English for Non-Native Speakers - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 5 Words: 1455 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2019/06/24 Category Literature Essay Level High school Topics: Mother Tongue Essay Did you like this example? English is a difficult language to learn for Non-Native Speakers. There are a plethora of words that mean multiple things with meanings that change every day. Itrs hard to keep up if itrs not ones mother tongue. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "English for Non-Native Speakers" essay for you Create order Mother tongue is a language that a person has grown up speaking within their respective household. For Amy Tan, it was a special kind of English. An English that a Native English speaker would call broken or limited. Amy Tan is an Asian American woman who immigrated from Shanghai, China, to the United States with her mother. She is the author of her best-known novel The Joy Luck Club which examines the lives and relationships between four Chinese American daughters and their mothers. In Mother Tongue, Amy Tan points out cultural racism and the difficulties communication has on immigrants living in America. She uses a sympathetic yet defensive tone as she talks about her motherrs language and what it means to her as well as showing the audience the challenges shers faced. Tan delivers a talk at a symposium on language in San Francisco where she expresses her views and experiences with English. She talks about the complexities of the language and the different types of English she hears and uses in her day to day life. Therers a specific style of English she uses with her mother, one she uses on outings, another with her husband, and one her mother constantly uses with her. She says, It has become our language of intimacy, a different sort of English that relates to family talk, the language I grew up with. (Tan 650) For Amy Tan, this language has a special place in her heart but for others, it leads to a sense of confusion. When analyzing her motherrs English, Amy Tan doesnt shy away from the difficulties it has aroused. In one example, she talks about how people perceive her motherrs English regardless of all the hard work she puts into it. She says, Yet some of my friends tell me they understand 50 percent of what my mother says. Some say they understand 80 to 90 percent. Some say they understand none of it, as if she were speaking pure Chinese. (Tan 651). Here, Amy Tan uses a personal experience as support. Her friends are Native speakers and dont entirely understand her mother because of a communication barrier. This shows just how complex and difficult the situation is. Since shers grown up around it, Tan faces no difficulty when it comes to understanding her mother, but for others, the communication skill seems flawed. Amy Tan gets very in-depth when it comes to details of her past. She talks about the time when she was fifteen and how her mother would have her call people on the phone so that shed pretend it was her. She talks about how no one ever took her mother seriously and she was there to witness it all. Tan recounts, the fact that people in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously, did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her. (Tan 651) Tan, once again, uses her experiences as credibility that strengthens her appeal on Ethos. With this passage alone, she shows how vulnerable and how difficult life is for her mother. Tan then goes on to talk about the Asian American community and how English relates to their field of choice. She states, but I have noticed in surveys- in fact, just last week- that Asian students, as a whole, always do significantly better on math achievement test than in English. And this makes me think that there are other Asian American students whose English spoken in the home might also be described as broken or limited. And perhaps they also have teachers who are steering them away from writing and into math and science, which is what happened to me. (Tan 654) This supports her claim as she talks about how deeply the language spoken at home can affect the children. Tan shows just how prejudice people can be. Instead of helping and refining their English, the teachers are so adamant to push them in another field where they dont need to work as hard. Society doesnt give these kids a platform to grow and, instead, take them for granted. When it really boils down to it, Amy Tan doesnt really use logistics to support her claim. The things listed above arent factual and are based more on the authors inferences. Her story doesnt need logistics since she proves her credibility through her personal experiences which seems to be more beneficial in this case. For the majority of her piece, Tan uses a strong pathos appeal as support. When she talks about growing up with her mother, she never fails to tell her audience how she feels. Amy Tan makes sure the audience can empathize with her, a tactic she uses to set everyone on the same playing field. Her pathos appeal is evident when she talks about how her mother was treated because of the way she spoke. After being previously diagnosed with a benign brain tumor, Tanrs mother goes back to the hospital to check up on her diagnosis. She said she had spoken her very best English yet they claimed that her CAT scan was missing. Tan says, and when the doctor finally called her daughter, me, who spoke in