Studying English in
Algeria, a topic that I have promised you to talk about since like forever. Unfortunately,
I could not go live on Facebook and I am a loser with video recording and
editing. Therefore, I will just try to squeeze all of the information into this
blog post. I am going to put as much details as possible. It will be a long post
that hopefully will contain a big number of answers that you’ve been looking
for.
It does not seem
logical for me to start talking about studies right away since the majority of
you do not know who I am, what I do and why should my random post be
considered as advice. So, let’s start by: me introducing... well, ME.
My name is Ines, one
of the admins of the Facebook page
Algerian Book Readers (I am also the
creator, but we would not be where we are today if it wasn’t for the rest of
the amazing team) and I am a third year student of English.
- Why did I choose to
Study English? Have I ever regretted my choice?
I have always liked the language and
I did not find anything better on my list of options, so I went with what was
the coolest choice. To be honest, I have not regretted studying English even at
the worst times and when I hated going to university. I just feel sorry that languages,
at our universities, are not given much importance (I guess). Many students are
directed towards languages without any tests (in my opinion, the BAC average is
not enough); as a result, too many students with so much difference between
their levels are studying together! Not enough teachers, that what leads to the
recruitment of many teachers who are not that competent... The consequences are
endless, but talking about them isn’t the aim of this post.
Before I answer any
more questions, let me inform you that the answers are based on my point of
view, way of learning and personality...
in other words, they are going to be subjective. I have not checked any
studies, scientific research about studying a language or anything like that.
So, you might not agree with all of what I say, some of my ways of learning may
work only for some of you... Therefore, you do not have to stick to all of what I tell
you, but only with what would work best for you. I truly hope that you will at
least find somewhere to start from. With no further talking (actually,
What is the best way to learn English? (in
general, not any specific module.)
Let me tell you
something, there is no way you can learn English if you do not interact with the culture
and native speakers. By this, I do not mean you have to turn into an American,
but there is just no way you could pick up the basics without watching some of
their news, movies, series; listening to their music or reading their books...
anything in English. Of course, just bear in mind that our mentality and way of
living are so different from theirs... You might be questioning why I am
telling you this, it seems so logical right? But I have noticed that those
classmates who are completely not interested in the British or American culture
(who only watch Lebanese, Turkish or Korean Tv programs) do not have good
speaking and listening skill. Trying to learn a language from grammar or
vocabulary books and learning by heart won’t be so helpful. If anyone wants to
study English, French or any other language; and knows that they are not
interested, never liked and never will like those cultures; should choose
another major. Because no matter how much they try to study hard to get a
diploma and a good job in the future, it will be super hard for them and I do
not think that they can be as good as they want. (This is just a little note
for anyone who would ask you if they should study any language, tell them that it’s
a matter of preference and personality)
What’s cool about
learning English is that it can be fun. Especially that now we hear it
everywhere: English series and movies are internationally known. And they are subtitled with all languages.
No matter what anyone’s native language is, they can learn English. You might
be watching anything and enjoying your time while doing so, and still picking
up new words and unconsciously learning grammar. What could ever be better than
that? Haa?
At university:
First things first,
first year students (trying to be funny, but it’s not working):
- Is English really your thing? Should you retake
your BAC exam and study something else?
Most of you might be
lost, you might be freaking out and do not know what to do. Many will think of
taking the BAC exam again and switch majors... You’re going to be fine. Calm
down, and keep reading, I was in your shoes once; this is why I am writing
this.
What to do before
taking the big step: I am no longer going to university; I will stay at home,
study and retake the BAC exam?
If you have been
dreaming of studying anything else since you were little, and English is not
your first nor best choice, then: stay at home and study hard. DON’T YOU EVER
GIVE UP YOUR DREAM MAJOR AND JOB. EVER. Even if you have to retake the BAC exam
3 times. That is way better than studying something and thinking that you could
have been doing something else.
If you do not really
have any favourite major, you do not hate English and you’re willing to study
hard. Then, it is only confusing at the beginning because University is a whole
new world and system. You’ve been used to find everything you need in school
books. Teachers have always given you what to exactly memorise and revise. Now,
you have the huge WORLD WIDE WEB, you have to look up information there. You
have to find a little fish in an ocean. Believe me, you will get the hang of
it. Do you think I knew where to find books during my first year?! I did not
even know what was freaking PDF format and audio books where a discovery. Just
do not be ashamed of asking questions, no matter how dumb they sound. When I think
of my old emails and messages to teachers, facebook pages, other students... I wish I could erase memories, Sometimes I
guess I forgot I had a dictionary! But if those people did not help me, then
what would have happened to me? Now, when a first year student messages me, I
be like: seriously, all of that is on Google and Youtube!! But then I remember:
THEY ARE LEARNING, YOU ARE LEARNING, and I AM STILL LEARNING. We will actually
never stop learning. But ways of learning differ from one level to another.
What would seem to someone super simple is a whole game changer for another
person. For this, I have to say again: ASK (you know where to find me if you
think I can help you. I will do my best).
