English as a second language (ESL) is the use or study of English by speakers with different native languages.
Those who are learning English are often referred to as English language learners (ELLs or ELs).
English is a language which has great reach and influence; it is taught all over the world under many circumstances.
English as a Second Language is also known as English for speakers of other languages (ESOL), English as an additional language (EAL) and as English as a foreign language (EFL).
Other terms used in this field include English as an international language (EIL),
English as a lingua franca (ELF),
English for special purposes and English for specific purposes (ESP),
and English for academic purposes (EAP).
Language teaching practice often assumes that most of the difficulties that learners face in the study of English are a consequence of the degree to which their native language differs from English (a contrastive analysis approach). A native speaker of Chinese, for example, may face many more difficulties than a native speaker of German, because German is more closely related to English than Chinese is. This may be true for anyone of any mother tongue (also called first language, normally abbreviated L1) setting out to learn any other language (called a target language, second language or L2). See also second language acquisition (SLA) for mixed evidence from linguistic research.
Language learners often produce errors of syntax, vocabulary, and pronunciation thought to result from the influence of their L1, such as mapping its grammatical patterns inappropriately onto the L2, pronouncing certain sounds incorrectly or with difficulty, and confusing items of vocabulary known as false friends. This is known as L1 transfer or "language interference". However, these transfer effects are typically stronger for beginners' language production, and SLA research has highlighted many errors which cannot be attributed to the L1, as they are attested in learners of many language backgrounds (for example, failure to apply 3rd person present singular -s to verbs, as in 'he make' not 'he makes').
Some students may have very different cultural perceptions in the classroom as far as learning a second language is concerned. Cultural differences in communication styles and preferences are also significant. For example, a study looked at Chinese ESL students and British teachers and found that the Chinese learners did not see classroom discussion and interaction as important but placed a heavy emphasis on teacher-directed lectures.[10][11]
Tense, aspect, and mood – English has a relatively large number of tense–aspect–mood forms with some quite subtle differences, such as the difference between the simple past "I ate" and the present perfect "I have eaten." Progressive and perfect progressive forms add complexity. (See English verbs.)
Functions of auxiliaries – Learners of English tend to find it difficult to manipulate the various ways in which English uses auxiliary verbs. These include negation (e.g. He hasn't been drinking.), inversion with the subject to form a question (e.g. Has he been drinking?), short answers (e.g. Yes, he has.) and tag questions (has he?). A further complication is that the dummy auxiliary verb do /does /did is added to fulfil these functions in the simple present and simple past, but not to replace the verb to be (He drinks too much./Does he? but He is an addict/Is he?)
Modal verbs – English has several modal auxiliary verbs, which each have a number of uses. These verbs convey a special sense or mood such as obligation, necessity, ability, probability, permission, possibility, prohibition, intention etc. These include "must", "can", "have to", "has to", "need to", "will", "shall", "ought to", "will have to", "may", and "might".
For example, the opposite of "You must be here at 8" (obligation) is usually "You don't have to be here at 8" (lack of obligation, choice). "Must" in "You must not drink the water" (prohibition) has a different meaning from "must" in "You must have eaten the chocolate" (deduction). This complexity takes considerable work for most English language learners to master.
All these modal verbs or "modals" take the first form of the verb after them. These modals do not have past or future inflection, i.e. they do not have past or future tense.
Idiomatic usage – English is reputed to have a relatively high degree of idiomatic usage. For example, the use of different main verb forms in such apparently parallel constructions as "try to learn", "help learn", and "avoid learning" pose difficulty for learners. Another example is the idiomatic distinction between "make" and "do": "make a mistake", not "do a mistake"; and "do a favor", not "make a favor".
Articles – English has two forms of article: the (the definite article) and a and an (the indefinite article). In addition, at times English nouns can or indeed must be used without an article; this is called the zero article. Some of the differences between definite, indefinite and zero article are fairly easy to learn, but others are not, particularly since a learner's native language may lack articles, have only one form, or use them differently from English. Although the information conveyed by articles is rarely essential for communication, English uses them frequently (several times in the average sentence) so that they require some effort from the learner.
