Hello baby, hello my baby, hello hello my special baby, how are you this morning? How are you, how are you, how are you this morning? How are you beautiful? Hungry sweetie? Awww, poor baby, hungry hungry you are! Aren’t you? okay, let’s change your nappy first shall we? does that make you happy? happy, happy, happy! It does make you happy doesn’t it? Doesn’t it? Doesn’t it? I think it does.
That is what we call “baby language”. That is the language mothers use with their children, and that is how babies acquire the language. Two things you’ll see in baby language: Repetition and high pitch voice. Mothers’ repetition is not purely “repetitive” though. It is also quite interactive. If you look at the sample above, you will notice that new words are often added or existing words substituted (replaced) all while the mother is reacting to the baby’s facial expressions and body movements. Imagine that babies have access to this very patient, repetitive and well articulated (but natural) language more than 12 hours a day. Remember, babies do not know any other language, they’re like a brand new SD card or USB stick with no files in it whatsoever. That means they are at 100% of their capacity to absorb anything put into them. Despite all that, it takes children 3 years on average to be able to speak it (and not that well mind you).
Now, adults, some being delusional and completely unrealistic, actually expect to speak English fluently just by taking a short course or some weekly lessons. Look at Japan for example, where you can’t help but laugh at those who keep wondering why their English is not improving despite many years of learning English. How hard is it to see that the kind of English education they are receiving is actually more harmful than beneficial? Let’s take a look at English in public schools. Classes are taught by Japanese teachers whose English is a disgrace (yes yes there are some exceptions but exceptions do not make much difference). They speak “Katakenglish” (Katakana English) and teach mostly grammar. In Japanese companies, some employees are and have been learning English for a while, to no avail! They are often disappointed when they can’t speak well after the 3rd session, so they kind of lose interest and transform to zombies.
I see an interactive style of targeted repetition as perhaps one of the most effective ESL classroom practices for teachers to use with beginners. Look at the text on top of the page and try to find a pattern that you can use with your students without treating them like babies. Do NOT assume that baby language is unnatural, it actually is, maybe slow, yet quite natural. By natural, I mean mothers still connect the words with each other, still reduce the vowels that need to be reduced, still stress the syllables that do matter in the sentence and still change their voice pitch in so many different patterns in a desperate attempt to make their babies smile. You should’ve seen MY face and heard MY voice when I was trying to get my then 8-month-old daughter to eat her first mashed banana!
What do YOU think? What is the best way teach beginners English? Do you think it would be practical to use baby language in the classroom? Do you think this could be adapted to adult speech? COMMENT, LIKE AND SHARE, you’ll get a COMPliment, a MIC and a teddy BEAR 😉
Leave a Reply