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A presentation for Effective Presentation in English class. Comparing similarities between English, Japanese and Thai langauges and Japan and Thai societies.
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Influence of Native Language and Society
on English Proficiency
A comparison-based study between
Japan and Thailand
Pipat MethavanitpongDoctoral Student
[email protected] Laboratory
Department of Communications and Computer EngineeringTokyo Institute of Technology
Effective Presentation in English A/2014
Presentation #1
About Me
Pipat MethavanitpongBangkok, ThailandInterest: Computer Architecture
[Current] Doctoral student @ Tokyo Tech – Comm. and Computer Engr.
M.Eng. from Tokyo Tech – Comm. and Integrated Systems
B.Eng. from SIIT – Electronics and Comm. Engineering
Has lived in Japan for 2 years
22 YEARS 2 YEARS
Better Life with English
Source: EF EPI Infographic 2013
Assumption #1 (2)
Source: EF EPI Infographic 2013
Better Income $ = Better English
Gross National Income of Year 2013
[1] Norway USD 102,610 HIGH income group
[14] Japan USD 46,140 HIGH income group
[15] Germany USD 46,100 HIGH income group
[25] South Korea USD 25,920 HIGH income group
[37] Chile USD 15,230 HIGH income group
[73] Iraq USD 6,710 UPPER-MID income group
[84] Thailand USD 5,370 UPPER-MID income group
Source: Wikipedia – List of countries by GNI (nominal, Atlas method) per capita . cited Nov 14, 2014.
The GNI per capita is the dollar value of a country’s final income in a year, divided by its population. It reflects the average income of a country’s citizens.
Source: EF English Proficiency Index 3rd edition http://www.ef.co.th/epi/ .cited on Nov 12, 2014
English Proficiency
Index by Region
• [1] Norway [2] VERY HIGH proficiency
• [14] Japan [26] MODERATE proficiency
• [15] Germany [14] HIGH proficiency
• [25] South Korea [24] MODERATE proficiency
• [37] Chile [44] VERY LOW proficiency
• [73] Iraq [60] VERY LOW proficiency
• [84] Thailand [55] VERY LOW proficiency
GNI and EF English Proficiency Index
• [1] Norway [2] VERY HIGH proficiency
• [14] Japan [26] MODERATE proficiency
• [15] Germany [14] HIGH proficiency
• [25] South Korea [24] MODERATE proficiency
• [37] Chile [44] VERY LOW proficiency
• [73] Iraq [60] VERY LOW proficiency
• [84] Thailand [55] VERY LOW proficiency
GNI and EF English Proficiency Index (2)
USD 102,610
USD 5,370
• [1] Norway [2] VERY HIGH proficiency
• [14] Japan [26] MODERATE proficiency
• [15] Germany [14] HIGH proficiency
• [25] South Korea [24] MODERATE proficiency
• [37] Chile [44] VERY LOW proficiency
• [73] Iraq [60] VERY LOW proficiency
• [84] Thailand [55] VERY LOW proficiency
GNI and EF English Proficiency Index (3)
USD 46,140
USD 46,100
• [1] Norway [2] VERY HIGH proficiency
• [14] Japan [26] MODERATE proficiency
• [15] Germany [14] HIGH proficiency
• [25] South Korea [24] MODERATE proficiency
• [37] Chile [44] VERY LOW proficiency
• [73] Iraq [60] VERY LOW proficiency
• [84] Thailand [55] VERY LOW proficiency
GNI and EF English Proficiency Index (4)
USD 25,920
USD 46,140
Although HIGH INCOME
JAPANESE people are
NOT PROFICIENT
as they should be
Assumption #2
MONEY $ is not the only contributor to
ENGLISH proficiency
• South Korea has same rank• South Korea has lesser GNI by half
• Germany follows Assumption #1• Rich and Fluent
• Germany is better
• Thailand follows Assumption #1• Poor and Nonfluent
Fluent Nonfluent
Assumption #2 (2)
Learner’s environment• Native language
• Society
Japan’s and Thailand’s share some similarities
• Have their own language• Not used elsewhere
• Their 2nd language is English
COMMON SIMILARITIES may affect proficiency
Native Language
Japanese Characters
か
Hiragana
カ
Katakana
漢字
Kanji
• Each character represents a syllable• Syllable = Combination of
• Consonant
• Vowel
• A copy of Hiragana• Borrowed words version
• e.g. EN, DE
• Adopted from Chinese • Each has meaning(s)• Each has pronunciation(s)• Each pronunciation has
Hiragana syllable(s)
わたし 学校ハンバーガーがっ こう
Hiragana and Katakana Character Chart
Source: http://www.saiga-jp.com/japanese_language.html. cited Nov 14, 2014.