Phrasal verbs – Phrasal verbs (also known as multiple-word verbs) in English can cause difficulties for many learners because of their syntactic pattern and because they often have several meanings. There are also a number of phrasal verb differences between American and British English.
Prepositions – As with many other languages, the correct use of prepositions in the English language is difficult to learn, and it can turn out to be quite a frustrating learning experience for ESL/EFL learners. For example, the prepositions "on" (rely on, fall on), "of" (think of, because of, in the vicinity of),and "at" (turn at, meet at, start at) are used in so many different ways and contexts, it is very difficult to remember the exact meaning for each one. Furthermore the same words are often used as adverbs (come in, press on, listen in, step in) as part of a compound verb (make up, give up, get up, give in, turn in, put on), or in more than one way with different functions and meanings (look up, look on, give in) (He looked up her skirt/He looked up the spelling; He gave in his homework/First he refused but then he gave in; He got up at 6 o'clock/He got up the hill/He got up a nativity play). When translating back to the ESL learners' respective L1, a particular preposition's translation may be correct in one instance, but when using the preposition in another sense, the meaning is sometimes quite different. "One of my friends" translates to (transliterated) wahed min isdiqa'i in Arabic. Min is the Arabic word for "from" .... so one "from" my friends. "I am on page 5" translates to ich bin auf Seite 5 in German just fine, but in Arabic it is Ana fee safha raqm 5 .... I am "in" page 5.
Word formation – Word formation in English requires a lot of rote learning. For example, an adjective can be negated by using the prefixes un- (e.g. unable), in- (e.g. inappropriate), dis- (e.g. dishonest), non- (non-standard) or a- (e.g. amoral), as well as several rarer prefixes.
Size of lexicon – The history of English has resulted in a very large vocabulary, including one stream from Old English and one from the Norman infusion of Latin-derived terms. (Schmitt & Marsden claim that English has one of the largest vocabularies of any known language.) This requires more work for a learner to master the language.
Collocations – Collocation in English refers to the tendency for words to occur together with others. For example, nouns and verbs that go together (ride a bike/drive a car). Native speakers tend to use chunks[clarification needed] of collocations and ESL learners make mistakes with collocations.
Slang and Colloquialisms In most native English speaking countries, large numbers of slang and colloquial terms are used in everyday speech. Many learners may find that classroom based English is significantly different from how English is usually spoken in practice. This can often be difficult and confusing for learners with little experience of using English in Anglophone countries. Also, slang terms differ greatly between different regions and can change quickly in response to popular culture. Some phrases can become unintentionally rude if misused.
Learners who have had less than eight years of formal education in their first language are sometimes called adult ESL literacy learners. Usually these learners have had their first-language education interrupted.[13] Many of these learners require a different level of support, teaching approaches and strategies, and a different curriculum from mainstream adult ESL learners. For example, these learners may lack study skills and transferable language skills,[13][14] and these learners may avoid or struggle with reading or writing.[15] Often these learners do not start classroom tasks immediately, do not ask for help, and often assume the novice role when working with peers.[
For further discussion of English spelling patterns and rules, see Phonics.
As with most languages, written language tends to use a more formal register than spoken language.
