Of English Language Comprehension

Of English Language Comprehension

Linguistically speaking, the question asked in exams based on heard or written speech is a test of practical understanding of English language – how quickly one grasps and how correctly one answers

By Mukesh Sharma

Be it academic or competitive exams for various government services in India, the question on comprehension is very common and compulsory. It is a test to assess the understanding of the students regarding English language; it is a test of quick grasping of the subject matter discussed; it is a test of vocabulary; it is a test of syntax; it is a test of knowledge of grammatical rules; it is a test of self-expression.

Of English Language Comprehension

Broadly speaking, comprehension is an exercise that trains students to understand a language, and it also tests the understanding of the students regarding a language. It can be divided into two categories:

1. Listening Comprehension

2. Reading Comprehension 

Listening Comprehension (LC)

It is a test of the ability of the students to grasp the message quickly when it is read out to him/her, and answer the questions set out on the message. Usually, when something is read out in native tongue, one grasps it in no time. For instance, a native speaker of Hindi can understand a Hindi song even with varied pitch, beat or tone. But when it comes to second language (English), he/she faces problem in understanding even the simple words because of unacquainted pronunciation and the problem becomes serious when a native speaker of English speaks. Hindi speaking people are not able to understand English songs completely without the written lyrics – the root cause of the problem is accent. However, English is such a language that has many variations – American English, British English, Canadian English, Australian English, Indian English, etc. It won’t be wrong to say that there is no standardized pronunciation of a particular word in English or there is no standardization accent. What is more, each variation is governed by its own grammar. For instance, American English doesn’t use ‘helping verbs’ like ‘does’, ‘shall’, etc.:

He don’t like it (AE)

He doesn’t like it (BE)

I shall attend party (BE)

I will attend party (AE)

Furthermore, Bill Bryson, an American journalist and the author of The Mother Tongue says:

There are over 4000 words which have common spellings; same pronunciation, but different meanings in both the countries – America and Britain.

For instance, the word ‘fanny’ means buttock (in AE) and Vagina (in BE), ‘knock up’ means get pregnant (in AE) and wake up call (in BE) etc. Surprisingly enough, American English sounds different even to native speaker of English from Britain. A great litterateur G.B. Shaw makes a Ironic comment:

US and UK are the two countries divided by the common language

In fact, the listening comprehension (LC) depends on how one recognizes a word through the sound of its pronunciation as one recognizes one’s near and dear by the distinctive sound of their voice. So a non- native of speaker must listen to native speaker of English to get himself/herself used to the distinctive sound of pronunciation of the words, and that leads to understanding of the accent too. As far as English language is concerned, a non-native speaker of English must watch CNN, BBC, and other English programme including movies. Very recently, a video grab of a 12 year old Haryana (India) girl went viral where she was shown speaking English with American and British accent. When she was asked how she learnt it, she said: “I have picked it up by listening and studying the accent of native speakers of English."

Furthermore, the test of listening comprehension (LC) is also one of the compulsory questions in IELTS (International English language Testing System) and TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign language) where the students who wish to study abroad or in some foreign university in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom (England, Welsh, Ireland & Scotland), and USA, are made to listen a recorded speech, and they are asked to answer the questions based on heard speech. In IELTS, the recorded speech may be played in one of different accents e.g. American, British, Canadian, etc., while in TOEFL, it is American accent only.

Reading Comprehension

How one comprehends a written text in English. Linguistically speaking, the question on written text or unseen passage in the exams, is a test of practical understanding of English language- how quickly one grasps and how correctly one answers the question based on that. It depends on one’s ability to recognize the words through their distinctive shape as one is able to recognize his/her very close acquaintances by their body shape and gait even from some distance in the dark. In the mind of well-read man, a discernible shape of each written word is stored in the form of a picture. Just a cursory glance of a particular written word makes the shape of the word complete in the mind. This is how a trained and qualified chemist is able to read even an scribbled prescription of a doctor. Thus such pictorial memory of the mind, makes one read the written text faster than an ordinary reader. So, to pass out the test of reading comprehension one must develop good reading habit. Read as much as one can the different material on variety of subjects. With the practice, one can increase the speed of reading a book up to 60 pages per hour. Of course, it takes time to develop the pictorial memory.