perfect English- lo and behold- we had assurances the CAT scan would be found, promises that a conference call on Monday would be held, and apologies for any suffering my mother had gone through for a most regrettable mistake. (Tan 652) Even though she doesnt outwardly state how she feels, she makes it pretty evident that she is frustrated and heavily confused about the situation. Her tone shows frustration which helps the audience sympathize with her. Because of this, people can put themselves in her shoes. She then goes on to talk about her childhood experiences with her mother and how her mothers English affected the way she did things when she was younger. Amy Tan would always find herself answering phone calls for her mother and even became less confident in herself because of it. This is shown earlier in the selection when she reflects on the time her mothers English made her feel ashamed. She realizes the challenges shers faced because of the way her mother spoke. Tan states, I know for a fact, because when I was growing up, my motherrs limited English limited my perception of her. I was ashamed of her English. (Tan 651) Here Tan shows the struggles her motherrs English had brought upon her. It gave her a low self-esteem and, instead of encouraging her mother, she was disheartened. She later becomes apologetic, showing that she too struggled to overlook the language barrier and took part of the cultural racism that flourished within this field. Towards the end of the text, she wraps it up as she talks about her book. When she created her novel The Joy Luck Club, she kept her mother in mind. She said she wanted to use all the English she grew up with to preserve and capture the essence that neither can be seen within an English nor a Chinese structure. She says, I wanted to capture what language ability tests can never reveal: her intent, her passion, her imagery, the rhythms of her speech and the nature of her thoughts. (Tan 655) Here, shers learned that through all the struggle and uncertainty, her motherrs English is something that she holds onto dearly. Itrs been ground rooted and loved since birth and just like any other personality trait, itrs something that makes that special woman her mother. Overall, Amy Tan was successful in pronouncing her point and educating Native Speakers about the struggles immigrants face when it comes to communication. She has shown that there are many people like her mother who are experiencing these things and how this dominates the lives of every immigrant around the world. She engages her audience in a pot of stories, using her personal experiences as credibility for her claim. Amy Tan is also not afraid to show how vulnerable she was and still is when it comes to this subject manner. This language brought her closer together with her mother and her culture. Shers learned not to be ashamed of who she is and has embraced it for all those to see. Her speech is an aid for those who are experiencing the same thing. In conclusion, Amy Tan successfully encouraged her audience to look beyond language barriers and expresses to live and appreciate immigrants open heartedly and happily.

Questions On Writing And Writing - 2021 Words

Post #1 http://forums.atozteacherstuff.com/index.php?threads/i-completely-lost-my-temper-in-front-of-my-students-am-i-in-trouble.194989/ I completely lost my temper in front of my students. Am I in trouble? Hi, everybody. My seniors are the meanest bunch of students I have this year. They are so lazy, immature, and disrespectful. They always roll their eyes at me and tell me that when I assign them a book to read that I am inhuman. I have this one kid in my senior class whom I have kicked out twice. He talks back and is very disrespectful and disruptive. Today, I yelled at him and asked him to leave. I just told him, Please leave my classroom right now. After he left, my class was acting like a bunch of smart Alecs. They refused to†¦show more content†¦To start, I think it would be beneficial for you to change your perspective. It sounds like you have already thrown in the towel with this group of seniors and is now at the point where you want to cover yourself because you feel like you did something wrong. You mentioned in your post that you started to lose your temper and started to yell at them. You’ve said, â€Å"I can’t deal with this stupidity any more† and seems to be second-guessing how you reacted to the situation with your seniors when it caused you to loose your cool. I wondered if you have lost your cool before and have said any other hurtful things to describe the students’ behavior. When you say that they are the meanest bunch of students and that they are lazy, immature and disrespectful, you are focusing on things that you cannot control and is saying that there is nothing you can do. You are also questioning if you need to tell the principal about your outburst and if you should bring your students some treats to â€Å"make-up† for how you responded to them. Let’s take a look at the things you can control when it comes to your students and possible ways to address the aftermath of your outburst. The pressing issue is that the students are not behaving properly. They are not receptive to instruction and are not completing the work assigned to them. How about you establish some new expectations for them? Currently, they are not fond of you and are not doing what is required of them. I think it would be helpful