Spelling and pronunciation: probably the biggest difficulty for non-native speakers, since the relation between English spelling and pronunciation does not follow the alphabetic principle consistently. Because of the many changes in pronunciation which have occurred since a written standard developed, the retention of many historical idiosyncrasies in spelling, and the large influx of foreign words (mainly from Norman French, Classical Latin and Greek) with different and overlapping spelling patterns,[20] English spelling and pronunciation are difficult even for native speakers to master. This difficulty is shown in such activities as spelling bees. The generalizations that exist are quite complex and there are many exceptions, leading to a considerable amount of rote learning. The spelling and pronunciation system causes problems in both directions: a learner may know a word by sound but be unable to write it correctly (or indeed find it in a dictionary) or they may see a word written but not know how to pronounce it or mislearn the pronunciation. However, despite the variety of spelling patterns in English, there are dozens of rules that are 75% or more reliable.[21]
Computers have made an entry into education in the past decades and have brought significant benefits to teachers and students alike.[23] The use of Computers is a tool one can use to improve his/her learning skills. Computers help learners to be more responsible for their own learning abilities. Studies have shown that one of the best ways of improving one’s learning ability is to use a computer where all the information one might need can be found. In today’s developed world, a computer is one of a number of systems which help learners to improve their language. Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) is a system which aids learners to improve and practice language skills. It provides a stress-free environment for learners and makes them more responsible.[24]
Computers can provide help to the ESL learners in many different ways such as teaching students to learn a new language. The computer can be used to test students about the language they already learn. It can assist them to practice certain tasks. The computer permits students to communicate easily with other from different places.[23]
The learning ability of language learners can be more reliable with the influence of the a dictionary. Learners tend to carry or are required to have a dictionary which allows them to learn independently and become more responsible for their own work. In these modern days, education has upgraded its methods of teaching and learning with dictionaries where digital materials are being applied as tools.[22] Electronic dictionaries are increasingly a more common choice for ESL students. Most of them contain native-language equivalents and explanations, as well as definitions and example sentences in English. They can speak the English word to the learner, and they are easy to carry around.
The English language in England (and other parts of the United Kingdom) exhibits significant differences by region and class, noticeable both in accent (pronunciation) and in dialect (vocabulary and grammar).
Dropout rates for ESL students in multiple countries are much higher than dropout rates for native speakers. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in the United States reported that the percentage of dropouts in the non-native born Hispanic youth population between the ages of 16 and 24 years old is 43.4%.[30] A study in Canada found that the high school dropout rate for all ESL students was 74%.
Learners of English are often eager to get accreditation and a number of exams are known internationally:[36]
TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language), an Educational Testing Service product, developed and used primarily for academic institutions in the USA, and now widely accepted in tertiary institutions in Canada, New Zealand, Australia, the UK, South Korea, and Ireland. The current test is an Internet-based test, and is thus known as the TOEFL iBT. Used as a proxy for English for Academic Purposes.
iTEP (International Test of English Proficiency), developed by former ELS Language Centers President Perry Akins' Boston Educational Services, and used by colleges and universities such as the California State University system. iTEP Business is used by companies, organizations and governments, and iTEP SLATE (Secondary Level Assessment Test of English) is designed for middle and high school-age students.
WIDA
Most people who teach English are in fact not native speakers. They are state school teachers in countries around the world, and as such they hold the relevant teaching qualification of their country, usually with a specialization in teaching English. For example, teachers in Hong Kong hold the Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers. Those who work in private language schools may, from commercial pressures, have the same qualifications as native speakers (see below). Widespread problems exist of minimal qualifications and poor quality providers of training, and as the industry becomes more professional, it is trying to self-regulate to eliminate these.[38]
Types of English
BE – Business English
EAL – English as an additional language
EFL – English as a foreign language
EIL – English as an international language (see main article at International English)
ELF – English as a lingua franca, a common language that is not the mother tongue of any of the participants in a discussion
ELL – English language learner
ELT – English language teaching
ESL – English as a second language
ESOL – English for speakers of other languages
ESP – English for specific purposes, or English for special purposes (e.g. technical English, scientific English, English for medical professionals, English for waiters)
EST – English for science and technology (e.g. technical English, scientific English)
TEFL – Teaching English as a foreign language. This link is to a page about a subset of TEFL, namely travel-teaching. More generally, see the discussion in Terminology and types.
TESL – Teaching English as a second language
TESOL – Teaching English to speakers of other languages, or Teaching English as a second or other language.
TYLE – Teaching Young Learners English. Note that "Young Learners" can mean under 18, or much younger.