In common parlance, the question on reading comprehension in exams is also known as question on unseen passage. It is common in most of the competitive exams for government services in India, particularly, in Banks Probationary Officers including IELTS and TOEFL. The students with poor English find the question rather challenging. The common complaint is that the passage was very tough; English was very difficult; students were not able to catch even main idea. Majority of students with poor knowledge of English, also find the question time- consuming. Though there is no format, and no rote-learning works, here this blogger seeks to suggest the easiest way to attempt the question successfully even with not-so-good English:

1^st step

Read the passage as quickly as possible so as to grasp the main idea, read for the message not for sentences or words.

2^nd step

Read the questions set on the passage one by one.

3^rd step

Re-read the passage carefully and underline the sentences/words that may be related directly or indirectly to given questions.

4^th step

Read questions once again

5^th step

Re-read the passage and look at the marked/underlined sentences/words, carefully.

6^th step

Start answering the question in your own words based on underlined sentences in the passage; no patch work.

Mind you, only a well-read student would be comfortable  in answering the question on unseen passage. However, good reading-habit and good practice can improve the reading comprehension. Nothing is difficult, if one is determined to do it – an attempt always paves the way to solution of a problem.

Learning the Art of Essay Writing

Learning the Art of Essay -writing

It is an exercise to discover what you know

By Mukesh Sharma

To the majority of Indian students, particularly, with Hindi medium dreaming of government services through various competitive exams conducted by SSC (Staff Selection Commission), UPSC (Union Public Service Commission), etc. on all India basis, Essay-writing in English is rather a challenging task. Says Kavya Chaudhary a UPSC aspirant, "When it comes to attempt the compulsory essay question based on unprepared topic the mind goes blank; even if attempt is made to write something, mind starts translating the Hindi thoughts into English." "The biggest problem is that  the thoughts comes in Hindi (mother tongue) only; mind is not able to think in English," adds Kavya despairingly.

Learning the art of Essay-writing

Essay- construction

With years of experience as a journalist, this blogger maintains that the Essay-writing is like the construction of a building  -  a student got to be an Architect, Mason and a Decorator,  all rolled into one. As an architect knows how to draw the layout plan for the proposed construction , a student must know how to come up with the outlines or synopsis to express his/her viewpoints / thoughts on the topic of the Essay asked, comfortably and quickly. As a mason lays the bricks after bricks  and erects the wall, a student must have an idea to churn out sentences after sentences to construct an Essay. As decorator decks up the outer and interior of the building to make it look attractive, a student must know how to endorse the thoughts with the quotes of others who are authorities in their respective fields, to make the write-up interesting, capable of sustaining the interest of the reader/ examiner.

Good Architect

Now the pertinent question is how to become a good Architect, Mason, and a Decorator. Mind you, all the skills are learned in three stages:

1) Acquirement of knowledge related to particular field.  2)  Practice   3)  Use

A budding cricketer first acquires the essential knowledge pertaining to cricket game; he must put that knowledge to good practice on the pitch; and after that, he must go to field to play the match.

Mind and Sentences

As far as Essay- writing is concerned, if a student is not able to think correctly in English, he/she won’t be able to write accurately. What is noteworthy, the mind always thinks in terms of sentences, not words. When a student writes or speaks, his/her mind doesn’t make sentences; it always supplies the pre-conceived sentences which are already collected by it (mind) during years of academic pursuit right from 1st standard to PG level. As a result, a sort of corpus of mugged up sentences is created in the mind -  no sentence for fresh thoughts. Of Course, in the absence of needed or right sentences, mind starts translating the Hindi sentences into English that leads to non-standardized sentences or poor English as all the languages defy translation into other languages for example:

