Rosemary J Westwell

Out of a Learner's Mouth (Second Edition): the Trials and Tribulations of Learning Spanish Rosemary J Westwell

Publisher Marketing: Picking up a stranger in a pub in Spain and buying a flat from him is an unusual way of starting a new relationship with the country and its language. However, this mature lady casts caution aside and gives the stranger her credit card to pay a deposit for her dream flat by the Mediterranean Sea. When the contract is signed and she first enters the building, she is unable to communicate with the electrician who is still fixing the wiring. She realises she has to learn Spanish. In a series of amusing anecdotes she records her feelings about the language and the Spanish way of life. She struggles with the new vocabulary and with interference from school French. As her exposure to the language increases, her attitude alters; she makes drastic changes to her approach when teaching English as a Foreign Language to students in the UK. She describes the new Spanish words she acquires and shares the trials and tribulations that all language learners have with concentration, memory, personality differences and interfering life events. A developing awareness of the benefits of image, humour, other language associations and her past learning and teaching experiences give insight into the nature of the process. The book is an essential companion for those contemplating learning Spanish, or planning a holiday in a Spanish-speaking country, and for those in the language learning, researching, teaching and teacher-training businesses.