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Help needed from all of you English teahers...


Roger

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Well, I feel a bit daft asking this as it is a question about English not Thai language. A girl in my office, who i have had my eye on for quite a time now, asked me " what is the difference between "see", "watch" and "look".....I couldnt come up with it straight away and said i would right it down for her...I know they are used in different situations, but how would you answer this if it came from one of your students....will buy the person who explains it in the easiest way a beer...if it helps me score with this delectable girl..Cheers...

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Now I'm not a native English speaker but I think I might have the answer for you.

"See" is just when you happen to glance upon s.th. or someone without paying much attention.

"Look" implies somewhat more interest; you look, but more or less in passing, with moderate interest.

"Watch" is when you take an active interest in the proceedings around you and observe (this being a synonym, I guess) whatever captures your interest at that particular moment.

I don't drink beer but I wouldn't mind a bottle of Australian Shiraz if you score with that lady. If not, please ask her to send me a private mail. laugh.gif" border="0

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Roger,

What I would do in a classroom if someone asked me that question. I would say the following

The answer is far too complex for me to explain in just a few sentences, and no grammar rule in English is ever 100%

You learn when to use look, watch or see by simply using them - you watch TV , you see a movie, you look at the newspaper. Don't learn rules - learn by using them and feeling them.

Thais just love English language grammar rules, and it's our job to totally discourage it.

www.bangkokmouth.com

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Phil,

Thanks for that,that is definately the best way of explaining it. Her English is good enough to get the meaning of that explanation. I guess you win the beer....

You can let me know where and when...like to be a man of my word...

Cheers...

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quote:

Originally posted by Bangkok Phil:

Roger,

What I would do in a classroom if someone asked me that question. I would say the following

The answer is far too complex for me to explain in just a few sentences, and no grammar rule in English is ever 100%

You learn when to use look, watch or see by simply using them - you watch TV , you see a movie, you look at the newspaper. Don't learn rules - learn by using them and feeling them.

Thais just love English language grammar rules, and it's our job to totally discourage it.


If this post is an indication of your English and pedagogic skills, God help your students.

The English language does have structure. Words do convey particular meaning. How can a student whose first language is not English have a "feeling" if a word is said correctly or incorrectly in its proper context? If a student of English is taught over and over again that one looks at a newspaper, rather than reads a newspaper, that student will get the "feeling" that the verb "look" is synonymous with the word "read." I have never heard a Thai say "doo nangsue pim." They say "ahn nangsue pim." And that is how I would teach them. Just as in English, the words are not synonymous. Instead of relying on the "feeling" of what is proper English or not, perhaps it is wise to teach the student the proper word in its proper context. Unless, of course, you don't mind your students speaking English like you instead of speaking English the way it is supposed to be spoken. English is a very dynamic language. As native speakers of the language we are taught in school a base of rules as we develop our verbal skills. I think to teach one's students to hell with the rules before they can barely put a sentence together is stupid. An English teacher in an English speaking country would get fired for even suggesting it as a pedagogic method. In languages besides English, one is taught to memorize the verb and its conjugation because it has a particular meaning. In the four languages I have studied, no teacher has suggested to forget about actually learning the verb and grammatical syntax and replace it with this esoteric notion of getting a "feeling" for the language instead. I don't totally disagree with you, but I think one has to know the rules before one can say hell with the rules.

Late,

Raddemo

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quote:

Originally posted by Roger:

Raddemo ,

What is the answer then....???????

I am waiting...lol

Roger

Roger-

Just tell her it is the same as it is in Thai.

Maung-To stare

Hen-To see

Doo-To watch, like to watch TV or a movie

Ha-To look for, To find, To visit

Jer-To look for, to meet an object, sometimes it is used as a verb to meet a person, but actually that isn't correct Thai

Phohp-To meet or see each other, as in to meet a person

You can explain that the differences in the English words are similar to the distinctions in the Thai words. Just say to her, please explain to me what the above Thai words mean, and then you can point at their English equivalents to her when she is explaining it to you. That way you both learn something and it is really easy to understand.

Late,

Raddemo

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quote:

If this post is an indication of your English and pedagogic skills, God help your students.

Actually Raddemmo - I do take that most definitely as a flame, because I enjoy an excellent reputation as a teacher.

This argument about what certain verbs mean is like the verb+gerund, verb+infinitive, verb+either gerund or infinitive argument? (and many other structures of course)

Students ask me what the rule is regarding the structures. I know what the damn rule is but the last thing I'm going to do is fill students heads with it.

I'll give them lots of exercises and opportunities to use them (because it's an important point)but I'm not going to explain rules. Thai students have a head full of grammar rules put there by years of Thai 'teachers' and they still can't converse at anything above basic level.

I never teach the names of verb tenses either because they're a load of crap. They actually do mean something in latin but when adapted to English, there is nothing perfect about the present perfect.

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Actually Roger I was thinking about all this on the way to work this morning.

The other posters are telling you to explain that you 'watch' a TV program, 'see' a movie, etc - the same as in Thai (someone said)

What are you going to do when the lady comes in the next day and gives you the following sentences:

I like to watch sport on TV

Did you see that sports program on TV?

There's a good program on TV tonight - I'm going to take a look (noun) at it.

look, see, watch, and even take - all used with TV (and that's without me thinking very hard)

Now explain you're way out of that one! The fact is no English grammar rule is carved in stone and learning rules is a waste of time!

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