Teach English in Xincheng Zhen - Tianjin

Problems for Learners in North SudanThe mother tongue for most Northern Sudanese individuals is Sudanese Colloquial Arabic, but many Sudanese also desire to speak english in order to be qualified for a better job and a higher salary. However, Sudanese learners of english face a few problems in their learning process. Because the pronunciations of many phonetic sounds in Arabic are quite different than the phonetic sounds in english, Sudanese people can struggle to hear english sounds properly, which causes them to struggle in their pronunciations of english. Another problem lies in their literacy and writing skills, due to their lack of experience with the Roman alphabet. Sudanese Arabic speakers who are learners of english often have problems hearing specific sounds in english phonetics because those sounds are not used in their first language. According to Dr. Ezzeldin Mahmoud Tajeldin Ali, ?The learners? perception level of english speech sounds is low (185).? When listening to native english speakers, Sudanese often confuse english vowels, such as the short ?u? and the ?aw? sound as in the word ?law.? They can also confuse the sounds of consonants and consonant blends (Ali, 185). Because Sudanese Arabic speakers often confuse certain english phonetic sounds when they hear native english speakers, they potentially have problems producing those sounds in their own english speech. Sudanese learners often pronounce the ?s? sound instead of the ?th? sound as in the word, ?think?. They also pronounce several vowel sounds differently, such as short ?a? and short ?u? (Ali, 185-186). According to Wahba, other native Arab speakers also have problems with intonation and stress (in Rabab?ah, 182). Sudanese english speakers can mostly be understood, but some sounds are distorted and can be confusing to native english listeners. Another problem facing Sudanese english learners is their difficulty with reading and writing skills. A number of Sudanese refugees in english-speaking countries are seeking english lessons; however, many of them are illiterate, due to a background of violent situations and poverty, according to Dawn Muir, author of the article ?english and Literacy Teaching and Learning Strategies for Newly Arrived Humanitarian Refugee Students from Sudan (10).? Their illiteracy in their first language, Arabic, definitely affects their ability to learn to read and write english (Muir, 10). Students who have formal studies in Arabic also struggle with their reading and writing skills because of the direction of the text (Muir, pg 16). Arabic is written and read from right to left, which can initially be confusing to students when they are learning english. These problems need to be taken into consideration when teaching Sudanese english students. Due to the problems with pronunciation, reading, and writing for Sudanese Arabic-speaking EFL students, teachers need to be aware and adjust their methods and lessons accordingly. For instance, Muir suggests that some helpful strategies are lots of repetition with sentences, dates, numbers, and phrases on the board (17). Another necessary strategy is for the teacher to have clear, repetitive pronunciation. For illiterate students, basic writing skills, such as how to hold a pencil and writing from left to right, should be taught and reinforced (Muir, 16). It is also noted that teachers should become aware of their students? backgrounds and treat them with care (Muir, 20). Although there are some problems for Sudanese english learners, they still desire to learn english well. As teachers, we must be aware of their struggles that are unique to their Arabic-speaking backgrounds. We must learn to adjust our strategies and methods to help these Sudanese students with their pronunciation, reading, and writing skills, according to their specific needs. As we adjust our methods, Sudanese students will hopefully enjoy learning english and find it a bit easier to acquire. Citations of Sources: Ali, Ezzeldin Mahmoud Tajeldin. Speech Intelligibility Problems of Sudanese Learners of english: An Experimental Approach.? Muir, Dawn. ?english and Literacy Teaching and Learning Strategies for Newly Arrived Humanitarian Refugee Students from Sudan.? Sudanese Online Research Association. Pg 10-20. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. Rabab?ah, Ghaleb. ?Communication Problems Facing Arab Learners of english.? Journal of Language and Learning 3.1: 182. Web. 20 Feb. 2012.