[B-Greek] A Greek Pedagogical Question
R Yochanan Bitan Buth
ybitan at mscc.huji.ac.il
Fri Jul 22 09:13:03 EDT 2005
>> ... linguists can attest that much of what speakers say 'about' a
>> language is not often valid when it comes to explanation. The
bizarre
>> side appears when an adult language user can give either a
theoretical
>> or a popular explanation about a structure but cannot fluently use
it
>> or understand it when hearing it at normal conversational speeds. I
>> don't advocate analyzing a structure as a doorway into fluency.
>>
>Why is this bizarre? Can a typical NT translation
>consultant order a meal in Koine?
>Was fluency even a goal in their professional training?
You are right, non-fluent experts are the normal situation. It is only
bizarre from the perspective of normal language acquisition. Obviously
there are different training and language expectations for a
Shakespeare consultant and a Paul consultant. Is non-fluency a
desirable goal? Better language control? More efficient learning
rates? More long-lasting, better retention? As I said in another post,
I would set different goals with different measurements, though
language ability is incomplete in itself. (E.g., I speak English but
am not a Shakespeare consultant.)
ERRWSO
Randall Buth
Randall Buth, PhD
Director, Biblical Language Center
www.biblicalulpan.org
and Director, Biblical Studies in Israel
Hebrew University, Rothberg International School
ybitan at mscc.huji.ac.il
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