How quickly can you learn English?
你多快能學好英語？
Hello I’m Rob. Welcome to 6 Minute English. I’m joined today by Finn. Hello Finn.
大家好，我是Rob。歡迎收聽六分鐘英語節目，今天我的搭檔是Finn。你好，Finn。
Hello Rob.
你好Rob。
Today we’re talking about something we have some expertise in or knowledge about. That’s teaching English.
今天我們討論我們專業技能或知識有關的事情。就是教英語。
That’s right Rob. We work on the BBC’s Learning English website - hopefully giving people around the world a helping hand in learning a language that isn’t the one they normally use.
Rob你說的對。我們致力於BBC學習英語網站-希望給世界各地非英語常用語言的人們學習英語提供幫助。
Well hopefully we’re about to make that learning journey a bit easier as we launch a brand new online course. But how long does it take someone to become a fluent speaker of English?
我們推出全新的在線課程，希望使學習過程變得更加容易。但是說一口流利的英語需要多長時間呢？
Well, a good question Rob and one we』ll try to answer today. We』ll also be discussing some general ways to make learning English easier and explaining some learning-related vocabulary along the way. So let’s get started Rob.
Rob問得好，今天我們將儘量回答這個問題。我們也會討論使英語學習變容易的一些常用方法，同時講解一些學習相關的詞彙。我們開始吧，Rob。
OK, hold your horses Finn – not so fast! I have a question to ask you first. According the last UK census taken in 2011, what percentage of the British population speaks a first language that is not English? a)1.7%, b)7.7%, or c)14.7%?
稍等Finn，別急！首先，我有個問題要問你。根據2011年的英國人口普查，第一語言不是英語的英國人口比例是多少？a)1.7%，b)7.7%，還是c)14.7%？
That’s an interesting one. My first guess is c) 14.7%.
真是個有趣的問題，我猜是c)14.7%。
We』ll find out if you’re right or wrong later on. So now we can discuss how learning English is getting easier.Of course there are a huge number of publications – books, leaflets and magazines – that can help teach you but there are those people who say that you can’t beat the real thing – a teacher. Someone who can explain a language to you face-to-face.
稍後我們找出你的答案是否正確。現在我們可以討論學習英語怎樣才能變得越來越容易。當然，有很多的書、小冊子和雜誌有助於你學英語，但是有些人說你需要一個老師。一個可以跟你面對面解釋語言的人。
Indeed but that comes at a cost and isn’t always practical – you might not have a school nearby. That’s why in the 21st Century, online seems to be the main method of learning. Technology is allowing the English language to come to you!
是的，但是這要花不少錢，而且不一定實際，你的附近不一定有學校。這也是在21世紀網絡學習似乎是學習的主要方法的原因。技術實現了英語來到你身邊。
That’s true and that’s why we』ve launched a brand new English course that’s available on a computer, tablet or mobile phone. It’s aimed at intermediate learners and charts a pathway through the various aspects of the language.
確實是這樣，我們開發了可以在電腦、平板或手機上使用的全新英語課程。課程針對中級學習者，通過語言的各個方面制定方法。
We hope that by committing around 15 minutes a day to using it, a learner will see a real improvement in their English knowledge and skill. But as well as using the resources available online, how else can someone help themselves to get a better grasp – a better understanding - of English?
我們希望通過每天花大約15分鐘，學習者會看到他們的英語知識和技能確實在進步。但是，通過網上提供的資源，學習者如何能更好的掌握－更好的理解-英語？
Well, if someone wants to become a confident speaker of English, trainer Richard Hallows has some tips. Have a listen and see if you can hear what are the two main aspects of English that you need.
如果有人想成為一個說英語自信的人，教練Richard Hallows有一些建議。聽一聽，看你是否聽到你需要的英語的兩個主要方面。
Most importantly, you』ve got to have?a a good range of vocabulary and grammar. You need to know lots of words, the more words you know the better, obviously. And similarly with grammar, the more grammar you have the better you can explain yourself. We also need to think about pronunciation - learners of English often worry about speaking like a native speaker… it’s not necessary to have a native accent?
最重要的是，你必須掌握大量的詞彙和語法。你需要學會很多單詞，很明顯，知道的單詞越多越好。語法也一樣，你掌握的的語法越多，表達越容易。我們也需要考慮發音-英語學習者常常擔心發音是否地道，必須要發音地道嗎？
OK, so Richard says you need a good range – or a wide variety - of vocabulary and grammar. The more words you know the more you can say – and the more grammar you know, the better you can say it…
好的，Richard說你需要掌握大量不同的詞彙和語法。你知道的單詞越多，能說的就越多，你知道的語法越多，你說的越好…
Or even write it! One other tip is don’t try to sound like a native – so someone who speaks English as a first language. All these are things we aim to cover in our new course.
或寫的越好！另一個技巧是你不需要像第一語言是英語的人那樣地道的發音。這些是我們新課程中要講解的內容。
Our new course might be a big help to you if you need English for your work, or if you’re studying in English, or if you’re planning to visit or even live in the UK. The British government expects immigrants to reach ESOL Entry 3 or B1 level, before they can be granted citizenship. It’s equivalent to being able to hold a reasonably confident basic conversation.
如果你的工作需要使用英語、你在學習英語，或者你打算去英國旅遊甚至在英國生活，我們的新課程或許能給你很大的幫助。英國政府希望外來移民達到英國英語三級或者B1，才給予他們公民身份。這等於能夠進行合理自信的基本對話。
Well in the UK it’s estimated that you need around 360 hours of study to get to that stage from not knowing any English at all. But this depends on a number of factors such as motivation – how much you want to learn.
在英國，從不懂英語到這個水平，估計你大約需要360個小時的學習。但這取決於許多因素，如動機 － 你想要學多少。
And age can be a factor. Some experts say it’s common for children under the age of 11 to be very immersed and be fluent in English in about six months. But why should someone choose to learn English? This is something we』ve been asking you on our Facebook page.
年齡也是一個因素。一些專家說，通常11歲以下兒童非常投入並能在大約六個月時間內說一口流利的英語。但是，為什麼應該學英語呢？這個問題我們在Facebook問過你們。
Oussama says: "It’s like my passport. You need it wherever you go."
Oussama說，它像我的護照，無論走到哪裡都需要。
Suzuki says: "It is an international communication tool."
Suzuki："它是國際上的交流工具。"
Ha thinks it’s: "The key to getting a good job with a high salary."
Ha認為：「這是找到高薪好工作的關鍵。」
Denis says: "It’s the language that opens doors overseas." Thanks for all of your messages.
Denis說：「是語言打開了國外的大門。」感謝你們的信息。
But now Rob, I need to know if I got today’s question right.
但是，Rob，我想知道今天回答的問題是否正確。
Yes. I asked you, according the last UK census taken in 2011, what percentage of the British population speaks a first language that is not English?
好的，我問你的問題是根據2011年英國人口普查，英國人口中第一語言不是英語的人口比例是多少？
I said 14.7%.
我說的是14.7%。
You were wrong. The census found 7.7% per cent of people in the UK have a first language that is not English. That’s 4.2 million people.
你回答錯了，普查發現第一語言不是英語的英國人佔7.7%。也就是4,200,000人。
Well, that’s it for today. Don’t forget to check our new website at bbclearningenglish.com. Happy learning, bye!
好吧，今天就講這些，別忘了瀏覽我們的新網站bbclearningenglish.com。學習愉快！
Bye.
再見。