Interview with José…| Learning English with native and non native teachers

When I was doing my degree of Modern Languages, I learnt English and French. I was fortunate enough to have both native and non-native teachers, and I became keenly conscious of the importance of having both kinds of teachers throughout the learning process, as they both enrich the experience of learning English on multiple levels!

For instance, one of the most interesting aspects about native teachers is that they allow us to immerse ourselves in the language and “force” us to improve our listening and speaking skills in order to follow their classes. Likewise, they also use lots of daily expressions and, if you pay attention, you’ll be able to acquire a lot of new, everyday vocabulary!

I’m aware that native speakers often require more attention from the student, but I firmly believe that they are necessary if you want to want to internalise the language and take your listening skills to a whole new level.

Non-native teachers, however, also bring a lot to the table! While it is obvious that we can also provide vocabulary and help students improve their listening and speaking skills, I am of the opinion that our main strength lies in our personal experience: as former learners of English, we can use our personal experience to our students’ advantage! For example, we non-native speakers are often able to predict grammatical and vocabulary issues based on our own experience (a classical example takes place when I ask students what “constipated” means and they’re surprised to find that it doesn’t quite mean «constipado»). Similarly, non-native teachers also become “models” students can look up to: if we managed to learn English, so can you!

At What’s Up! We have both types of teachers. How do you think your non native teacher  role helps your students? 

As I already stated in the previous question, I firmly believe in the importance of having a non-English teacher. Apart from what I mentioned earlier, I would like to emphasise that there is a strong element of empathy in our classes: as a person who has been through the process of learning the language, I can counsel my students and cheer them up, since I know what it’s like to make mistakes and fix them. There are times when students struggle (especially with aspects of grammar or pronunciation that have no counterpart in Spanish) and lose motivation; on such occasions, it is essential to remind them that it is normal to make mistakes and that their efforts will soon pay off.

This especially happens in my Face to Face and Speak Easy classes, in which we often encounter structures or sounds that do not exist in Spanish and require a lot of attention on the part of both teachers and students. I often tell students tricks that I used in order to better understand the class and solve those issues, or I tell them anecdotes to remind them that, like them, I was also a student just a few years ago! Again, as I said earlier, students can also benefit considerably from the experience and tips provided by native speakers, but it is always interesting to see both sides of the coin, since there is a lot to be learnt!

What are the most common mistakes Spanish speakers do? Why do they do them?

Wonderful question! While it is obvious that every speaker learns in a different manner and is likely to make different mistakes, there’s no denying that we Spanish speakers tend to make similar mistakes due to our shared linguistic background. For instance, Spanish speakers tend to struggle with prepositions: broadly speaking, we normally translate the preposition «en» as “in,” but the truth is that there are other possibilities, such as “on” or “at.” Fortunately, the use of prepositions can be mastered if we follow certain rules, but it takes a lot of patience! I was once told that, if you’re able to use prepositions correctly, you’ve come a long way in English, and I personally agree. I always place a lot of emphasis on prepositions in my classes, and I always make sure to encourage them to revise them over and over again!

We also tend to insert the subjunctive mode in a literal way, especially with verbs such as “want” or “need”:  while in Spanish, we would say «quiero que comas fideos», in English we would say “I want you to eat noodles,” rather than “I want that you eat noodles.” This is a very logical mistake and can be fixed if we are careful with the verbs we are using. One of the best things about having learnt the language yourself is that you are often able to identify where the mistakes come from and, above all, what the student is really trying to say: my knowledge as a former learner of English, then, also enables me to warn them against those mistakes and make sure they do not translate literally on future occasions. The journey of English can be tough at times, but if you do your best, those mistakes will be a thing of the past in no time!

Do you have any tip for our What’s Up! students  in order to motivate them? 

Yes, and a very personal one: we have to embrace our mistakes. It is obvious that in order to master the language speakers have to improve their skills and avoid certain errors, but we shouldn’t be afraid or ashamed of them. Quite the contrary, it is through mistakes that we learn! I once read that a foreign accent is a sign of bravery and I completely subscribe to the idea: we must take pride in the efforts we are making to speak another language and make sure we enjoy the learning process. Remember: it’s not just about the objective, it’s also about making the most of the process and discovering new parts of your personality as you go along. I’m speaking from experience!

Thank you very much Jose!