English Language Skills: An In-depth Overview : The English language, often dubbed as the global lingua franca, is an indispensable tool for communication in today’s interconnected world. As with any language, mastery of English demands proficiency in a variety of skills. Let’s delve into the primary English language skills, their importance, and strategies to enhance them.
English Language Skills: An In-depth Overview
I. The Four Pillars of English Language Skills
Listening: The ability to understand spoken English.
Speaking: The ability to communicate orally using English.
Reading: The ability to understand written English texts.
Writing: The ability to produce written content in English.
II. The Importance of Each Skill
1. Listening: Listening is the primary way we receive information. This skill is crucial for:
Understanding Context: Conversations often provide cues about the context in which words or phrases are used, aiding comprehension.
Learning Pronunciation and Intonation: It aids in acquiring the correct pronunciation of words and understanding the rhythm, stress, and intonation of sentences.
2. Speaking: This skill turns our thoughts into audible expressions. Importance includes:
Real-time Communication: Speaking allows for instantaneous feedback, making interactions efficient.
Building Confidence: Effective speakers can articulate their thoughts, participate in debates, and influence others.
3. Reading: It’s our window to vast knowledge. It plays a role in:
Academic and Professional Success: From textbooks to official documents, reading comprehension is pivotal.
Expanding Vocabulary and Understanding Context: Regular reading exposes one to new words and their contextual usage.
4. Writing: It’s how we formally present our thoughts. Importance encompasses:
Documentation: Be it academic essays or business emails, writing effectively ensures clear conveyance of ideas.
Creativity: Writing is a tool for creative expression through stories, poems, or essays.
III. Strategies to Enhance English Language Skills
1. Enhancing Listening Skills
Watch English Content: From movies to podcasts, consuming content in English exposes listeners to diverse accents, vocabulary, and contexts.
Practice Active Listening: Focus on the speaker, avoid distractions, and try to understand the central message.
Engage in Conversations: The more you converse, especially with native speakers, the better your listening skills become.
2. Improving Speaking Skills
Practice: Engage in speaking exercises, like narrating a story or describing a picture. Join English speaking clubs or participate in debates.
Feedback: Ask peers or teachers for feedback on pronunciation, grammar, and fluency.
Use Technology: Apps like Duolingo or Rosetta Stone provide platforms for pronunciation practice.
3. Enhancing Reading Skills
Read Regularly: Be it newspapers, novels, or academic journals, read diversely.
Annotate: While reading, jot down unfamiliar words or phrases. Look them up and try using them in sentences.
Summarize: After finishing a chapter or article, summarize it in your own words. This ensures comprehension.
4. Improving Writing Skills
Write Daily: From maintaining a journal to writing essays, daily practice is key.
Seek Feedback: Share your writings with peers, teachers, or mentors.
Edit and Revise: Writing is a multi-step process. Once done, always review for grammatical errors or areas of improvement.
IV. Challenges in Acquiring English Skills
While many strive to master English, they often face challenges:
Varying Accents: English has diverse accents like American, British, Australian, among others, which might be confusing for learners.
Phrasal Verbs: English has numerous phrasal verbs that can be perplexing, given their varied meanings depending on the context.
Irregularities: English has its share of irregular verbs, silent letters, and exceptions, making it sometimes unpredictable.
Despite these challenges, with consistent effort and the right resources, one can achieve proficiency.
V. The Evolution of English Skills in the Digital Age
The advent of the internet and smartphones has transformed the way we use English. Emojis, GIFs, and memes are now part of our vocabulary. Platforms like Twitter have popularized brevity, and texting lingo (e.g., ‘brb’, ‘lol’) have become an informal norm. While purists might see these as dilutions, they’re just evolutionary steps in language adaptation to our digital age.