Analysis of Marks Spencer’s International Strategy Free Essays

Introduction This report looks at the current international strategy adopted by MS, what are the past issues of the company, what steps it took during the time of downfall and how did it overcome its mistakes to bounce back in the global market with its new marketing strategy. The report is a mix of the academic research and the case study materials provided from which the final conclusion can be drawn as to the organization should proceed to internationalization or not during current market situations. Background to the Marks Spencer MS as a business organization came into existence in 1884 when it was just a penny bazaar. We will write a custom essay sample on Analysis of Marks Spencer’s International Strategy or any similar topic only for you Order Now Today after 125 glorious years of growth and expansion, the company is the biggest retailer in the UK. Its product ranges from clothing, food products and household accessories etc. It entered the international market by franchising in countries such as Canada, USA, France, Belgium, and Ireland etc. By the end of 19th century, the international market was on the verge of collapse due to improper management by the senior management of the company. Thus the company decided to withdraw its presence from the international market and instead concentrate only on the home market. (MS company history 2011) Past issues related to MS MS first entered the global market by targeting Hong Kong and South Africa by exporting its products to these countries under the brand name of St. Michaels. Eventually it terminated its contract with Do dwells, which in turn proved to be a disaster for the company as problems related to the local retailers and franchise did not allow the company to build a strong base in the Asian market. (Bevan 2001). MS targeted the Canadian market through family tie-ups and was successful in operating 275 stores across the country. By the end of the 80’s it entered the US market through purchasing a retail market chain named King’s supermarket and Brooks brothers. But eventually the North American market did not accept MS as a competitive brand due to lack of clear branding and positioning of its products. It was unable to satisfy the customer’s demand; also a large number of competitors did not give MS a chance to sustain itself in the market. (Sparks 2005). MS did not offshore its productions to a different country due to quality concerns. This lead to increase in the cost of production which in-turn lead to charging higher price from the customers. On the other hand, the customers did not find the product that appealing so as to pay a premium price for its products. Similarly MS entered the European market without any strategy to be adopted and mainly on the belief that its current business techniques would hold good in catering these market as well. It started expanding its operations in a haphazard situation without a rational strategic approach to it. (Mellahi et al. 2002) Current business climate By 2001 the company withdrew all its overseas operations and started concentrating in the domestic market. It is a good decision that they took, as there were many flaws that would have taken a lot of time to rectify along with huge losses to bear. The global market has currently undergone a recession stage where MS was deeply affected by decreases in profit margins by 11% from the year 2005 to 2007. Only during the year 2009 it had performed a profitable business with 17% and 5% increase in profits and market share respectively. Its time when the company is recovering and finding new opportunities to enter the international market with a planned and structured system to target the global consumer retail market. The company has carefully analyzed its past mistakes and then has structured its plans for the future. The next three years is to concentrate mainly in restoring its stability in the market by improving the marketing of their products into various segments and classifications. At the same time it will set foundation for the future expansion through mediums such as space grows, improving multi-channel retailing and to built its capability further to become an international company. (Cameron et al. 1988) Reviewing its current international strategy On the basis of the past issues within MS and the steps taken to cater the current business climate, we have seen the changes related to the target market, mode of entry in the new market, benefits to enter new market, rectification of past mistakes and setting clear objectives for internationalization etc. MS has decided to stabilize itself from the recession and build up its market share in the UK for the next three years; simultaneously working on rational international decisions. These measures show that the company is clear about its vision and mission related to its future. The following points discussed below prove to satisfy me to go forward with the current international strategy, as they have understood the demand in the international market and should implement its strategy accordingly. The current major steps taken by the company are: To enter large markets such as India, China and Europe etc where there is already a demand for this brand. Concentration in one particular market and finishing it first and then moving to another area proves better positioning and marketing for the product. MS can