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| (By replicatedtypo) |
A key point
to the success of any language course is intonation, that is, the
characteristic rhythm, highs, mids and lows that make each language
unique. Even two very similar languages like, say, Portuguese and
Spanish, whose vocabulary, grammar and spelling sometimes don’t differ, sound
completely apart when people speak them. Where does it come from? The answer is
that kind of “music” that touches our ears when we hear one particular
language.
A
great deal of a language teacher’s classroom work is devoted to training
repetitions that are crucial for the students to acquire that specific “sound
image”. The earlier the students get in instead of staying out the better, just
like learning to dance to “that” music. That’s why we should still
rely on “situations” or conversations with short sentences, pitched two or
three times, custom-made to be memorized and/or mimed, as well as drills, songs
and videos. Conversations are excellent to generate “input” or introduce new
vocabulary and grammar topics. It must be followed by some kind or “output”,
written or spoken. By repeating some basic models the students learn about
variations, levels (formal, professional, casual, slangy), styles, accents and
so forth.
Understanding
the different accents while expressing yourself with your own is evidence that
you’re successfully undertaking the fascinating adventure of
learning a foreign language. We all carry our specific accent, the one from the
region or social group we belong, a kind of imprint that shapes our identity as
users, but this primary layer might change as long as we move to a different
region or get in touch with different people. And like it happens to a new plan
or job, the frontier between failure and success has to do with our ability to
adapt.
In
the end, it’s all about communication, and that’s where we'll eventually meet.
©
Abrão Brito
Lacerda
26 02 19