Conclusion
English, with its global reach, offers a myriad of opportunities for those proficient in it. Whether it’s advancing in one’s career, accessing knowledge, or connecting with diverse cultures, the language acts as a bridge. By focusing on listening, speaking, reading, and writing, one can navigate the vast seas of English with confidence and finesse. Embrace the journey of learning, and the world will be at your fingertips.
Identifying the Thesis Statement and Topic Sentence | Lesson 2 | Unit 1 | English Language Skills | BEN – 1301
Identifying the Thesis Statement and Topic Sentence
Objectives of the Lesson : After you have studied this lesson you will be able to identify –
the topic of a composition
the thesis statement in a composition
identify the topic sentence in a paragraph.
A.
Read this composition to answer the following questions
Our Secondary English Textbooks
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(1) Secondary English textbooks should be used as a useful aid for teaching and learning English communicatively in our situations. (2) These books, based on a national curriculum, are centrally produced by
National Curriculum and Textbook Board, one for each class, and are followed in all the secondary schools, government and non-government, in the country. (3) The books are reasonably priced so as to enable every
student to buy his/her copy.
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(4) Most of our teachers use, rather overuse, these books, because these are the only teaching materials available to them. (5) Moreover, they are not adequately trained to use any other materials. (6) As a result, most of the lesson activities lack variety and challenge, and as such, they hardly stimulate students to learn. (7) To help our teachers to use the textbooks and other support materials effectively, they should be properly trained.
(8) This is because only trained teachers can best use textbooks, aids, newspapers, magazines or any texts adapted or prepared by themselves or their students, for teaching English for communicative purposes.
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(9) Students can learn the language for communicative use only through practising the basic language skills (i.e., listening, speaking, reading and writing). (10) That is why the lessons of a textbook should include adequate language activities for practising language skills. (11) You can memorise words, sentences or even the entire text of a lesson and then think that you have learned English. (12) But, you are wrong. (13) The words and sentences of a lesson are used to provide suitable contexts for practising language skills. (14) They are the means, not the end.
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(15) Once the students have practised the language skills with the help of a lesson, they should be able to use the skills in real-life situations. (16) A textbook lesson should have tasks and activities which will involve students in communicating with others in English. (17) In other words, the textbook tasks or exercises will be so designed that their practice inside the classroom will lead to language use outside the classroom, i.e., in real life.
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(18) Teacher’s guide should be used to make a lesson effective. (19) The guide will help the teachers with knowledge and techniques of how to make a lesson plan, how to present a word or structure and most importantly how to make the class participatory through pair-work, groupwork, role play, etc. (20) However, teachers should be free to use or adapt the guidelines provided in the teacher’s guide according to the need of the individual classes.
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(21) A multiple-textbook policy should be introduced at the secondary level. (22) That is, instead of a single textbook for a particular class, there should be more than one book. (23) So writers and publishers should be allowed to produce textbooks freely. (24) English teachers should have freedom to choose any book or books which they think would be suitable for their classes. (25) Only then the writers and publishers will compete for
developing quality books.
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(26) Once the teachers have free access to a variety of teaching materials, i.e. textbooks and other support materials suitable for their classes and once they are adequately trained in how to use these materials, they would be able to use them for developing their students’ communicative competence.
Activity – 1
1 What is the composition about ?
2 Identify a sentence in the composition (either underline or rewrite it) which tells what the whole composition is about.
3 In each paragraph identify one sentence that tells what the paragraph is about.
B.
If you want to write an essay or article, first of all, you have a subject in mind. Then you think about the subject, its various aspects, functions, etc., gather information/data and finally you get down to writing the essay. This subject about which you are writing the essay or article is its topic.
So, the topic of a composition just means the subject of the composition.
Whether a topic is broad or limited depends on the length of the article you are planning to write. Look at the topic of our article: “Our Secondary English Textbooks”.
B 1.
Can you think about any differences between these topics ?
1 Textbooks
2 English textbooks
3 Secondary English textbooks
4 Our secondary English textbooks
No 1 is too broad a subject to be dealt with within the space used for the article, because it includes textbooks for all subjects at all levels of education.
