07 July 2016 / by Marjan Van Rij

Can a non-native teach English? No way!

“Where are you from?” is usually one of the first questions I get when I meet students for the first time. I am from the Netherlands (which isn't Holland by the way but that’s a different story). “But English is not the official language of the Netherlands, right?” Yes, that's right. Our official language is Dutch but I speak English as well. Ok...

Is it really that strange that a non-native is teaching English? In public schools it's more or less accepted but outside of it, it's sort of not done. I mean, there are millions of Brits living in Spain so there’s even no need to take classes from a non-native, right? So here I am, Dutch but teaching English. I think opinions differ on this topic but it seems to be coming down to this:

Non-natives don’t speak the way natives do.

In my case, it’s true that I don’t use all the expressions that a native Brit might use, I don’t curse like an American and I don’t have a beautiful accent. However I probably know my own language worse than English because I’ve never studied the rules of Dutch in depth. So I know the rules, I can explain them and I know quite a lot of expressions. Still, I don't sound like a native.

What is this way that natives speak? For me, an American sounds completely different than someone from Wales, which goes as well for a Scottish, a South African or an Indian. This difference is noticeable in many aspects of the language, just listen to this song or look up the word “non-native” on Google. Some will say that it’s “nonnative”, others will say that it’s “non native” and others write it hyphenated like I do, “non-native”. So is there one way to be native? Moreover, does being native make you a good teacher? I’m not sure.

I guess it isn’t that hard to spot a mistake when you listen to an ESL learner speaking. However explaining something completely new for them and learning them how to use it comfortably might be a different story. When I hear my brother correcting his Canadian girlfriend but failing to explain why it’s like that, I feel like it could be exactly that. Teaching is something different than speaking. So can a non-native teach English? I think as long as he or she can teach, yes. And if our students might not know all the hundreds of idioms out there, I still think they’ll manage pretty well abroad.

17

January 2013

Morgan v Jones - Guns in America

by Radmila Gurkova

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XZvMwcluEg Was it a debate? A BERATING? A SURREAL televised ''stunt''? Alex Jones, a radio presenter in Austin Texas and a believer that everyone has a right to own a gun went on Piers Morgan’s CNN show the other week. Jones has started a petition to deport Morgan back to the UK for expressing his views on g...

10

January 2013

American GLOBETROTTER travels a million miles in 2012

by Radmila Gurkova

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpI2L_OQnZo Tom Stuker, 59, passed the million mark on a flight from London to Chicago on December 6. Mr Stuker works as a car sales consultant and has to fly all over the world. He frequently JETS OFF to Asia and Australia, and has taken about 400 flights so far this year.He always uses the U.S. ai...

08

January 2013

Bottled Water Ban?

by Radmila Gurkova

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6S0_7OU7G4 The U.S. town of Concord in Massachusetts State has banned stores from selling water in bottles that are smaller than one liter. Stores who sell the water will have to pay a $50 fine. The new law is the result of a three-year campaign by local resident Jean Hill. Ms Hill first told peop...

02

January 2013

Music to my ears...

by Radmila Gurkova

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSrdQ8DeaLI 'Happy Birthday' is one of several numbers Cath Gamester, 84, hears on a constant loop throughout the day. The grandmother from Liverpool has musical ear syndrome, where the sufferer has auditory hallucinations...Since it started in 2010, she said she had heard songs including God Save T...

25

December 2012

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

by Radmila Gurkova

...

19

December 2012

What happened in the Newtown School massacre?

by Radmila Gurkova

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5J0NecLhLA On Friday morning, December 7th, 27 people were KILLED in a SHOOTING at an elementary school at Newtown, Connecticut, USA. The victims are 20 children, six adults, and the shooter. The shooter was Adam Lanza, 20 years old. ''We can't tolerate this any more,'' President Obama said. ''These tragedie...

19

December 2012

Will we survive the end of the world?

by Radmila Gurkova

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXLDO8twt8I "Don't come to our 'safe' village for the end of the world" says mayor Believers say the world will end on December 21, 2012, the end date of the ancient Mayan calendar, and they see Bugarach as one of a few sacred mountains sheltered from the cataclysm. December 21 marks the end of an ...

14

December 2012

Monkey Business!

by Radmila Gurkova

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mExgZggwFJw Apparently a monkey was CONFISCATED by animal authorities after it was found WANDERING ERRANTLY around Ikea car park on Toronto Canada. The five-month old Resus monkey was taken to an animal shelter but was warm and SNUG in a SHEEPSKIN jacket. There would be no action taken against the...

14

December 2012

Little Baby Hashtag

by Radmila Gurkova

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5DoDSijMz0 There are an awful lot of BIZARRE names around nowadays. So it takes something really special to make us stop and do a DOUBLE-TAKE. But this is something really special. Ready? It appears that a proud new Mum has named her baby daughter 'HASHTAG'. Well, that's what she announced on Facebook anyway....

07

December 2012

Gangnam Style...

by Radmila Gurkova

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bZkp7q19f0 How often do you watch YouTube music videos? Have you seen the recent Gangnam Style video? If so, then you are one of around 971m other people! The video to the global smash hit song Gangnam Style has become the most-watched clip in YouTube's history. It is now moving quickly tow...

Contact us

07 July 2016 / by Marjan Van Rij

Can a non-native teach English? No way!

17

10

08

02

25

19

19

14

14

07