The government ___ decided ...: HAVE or HAS?

Today I got asked a question that has been asked again and again: Should we use plural or singular verb with words like "the government"?

Below is the answer taken from ESL Forums. I think their answer is totally adequate, so I don't have to add anything here.

Enjoy!
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The government have (or has?) decided to do something about pollution.

In English, we often use singular nouns that refer to groups of people (eg government, committee, team) as if they were plural. This is less true in US English.

This is because we often think of the group as people, doing things that people do (eating, wanting, feeling etc).

In such cases, we use:

- plural verb
- plural pronoun (they)
- who (not which)

Here are some examples:

- The committee want sandwiches for lunch. They aren't very hungry.
- My family, who don't see me often, have asked me home.
- The team hope to win next time.

Here are some examples of words and expressions that can be considered singular or plural:

choir, class, club, committee, company, family, government, jury, school, staff, team, union

the BBC, board of directors, the Conservative Party, Manchester United, the Ministry of Health

But when we consider the group as an impersonal unit, we use singular verbs and pronouns:

- The new company is the result of a merger.
- The average family consists of four people.
- The committee, which was formed in 1983, has ceased to exist.

Nguồn: http://www.englishclub.com/esl-forums/viewtopic.php?t=27288

"John is the tallest ___ all my friends" (AMONG or OF?)

I received a grammar question in one of the comments. The verbatim comment is below:

Cô Phương Anh mến, một giáo viên Anh văn bảo chúng tôi không được nói/viết "John is the tallest AMONG my friends", mà phải dùng OF thay vì AMONG, trong khi chúng tôi cho là được. Vậy cô Phương Anh có thể cho biết ý kiến của cô không; rất cám ơn cô. Chúc cô vui khỏe.


Actually this is one of the frequently asked questions (FAQs) about English grammar whose answer can be found on the Internet. Below are some questions and answers on the same grammar point that I've  just found:

Question

"Marvin is the tallest among/of all." Do both among and of fit in the above? Thanks.

Answer

If you really want to know the truth, search at Google
on the BBC and the New York sites. You can do that by searching for:
site:bbc.co.uk "tallest of all"
(everything in the above must go into the Search box, in order to identify the site searched)
site:bbc.co.uk "tallest among all"
site:bbc.co.uk "tallest amongst all"
site:nytimes.com "tallest of all"
site:nytimes.com "tallest among all"

http://www.englishforums.com/English/MarvinTallestAmong/zxpmr/post.htm

Now, here is my answer: both are acceptable. Following are a few examples with "among", taken from Google:

The best among us will learn from the mistakes of the past, while the rest of us are doomed to repeat them.
Who is the tallest member among B.A.P members?
Sinbad is the tallest among all the brothers.

More new words that may not be recognisable, but sure they are real English words!

The new words that I chose to introduce to you today are all (more or les) related to the family. Don't know why, maybe I've been away from home so much that I feel a kind of nostalgia ... Hmm, no good at all, huh?

 dadpreneur noun a man who creates a business connected with fatherhood

An idea that started with a cut-out creation from an old wetsuit, for his newborn daughter, has turned into an award-winning, international success for Cambridge based ‘dadpreneur’, Paul Brown.

mumblogger noun a mother who blogs about topics of interest to other mothers

A large number of mumbloggers – mothers who write blogs – are meeting in the flesh, at Moorgate in London.

down-ageing noun the practice of pretending that you are younger than you are

Celebrities, of course, are the biggest culprits of down-ageing.
[Grazia (UK celebrity magazine) 30.05.11]

granny tax noun informal a proposed tax on pensioners designed to help to pay for care of the elderly

Pensioners were told yesterday they could be hit with a ‘granny tax’ to fund their long term care.
[Daily Mirror (UK tabloid) 05 July 2011]

babymoon noun a vacation taken by a couple who are expecting their first child

We went to Italy and to Hawaii – we had our honeymoon and our babymoon.

Like them? Well, you can always go look for more on Cambridge Dictionaries Online Blog. The link is here: http://dictionaryblog.cambridge.org.

Enjoy!

"7 things your quiet ESL students don't tell you"

Hi there!

I haven't been writing on this blog for quite a while. Been busy, you know. Also, nothing interesting seems to be happening in the English learning and teaching world any more. Maybe it's me myself: I am really getting old I guess.

But today I found an article worth sharing. The title caught my attention, and when I read the article, it was so true! I am sure any teacher would agree with the article. So here it is, for you to read and think about those quiet students when you teach.

Enjoy!
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Link: http://busyteacher.org/12900-what-quiet-esl-students-are-not-telling-you.html

7 Things Your Quiet ESL Students Are Not Telling You

Isn’t it great when we have ESL students who are very vocal about their needs?

They arrive to their first day of class, tell you all about their English-learning background and describe what they hope to accomplish. When they don’t understand, they tell you. If you’re going too fast, they ask you to slow down. If only all ESL students were like that…

By contrast, we are sometimes met with a quiet room full of blank stares. How do you know what’s going on in their heads if they don’t say anything? If you have students who are too quiet, chances are there is something they are not telling you, which you’ll need to find out – fast!