No 2 is still broad and general, because all English textbooks for all grades have to be dealt with.
No 3 is quite limited in scope, but yet it could be secondary English textbooks of any country in general.
No 4 is precisely limited to what can be dealt with easily in the space available.
You have perhaps noticed that a topic can be expressed in a single word (War, Peace, etc..) or in a phrase (e.g. Civil Society, Safe Drinking Water, etc.).
C.
Read the article again and identify a sentence that tells what the entire article is about. This sentence you are going to identify best expresses the subject of the whole composition and is called a thesis statement.
The thesis statement is usually made in the first paragraph. It is clearly written as part of the introduction. Only the idea in your thesis statement and other ideas, facts, etc. related to the idea of the thesis statement should be included and dealt with in your composition.
Now, there are three sentences in paragraph 1. Only sentence 1 expresses clearly how our secondary English textbooks have to be used and for what purpose. Sentences 2 and 3 only give us other facts (e.g. how and for whom these books are produced and why they are not expensive). These facts are related to the main idea expressed in sentence 1. So, sentence 1 is the thesis statement of the entire composition.
D.
A paragraph contains a unit of thought or idea which is expressed in several or many sentences. The topic sentence in a paragraph tells what the paragraph is about. It expresses the main idea which is developed in the paragraph.
A good topic sentence uses key words which you can develop in the paragraph. It is usually a positive statement. For example :
My family members do not like fast foods.
(a bad topic sentence)
My family members avoid fast foods.
(a good topic sentence)
A topic sentence can be put anywhere in the paragraph.
Considering the above-mentioned characteristics of a topic sentence, you can check your answers to section B with the following clues.
Paragraph 1
Sentence 1 has key words like English textbooks, teaching, learning, communicatively, situations. Remember, sentence 1 states the main idea of the entire composition. And it also states the main idea of paragraph 1.
Paragraph 2
Sentence 7 expresses the main idea of training teachers in order to enable them to use the textbooks and other support materials effectively. Other sentences in the paragraph justify this statement by telling that teachers are not properly trained and most of them do not have access to even such simple teaching materials as newspapers, magazines, etc.
Paragraph 3
See how the idea in sentence 9 has been supported by, and developed through, the remaining sentences of the paragraph.
Paragraph 4
Sentence 15 indicates why students should be able to use the language skills in real-life situations after they have practised the language skills (clue: communicate). Sentence 16 tells us what will help them to
communicate with others in English. (clue: tasks and activities in a lesson).
Sentence 17 further explains the idea of sentence 16.
Paragraph 5
Sentence 18 gives the key idea of the need of teacher’s guide for the effective use of a textbook. Sentence 19 tells us how a teacher’s guide can help effective teaching, while sentence 20 informs how a teacher should use the guide.
Paragraph 6
The idea of multiple-textbook policy is expressed in sentence 21. Sentence 22 explains the policy. Sentence 23 tells us what we should do to implement the policy. Sentence 24 points out what teachers should do under the policy. Sentence 25 connects teachers’ role (sentence 24) with the development of quality textbooks.
Paragraph 7
It has only one sentence (sentence 26) that concludes the composition, saying that if a variety of teaching materials are available and if the teachers are trained, they would be able to develop their students’ communicative competence.
E.
Organisation of the article
The article ‘Our Secondary English Textbooks’ has seven paragraphs. The introductory paragraph begins the composition with the thesis statement. This thesis statement has been developed in the following five paragraphs
(2-6). The last paragraph (paragraph 7) restates the thesis in different words and gives a conclusion to the general idea expressed of the article in the thesis statement. Look at the organisation of the article in the following table:
Activity – 2
1 Which topic do you think would be most appropriate for writing a very short article ?
a Floods
b The 1998 floods in your area
c Floods in Bangladesh
d The 1998 floods in Bangladesh
2 Which do you think is the best thesis statement for a 2-3 page article? Justify your answer by explaining the scope of each statement.
a Rice is the staple diet in many countries of the world including Bangladesh.
b Rice production and modern agricultural technology.
c You will remain slim if you don’t eat too much rice.
d Rice is our staple product.
