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| How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by Smartrizz: 8:27am On Feb 03, 2012 |
Am having the zeal to enhance my English speaking and writing, how do I go about it. Please advice. Am in Lagos. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by AjanleKoko: 8:59am On Feb 03, 2012 |
Go to LASEM - Prof Ebun Clarke's school. Or look at this thread: https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-427092.0.html Or this one: https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-519155.0.html Good places to start. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 11:17am On Feb 03, 2012 |
^^^^ Thank you for those threads. I, myself, am looking towards developing my spoken and written English language skills, especially those skills required to articulate important points in a tensed environment. Even though I make few mistakes whenever I write or speak, I still believe I can get to a much better level. There is no gainsaying the fact that living in the West is an opportunity to practice and develop English language skills, but for some strange reasons I find that the so called oyinbo speakers make some unpardonable errors in their own language. I shall surely visit those places or people when I pay a long term visit to naija. Although we mathematicians are not expected to have a high level in the English language (false statement), It is always good to be proficient in any language, be it Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo, Calabar, Egun or English. T22. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by chamber2(m): 11:49am On Feb 03, 2012 |
I think the best way to master the English language is to read well written materials, not necessarily English textbooks but materials that can enhance your understanding of the language. I may recommend listening to the BBC, reading journals etc. When i finished from the secondary school i started reading the Economist. I would go to Mile 2 in Lagos to buy old publications by the economists, the financial times etc. There are many of them at mile 2 and oshodi. Just 20-50 naira you will have them. May be that will be good for a start. In terms of speaking, there is no sure way than to practice. I speak much better than i write. Infact, my writing sucks. But what i missed in writing i got in speaking. One of the ways i developed my speaking skills was during my short teaching career. I taught at few tutorial centres in lagos prior to gaining admission into the university and when i got to the university i started organising tutorials for my coursemates and juniors. It was a fantastic experience because i was always speaking to people thereby developing my language and public speaking skills. I also dived into student unionism and was always shouting greatest titi!!! All these gave me confidence and i was always working to improve on my speaking skills to avoid embarrassment. I count my words before i use them to avoid unpardonable grammatical errors. In summary, the best way to improve on your speaking skills in to practice. Nairaland is also a good place to visit. There are very many intelligent people on nairaland who write very well. Reading their post will be of immense help. I deliberately didn't want to add Nigerian newspapers to the list. I have been disappointed severally by our news agencies. Another thing to avoid when speaking is the use of high sounding words. Being grandiloquent does not posit you as an intelligent person, especially when speaking to people below your level or whom you know very little about their backgrounds. People often make the mistake of assuming that the more unfamiliar words one uses the more intelligent one appears. That is very wrong assumption. Always use simple and understandable language and do not speak to impress rather than inform. However, do not sacrifice accuracy in the alter of simplicity. I am not saying you shouldn't be familiar with ''big'' words. i am only saying you should be cautious in their usage. 3 Likes 1 Share |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 1:26pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
^^^^^ You wised up long ago!! My eldest brother, who very much fits the description you gave of yourself, wanted to develop my English language skills when I was in JSS1. Unfortunately I thought he hated me and so I revolted against his vision of having a well spoken brother. Today I am faced with the consequences of being a recalcitrant brother some years ago. About counting one's words before using them so as not to make grammatical errors, unfortunately I think minor grammatical errors in spoken English language are ineluctable, especially for people like me. Sometimes I mispronounce words, use wrong verbs and so on. But the most surprising thing is that I am always aware of these errors in my sentences. Sadly, I always cannot help them  . In my experience, written English language is by far easier than its spoken counterpart. Why? Because one has time to think before writing. Most people write well, but speak poorly. I would rather learn to speak well than write well. I can always pay people to help produce a fantastic piece  .You are very well on point about how teaching helps develop spoken skills, especially public speaking skills. The little articulation I can boast of, I developed it when I was a tutor in Lagos many years ago. I have been lazy since then. The only thing I do nowadays is to recite tongue twisters hours before giving presentations at school. And even at that sef, I still make some pronunciation mistakes during the presentations, especially at the beginning .i.e. first 5 minutes. I wonder why those profs still think I am articulate. I wonder why they still reward me with competitive grades. Maybe those errors are not noticeable or maybe they (the profs) are always mild on me because they know I am an international student or this or that, who knows  Anyway, being an omnivorous reader(ref: Patrick Obahiagbon  ) and listening to good speakers talk are two very important factors that can actually go a long way in helping to develop one's spoken and written English language skills. For me, I have improved quite a lot because I always listen to people like Obama, Hilary etc and I study more story courses nowadays, instead of those wicked theorems I used to prove just a few years back. I think it is in this regard that guys who studied story courses should have a clear advantage over others. But astonishingly, it isn't always so.But, on a broader note, why do people generally mock or hate those that use big big words to express themselves? Or is it just mere envy? My boss used to like (or mock) me when I was still an employee in naija. At that time, I used to cram 2 new difficult words before going to office everyday . There was even a time that he described my style of speaking as 'you and this ur unilag english hahahah `. Obviously that was a mockery. I wouldn't say he envied me because he himself did all his higher education in NY and so speaks very polished English language.But, why the mockery? T22. 2 Likes |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by chamber2(m): 1:58pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