If you love English
and have always wanted to study it, then .... emm I have nothing to tell you
other than good luck, work hard, you’ll do well.
- What should you do to get good marks? Which
modules should you focus on?
During the first year;
the most important modules are oral expression, written expression, and
grammar. Usually, if you get good marks in those exams, then you’ll get a good average.
Maybe “very good” or “acceptable”, those
depend on whether you did well or bad at the second most important
modules which are phonetics and linguistics; then I guess civilisation,
literature, foreign language, and an additional module that differs from one
university to another.
What I called second
most important modules are going to be named from now on “life-saviours”. If
you do not get very good marks in OE, WE and Gram and you do your best at the LSs then you’re
saved. If you screw up (jed babaha
l7alouf f) everything, then you still have make up exams ( you can take them
during your first year so that you can pass to second year. You can choose to
be a first year student for another school year but ONLY attend the classes and
retake exams of the modules that you failed in. Otherwise, you can move to
second year with “debts” and pay them by taking 2 exams for those modules you
failed in -one with first year students for not taking the makeup exam during
your first year, and the other “normal” exam with your second year classmates).
I advise first years
to focus on OE, WE, and Gram because in addition to being the “average boost up”
they are the basics of the language.
Oral expression: This
depends on what you already know, how good your listening and speaking skills
are. But do not give up if you see that some other classmates are better and
you’re a bit behind. You can catch up. Focus in class, write down hard words
and expressions, try to speak even if you make mistakes (easy, simple and short
answers. They do not have to be complicated). If your teacher makes you watch
videos or listen to audios, at the end of each class give them your USB or
email and tell them to send you the files. You can watch/listen to them again
at home and look up the subtitles. If your teacher asks you to do individual or
in groups presentations; then make your research at home, try always to use
simple words, use pictures and videos when you present. Always remember that
the audience are the same people that you were joking with before you went in
class. There is nothing to be afraid of. (Read more about
Doing Well in Oral expression and nailing your presentations.)
Grammar: I am sure
that many of you will be surprised by the amount of “discoveries” you’ll make
at this class. Tenses, verbs and all those little words that seem so simple are
“amazing and horrible” at the same time. I have already mentioned learning
grammar unconsciously, I am sure that many of you will know what form of verbs should
be used in a certain situations. What’s awkward is that you won’t know why you have
used those specific tenses and forms. That’s when Miss Grammar comes and tries
to be Einstein and figure out a cause for the existence of every little auxiliary,
“d” or “ed”. I have a love hate relationship with grammar, I mess it up because
of thinking so much about the rules. I still feel guilty about some stupid
mistakes that I have made. Thank god grammar nazzi does not exist, or they
would have hung me a long time ago (also, dear Miss grammar, I apologize for
every mistake I am or will be making ... Got those tenses right, who’s winning
now haaa?). Always focus in class; revise the same lesson as many times as you
can; do not memorise the rule, make examples and remember them; look up books,
check them out, then choose a couple to be your best friends for the next
years; YouTube is heaven of grammar lesson, always search for lessons there.
Written expression: if
you have a problem speaking out, then writing down your thoughts should be fun.
Grammar will hunt you here also, actually it is in your paragraphs and essays
that you can show off your grammar “muscles”. I do not really think that WE has
RULES, I think that what you learn during that class are just tips to write
better and ways to avoid committing mistakes. The rest depends on your
vocabulary (you do not need to use hard words, but you do need to know a few
words from every niche –topic. A little bit of everything is what makes a lot)
and style. Just like grammar, you should use a few books as guides to help you
along your writing journey, but I think that reading is what will really help
you to write better.
(More posts about grammar and written expression coming up in the next few days, with books and videos, stay tuned)
Linguistics: I do not
think that I will ever love this module. I admit that there are some really
interesting and cool lessons. But for me, linguistics, is a huge battle field
where different armies (the schools) are
fighting and you’re in the middle watching and trying to figure out which army
is fighting for the good cause, which one is right, which one should win? The
problem is that they are all right and wrong, and no one will ever win!! And
then some armies intermix and create a new one which is neither with the first
army nor with the second one... It drives me nuts. In addition to all of this,
you need to memorise “a few” lessons, and I hate memorising. I do not want to
make you feel down. Remember, this is just me.
When it comes to linguistics, I think books and Google are the best way
to understand it. Youtube helps sometimes too. (click here for some lessons and
videos)
Phonetics: apart from
the transcription part that I hate, phonetics is logical. One lesson leads to
another, at the end you’ll have those connected lessons which if you do not
really get the last one you’ll have trouble getting this one. It needs some memorisation.
As long as you do not wait till the day before the exam (like I do) to revise,
You’ll get a very good mark. Because I think you need to analyse and understand
the relations, and then reread what you’ve understood which is kind of a first
memorisation and a second revision, then the memorisation in which you keep
repeating the terms, expressions, and definitions so that you won’t mix them up
or forget them. I think it pretty much resembles science, and I LOVE science.
