Dreams of being native

The following is a recent writing entry by a student from a language-learning website I tutor at. The topic seemed frequent and pertinent enough to make me want to post it here.


Diary 9/20 To Kelsey

I'm writing this entry to sort out my current problem in learning English.

I have difficulty in expressing my thoughts in conversations. When the conversation flows, I stammer a lot, can't find right words. I sometimes can't recall a simple word such as "confident" in conversations. I thought the best way to solve this problem is to speak a lot, but it doesn't seem to work out well as I make the same mistakes repeatedly. I have to read and write more often to become familiar with English words.

Besides, I rarely use idioms during conversations. English native speakers use many idioms casually in their conversations. I hardly recognize them when I encounter new expressions. Idioms such as "at the drop of a hat." or "bare one's soul." are difficult to memorize because I don't see these expressions very often. I need to write down these new idioms when I encounter them. I'm going to try to use them myself as soon as possible.

Lastly, I often say "I think" or "I thought" in a discussion. I listened to a recording of my English conversation the other day, and it was annoying. I have to avoid saying "I think" in a conversation too often, as everyone in the conversation knows that it is I who is thinking and talking.

I will pay attention to these points the next time I participate in a discussion.

[End of letter]


Dear -----,

...
I can't help but comment on what you've chosen to say in this diary entry. I've had many students (on the internet and in person) who have the same desire as you, to become 'as fluent in English as a native speaker' (at least, I think that is your desire here). Let me ask you a question: Why? What do you mean by 'being fluent' in this way? To be able to use idioms like so many of the people you see on television? In blogs?

You should know that, first of all, the word "native speaker" is a dubious and deceiving word. What do you mean by a "native speaker"? I know many native speakers who don't use idioms at all (in fact, I rarely did either until I became more social in college). I challenge you to write another diary entry (you don't have to send it to me if you don't want to) that defines exactly what you mean by a "native speaker of English". Do all speakers of this type speak the same way? (For example, do they all use idioms?) If they don't all speak the same, what determines the differences in their ways of speaking?

As one more challenge, please try this: define for yourself why you are learning English. What is your goal exactly? Many people say, "Because it's an international language," but if you think about it, this does not justify or require learners to become familiar with American-style English idioms. (British and Australian people also don't always use or even understand American idioms, but do you think then that their English is 'less fluent'?) The more detailed you can be in writing these, the better, I think.

(By the way, have you counted the number of times I, a "native speaker," use the words "I think"? I have always used "I think" often because of my personality. Do you think there's something wrong with this?)

Please write again soon.

[End of second letter]

It sounds more aggressive than it did earlier, but this student knows me well, I think (^-^), and isn't likely to take it the wrong way. Any comments from others are welcome.