3 A topic sentence
a explains the topic of a composition.
b introduces the main idea of the composition.
c states the main idea of a paragraph.
d always introduces a paragraph.
Explanatory Notes
useful aid something such as a machine or tool that helps someone do something
teaching and learning English communicatively teaching and learning English in such a way that the learners can express their ideas and understand other’s too.
centrally produced NCTB produces books for the whole country that means NCTB produces books centrally.
reasonably priced not very expensive; the price which one can afford
adequately trained having enough training
variety different types of things
challenge something that tests strength, skill, or ability especially in an interesting way; for example, I like my job to be a challenge
…….most of the lesson activities lack variety and challenge most of the activities are boring
…..through practising the basic language skills If the learners do activities related to basic language skills, i.e. reading, writing, listening and speaking skills they will have the ability to use the language for communicative use.
entire text whole text
The words and sentences of a lesson ….…They are the means, not the end If the learners can use the words and sentences of a lesson as tools to make the activities, they can learn both language and practise language
skills.
real-life situations actual situations where people have to deal with
participatory a way of involving everyone in an activity/task
a multiple –textbook policy a policy that will permit including many textbooks for each class.
compete for try to be more successful than another person or organization; for example, Several companies are competing for the contract
access to the right to have something; for example, Students must have access to a good library
competence the ability to do; for example, No one doubts her competence as a teacher.
MCQ
1. A thesis statement expresses
a. the subject of the whole composition
b. the subject of the 1st paragraph
c. the main idea of the last paragraph
d. the topic of a composition
Identifying Texts and Topics | Lesson 1 | Unit 1 | English Language Skills | BEN – 1301
Identifying Texts and Topics
Objectives of the Lesson :
After you have studied this lesson you will be able to –
identify a text, i.e., say whether the text is taken from a story, a newspaper, a letter, a brochure, an advertisement, and so on.
identify the topic of a text.
A.
Read the following six extracts. Think about the sources they have been taken from and then write the names of the sources (e.g. a newspaper, a letter, etc.).
2.
There was once an old king who had three daughters.
One day he called them one by one and said,
“How much do you love me, darling ?”
3.
New Authors
Do you want to publish your work?
We consider all subjects :
Fiction, Non-fiction, Biography,
Religions, Poetry, Children’s . . .
Send your manuscripts to :
Academy Publishers
38/B Banglabazar, Dhaka
4.
The government will build Shanti Nibash (peace homes) for the old people in country’s six divisional headquarters, reports APB.
5.
I have read your advertisement for the post of Assistant Manager in The Daily Star yesterday and would like to apply for the post.
6.
In the past people did not have any clear idea about the size and nature of the universe. They believed that the earth was flat and stationary, and the sun, the moon and the planets moved round the earth.
Activity:
1. Match the above paragraphs with the descriptions given below. Just write the number of a paragraph in the right blank.
a ———— a job application
b ———— a newspaper advertisement
c ———— a tourism brochure
d ———— an article
e ———— a story
f ———— a news item
2. Here are six topics. Read the extracts in section A again and decide which topic goes with which extract.
1) The old king and his daughters
2) The old concept of the universe
3) Wanted – Assistant Manager
4) A tourist attraction
5) Homes for the old
6) Good news for the new authors
3. Here are four extracts. Read them and write the sources they are taken from and the topics that go with them :
(1)
Evening session:
3:00 Opening announcement, Recitation from Al-Quran
3:10 Recitation from The Bible
3:15 Patriotic song
3:20 Cartoon film: Bananas in Pajamas
3:45 Programme on nutrition
4:00 Khabar
4:05 Aamar Thikana
4:30 Open University.
