Insight from Chapter 6 of the third ear

1. Summary​

This chapter looks into how language learning and how we think are related, with the idea of “audible” at the center. When we think in a new way, we often need a new word to say it. “Audible” helps us see language learning in a new light.​

When we’re babies and before we can talk, we sense the world through our eyes, ears, nose, and so on. As we get older, we start to link these feelings to things around us. We build a kind of picture in our heads about the world. This picture has sounds, what we see, smells, tastes, and how we feel. Language is a big part of this picture in our minds. It’s made up of sounds and what they mean.​

The sounds we make and hear stand for things in the world. The sound isn’t the thing itself, just a sign for it. When we learn a language, we first figure out how sounds and meanings go together. Later, we start using written words. For example, when we learn our first language as kids, we find out how sounds and meanings are linked, not how written words and meanings are. Also, the same sound can mean different things in different languages. Like in English, the sound of “2” can mean the number, “to”, or “too”.​

The writer tells a story about being on a train in China. People from different places had different accents, but they could still talk by writing Chinese characters. This shows how written and spoken languages are different but also connected. In language learning, a lot of people wrongly think that learning to write a new language is the same as learning to speak it. But really, language has a lot to do with sounds. If we start learning to read and write too soon, our own language’s pronunciation can mess up how we say words in the new language. This can give us a foreign accent. A better way is to start with the sounds. First, learn how to pronounce the words right, and then learn how to write them. When we do this, we learn how native speakers connect written words to the sounds.​

1. Reflection​

After reading this, I got a lot of new ideas about language learning. Before, when I learned English, I spent too much time on learning words by heart and grammar rules. I didn’t pay enough attention to how important the sound part of language is. Just like the chapter said, I used to think that if I knew how to spell words and the grammar, I could speak English well. I didn’t know how important it is to say words correctly to talk well.​

In the past, when I talked to foreign teachers, they often asked me to say things again. I thought I wasn’t clear enough. Now I know it was mostly because my pronunciation was different from how native English speakers say words. This made me understand that language learning is not just about learning facts. It’s also about learning skills, and pronunciation is a very important skill.​

The idea of “audible” in the chapter made me see that we should start learning a language by listening to the sounds. When we learn a new language, we should be like babies learning their first language. First, we should listen carefully and copy the right pronunciations. We need to link the sounds to what they mean. To do this, we should listen more to things like English movies, the radio, and songs. This way, we can get used to the real language and get a feel for it. We should also be brave and keep correcting our own pronunciations. We should try to sound like native speakers. Only when we can say words correctly can we talk more easily and feel more confident.​

Also, I used to think that if I learned written English well, my spoken English would get better on its own. But now I know that even though written and spoken languages are related, we need to learn them in different ways and in a certain order. We can’t forget about learning to speak. First, we should learn the basic pronunciations and common ways to say things. Then, we can learn written language to better understand and use the rules.​

In the future, when I learn English, I’ll use the ways from this chapter. Every day, I’ll set aside some time to listen and copy the pronunciations in English materials. I’ll try to use what I learn to talk to others. When I learn written English, I’ll focus on how the written words and sounds are connected, not just memorize words and grammar. I think if I do this, my English will get much better, and I can really learn English well and use it.​

In short, this part of the reading gave me a new way to look at language learning. It helped me see what was wrong with how I learned before. I’ll use this chance to change how I learn. I’ll pay more attention to the sounds in language and work hard to get better at using the language. This way, learning language will be more fun and work better.