 Millions of people bathe in Ganga on the occasion of Kumbh Mela 

(non-standardized sentence translated from Hindi thought)

Millions of faithful take holy dip in Ganga on the eve of Kumbh Mela 

(standardized sentence in English)

Root Sentences

Now question arises how to feed mind with standardized sentences. As per the research work of this blogger, there are total 123 standardized sentences that cover English language in totality; no thought or sentence exists beyond that; it may be termed as Root Sentences. As all the numbers are born out of 0-9 digits only, all types of English sentences come out of these 123 sentences only (it has been discussed at length in the book Secrets of Good English by Mukesh Sharma, a best seller and 5 star rated available on Amazon.in).  Since each sentence has its own Syntactical Formula (grammatical arrangements of the words in a sentence), a student learns all the necessary grammatical rules automatically without the need of cramming. Conventional Grammar doesn’t teach sentence-making. But this method not only teaches sentence-making but also helps to understand the confusing grammatical rules with all clarity.

Mapping on

If Hindi sentences are mapped on these 123 standardized English sentences, a student learns to think in English through Hindi sentences. With good practice, mind starts thinking directly in English. If a Hindi knowing child is told ‘mango’ means aam, it will retain and use ‘mango’ because the mind knows it represents aam. Look at a few examples:

Mom has been waiting for you since morning (standardized sentence)

Ma tumhara subah se intezar kar rahi hai (Hindi)

S +has/have/ had/ will have + been + Ving + O + Since/ for (Syntactical Formula)

I have been looking for you for an hour  (mapped on sentence)

If Rahul Gandhi were/had to marry, he would have married.

Yadi Rahul Gandhi ko shadi karni hoti to kar nahi leta. (Hindi sentence)

S + were/ had to + V1+ O, S + would have + V3 + O (Syntactical Formula)

If he were to resign, he would have resigned. (mapped on sentence)

Obviously, if such mapping on method is adopted and adapted, thousands of sentences in English can be fed in mind and churned out. What is a language? Of Course, it is group of sentences. If one knows sentence-making, it means that one has learnt the language.

Root Words

But the problem is the words, related to different situations of life, are inevitable to create the thoughts - if no words, no sentence; no sentences, no thoughts. Now the question is how to learn thousands of words. And the solution lies in the knowledge of Root words or Key words. Here the phrase ‘root word’ should not be mistaken for its Greek or Latin origin. It has nothing to do with that. In English, there are 1000-1500 important Root Words (Key words). These root words specifically collocate or pair with other words and make standardized phrases. In fact, English is a language of phrases. A phrase is nothing but group of words. In a group of words, a single word has no meaning. It is the collective meaning that counts. For example:

Jump red light (to cross the red light)

Jump queue (to break the line)

Jump bail (to abscond after the release on bail)

Jump the gun (to act in haste or before right time)

Jump on the bandwagon (to join activities that has become popular or follow crowd)

Elite English

See, ‘jump’ which is a root word, has produced different standardized phrases. These phrases constitute standardized sentences which are part of elite English; it is used by English Newspapers, Native Speakers, Member of Elite Class, and is also the basis of English papers in all the competitive exams. Each root word produces average 10-15 phrases. Just 1000 root words can shoot up a vocabulary of 10K. To speak good English, one needs 500-1000 words/ phrases; 1000-4000 to be a writer; Shakespeare used 8000 and average English Newspaper uses not more than 2000, rest is repetition. What is to be noted here, sheer knowledge of Hindi meaning of phrases doesn’t help. Each phrase is used in a standardized sentence. A student must learn the meaning of phrases through the standardized sentences it is used in –  10K phrases means 10K sentences in the mind.

Needless to say, armed with 10K sentences, thinking would become rather easy, and a student would be able to play with the language. All Journos/ Writers resort to this method, and become prolific writer or good speaker. Such knowledge helps in Essay-writing considerably.

