Chen's英語教室

(圖片來源)

Chen老師的學生橫跨老中青三代

常常有上班族同學問我，幾歲開始學英文最恰當?

我自己的經驗，剛好與這篇文章非常符合

因為在五年級那年，因為家庭因素，到了美國一年

除了ABC和簡單問候語外，英文對我來說

就像是台北捷運的路線圖，有的時候，有看沒有懂(我沒有慧根)

話說回來，因為那一年與美國小學生的相處

建立了我對英文的興趣，也對後來的英文學習有很深遠的影響

現在國小裡就有英文課程，我認為用意是好的

但父母親的觀念很重要，這個階段，甚至到8年級

應該以培養"不怕英文、使用英文、感受英文"為目的

成績不該是衡量小朋友的學習效果的唯一方式

讓他們主動使用，建立信心才是正確的方向

如果家中經濟許可，當然在年紀越小時觸碰第二外語是好事

(圖片來源)

只是，看看Chen老師的例子，除了那年的出國

我的英文也是國中高中這樣上來，如果說我比同儕多的

就是我不怕英文，甚至喜歡英文，就算說錯也無所謂

國中時接待過來宜蘭比賽划船的牛津、劍橋學生

高中時常與澳洲來的交換學生分享兩國的不同

不是因為我比別人補更多的習或是更早學英文

只因為我"喜歡英文"，而喜歡的原因是

它讓我看到更廣大的世界，所以爸媽同學們

這世界這麼大，如果你能有多一點點的英文能力

就能多去探索、冒險，並且與你的好友親人們，分享這些故事

下面，我們來看看這篇第二外語對提升腦力的相關文章

Learning a second language after age 10 boosts brain

Plenty of research has shown that learning a second language can boost brainpower, but a new study out on Monday suggests that the effects extend to those who begin in middle childhood.

The study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showed that people who began learning English around age 10 and were immersed in the language, meaning they heard and used it in daily life, showed improvements in the structure of the brain's white matter compared to people who grew up speaking only English and did not learn a second language.

Researchers studied brain scans from 20 people, all around the age of 30, who had lived in Britain for at least 13 months. They had all started learning English as a second language around age 10. Their imaging analyses were compared to 25 people of similar age who spoke only English. 

"Everyday handling of more than one language functions as an intensive cognitive stimulation that benefits specific language-related brain structures by preserving their integrity, and therefore it protects them against deterioration in older age," said the study let by Christos Pliatsikas of the University of Kent School of Psychology.

Dr. Christos Pliatsikas 的相關資料

http://www.kent.ac.uk/psychology/people/pliatsikasc/

(文章來源)

<單字及片語>

boost  = promote (促進) v.

extend = stretch (延伸) v.

immersed = bathe (沉浸) v.

analyses = analyze (分析結果) n.

functions as = act as (當作....)

cognitive = intellectual (認知的) adj.

stimulation = acceleration (刺激/鼓舞) n.

integrity = 原意為廉正，這裡解釋為完整性 n. 

deterioration = degeneration (惡化) n.

<討論題目>

1. Describe your language learning experience?

2. What language other than English would you like to learn the most and why?