This article was written by Lubna Zeidan,

iACT Program Director

The present is a good time to present the present is a good example of why English is so difficult for new English learners. iACT for Refugees conducts English as a Second Language classes for newly arrived refugees from Burma, Bhutan, Burundi, Congo, Cuba, Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan and a few other places. What they all have in common is that they need to learn the language of this country so that they can work, socialize, access their needs and live in peace. What they also have in common is that they have to start working three to six months after arrival.

It takes about two years of regular studying to be conversant in English. With refugees having to work so soon after arrival, having the time to be in English classes for as long as needed is difficult.

How fast you learn a language depends on many factors: how different your first language is from English in pronunciation, structure and writing; how recently you have been in a classroom learning; how many years of schooling you have had; your age; your confidence level and outlook; your mental and psychological stress levels, fear and anxiety. Needless to say, refugees are at high anxiety levels, many going through post-traumatic stress, add to that the worry about loved ones in danger back home and limited money and assistance in a strange country where they don’t speak the language.

However, English itself is a challenge. Those of us who learned English as a first language are so privileged – since we never had to learn why we would use a certain word or grammatical structure. Why for example do you say “Do you like red?” when the statement “I like red” has no “do” in it; or why you should try not to blow off steam when you have to face the music if you’re caught when you weren’t on the ball – all expressions new language learners are mystified by.

Your first language influences learning your second one, so when an Arabic speaker says “I here” it makes sense since Arabic does not have a verb to be. When a Burmese speaker says “finis” for finish it is because there is no “sh” sound in Burmese.

In English there are different ways of spelling the same sound – for example “tall” and “shawl”  should be spelled the same way, but aren’t. Then of course there are the words that are spelled the same but sound completely differently like “tear” something and shed a “tear”. An ESL teacher training I once attended used an old “I Love Lucy”episode where Ricky is reading a children’s book to exemplify the difficulties new language learners face. Watch it, it’s very funny!

Of course English grammar presents a new set of complexities – since in addition to the  past and future tenses there is the present tense which means “usually” (I like pizza) versus the present progressive (I am running a marathon) which is both sort of happening now and happening during this period of time. That tense is itself misleading, since “I am running a marathon” could also mean I plan to do it in the near future. There is also the present perfect tense which is sort of past tense but not. “I have had swordfish” sort of means the same as “I had swordfish” but I would use that tense when the act of eating swordfish is somehow connected to something happening now. English! Aren’t you glad you don’t have to understand why you use the tenses you use?

But perhaps the most difficult concepts have to do with proper and polite language as opposed to just correct language. “Would you like to..” is not the same as “Do you like to..”,  and “I don’t mind” is not the same as “I don’t care”.

I always tell the story of an ex-student of mine I saw waiting tables at a restaurant I happened to be at. She was taking an order at the next table and asked “What do you want?” and I saw the customer, a well-dressed woman in her 50s, visibly cringe at the impoliteness of the request. I’m sure my ex-student got a bad tip and didn’t know why.

So please, if you run across anyone who is speaking English as a second language, give them a break.  If someone is brave enough to try speaking English before they are fluent, be kind and don’t judge too harshly. After all, English is really hard!