Each has 46 characters
Have same syllables
Thai Consonants, Vowels and
Tones
44 consonants
31 vowels
5 tones
Source: http://stujay.com/2010/10/03/12-easy-steps-to-reading-thai. cited Nov 14, 2014.
English Alphabets
• 26 Consonants
• 5 Vowels• A I U E O
• Same as Japanese
• Consonant + Vowel = New sound• Thai Vowels
Source: Student Handouts – Print ManuscriptAlphabet.http://www.studenthandouts.com/01-Web-Pages/Lot-01/Free-Printable-Print-ABCs-Alphabet-for-Kids.html.cited Nov 15, 2014.
Mimicking English Syllable
Sin
English
シンJapanese
ซินThai
Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Sin?s=t
English pronunciations are lost due to
1. Limited set of consonants
2. Limited set of vowels
3. Different final consonant concept
Mimicking English Syllable (2)
Heard
English
ハードJapanese
เฮิร์ดThai
Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/heard?s=t
English pronunciations are lost due to
1. Limited set of consonants
2. Limited set of vowels
3. Different final consonant concept
Mimicking English Syllable (3)
DuckEnglish
ダック
Japanese
ดัก๊Thai
Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/duck
English pronunciations are lost due to
1. Limited set of consonants
2. Limited set of vowels
3. Different final consonant concept
Sentence Building
Subject + Verb + ObjectEnglish
Subject + Object + VerbJapanese
Subject + Verb + ObjectThai
Time-altered Verb
Eat / Ate / Eaten / EatingEnglish
食べる / 食べた / 食べているJapanese
Thai
Language Difficulty Ranking
Source: Voxy – What are the hardest Languages To Learn.https://voxy.com/blog/index.php/2011/03/hardest-languages-infographic/.cited Nov 14,2014.
Vocabulary Building
学生がく せい
= Student = นกัเรียน
大学だい がく
= University = มหาวิทยาลยั
学校がっ こう
= School = โรงเรียน
Katakana Conflict
• Mix of Western languages• English Hamburger ハンバーガー• German Arbeit アルバイト• Portuguese• Dutch• French Café au lait カフェオレ
• Inaccurate syllable trait from Hiragana
• English vocabulary boost on start• Penalize overwriting wrong pronunciations
Source: WikiTravel – Japanese Phrasebook.http://wikitravel.org/en/Japanese_phrasebook.cited Nov 15,2014.
Society
Education Comparison
Japan Thailand
Own Language Japanese Thai
Native Language Used Only in Japan Only in Thailand
2nd Language English English
1st English Class 5th Grade 1st Grade
Main English Teachers Japanese Thai
Teaching Style Teacher-centric Teacher-centric
Main English Usage Examination Examination
Most taken English test TOEIC TOEIC
Social Comparison
Japan Thailand
Exposure to English Speakers Condensed in cities• Tokyo• Yokohama• Osaka• FukuokaTravel destinations• Tokyo• Kyoto
Condensed in cities• Bangkok• ChiangmaiTravel destinations• Bangkok• Pattaya• Phuket
Assertiveness in Public No Yes
Assertiveness in Public to English Speaking Strangers
No No
World Role Heavy industriesResearchTravel
AgricultureAssemblyTravel
Influence Summary
• Native Language• Thai shares a lot of similarities with English• Thai people perform bad• Japanese has a high learning curve• Japanese has Katakana replacing English• Native language does not affect much
• Society• Same education orientation• Chances to speak are limited to popular spots• Don’t take chance to speak English• Different world roles
Conclusion
• Income and English proficiency have correlation
• Native language does not affect learning English
• Social environment affects English skill• Education
• English speaker encountering chance
• Assertiveness
Thank you for your attention