Sentence- Framing

The next step a student must move on is Sentence Framing. It is rather different from sentence-making. Though there are 123 types of sentences, it can be summarized in three types of sentences: 1) Simple Sentence – One subject and one predicate 2) Compound Sentence - two main sentence joined with conjunction 3) Complex Sentence - One main clause/ sentence and one or more than one subordinate clauses/ sentences. Certain thoughts are comfortable in simple sentences; some in compound sentences; and others in complex sentences. The Newspapers, mostly, use complex sentences. The students can have a fair idea of such sentences from any good grammar book like High school English Grammar and Composition by P.C Wren and H. Martin.

Having had the knowledge of right sentences based on Standardized phrases, good understanding of Sentence-framing, Chunks (standardized sentences, used to start a paragraph, student can have a fair idea of such chunks from internet too) and Connectives/ Conjunctions (help to maintain the flow of thoughts from one sentence to another and from one para to another), now Essay-writing can be discussed precisely and purposefully.

Defining an Essay

What is an Essay? The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary tersely defines it: “a short piece of writing by a student as a part of a course of study.” Broadly speaking, it is an exercise that aims to communicate personal views on a particular subject; a venture into communication; an exercise to discover what you know.

Types of Essay

An Essay can be classified into 5 categories: 1) Narrative Essay - seeks to narrate some event or series of events e.g. Story of Gandhi, biographies etc. 2) Expository Essay- exposes and explains the subject e.g politics, religion etc. 3) Reflective Essay - consists of reflections and thoughts on some subject e.g. Habit, qualities, etc  4) Imaginative Essay - reveals feelings and experience e.g. If I were PM of India etc 5) Descriptive Essay - describes some place or thing e.g. Delhi etc.

Style of Essay

Language of the Essay should not be verbose or bombastic. Try to express, not to impress. Besides that a good Essay must have: 1) Unity- development of one theme with a definite purpose. 2) Order - must follow an order to reach to conclusion. 3) Brevity - must not exceed the prescribed limit. 4) Style – conversational and easy. 5) Personal touch - must reflect personal feelings and opinion.

Starting

Whatever is the topic, think on FOUR COMMON outlines: 1) About the topic (Introduction) 2)Minuses - negative side of the subject. 3) Pluses - positive points related to subject. 4) Conclusion - drawn on the points discussed, and must reflect personal opinion. Under ‘about the topic’,  explain the subject matter of the topic in the light of acquired knowledge, and that will constitute the introductory paragraph and further set the tempo for Essay-writing . As a coin has two sides, each topic has minuses and pluses. Each thought that reflects the negative side of the topic must be given a separate paragraph. Each para must begin with a Leading Sentence(outline), and be developed accordingly. Here use of standardized chunks can be helpful in constituting the leading sentences. The thoughts expressed in paragraphs can also be authenticated with the quotes of the renowned people/ writers, who are authority on the subject. It lends credence to the thoughts of the student- writer. Likewise, all the thoughts reflecting the pluses must follow the same method of expression.

Last para of the Essay constitutes the conclusion drawn on the basis of all the thoughts expressed in the preceding paras. It must point out the personal views and opinion of the student-writer.

In nutshell, this blogger concludes that with good practice, an Essay can be penned down on any topic or subject.  A student-writer must keep in mind that he/she has to find answer to 5 Ws (What, Where, When, Why and Who) and 1 H (How) all through essay-writing process - a common formula used by all the writers. With his didactic words, renowned Rudyard Kipling inThe Elephant’s Child, says:

“I keep six honest serving men

They taught me all I Know;

Their names are What and Why and When,

 And How and Where and Who.” 

English, Incomprehensible Like a woman

Humour

English, Incomprehensible Like a Woman

Her moist juicy lips with cryptic smile superseding the smile of Monalisa of Leonardo De Vinci; the bulging bolstering breast that can make even a devout Muslim a pagan; well carved out waist surpassing the skill of Michel Angelo; her swing and swagger overtaking the beats of Beethoven

By Mukesh Sharma

Of course, it is a flabby fact! To majority of English aspirants learning English as a second language, particularly, from Hindi heartland, the most coveted English is like the inscrutable and incomprehensible legendary Menaka seducing rishi Vishwamitra. The naive so-called the lovers of English fall in love with the seemingly sleek and slim English at the very first gaze. But the gloating love remains unrequited, for, English wards off their all the overtures and advances ruthlessly. And like the jilted lover, the hapless lots continue to hold torch for the coquettish English until their last breath.

