How do foreigners learn English?

[yermum]

I attended a French school for a while and the English teacher was Welsh, so the French kids had a very peculiar accent.

 

[deuse]

I attended a French school for a while and the English teacher was Welsh, so the French kids had a very peculiar accent.

 

[Glaucus]

I think most places learn English, however due to most films, tv etc being American English. They pick up a lot of the Americanised words.

 

[manveruppd]

Hate to tell you this, but "proper" English by the standards of most people on the globe is American Standard English. So says the Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language anyway. Most Commonwealth countries people still learn British English but that's slowly changing.

Oh, and as to "how" exactly they teach us, they staple our eyelids open CLockwork Orange style and make us watch British 70s sitcoms with Beethoven playing loudly in the background.

 

[Welshy]

I attended a French school for a while and the English teacher was Welsh, so the French kids had a very peculiar accent.

LOL would love to hear what it sounds like

 

[Psyk]

True, The American English is just like we talked here about 100 years ago.

The endlish we speak now is english with a bit of french thrown in.

My point was that american english is formal english in america, just as british english is formal english here.

Apparently ending words with -ize instead of -ise is technically just as correct in british english. Not directly relevent to this thread but I thought I'd throw it in.

 

[PardonTheWait]

My girlfriend learned a bit while she was over in Germany, at school and from English people she knew, then when she moved here she learn the rest from the people here.

German/Essex accent. Poor girl

 

[Kreeeee]

I think most learn american english. I know a few people that went to international schools and they learn the american version, generally speaking. I would have thought that their teachers would tell them about the different variations but I think they focus on the american dialect.

I know about 40 and all but 2 of them learnt american english at school.

These were all Japanese, Taiwanese and Chinese students studying in Bristol for a year.

 

[Zheka]

In my school in Russia we have been told proper English even all of the stories in our books were about people in England, not US. But due to popularity of American movies a lot of people know American words.
Most of the russians don't speak English btw

 

[Sinny]

I think most places learn English, however due to most films, tv etc being American English. They pick up a lot of the Americanised words.

I was going to say that , but few players i met in the jolly land of warcraft learnt english through watching television, they said the basics are not that hard to learn.

 

[Hellsmk2]

I'm teaching English in Korea at the moment and I have to teach US English. It's annoying.

 

[sbi5ar]

English, the clue is in the name!

By-johve i think he has got it but on a more serious not, foreigners never really learn true english, cos i cant understand **** all they say

(sorry to offend, but i have spoken to enough foreign call centers thank you very much)

 

[mctiny]

why would it be North American?

This would depend solely on the country the "students" live. Take Brasil for example, I am here teaching "British" English but most of my students have learnt American English.

 

[mctiny]

Do countries whose first language is not English learn English with The North American way of spelling or the traditional English way?

Just curious.

I find you post a little confusing, you ask one question in the title but a very different one in the actual message

Do you want to know "How", like what methods or styles or do you want to know "What" they teach, like American English or British English?

 

[One More Solo]

I find you post a little confusing, you ask one question in the title but a very different one in the actual message

Do you want to know "How", like what methods or styles or do you want to know "What" they teach, like American English or British English?

Really not that confusing? Maybe if you're being pedantic.

 

[Smithy]

I find you post a little confusing, you ask one question in the title but a very different one in the actual message

Do you want to know "How", like what methods or styles or do you want to know "What" they teach, like American English or British English?

Crikey.

How: In what manner or way.

By substitution;

In what manner or way do foreigners learn English?

Perhaps I could have phrased it, How do foreigners learn English? Using British English or American English?

However that would have made a lengthy thread title. In any case, I agree with One More Solo, I think it is being pedantic to argue this out.

 

[mctiny]

Really not that confusing? Maybe if you're being pedantic.

Maybe I am/was.

Crikey.

How: In what manner or way.

By substitution;

In what manner or way do foreigners learn English?

Perhaps I could have phrased it, How do foreigners learn English? Using British English or American English?

However that would have made a lengthy thread title. In any case, I agree with One More Solo, I think it is being pedantic to argue this out.

I'm not arguing anything out with anyone, I was merely looking for clarification as to the meaning of the thread. "How" could be what method or techniques do they use to teach and "What" could be American or British English.

I am an ESL teacher in brasil, when I get asked "How" do people learn English as a foreign language, it is always a question of methodology opposed to whether it is British or American English.