How to improve comprehension and comprehensibility

English as a Second Language What do you want to talk about?
1

Hi Everybody,

How can one improve the comprehension (understanding the native speaker) and comprehensibility (making the native speaker understand you) of non native speaker.

The problem with comprehesnion originates from inability to understand the acent of native speakers and also inablility to understand the english usage (grammar, idioms, vocabulary) of native speakers.

Similarly the problem with comprehensibility (intelligibility) originates from improper pronunciation/accent and improper english usage (grammar, vocabulary).

What strategy should one adopt and which activities, sessions, games, books, material would you recommend to improve on the above mentioned short comings.

Thanks a bundle :roll:

2

I work as a communication trainer at a BPO in India. I have been assigned the task to devise stratigies and plan sessions to improve the comprehension and comprehensibility of a group of agents who interact with americans over the phone.

These agents posses very limited english speaking abilities.

And what we are emphasising, is not on improving their overall english, however equipping them with skills of comprehension where in they can understand the speaker and their queries and then in response can make the speaker understand what they want to convey.

Thus it would be of great help, if you can of some other activities or material which might be useful in this senario.

Thanks a bundle

3

Can’t you send them to an English course? In Sweden people who work for bigger companies they get their language studies paid by their employer .
/Maria

4

PAY FOR THEM?.. you must be joking Maria.

These companies want everything on the cheap, that’s why they have put their own people on the dole and employed people who can’t even speak the language to work for them.
Both the English and American phone companies should hang their heads in shame.

5

Hi Kitos!
I have never had a job so I don’t know with sorts of jobs which pay language courses for thir employers but I know that some companies do that. If you want to get a job in Sweden you must have a basic knowledge in Swedish and a residence permit, even if you work as a language teacher in English for university students. I don’t know if you need to have a basic knowledge in Swedish if you work as a diplomat at the embassy. I phoned the American Embassy once and got shocked when the Swedish text telephone operator told me to write in English. I was not prepared for that. I happen to phone them on a Sunday so there were no Swedish people there for the moment…

/Maria