THE PROBLEMATIC INFLUENCES OF FIRST LANGUAGE CULTURE ON ESL AND MODES TO OVERCOME THE SAME

Abstract

ESL teaching is common, all over the world because of the significance and reach of the English language. It is a globally connective language and has become indispensible due to objectives of business, education or simply communication. The main issue while learning a different language comes out to be with the cultural differences in the grammatical concepts that one has been familiar with since childhood. It is rather challenging to overcome such an integral part of language that most of us consider the “rules” to abide by, so that we can make sense of statements. For example, the Mandarin language has four basic tones, and another fifth neutral tone. The use of tones are extremely important to the meaning generated, and thus are not compromisable. If a tone is missed out, the implication changes, thus leaving the output incorrect.Such tones do not exist in the English language, however it comes with its own set of complexities, such as the tense. The concept of tense in does not influence the verb in Mandarin language.When referring to an action that occurred in the past, such as “eat”, the English language requires it to be changed to “ate” (referring to simple past tense), however, in the Mandarin language, the verb remains in the same form (chi).Research in such areas are necessary to understand and develop methodologies to overcome these issues for faster and better acquisition of language.Overcoming grammatical and linguistic differences between languages, and the comparison of languages for ESL teaching and learningESL is one of those subjects which enjoy maximum demand due to the basic principle on which it is based - communication. In a world which is being repeatedly called a “global village”, it is quite expected that a common ground for interaction will emerge. English is, of course, the most spoken language throughout the world as a result of various phenomenon such as colonisation, immigration etc. The English language has grown to become the “international business language”, wherein without business the globe would not be functioning in the manner it currently is.The purpose of ESL is never put in a position of doubt, for some it might be the acceptance in university or a job, while for others it is a more important deal of settling in a foreign land with a foreign tongue.While learning a second language, it is expected that there will be anxiety or nervousness among the students. ESL teaching techniques are most important as they are responsible for ensuring comfort and participation, and thus, improvement in the students.This paper reviews the current methodologies employed in teaching and learning English as a second language, along with the very problematic scenario of grammatical differences between the many languages of the world. It is expected that these “rules” of grammar or lack thereof in some languages causes some serious struggles in the process of understanding and incorporating English into one’s vocabulary. Unless simultaneously learnt, it is quite difficult for someone to ignore the ways in which a language they have been familiar with since childhood constructs a sentence, as compared to the English language. On top of that, English is a tricky language, with appropriate pronunciation and homophones which takes much time and work to learn and remember. It is a topic which requires acknowledgement.