Role of English language and ways to study it

Today, English is one of the dominant languages of the world. However, not always fluency in English was considered necessary knowledge. The world status of the language was due to the fact that it became native to many countries across all continents of the world. “Export” it began in the 17th century, and first of all, in the countries of North America. Therefore, it owes its modern significance, above all, to unprecedented population growth in this region. Consider the features of the English language, through which it can rightly be considered the "language of the world":

• 1)    Simplicity.

In Old English, as in Greek, words had a whole system of endings that showed the grammatical categories of number, time, person, case, etc. However, over time, the system of grammatical forms became much simpler, and today there are only a few endings in the verbs and for example, adjectives are inconsistent with nouns grammatically.

• 2)    Versatility.

As a result of the loss of endings, over the past five centuries, English has become very versatile. For example, quite often the English word can move to another part of speech without visible changes.

For example, it happened with the words swim, drink, kiss, smile. We can say water to drink and to water flowers; time to go (time to go) and to time a race (fix the duration of the race); a paper to read and to paper a bedroom (to paste over a bedroom).

Adjectives can act as verbs: we warm our hands around the fire, and if clothes are dirtied, they need to be cleaned and dried. Prepositions are also “easy to use.”

For example: A sixty-year old man is nearing retirement (Every man who is sixty years old is nearing retirement age); we can talk about a round of golf.

• 3)    Open dictionary.

This feature of the English language implies unlimited borrowing of vocabulary from other languages and the ease of formation of derivative and complex words. At one time, many languages contributed to the creation of the lexical base of modern English. However, today this process is already taking place in the opposite direction, although many supporters of the purity of such languages as French, Russian, Japanese, try to resist the penetration of English words into them.

• 4)    The future of the language.

In terms of the territories where native speakers live, English ranks first, and in terms of the number of speakers, it ranks second, after Mandarin Chinese. It is the language of business, technology, sports and aviation. In general, the political, economic, scientific, sports life of the whole world “flows” in English. English is defined by the official and working language of the United Nations. All sorts of summits and meetings of heads of state, the signing of laws and decrees, negotiations and debates - all this is carried out in English.

International trade, the work of the banking system, the activity of the transport system on land, at sea and in the air is carried out in English. This language is a living communication tool for academics, doctors of science, scientists all over the world. After all, international conferences, the study of world experience and the exchange of information of scientific minds occur only with the use of English. What can I say - the Olympic Games and all sorts of competitions between countries have chosen the official language is English. Modern language in the British Isles is not at all static. The language lives, neologisms constantly appear, some words become a thing of the past. However, the difference between English and many European languages is that there are no static norms in the UK. On the contrary, it is precisely the various dialects and adverbs that are in great swing. Not only the pronunciation of words on the phonetic level is different, but there are also completely different words denoting the same concept.

Media and government members communicate in British English. But the most popular is considered to be American English. There are Australian English, Canadian English and many other dialects. On the territory of Britain itself there are several dialects spoken by residents of a particular province. As you can see, the English language has preserved its traditions of ″ language confusion, ’even today. The popularity of the English language was greatly facilitated by the colonial policy of Great Britain, the colonization of Australia and North America. After the Second World War, the importance of a country like the USA increased, which also contributed to the popularization of the English language. In the modern world, the Internet community, people of science and culture mainly communicate in English. The exact number of people who speak English in our time is difficult to call.

The results of various studies vary by tens of percent. The numbers are called and 600 million and 1.2 billion. People who speak English can be divided into three groups: native speakers, for which it is native; bilinguals who know him as a second language; as well as those people who have to use it for practical purposes (during study or work). Every seventh inhabitant of the Earth falls into one of these three categories.

The value of the English language in the modern world is so great that its knowledge is not a privilege and a luxury. At one time, computers, as well as mobile phones, could only be afforded by people of a certain social stratum. Now these things are necessities. The same can be said about English. He is taught all and everywhere: in schools, universities, courses. There are many ways to learn foreign languages.

For self-study, the Internet offers us a wide range of educational materials, online courses, applications for smartphones, training channels on Youtube, special social networks, etc. In addition, now in each city there is an increase in the number of language centers with qualified local as well as foreign teachers. It is understood that any educated person simply must speak English, since it is he who is his key to further self-education and self-improvement. So now there are so many organizations offering to teach you English. But do not think that it is so easy to do. Learning any language is a long process that requires a certain amount of money, both mental and financial. Since the development of mental activity is an integral part of the process of mastering both native and foreign languages, learning should not be based only on the mechanical learning of structures, phrases, speech patterns and rules.

The implementation of this task in practice is carried out through the introduction of the principle of cognitive learning. One of the first to formulate a prototype of the cognitive principle of learning, Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy: “It is impossible to learn pupils against their will language by violent explanations, memorization and repetition. It is almost always incomprehensible not the word itself, but the student doesn’t have the notion that the word expresses. The word is almost always ready when the concept is ready.

At the same time, the attitude of the word to thought and the formation of new concepts is such a mysterious, complex and gentle process of the soul that any intervention is a bold, incongruous force that delays the process of development ... But giving the student consciously a new concept and form of the word ... is just as impossible and in vain to teach a child to walk according to the laws of balance. Any such attempt does not bring closer, but removes the student from the proposed goal, like the rough hand of a person who, wishing to help bloom a flower, would deploy the flower by the petals and grind everything around”.

Psychological studies and the practice of learning show that learning is successful when the brain creates its own mental structures, and it slows down if ready-made structures are imposed on it. Therefore, it is necessary not to impose linguistic knowledge, but to help him be born and develop it. It can be born from the need for communication and self-expression. In this case, the study of foreign languages or their improvement through watching movies, TV shows in the original language is one of the most effective, because it is learning through perception. First, a person passes through his head a lot of correct sentences, then he can reproduce them and build his own sentences.

This method can be divided into several stages: Stage 0 - view with translation into the native language. This stage can be called an introductory, since here there is a direct acquaintance with the plot. If you wish and there is a certain level of knowledge of the language being studied, this stage can be skipped.

Stage 1 - viewing with translation in the native language and subtitles in the original language. At this stage, you can expand vocabulary, improve grammar.

Stage 2 - viewing with translation in the original language and subtitles in the native language. There is getting used to the sound of foreign speech, the style of conversation of characters, the accent.

Stage 3 - viewing with translation and subtitles in the original language. At this stage, not only the language and individual words are perceived, but also an understanding of what exactly is being spoken about, the spelling of words is also memorized.

Stage 4 - viewing in the original language, without subtitles. It is often impossible to make out and translate even familiar words in the stream of speech, since they are not perceived by the ear. After this stage, it will be much easier to understand the interlocutor in real life. Watching films in the original language as a way to learn a foreign language will increase the level of student knowledge. Since most often the choice in favor of this method is made consciously, the benefits will be substantial. In addition, films allow you to learn slang and informal words, to In addition, movies allow you to learn slang and informal words that are not yet in the dictionaries, and improve pronunciation. Definitely, English is the most important means of communication in the modern world.