My teachers’ handouts have always been great; as a result, I never had to do
big research. I remember finding some really good videos on YouTube once,
though.
Civilisation: I do not
think that you need to be Einstein in order to understand this module, but you
need to have the memory of an elephant. Actually, let me rethink this elephant
thing again. It actually depends on whether you like and are interested in past
events and a history that isn’t yours (your country’s). Also, if you’re already used to watch
documentaries, kings and queens movies, and read historical fiction; then
you’ll be surprised by the amount of information that you won’t have to
memorise. This module is kind of “slow and steady wins the race”. I mean you can’t go watch 10
documentaries and 5 movies during the night before the exam. You’ll remember
nothing. In this case you better memorise by heart whatever your teacher gave
you. And after finishing this exam, start thinking of the next one. During the
next semester, you can enjoy your weekends by watching movies and learning
about the past. For the British civilisation, look up the movies about their
kings and queens. The America civilisation is recent; you can even find videos
of what have happened in the USA during the 20th century.
PS: This is also and
advice for myself, we’ll try to find movies and watch them together. Send me
links
Literature: First
year, I was like what the heck is this? I will never get the hang of it. Today,
I am thinking to do a master in literature. This is also the “slow and steady
wins the race”. Let me tell you what’s wrong with teaching literature at
university. First, we, Algerians, do not read much (if not “at all”). As a
result, when students start to attend literature classes ;and the teacher
begins with “literary elements” and try to explain what’s a voice, plot,
characters... It sounds like Chinese. Imagine telling someone who’s colour
blinded to visualize the colour blue; While they have never seen it before?
That’s exactly the problem with literature classes. You can’t understand the
basics if you do not already have something in your memory to which you can
compare or connect what the teacher is telling you about. To make it even
worse, teaches assign classics to read. Classics are great, but even native
speakers of English find them a bit complicated. How about someone who’s
learning English as a foreign language? Do not lose hope; try to do whatever
you can to get at least an acceptable mark (Even if you have to memorising by heart).
Just find a way to not fail (not cheating, though) and then start reading
contemporary books, young adult and books that have been written in the late 20th
century or 21th century. Step by step you’ll get into it and start getting
interested in classics and more complicated books.
PS: I’ll have more
detailed blog posts about these 4 modules soon. Do not worry. I got your back :p
Also, these modules
may be the biggest cause to why you’re freaking out right now. Do not worry a
lot about them during your first year. Do your best to try to understand them. Even
if you’re not completely sure what you were learning, you’ll keep studying the
same thing during your second year. It will be more detailed and a bit harder.
But those details will make you understand better. You’ll start remembering
what you have learnt during your first year and be like: ah! Okay. That’s why
we’ve been saying this and this and this...
I guess that’s all for
first years. Let’s move on to the second year:
The main modules are
also Grammar, OE and WE
Life saviours will
also remain the same. (Some coefficients might change)
And that module that
varies from one university to another will be replaced by translation.
As a second year
student, you’ll be more confident since you know which learning techniques work
best for you. University will turn out to be your natural habitat rather than
that new discovered planet. Especially if you did “good” during your first year
then you will have no problems during the second one. If you are still a bit
behind, then that’s okay. Just work harder to catch up. Always go back to your
first year lessons before learning any new ones.
Now, what you have to
start thinking of is your third year: you will not have grammar to boost up
your average any more, OE and WE coefficients will go down. Literature,
civilisation and linguistics will rise to the top L That’s why you should focus a bit more on
those, at the same time do not forget that OE, WE, and Miss Grammar are still
this year’s leaders. In other words,
STUDY EVERYTHING. I am telling you this because majoring in Civ, Lit, or
monster linguistics will be some of your options for your master’s degree
(you’ll also have other options that
won’t revolve around those modules, do not freak out YET). We want to have as
many options as we can right? Even though majoring in any of those is the same
in our country. They are all “you studied English” and you can teach English.
Still, majoring in something that you like is better than forcing yourself to
study something that you do not enjoy much.
As for third year students: all I can say is I FEEL YOU,
especially if teaching is not your number one choice. I do not really have
anything to say except from “hang on”. I guess for this part I need an older
EX-student to give US advice.
Finally, thank you for
taking the time to read this “super long” post, I truly hope that it will help
you. I know that I am not Mahatma Ghandi and my words are not that big of a
deal. However, if you think that any part of this post can help someone you
know, then share the link with them. If you have any questions or pieces of
advice please inbox me on Algerian Book Readers. There are not much info on the
net about studying English at an Algerian university, so let us change that.
With your advice, I will write other posts. And together we can help other
people and give back what we have been given.
Please know that this
post is not in anyways to advertise for the page or get Algerian Book Readers
everywhere on the NET. Every little word was from the bottom of my heart, all
of what I have written is exactly what I would say to a best friend or sibling.
This post is also a thank you for everyone that has helped me when I needed help;
I know that I can’t do much for them since they are older and more experienced.
But I am sure that if they ever see me trying to give other people what they
have given me that would be considered that as the best thank you ever.
Take care and good
luck.
Ines x