change its marketing style from product driven to market driven. This helps the company to understand the regional demand of their products and to cater it accordingly. (J MS results and multi year strategy 2010) Franchising is a great option rather than opening their own store. Choosing the appropriate franchisee will improve market capturing and sales in that particular country. E.g. to cater the Indian market MS has tied up with Reliance group. On the other hand, the franchising schemes cannot be same in all the countries due to political, economic and social factors. This could create operational problem for the company in the long run. (Quinn and Doherty 2000) Concentration on brand positioning and brand awareness is been done so that the market is aware of the different products and brands the company is offering. Thus there will be no confusing in the mind of the customers related to brands. There can be a possible threat of not accepting a product by different markets or there can be a very low demand for the same. Also MS overseas do not keep food items and accessories unlike UK. Thus it creates huge difference in the brand positioning between two or more countries. (Eyring et al. 2011) The company never grasped the advantage of patented USP such as storm ware clothing range in order to distinguish itself from other company. Today they are looking forward for such restructured range. E.g. fusing storm ware technology into jeans, t-shirts etc. (J MS results and multi year strategy 2010) Flagship stores are to be placed in each region along with supporting stores such as smaller outlets and Internet channels so that the customer can feel a heavy presence of this brand in the market. Amazon platform is currently reliable for the company. (J MS results and multi year strategy 2010) It is practically not possible for the company to perform as planned in its international strategy. There would be uncontrollable factors, which may lead to variations from its objective. The degree of variation can also determine the success and failure of the company. Adequate financial back up is needed for research and development in each particular market. Thus the risk is also high which the company is taking, if not successful in sustaining in the new market there would be huge loss for the company. Recommendations The company should offshore its manufacturing units to different geographic regions so they can cater different markets well. This will change the British brand image to global brand image. Example: Apple Inc is an American company, which contains the software made in Hyderabad, India and the product manufacturing is done in Taiwan. Thus it contains a global brand image. Adopt decentralization system in the organization so that delegation of work can be encouraged, thus involving the regional departments to participate in the major decisions to be taken. Example: Toyota involves every subordinate to participate in the decisions to be taken so that they can receive more opinions before taking any decisions. MS in an umbrella company which involves different products such as food, GM clothing and accessories etc, it has to carefully balance the brand image of all these products simultaneously. It will be a challenge to the company to maintain all the demand in all the countries. Therefore the company should segment and position its products to the lowest possible level before entering that particular market i.e. appropriate portfolio management. (Eyring et al. 2011) MS is always special by taking a step forward at maintaining a high quality that reflects its brand image, thus the company can strongly capitalize on this image for future growth. (Bolland presentation 2010) For every market there should be a particular marketing style in order to attract more customers. The marketing can be through different medium such as Internet, radio, television, banners hording etc. The marketing should be done keeping in mind the culture, traditions and lifestyle of different regions. The company should adopt the characteristics of a multinational company where the revenue generated should be retained in that department instead of transferring it to the home country. The benefit is that the company does not have to manage the foreign exchange from around the world plus these funds can be capitalize for further growth and expansion within that region. Bibliography Marks and Spencer plc. 2011. Company history. Available at: http://corporate.marksandspencer.com/aboutus/ourhistory [Accessed: 21st Mar 2011]. Bevan, J. 2001. The Rise and Fall of Marks and Spencer. Profile Books, London. Paul Jackson, Leigh Sparks, (2005) â€Å"Retail internationalization: Marks and Spencer in Hong Kong†, International Journal of Retail Distribution Management, Vol. 33 Issue: 10, pp.766 – 783 Mellahi, K, Cameron. et al. 2002. International Review Of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research. 12(2), pp 191-219. Eyring, M.J. et al. 2011. New Business Models in Emerging Markets. Harvard Business Review. Vol. 89. 2011. Quinn and Doherty. (2000). Burt et al.: Retail internalization and retail failure.(3), 207. _J MS results and multi year strategy_(video recording) 2010,London,UK. BOLLAND, M and STEWART, A. (2010, November 5th). MS Corporate Strategy. [PowerPoint slides]. Presented at a conference in London, UK. WORD COUNT: 1602 How to cite Analysis of Marks Spencer’s International Strategy, Essay examples