(2)
The history of the development of transport shows how people have been trying from pre-historic times to use more and more advanced types of transport, thereby replacing gradually the traditional means of carrying men and goods.
(3)
Two apartments at plot 25, Road 68A, Gulshan 2, each measuring 2000 sq. ft. on furnished or unfurnished basis including air-cooler, are ready for immediate occupation. Each apartment has three bed rooms with attached. baths, living, dining, family living, kitchen and maid’s room with bath, spacious veranda facing south and a reserved car park. There is provision for emergency power supply and full time security.
Please contact:
Dr. A Rahman
Phone : 607306
(4)
Alam Khan : May I speak to Mr Chowdhury, please? This is Alam Khan.
Secretary : I’m sorry, Mr Chowdhury is away at a conference in Chittagong.
Alam Khan : When will he be available?
Secretary : He’ll be back Thursday afternoon.
Alam Khan : Oh! I really need to talk to him urgently. Could you help me?
Secretary : I’ll try, Mr Khan.
Alam Khan : I sent you an order five weeks ago and the goods have not arrived yet.
Explanatory Notes:
pleasant drive nice and enjoyable trip in a car ringed with surrounded by evergreen a tree or bush which never loses its leaves tropical forest forest in the hottest part of the world sight seeing the act of visiting famous or interesting places as tourists rowing the activity of making a boat move through water by using oars publish to arrange the writing, production of a book, magazine etc. fiction books and stories about imaginary people and events non fiction books, articles etc. about real events, not imaginary biography an account of a person’s life written by someone else universe all space, including all the stars and planets stationary standing still instead of moving; static
ANSWER KEY (for activity 1 & 2)
1.
a. 5 _____ a job application
b. 3 _____ a newspaper advertisement
c. 1 _____ a tourism brochure
d. 6 _____ an article
e. 2 _____ a story
f. 4 _____ a news item
2.
1) The topic, ‘The old King and his daughters’ goes with the 2nd extract.
2) The topic, ‘The old concept of the universe’ goes with the 6th extract.
3) The topic, ‘Wanted –Assistant Manager’ goes with the 5th extract.
4) The topic, ‘A tourism attraction’ goes the 1st extract.
5) The topic, ‘Home for the old’ goes with the 4th extract.
6) The topic, ‘Good news for the new authors’ goes with the 3rd extract.
English Language Skills Textbook | Bachelor of Arts(BA) / Bachelor of Social Sciences (BSS) Programme
School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Languages
Bangladesh Open University
Gazipur – 1705
BEN – 1301
English Language Skills Textbook
School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Languages
Bangladesh Open University
Gazipur – 1705
This study material is prepared by M. Shamsul Hoque (Former ELT Adviser, SSHL, BOU), Dr. Salma Ainy (Associate Professor, SSHL, BOU), Syed Mazharul Islam (IUB, Dhaka) and Meherun Nesa (Former Assistant Professor, SSHL, BOU), and edited by Hasibul Haque (Former Assistant Professor, SSHL, BOU), Mustafizur Rahman (Former Professor, Open School, BOU), Dr. Selina Akhter Jahan (Former Associate Professor, SSHL BOU)
Dean, SSHL
Writers:
M Shamsul Hoque | Former ELT Adviser, SSHL, BOU
Dr. Salma Ainy | Associate Professor of English, SSHL, BOU
Syed Mazharul Islam | IUB, Dhaka
Supplementation:
Meherun Nesa | Assistant Professor, SSHL, BOU
Editors:
Hasibul Haque | Former Assistant Professor, SSHL, BOU
Dr. Salma Ainy | Associate Professor, SSHL, BOU
Supplementation Editors:
Professor Mustafizur Rahman
Dr. Selina AKhtar Jahan | Associate Professor, SSHL BOU
School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Languages
Bachelor of Arts (BA) / Bachelor of Social Sciences (BSS) Programme
(All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without prior permission of the Bangladesh Open University)
Instructional Designing
Dr. Salma Ainy
Hasibul Haque
Illustration & Cover Design
Masud Mahmood Mallick
Cover Graphics
Abdul Malek
Computer Graphics, DTP & Composition
Md. Abul Kalam Azad
Shapon Kumar Das
Publisher:
Publishing, Printing & Distribution Division
Bangladesh Open University
Gazipur – 1705
To the Student
Dear Student,
BEN 1301 : English Language Skills has been introduced as a compulsory General Education course of BA/BSS Programme. The course has been designed to help you learn English Language in a way which will fulfill your communicative and academic needs. We have a sincere effort to present the book in a self instructional way so that you can follow the lessons easily.
