Andrew Lyell's Posts (37)
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This is my first reading https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6QadW0J3Mo
And this is my second reading near the end of the semester. I can reading the same passage over a minute faster.
In this video I am explaining a Psalm from the bible. The reason I am explaining this one in particular is because my Bangladeshi friend who lives in a slum in Bangladesh literally asked me about that particular Pslam and the meaning of it.
I noticed I have trouble linking sentences together. Therefore my speech sounds very staggered. Also I realizad that I say “I” way too much. Bengali only use personal pronouns when absolutely necessary. If I am to sound more fluent, I must be confident that the verb conjugation alone will indicate the subject of the sentence. I furthermore had trouble in this video with a dependent clause starting with “who”. I know how to do those theoretically I just need to practice using them in everyday speech more often.
Here is the link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUCYbrEgWPY
This video was me talking with my friend Kamrul who lives on the roof of an flat complex. He works as a elevator and a driver. I talked with him about health care in Bangladesh.
I struggled with if then clauses, mainly because the require its a special verb conjugation. I also forgot that Bangladeshis tend to use the if then clauses instead of the when then patterm that I am used to in English. Furthermore, I described everything accurately, but not precisely. In order to describe situations better, I need to improve my vocabulary. Lastly, I had trouble adding the word “also” in my sentences.
Contrastly, I though I switched well between persons for verb conjugation in this video. To get better, I need to practice more with if then clauses, and well as practice using the vocabulary that I already know.
Here is the link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nyo7TxLysB0
On a ACTFL phone interview I was asked to give directions in Bengali from Dulles airport to my house. Even though I scored advanced low on the test, I struggled to give the directions. So this semester I practiced giving directions with my Bengali tutor. I realized that one of the reasons giving directions was hard was because it forced me to use a grammar pattern that English doesn’t use very often. Instead of saying in English, “go right then go left.” You would say in Bengali “having gone right, turn left.” Bangladeshis use this sentence construction all the time, but it is much less common in English. Also to indicate that someone will be on the left or the right, you literally say that something will fall on the left or right. Furthermore, impersonal structure is often required when giving direction both in Bengali and English. The combination of these factors make giving directions and useful but difficult exercise.
In the video I made of giving directions from the global studio to my room, I struggled to get the verb endings correct. Also I had trouble remember some of specialized vocabulary: stairwell, roundabout, straight through, and down. I successfully conjugated in the impersonal when I said "you can go two directions." Also I effectively used the phrase need to say "keep going straight."
Overall I believe I would have been able to be understood by a Bangladeshi national though. I just need to mainly clean up the verb conjugations.
Here is the link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nyo7TxLysB0
I interviewed my language’s partner’s dad about the health care situation in Bangladesh. Although he is not a medical doctor, he has a Phd in social health care and works in a hospital in Bangladesh. We first talked about the different types of health care available in villages. Basically there are aleopathic, homeopathic, and herbal remedies as well as witch doctors, but no real doctors. People can also to a pharmacy without a pharmacist to obtain generic medicine with the advice of the pharmacy workers. However if the medical situation deteriorates, the person is forced to leave the village and go to a city for real medical care.
He also commented that there are a few good government hospitals that exist (mainly in the capital Dhaka) that the poor can go to for about 20 cents. With 40% of the population below the poverty line, these establishments are absolutely crucial.
One of the most stunning facts he mentioned was that there were only 200 hundred ICU beds in the country. This means that with a population of 160 million even if one is rich, it may be impossible to get the treatment one needs.
We also discussed that fact that because there is no health insurance again it may be difficult for even rich people to pay for the treatment they need.
Lastly we talked about the process of becoming a doctor in Bangladesh. There are two different routes. 1) Get accepted by a government medical school. However there are only about 2000 seats in the country, so only the really brilliant people can go to these. 2) Go to a private medical school. These institutions are very expensive and low quality. Many rich families send their children to these school because there are a lot more seats, and the qualification for acceptance are not as rigorous with the exception of tuition.
I am very thankful that Mr. Islam was able to talk with me and give me this invaluable information.
Just like American culture, Bangladeshis can often be heard saying “hey allah—o my god” as well as “en shallah—if the lord wills.” However to greeting different people is entirely based on your location or your knowledge of their religion. For example in Dhaka the capital it would be proper to say to anyone “the peace of god be with you” using the Muslim noun for god. However in the villages or less prominent cities more people will greet each other with the Hindu greeting of “nomoskar” which literally means “I bow to you”.
Suffice to say, knowing the basics of each religion and the words to describe their experiences are very important tools in understanding Bangladeshi culture and language.
