is a prerequisite for successful studies and careers. The language skills taught in English correspond to the needs and goals of students, and the content of lessons is related to the specialty they are studying. When teaching English, the teacher puts a lot of effort into overcoming difficulties in the students’ language barrier. This article explores the main problems and difficulties in mastering the necessary competencies when learning English, which most of the students face. The main task is to consider ways and methods of improving language acquisition and overcoming emerging problems when learning English, which are simple and effective in implementation and application in practice in the learning process.English seems simple and complex at the same time, as it contains a huge number of exceptions to numerous rules. This tends to complicate learning and understanding for those who want to be fluent in English as a second language. Thus, learning foreign languages requires a lot of time, constant work on the language and dedication. D. Agustina states that learning a target language will result in problems especially when the language being learned is different from the students’ mother tongue. [2, pg. 2] It means that there must be problems in every language learning although the level of difficulty felt by the learners may vary from one to another.The main problems faced by English language learners: 1. Spelling. In English, there are a sufficient number of words that have no common meaning, are not related to each other in any way, are written differently, are different parts of speech, but are heard the same way when pronounced. Such words are called homophones – language learners often make mistakes when using such words. For example: eye – I (глаз – я), cell – sell (клетка – продавать), hair – hare (волосы – заяц), by – buy (сквозь – покупать), fair – fare (ярмарка – тариф), hear – here (слышать – здесь), sea– see (море – видеть), be– bee (быть – пчела). To avoid misunderstandings and confusion, it is very important to teach students to pay attention to the context, and not to translate with individual words and sentences. It is important to understand the difference between these words in spelling, in order to become an effective written communicator.2. Pronunciation. English isn’t a phonetic language, often words are written completely differently from how they are pronounced. Thornbury states that there are several factors that make some words seem more difficult than others. They are first, pronunciation. He adds that research findings have shown that words which are more difficult to pronounce are more difficult to learn. This results from the clusters of consonants found in many English words, such as strength, crisps and breakfast. Secondly, spelling appears to be the cause of errors which contribute to difficulty in learning a word. The students usually encounter some difficulties in spelling and pronouncing words containing silent letters. The examples of those words are foreign, listen, headache, climbing, bored, honest, and muscle. [1, pg. 27] And words that are spelled the same can be pronounced completely differently. For example: the verb “read”– it’s pronounced in the present tense (ri?d), but in past tense is pronounced (‘red). Learning the pronunciation and spelling of these words is essential for understanding both written and spoken language, and requires tremendous effort and patience of students. 3. To have a meager vocabulary. Vocabulary is very important when learning a language. Not even all native speakers can boast of knowing the entire vocabulary of their native language. It is believed that it is enough to know only 800 words to speak English fluently. Lado in his book “Language Teaching” states that all people know the limited vocabulary. None of us know all words of a language completely. He adds that knowing the vocabulary of a language is hard to define since it deals with so many aspects such as the size of the vocabulary, the degree of the knowledge required, and whether the vocabulary is for speaking, listening, reading, writing, and or for special technical uses. [3, pg. 116]Also, people learning new words often forget them after a certain period of time. In this case, in order to improve and not forget your English vocabulary, you can practice the following techniques:use the list method, which is very simple and effective. Once a week, make a list of twenty-five new words that you want to remember (write down new interesting words for you that you think you will use and will be useful to you in your language practice). When making such a list, it is better to write down their definitions and, if possible, the phrase in which this word was used. Such contextual study of expressions and words contributes to better memorization and to enlarge your vocabulary. Repeat and learn these words and expressions at any free time. Next, break down the list of five words per day. On the first day, study the first five words. On the second day the next five words. After the second day, when you remember five words of this day, try to remember and write down yesterday’s words. On the third day, learn and write down the words of the third day, and then remember the words of the second and first day, and so on. When studying words, it is important not only to teach them verbally, but also to prescribe them in writing, which will help you develop your writing skills. On the seventh day, after studying the words of this day, remember and write down all the previous ones, make sentences with them. Take your time and be confident in your abilities. Using this method, it is very easy to memorize words, the systematic nature of such practice is important in order not to forget and enrich your vocabulary.4. Insufficient speaking skills, language barrier. One of the biggest problems in learning English is the inability to communicate fluently, fear and language barrier. Regardless of how well or poorly students speak the language aspects, the issue of the language barrier and the inability to conduct a free conversation in English can put them at a dead end. There’re some ways to improve your speaking skills and English proficiency: Watching movies in English, and better familiar movies previously viewed in your native language is one of the easiest ways to use while learning English. This is a very effective way, as it allows you to hear and listen to words and speech spoken aloud,Repeating the phrases you hear out loud also removes the fear and barrier in learning the language, Reading books in English aloud also produces an excellent effect in learning, which, according to students, leads to improved conversational skills and the removal of the barrier. At first, the book should be simple, match your level of grammar and vocabulary, you can even make it easier by reading aloud you are afraid to speak English. By reading aloud you hear your English, it helps you gain confidence in the conversational aspect of the language. It is better to use this method regularly, preferably daily, perhaps for at least ten minutes a day. This is an important practical way to succeed. Read slowly, try to pronounce the words correctly, see the correct pronunciation in the dictionary if you are not sure. By reading aloud you practice speaking English.5. Idioms and slang. English is rich in idioms. Such expressions when translated into target language do not make any sense, since they are not translated separately. Some expressions have a figurative meaning, others are completely illogical. Most of these expressions have a cultural and historical subtext. For example, rain cats and dogs – pouring like a bucket (about rain), although when translated it may seem that it is connected with cats or dogs, in a fog – confused, break a bank – to spend a lot. Such idioms are especially problematic for English learners.Slang is widely used in the spoken language. It is often grammatically incorrect and seems meaningless if you don’t know the context in which it is used. The best method of mastering and understanding slang and colloquial expressions is communication with native speakers, watching movies, podcast series, music. At first, it is possible to use subtitles, in the future, this component should be excluded from the learning process. This helps and guides the natural learning process, helps to capture phonetic, lexical and non-verbal features of the language (correct intonation and pronunciation in native speakers, facial expressions during pronunciation also helps in learning the correct language technique).
Номер журнала Вестник науки №2 (71) том 4
Ссылка для цитирования:
Ashyrova G., Igdirova M. PROBLEMS IN LEARNING ENGLISH AND WAYS TO SOLVE THEM // Вестник науки №2 (71) том 4. С. 104 - 108. 2024 г. ISSN 2712-8849 // Электронный ресурс: https://www.вестник-науки.рф/article/13099 (дата обращения: 18.05.2024 г.)
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