^^^ Well, i don't think it's mockery. When you use unfamiliar words it's either that people won't understand you, misunderstand you or they may just feel you are ''showing off''. I think your boss was just trying to indirectly tell you that you do not have the monopoly of ''big'' words. There is really nothing wrong in using high sounding words, except making pronunciation errors. The most important thing when using such words is to define your audience. An English professor speaking to undergraduate student gathering would have to tailor his words according to the characteristics of his audience. However, not everyone knows how to do this effectively. A case in hand is that of Hon. Patrick Obahiagbon, a man who obviously does not know the purpose of language. Also, if you listen to Obama and Hillary Clinton you would observe that their language is free from high sounding words, both in speaking and in writing. I read Obama's Audacity of Hope and Dreams from my Father, they are excellent books written in clear and understandable English grammar. Just realise that the purpose of communication is to inform. So, every effort must be geared towards ensuring that your diction is carefully chosen. In my case, i realized my shortcomings early and tried to do something about it. I schooled in the village where English language was barely spoken, including English teachers. On getting to lagos i was amazed at the degree of my deficiency in the language, despite being a village champion. I took my destiny into my own hands and worked towards improving on my language skills. The result was that all the people i taught English language in my compound then aced their GCE and Waec exams; Bs and Cs. I am still learning, especially in the area of pronunciation, clarity and writing. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by ayox2003: 2:31pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
*passing by* I wonder why nobody wants to improve in writing and speaking our mother-tougue. I mean taking a cue from China, Japan, Russia, India, France, Poland, Norway, Netherland, Germany, Iceland and so on. @OP, if you can lay your hands on ''How to talk to anyone, anytime, anywhere'' by Larry King, you are good to go. Merci. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by violent(m): 2:45pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
Generally, your knowledge of English language will improve the more you read Speaking however requires confidence and the ability to time the pace of your speech enough to keep the attention of your audience. Many great speakers, Obama including, speak using "pauses"with a feeling that "the world can wait to hear this". e.g "Today, . . .( 3 seconds pause). . .the United States conducted a military operation. . .(2 seconds pause). . . in the capital city of bengahzi. . . .(4 seconds pause)" |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by violent(m): 2:49pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
ayox2003: Why should anyone feel the need to improve speaking a language they can already speak naturally? |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 3:02pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
ayox2003: Hahaha. You make me laugh. Do we even have 'a native language' in Nigeria? I have lived in many of the countries you mentioned and I can confidently tell you that people from each of the countries speak the same language, nothing like una dey speak yoruba, we dey speak igbo, dem dey speak calabar, una dey speak hausa, dem dey speak ijaw, we dey speak ishan. I think you see my point. I once did an experiment to demonstrate our pathetic disunity in Naija. The experiment was done during my NYSC days. I asked everyone inside a room, only 7 people O, to start speaking their respective native languages. When they all started speaking, no one understood what the next person was saying. I did that to demonstrate that we have nothing like a unanimous Nigerian language, let no one ton e je. If you conduct the same experiment using Germans or French people or Polish people, you will see that everyone from the same country, no matter how far apart their villages are, will understand what the next person is saying. I am sure you get my point. A way out of this sorry situation is to ask our esteemed linguists to build a unique language called 'Nigerian'. This language should be a combination of all the pathetically numerous languages we speak in Nigeria. The language should then be taught at all schools in every part of the country. This way, we too can open out mouths to say that we have a national language. Until then, no show. I am sorry. T22 |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by ayox2003: 3:03pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
Oh! so most nigerians can speak their native languages fluently? I dont think so. Most people add English to it and youths cant say a proverb in their mother-tongue. Some parents dont even allow their children to speak in native languages. In schools, English is a compulsory subject but not Yoruba or Hausa or Igbo. Lets not go to writing at all. In a lighter mood, whats Chameleon in your native language? |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 3:09pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
violent:[/b] The problem is, after the two or three or four seconds, I sometimes get tensed and forget what to say next. The sentences and words do not form easily in my head, You see the problem. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 3:24pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