My goals for this fall semester are as follows:
1) Be able to speak more fluently when giving a presentation (3-5 min)
2) improve my reading speed
3) stay immersed in Bangladeshi culture
4) learn the numbers 1-100
To do number one, I am trying to record myself weekly speaking about some subject for 5 minutes. Afterwards my language partner and I will review what I said and seek to improve my grammar and pronunciation.
To accomplish number 2, I am reading when meeting with my language partner about 2 times a week. When reading, I am focusing on learning more words, and forcing myself to look at words and sentences rather than individual sounds.
To stay immersed in the culture, I assign myself phone time with some of Bangladeshi friends in Bangladesh. That way I get to continue to hear about their life, and keep myself from forgetting conversational bangla.
To finally learn all the numbers just takes time on my part. Every time I meet with my language partner we are trying to review this.
by Andrew Lyell
I have never taught myself a language before. A licensed teacher has taught every single language I have learned. Because of this, the first few meetings with my language partner were rough. We talked about whatever we felt like and learned whatever vocabulary I didn’t know. While this casual conversation was useful, I was not able to learn more in this environment; I only got better at speaking what I already knew. I realized that I needed some sort of structure to help me attain my language learning goals. Therefore I developed a syllabus using the structure of my current Spanish class. Mondays were grammar days; Wednesdays were listening days; and Fridays were reading/catch up days. This structure forced me to talk about topics I normally would not talk about and really broadened my vocabulary.
For the grammar days this semester, we used a textbook that had plenty of examples of the grammar structure we were studying. I would try to learn the structure and then translate the examples. For the listening days, I watched Bengali Sesame Street known as Sisimpur. Through this exercise, I became familiar with such topics as kite flying, traditional dance, and brushing your teeth—all from a kid’s perspective. I probably acquired the most vocabulary through the listening days because I was able to remember the context of particular words, and therefore able to know many words’ meaning without translating from English. Through the reading days as well, I learned a lot of children’s vocabulary by reading a lot of dialogues and children’s stories. My reading speed did improve some, but not as much as I would like. At this point, all I really need to improve my speed is practice—reading aloud and to myself.
I almost accomplished my goals. One of my main goals this semester was to learn 500 new vocabulary words. Especially because I had only studied the language for two months in Bangladesh and therefore had limited exposure to the language, I really wanted to increase my functional vocabulary this semester. With my language partner’s help, I have 431 words written down from the semester that I can at least recognize. While this is significant, I cannot use all these fluently yet. In the month before I leave for Bangladesh this summer, I hope to internalize all these words and be able to use them fluently. In line with another goal, I now can count to fifty, but I still struggle counting higher than that. As stated earlier, my reading speed did not increase as I would like, but now that I know so many more words, reading is just a matter of practice.
Through this class, I discovered that I love Bengali more than my other subjects. It often felt like a fun hobby instead of a real class. I actually enjoyed waking up at 8AM three days a week to meet with my language partner. Studying on my own though was difficult as I expected. Especially when I had tests for other classes, I found it challenging to be motivated to study the language. If realized that if I didn’t tell myself assignments in front of my language partner for the next meeting, I would not be very productive in my studying. When I did promise my language partner that I would study a particular topic, I usually did. I also realized that I learn out-loud. I do not learn subject by simply reading a textbook, I have to process things audibly. I have definitely become aware through this class that I need to grow in self-discipline. Although I still enjoy having a teacher assign me specific assignments, I know that much of life and particularly language learning is dependent on how much effort you put into studying it.
Many times this semester I felt as if I hadn’t learned a thing particularly when speaking. But other times I noticed myself able to understand conversations that I had previously not known any of the vocabulary. I learned that language acquisition takes time, and there are many stages. During the first stage, I am able to understand the words the other person is speaking, but not necessarily the full meaning. In the next stage, I am able to understand those expressions and phrases and use them hesitantly. Finally, there comes a point when I can use these phrases unconsciously and in the correct context. The problem is that I am in all three stages at the same time. Depending on the subject and the complexity of the feeling I am trying to express, I can find myself speaking easily or with difficulty. I have heard that this experience is common among language learners, and therefore I endeavored to keep striving to be better even when I didn’t feel like I was making much progress.
Through talking to my language partner, I learned many things of cultural importance to the Bengali people. One thing I came to understand was that god is an important concept to them. My language partner was very interested in my god, even telling me that the knowledge of god was of first importance to her. This sentiment is consistent with the people I met in Bangladesh. I do not find people here in America often that are interested in the concept of god or think it is of “first importance.” My faith in Jesus has completely transformed my life because I have been forgiven undeservedly because of what Jesus did on the cross. At her prompting, we talked about this, and while this stretched the limits of my Bengali ability, I think we both learned immensely from this time. This is just one of many cultural differences I noticed throughout the semester.
