A Swiss Teenager's English Immersion Experience

For the month of July, Laney, the 16-year-old daughter of a close friend, came to visit us on her own. She had one request: Please, speak only English with me. At the end of July, we sat down for a brief interview to talk about her month-long English immersion experience here in the US.

Laney lives in a French-speaking town in Switzerland. She has a very good knowledge of school English. She also came with a lot of enthusiasm. I also asked her about the progress she felt she had made. (This is not a photo of Laney.)

Tell me a little about yourself:

I am 16, and maybe in what you call grade 11 in the US. My native language is French, but I go to a French-German bilingual school and also speak German. I love reading and running.

Are you a shy person?

Depends on the person I'm with, sometimes I'm more and sometimes less extrovert or introvert. At home I'm medium.

What is your background in English?

Oh, English was always there. I started in English day care. We did songs and little games. In primary school, I had English for six years as a subject, but also private lessons and group lessons.

For English classes in my school now, we read literature, do grammar exercises and speaking exercises. Our teacher speaks German as a native language, but never uses German or French in class. His English has an American accent because he went to university in the US.

Literature: We read books, do quizzes about the story. We discuss what we think about it, share opinions and write essays about philosophical questions. For example, we read The Giver by Lois Lowry. We looked at the film. And as a project, the class had to create a film about it.

Grammar: We have grammar books with homework exercises to practice. The teacher goes fast over the topics. I think grammar is helpful. But sometimes you need to search for more rules to understand it. Rules help at the beginning. But when you talk you can't think. It just sounds right because you said it so often.

Speaking: We do presentations and the teacher makes us speak a lot. In class he puts us into groups to debate topics and questions, why you like something, and why you don't.

What has improved the most for you with the English immersion here in the US?

Just to be in the US has improved my English a lot. Especially conversations. I was forced to understand what other people said and I needed to speak so that they can understand.

In class at home, students don't use the words that people use in conversations here. Actually, I often feel that my classmates don't really like English. They have a French accent, can't seem to get off it. Native German speakers have a better accent in English. The French really hang on to their French accents! Maybe they think it's charming?

I listen a lot to podcasts and audio books but the language is also different from conversations.

What has been the most difficult about English here?

The most difficult thing? Making mistakes. I say something, then I hear that it's a mistake, but I can't take it back. I've said it!

Mistakes that I do the most: not get the ending right for the 3rd person, to add the -s. That is really hard for me. I often just don't do it.

Any words or expressions that you found especially puzzling?

Yes, there are a few things that people said and I could not figure out:

> Something is "low key". (meaning, relaxed, not stressed)
> That's "101". (meaning, introductory, beginning level)
> The question, what's your "ETA"? (meaning, estimated time of arrival)
> Someone would be talking, and then say "Period." (meaning, definitely, that's final)
> The difference between "grapes" and "raisins". In French we use "raisins" for "grapes".

What has been the easiest for you during your English immersion here in the US?

I don't need to make a big effort to speak, I just did it. Well, I like English better than French. That is about using the language. For me: when you say something in English it sounds better. French is good when you write and so, but English is a friendlier language.

Did you notice customs that are different from home?

Yes, people are friendlier. It's easier to have contact at the beginning. We spent most of the month in a mountain village with tennis courts, a pond for swimming, restaurants with an outside terrace.

So it was easy to meet others my age. But when I thought I made plans to get together with a girl my age, she didn't show up. This happened twice, with two different people. If you do that in Switzerland it is really bizarre. So I don't know.

Restaurants: The Caesar salad in the US is different. For example, in Switzerland, you automatically get the chicken, here you have to pay more for it.

Shopping: When you shop clothes, they have candy at the check out, even at clothing stores like Old Navy and Primark. Not in Switzerland. The supermarkets have a lot of processed food, so many more here than in Switzerland. We know that, it's not surprising.

Why are you learning English?

I like language, I like to speak in other countries without using my phone or a translation app. Maybe I'll study in the US later.

It's good for our brain plasticity to switch between languages. I like to do a little bit of everything. Mathematics, music, languages, they are different skills. I like all of them, they are fun.

This was my first time really immersed in English. Two weeks are short to be immersed. One month is pretty good. There are days that are better than others. There were days when I made so many mistakes. But you learn that way too.

Any advice for language learners?

Do lists of expressions of words that are more difficult. Use a little notebook. Put the list on your phone. Talk with people. I managed to get together with people my age, that made it fun and interesting.

Thank you, Laney! So, you're flying back home tomorrow. We're going to miss you! Have good flight!