ayox2003: At the primary and secondary schools I attended, a Nigerian language was made compulsory. This is even being enforced these days in some top private schools in Lagos. By the way, people think in terms of what they can get by doing something. We all can list the numerous benefits of being able to string flawless sentences in the English language. However, I am not sure I have heard anyone, besides my father and mother , who talks tirelessly of the advantages of being proficient in one of our parochial languages. In fact, if being proficient in our local languages had many advantages sef, I am sure that the language of instruction at LASU would have been Yoruba.Again, people do what gives them the highest payoff. I am not sure whether speaking very fluent Yoruba or Igbo or Ishan or Calabar will land me a job with, for example, Total. But I am very sure that speaking very good English during interviews and assessment centres, coupled with luck, can land me a very juicy job. In a way, and to be realistic, I don't really blame those parents because they want their children to be competitive. And as you very much know, Nigerians see good English language speakers as very intelligent people. When I start making and training kids, my own style will be to force them to have an adequate knowledge of my language and their mum's language. Then, they must be able to speak very well any language(s) that will give them a competitive advantage in the ever globally competitive world. I don't care if the language is Chinese, Yoruba, English, Igbo and co. This is how I see it. T22. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by chamber2(m): 3:25pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
The harsh reality is that most of these mushroom languages (dialects) will NOT develop further than this! the much they can do is to go into extinction. They will ultimately be suppressed by widely spoken languages. How many people even speak these dialects? The number of people who speak a particular language goes a long way in determining how far the language goes. Take the Chinese language for instance, despite being somehow awkward, many people still want to learn it. About 12% of world population speak the Chinese language. Same cannot be said of most ''languages'' in Africa and Nigeria in particular. T22 You are not alone on that! It happens to even more advanced learners of the English language. With time, practice and much reading i am sure you will overcome that, including myself. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by Nobody: 3:38pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
@Smartrizz, hi. Its nice u want to improve. Well,brace up. This is gona be a bit long. Let me start by commending the guy who said he taught at tutorials. I taught for a year during NYSC and although my written n spoken English is impeccable,near-perfect, standing in front of a class builds up your confidence. Now, Smartrizz, for a start, there are fun ways to pick up words n their usage in the right tenses without hugging ur dictionary everytime. I wish i knew ur interests in terms of hobbies,not neccesarily educational stuff. Personally, my top 5 hobbies are soccer, movies, music, novels!yeah novels of ALL genres or kinds, and surfing the web. Now, although these are hobbies, i make them educational. The guys who run premiership commentaries are sooo good,so while watching games(Arsenal!),i listen up. I watch American movies not just cuz they're interesting but cuz the scriptwriters are pure class. Watch movies and listen to their conversations,or u can get subtitles. B4 u know it, u'l begin to emulate them n get better. Denzel Washington, Leonardo Di Caprio n Will Smith speak very good English,so i'm always listening. Plus u cant watch Desperate Housewives,24,and CSI:NY without getting a feel for what good English is supposed to sound like. Now to novels, i've read a lot of Michael Crichton(science fiction) and John Grisham(Law) novels. Novels are a fantastic way to build up not just ur written English, but ur vocabulary! U should also read romance novels cuz they have good socially-adaptive inter-personal dialogues,e.g. the way men n women relate on a relationship level.yeah,its Valentine season,so step up ur game,bro.lol. Daniele Steele and Nora Roberts. Then music, dont just dance to the beats. Pay attention to the lyrics. I visit lyricsondemand.com to check out lyrics of my favourite songs and you'll be amazed at what it takes to write a good song. Now these are just fun stuff. Once u can imbibe some of these, then u'll be ready to take on real educational stuff without getting bored. I studied Economics by the way, so u can hit me up for ur Economist. Have fun. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by afrobaby(f): 4:52pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
lovely post, I must admit I write better than I speak, even without thinking twice, I speak better when am angry, but when am calm and cautious, I make mistakes, my husband speaks better than I do but I write better than him, whenever we wanna compose something, it is me and me alone, I can easily see his mistakes, but when it comes to speaking, I prefer him talking cos he speaks fluently and without fear, but when it is just me and a familiar person especially family members, I speak well, even my siblings attest to that. I guess foundation matters a lot. Most people that do not speak well are those whose parents brought them up using their local languages, also those of us who went to" majokosile" nursery and primary school or went to public schools in local areas. Like my husband will always say, it is always preferable when people abuse your children of not speaking good yoruba or your local language than when they abuse them of not speaking good English. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by violent(m): 4:57pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