In conclusion, although I taught myself with my language partner’s help, I still became more competent in the Bengali language and culture this semester. I look forward to this summer and next semester, as I seek a mastery of this language. The main reason I learn Bengali is not for the intellectually stimulation or its potential usefulness in the future, I learn it almost exclusively so that I will be able to interact with and really understand these wonderful people.
I think diversity is important and helps us learn more about ourselves, but communication is important as well. The problem is that often those two ideals conflict with one another. I hope however for the sake of the people of the country that justice is served.
Making the project showed me once again that happiness is not necessarily correlated with money. These men, without really anything of value, worked to live instead of lived to work as we tend to do in the US. Rarely did I find a cha-wala in a bad mood. I wish to learn more about them and their life, and I hope to do just that when I return this summer.
Here are the interview videos.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRnViK9Nw8U
I love the Bangladeshi people. One of my favorite things about them is their hospitality to foreigners. I think they really show up Americans in this regard. When I was in Bangladesh, I was very willingly welcomed in people's home I did not know very well just because I was a foreigner. And not only was I welcomed, I was fed with their very best--some things that they would not even eat by themselves. Also they would always tell me that if I ever needed anything that I could call them.
I think in America we tend to not trust foreigners, somehow believing them to be illegal or thinking that they are trying to use us (even though we would never articulate this sentiment). Regardless of the reason, we do not feel it necessary to improve the lives of the innocent foreigners in the US who do not speak the language and simply need people to look out for them. This convicts me even writing this. I hope to learn from the Bangladeshi example and treat foreigners here how I have been treated.
I have only experienced Bangladesh during rainy season. It felt like it rained at least every other day and sometimes the rainfall was torrential. I remember looking out the window during class and seeing the entire street below covered in a couple of feet of water, but by the time I left class to return home, the water had cleared. According to Banglapedia, the country ranges from an average of 59 inches to 118 inches a year . Also only 4% of the rain occurs during the winter months making the spring and summer's rain seem more dramatic. Because of this, all rickshaws are equipped with a plastic covering for all their passengers and it is essential to always carry an umbrella.
The climate itself is very humid. So much so that walking with class papers outside for more than five minutes left them completely limp. Also, whenever I went running, the air was so thick that I could not run at near my normal pace in the United States. The heat, although not usually terribly hot, was felt much more because of the humidity.
So if anyone was ever to visit this country, prepare to be hot, sticky, and wet!
First, I would work on the correct pronunciation of the phrases. How are you is really straightforward: Kemon asen? But I’m fine is “bhalo asi” and is difficult to pronounce. The “bha” in “bhalo” is pronounced like a “ba” with a “ha” said immediately afterwards. It essentially sounds like a lengthened “ba” sound. To teach this, I would have the kids pronounce the “Ba” and then the “Ha” sounds separately and eventually have them say the sounds next to each other.
The other two phrases “What’s your name” and “my name is ______ “ are “apnar nam ki?” And is “amar nam _____.” These are both easy to pronounce.
In order to practice responding and asking these questions, I would have the kids sit in a circle and pass a ball among them. The person who has the ball must pass it to another person in the circle and ask either “how are you?” or “what’s your name”. The person who receives the ball must answer accordingly, and subsequently pass the ball and ask one of the questions.
I have taught English to Japanese kids using this technique, and it seemed relatively successful. I also taught Bengali phrases to people at school like “how are you”and “I’m fine” , by explaining the pronunciation as described above. Obviously I did not use the ball technique. Instead I just practiced asking them questions and had them ask me questions.
Splitting the pronunciation of the “ba” and “ha” really seemed to help people pronounce the word “bhalo”. By the end of the going through the questions, most people were able to ask and answer the questions successfully.
This week we read a children's story about three young boys who go exploring in a jungle. One of the boys in this story was literally named the "dumb one". I was frankly surprised at the seeming rudeness of the other characters toward this boy. That being said, he was rather dumb, and at one point he thought that he became another person when his head was shaved. I learned a lot of useful "guy talk" because of this story, and I am interested to see what the reaction will be when I try to talk like this.
Because I was finishing the cultural project on Monday when we normally learn new grammer, we did not study grammar this week. Overall this a good week though because of the reading.
Overall this was a pretty good week. We reviewed some particles and learned more conjunctions this week. This will be extremely helpful as I seek to use them in sentences in the future. I really just need to study these on my own now to internalize these linking words. Also we did some more work with pronunciation.
We did not get to our reading assignment this week because we were getting caught up with the other assignments.