The spurned and obsessed lovers first try to understand the ‘anatomy’ of English – the curves and contour; her flowing auburn hair; glowing face with attractive mien and arresting eyes; her moist juicy lips with cryptic smile superseding the smile of Monalisa of Leonardo De Vinci; the bulging bolstering breast that can make even a devout Muslim a pagan; well carved out waist surpassing the skill of Michel Angelo; her swing and swagger overtaking the beats of Beethoven; the hallowed navel, an epicentre of attraction making a bystander imagine that the heaven is not far off; even to a casual onlooker, English appears like living mannequin of erotica.

The majority of so called ‘language trainers’ claim that the thorough knowledge of grammatical rules ‑ noun, pronoun, adjective, verb, adverb, preposition, conjunction and interjection coupled with understanding of tenses - present indefinite .... modals.... can bring an English aspirant close to English. But all this turn out to be the tall claims of Indian netas. However, western scholars contend that English grammar is wanting. It may help to woo but not win the heart of English. The well known English writer Thomas Carlyle goes a step further and says: “Best grammarian are the worst writer and the best writers are the worst grammarian.”

Interestingly enough, English aspirants are legion. They are ready to pay any fee. English speaking course is a flourishing business with collective turnover of crores of rupees in India. What is more, in the most of competitive exams for government services conducted by SSC, UPSC, etc , English paper is mandatory. Sheer nodding acquaintances with English don’t work. Irrespective of all the affirmations, English is the unassailable language of elitist class and ruling class. Article 348 of the Indian Constitution clearly states that English shall be the official language in High Courts and Supreme Court. So the respected mother tongue remains at the mercy of English.

Further, to take advantage of the psyche of dejected aspirants, some self styled ‘teachers’ have even shunned their Indian names and have ‘baptised’ themselves with English sounding names without any ‘Church service’ so that they can pass them off as a ‘next of kin’ of English, and draw and fool the flock. It is a common sight in well known hub of coaching centres at Mukherjee Nagar, North Delhi. “It is a mandi of English”, says a local property dealer ironically. The most of the such so called English gurus claim to be the great grammarian having so phenomenal knowledge of English that they can find mistakes even in English of Shakespeare and Wordsworth. Amusingly and seemingly being blissfully ignorant of the stature of the word ‘Sir’, these ‘gurus’ suffix their names with ‘Sir’.

Among the Indian, the attraction of English is more than the gravitational pull of Jupiter. To them, it is the symbol of status; symbol of class; symbol of intellect. Hon’ble MP Shashi Tharoor mesmerises the ‘crowd’ with his flowery English and accent. Over the years, Republic TV Editor Arnab Goswami has carved out a niche in the hearts of the ‘herd’ with his bold and bullish English.

Despite all English gurus there is a sizable number of students who are not able to either understand or know the ‘custom’ of ‘English’, and such people turn ‘misogynist’- hater of English. She is allegedly rated as a woman of loose morals. Such people argue that the rampant flirtation of English has led to several illegitimate progeny - American English, British English, Canadian English, Welsh English, Irish English, Indian English etc. Some self proclaimed linguists maintain that though genetically related to Sanskrit, English has made off with words from almost all the languages and stands as the most corrupted. Even celebrated Anglo Irish satirist and author of Gulliver’s Travels Jonathan Swift also endorses the view. And the latest jibe against English has been made by none other than the Hon’ble Vice President of India M Venkaiah Naidu: “English is like an illness left behind by the British.”

Anyway, in the light of all these inconclusive never ending squabble, the much sought after love-lady English remains incomprehensive despite all the clash and crush.