tanimola22: I found that occasionally reading aloud using the speak and pause technique has helped me over the years. In addition, it has helped my comprehension abilities too. Normally, when we read, we get to read so fast in our heads that we are just looking to consume so much material in a very little time frame. I found this is sometime reflective in the way we speak, or deliver speech too --we just want to say so many things within a short time frame and in the process, come across as clumsy and inarticulate. Reading aloud to myself and being consciously paced as helped me to improve on this. Here is an example of what i mean with the text of the Gettysburg address below: the dots represent how many seconds i will normally wait to continue reading the next line of text. Four score and seven years ago. . .our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation. . . . . , conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. . . . . . . . .Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation, so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. . . . . . We are met on a great battle-field of that war . . .,We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. . . . . It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. . . . . .But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate, we can not consecrate, we can not hallow this ground, , . . . . . The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. . . . . . . . . .The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, . . . .but it can never forget what they did here, . . . . . It is for us the living, . . .rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced, . . . . . . . It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—. . . . .that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—. . . . . .that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—. . . . . .and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. 2 Likes 1 Share |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 5:30pm On Feb 03, 2012 |
violent: Hmmm I see your point. Pacing pacing pacing, a skill that has to be learnt. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by Cupidkc(m): 9:37pm On Feb 06, 2012 |
Speaking and writing well is good. Be it English,or any other language that you deem fit. Try as much as possible to read nice materials on the subject matter and listen to good talks. As for me;my spoken and written english is good to go. Though not perfect. Then my native language is great. Lest i forget,someone asked what 'Chameleon' is? It's called 'Ogwumagala' in my native Igbo language. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by Smartrizz: 11:33am On Feb 07, 2012 |
I really appreciate all your responses, am learning from it. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by AjanleKoko: 11:37am On Feb 07, 2012 |
All you guys, what were you doing in your secondary school English Grammar classes? I read all the series of 'Brighter Grammar' and paid very close attention in my English classes in secondary school. Got rewarded with an A1. One of the few people I know who managed to score A1 in both English and Mathematics is me  There, now, I'm gushing . . . |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 6:13pm On Feb 07, 2012 |
AjanleKoko: ^^^ hahahaha, well done. My eldest brother did too. He did not just make it in English and Mathematics, he added TD, Physics, Chemistry and Additional Mathematics to it. hahahaha. Hahahah. He beats me in English, hahahahaha. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by AjanleKoko: 10:04pm On Feb 07, 2012 |
tanimola22: Nice. I was only able to add Physics, and Geography to that list. Those were the days when I 'sabi'ed book"! |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by sleekcm(m): 1:37pm On Feb 08, 2012 |
Poor me! I was so good at Igbo waec gave me A1. Hahahahaha! @all,nice thread,totally enjoyable. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 1:50pm On Feb 08, 2012 |
sleekcm: It would be sardonic  , it would be lugubrious and it would be a case of dismal pis ma if a German person wrote a German language examination and scored below excellent. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by sleekcm(m): 7:28pm On Feb 08, 2012 |
@T22,lugubrious? Now,where's my dictionary when i need it. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by iice(f): 5:13am On Feb 11, 2012 |
afrobaby: I'm similar to you. Its when i get irritated, though that it gets better. Most times i pull out words i'm unaware i even have in my mind. I read alot and still read alot but i only read fiction . My brain is wired for things that seem frivolous, fantastical or idiotic to most people. If it's instructional/non fiction books, by the time i'm done reading 'acknowledgement', my mind has gone to bed, if i continue reading i will comatose. Sometimes, my spoken english is mixed up (i throw in a lot of words from different languages and make a sentence). I'm working on curbing that habit.My brothers are wayyyy better than i am. Both in speaking and writing. Anyway, reading and speaking really helps. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. Someone would correct you and you'd have learnt something thus improving. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 10:49pm On Feb 11, 2012 |
^^^^^^ Do you speak other international languages like Spanish, French and German? |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 11:27pm On Feb 11, 2012 |
afrobaby: hahahaha, Madam, do you fear fear when you speak in public? How do you easily spot mistakes in written English language? What are the mistakes you spot easily? Are they wrong usage of verbs or prepositions or what? I am asking because I have noticed over the years that L2 speakers of the English language have problems with the correct usage of prepositions. I myself have been struggling with this problem for many years now. The problem just won't go, haba! The highlighted is almost true, but unfortunately not always totally true. Everything depends on early self development. My old mother who grew up in the village speaks and writes better English than many sisi eko university graduates of today. Gba be! T22. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by iice(f): 7:59pm On Feb 13, 2012 |
tanimola22: Enough to get by. No German. |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by tanimola22: 8:23pm On Feb 13, 2012 |
Ich sprenchen deutch? Du |
| Re: How Do I Enhance My English Speaking And Writing by bukkytroni: 6:37pm On Feb 15, 2012 |
ayox2003: If you can find me, I can give you the audio version of that book, read by the author himself(I think) 2 Likes |
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