This course is worth of 3 credits and each credit contains materials worth of 15 hours self study and 10-15 hours additional activities, such as doing intext activities, consulting references, following radio and tv programmes, attending tutorial sessions, discussing with tutor and course-mates and so on. That means the students are expected to spend 75 – 90 hours for completing the whole course.
Unit 1 with the title “Reading Texts Thematically and Linguistically” deals with the topics, such as identifying texts, topics and thesis statements, extracting main ideas from the texts, summarising, dealing with new vocabulary, reading charts and graphs, predicting, understanding writer’s purpose or intention, making notes and using a dictionary.
Unit 2, deals with writing notes, paragraphs, letters, dialogues, reports, accounts and summary. There is the answer Key section at the end of almost each lesson.
Unit 3 deals with “Communicative Grammar”. The topics covered in this Unit are—talking about the present, past and future, talking about abilities and possibilities, wishes and chances, describing processes, using reported
speech and articles, and making reference to people and objects. There are a number of activities in each lesson. Do the activities first and then check your answers with the ‘Answer Key’ where provided. Moreover, you can get sufficient clues from the text for your answer, or in some cases may wish to consult your tutor and compare your answer with those of your course-mates.
As you go through the lessons, you may come across a number of unfamiliar words, terms and expressions. Try to get the meaning from the context and also use a standard English to English dictionary. If you have any difficulty in understanding any part of this book, make notes to discuss them in the tutorial sessions. This may help you understand better. Nevertheless, please remember, you are always welcome to contact us, the faculty of SSHL, BOU, whenever you need to discuss something essential.
In the present edition of the book a good number of ‘Explanatory Notes’ ‘Answer Key’ and ‘Multiple Choice Questions’ have been added to all of the three Units. It must be mentioned that the whole work of supplementation has been done to fit the book for the principles of Open and Distance Learning (ODL) and hence to increase the student’s comprehension. This part has been prepared by the course co-ordinator.
Best of Luck
(Course Coordinator)
Contents:
Unit 1 : Reading Texts Thematically and Linguistically
Lesson 1 : Identifying Texts and Topics
Lesson 2 : Identifying the Thesis Statement and Topic Sentence
Lesson 3 : Extracting Main Ideas
Lesson 4 : Summarising
Lesson 5 : Dealing with New Vocabulary-1
Lesson 6 : Dealing with New Vocabulary-2
Lesson 7 : Reading Charts and Graphs
Lesson 8 : Predicting
Lesson 9 : Understanding the Writer’s Purpose or Intention
Lesson 10 : Making Notes
Lesson 11 : Using a Dictionary
Lesson 1 : Talking about the Present
Lesson 2 : Talking about the Past
Lesson 3 : Talking about the Future
Lesson 4 : Talking about Possibilities and Abilities
Lesson 5 : Talking about Chances and Wishes
Lesson 6 : Describing Processes and how Things are done
Lesson 7 : Reported Speech
Lesson 8 : Generalising and Specifying : Articles
Lesson 9 : Making references to People, and Objects using relative pronouns – who/which/that
Learning English, English Speaking, English Language, English Prose, English Poetry, English Dictionary