Important Things Your Students Are Not Telling You:

1. 1

   I’m hearing too many new words.

   Do you give your students long lists of vocabulary words or do you introduce new vocab in digestible sets of five to six words? When you give them instructions, do you use words they may not understand? Students who are too shy or don’t want to be disrespectful may not tell you they did not understand half of what you said or the story you read. Make sure you introduce new vocabulary as appropriate, i.e. before reading a story or giving instructions for a new task. Check for comprehension of the new words, and only then proceed with the task.
2. 2

   It’s too hard for me to do this on my own. Can I work with a classmate?

   Some students are overwhelmed by an exercise or task, and would feel much more comfortable working with another student. Don’t underestimate the value of pair work or team work. Lots of students enjoy it and thrive in this type of task. Of course, not all tasks should be completed in pairs or teams. But they shouldn’t have to do everything on their own, either.
3. 3

   Please don’t put me on the spot.

   Some students love being in the spotlight, the center of attention. Others would prefer to blend into the wallpaper. If you believe a student in particular is having a hard time with an exercise or task, or if they can’t answer a question, don’t insist in front of the entire class. Check back with the student at the end of class to make sure he/she understood.
4. 4

   Please, be patient with me. I’m trying my best.

   You’ve probably seen this happen. A student says he/she does not understand something, and you explain. The student still does not understand, so you re-phrase and try again. The student still does not understand. Under no circumstances must we lose our patience. You try by all means possible to help the student grasp whatever it is he or she is having trouble grasping, and if they still don’t, you set a moment to talk about it, perhaps after class.
5. 5

   I need some time to think before I answer.

   Some people don’t like long silences or pauses, and ESL teachers are no different. But sometimes students don’t answer questions as quickly as we’d like them to. The question dangles in the air, and if the student takes too long, we either answer it ourselves or ask another student to do it. Some students need time to think. Give them a few extra seconds, and then perhaps a clue or a nudge to steer them in the right direction.
6. 6

   I don’t care about “Mr. Smith” from the book. This is boring!

   Nine out of ten times when students are bored, they are bored with the coursebook. But they might not tell you that. They are not interested in some fictional character’s conversations with his boss or family. Though we should use a coursebook in class, sometimes it’s best to adjust it and adapt it to better suit our students’ interests.
7. 7

   I don’t understand your handwriting.

   Students take forever to copy from the board and whisper amongst themselves while they do so.You don’t know that what they are whispering is, “What does question number 2 say?” Some students struggle with your handwriting, but they won’t tell you that. Instead of guessing, it’s far easier to just ask, “Is my writing clear? Let me know if you can read it all.” Try switching from cursive to print handwriting. For longer exercises, you might want to consider giving them copies – it certainly saves time.

Let’s bear in mind that cultural differences may come into play. In some cultures students are taught to respect their teacher, and they don’t want to offend. In others, it is not accustomed for students to make eye contact with their instructor.

Students are also different throughout the world. Some are naturally talkative; others are timid and shy. Whatever the reason for your students keeping quiet, just make sure it’s not due to the ones mentioned above!

 Have you ever had an unnaturally quiet class or student? What did you identify to be the problem? Share below! 

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About the author

Claudia has been an ESL teacher for 20 years and has taught a wide variety of students from pre-schoolers to senior citizens, complete beginners to advanced students. This vast teaching experience has helped her write over 100 articles for BusyTeacher.org. When she is not teaching, she is also a freelance travel writer contributing reviews for V!VA Travel Guides' upcoming Uruguay edition, as well as travel articles and blog posts for a variety of online publications. She is currently living in Buenos Aires, Argentina with her spunky 7-year old daughter and crabby 10-year old cat, Ulysses.

Useful website for ESL teachers

I came across this website when searching for articles about ESP and CLIL. It is really useful for professional development of ESL teachers.  It contains a lot of things that a teacher may need: Teaching tips; Lesson plans; and a Newsletter with articles about English language teaching in the world. Really useful, and free!

The website, however, looks a bit complicated and hard to navigate. But once you have become familiar with it, everything should be fine. One tip: Look at your right side column for the things you need. Forget the front of the webpage; you can never sort out what is there.

Here goes the link to the website: http://www.developingteachers.com/. I hope it's of use to you all.

"Pain in the English"

"Pain in the English" is the name of an interesting and useful website for English learners. I came across it today when I searched the Internet for answers to the question of why "according to me" sounds odd in English, even though we can say "according to her/him/them" and it is perfect English.

The answer provided on the website "Pain in the English" (URL: http://painintheenglish.com/) is detailed and clear. But I should not spoil it for you; better go there and check for yourself.

I am sure you can find tons of other useful answers for your questions about English usage.

Hope you like it. Enjoy!

Genki English: A revolution in English language teaching in Japan?

I came across this website while looking for things to read about teaching English at primary school level.

First time I heard something like that! But to tell you the truth, I was amazed! Things look so simple, but also, it is convincing. Yes, the truth is simple. Children learn by playing. So if you structure your lesson in a game or a song, then you are successful.

Go there and check for yourself. It's here. Genki English is the word!