I’m a native English speaker who lived in a country with a different language for most of my adult life. There is a huge difference between someone who consciously adapts their speaking and a random person on the street. The difference can be as stark as me understanding 95-99% of what is said and me understanding 20-50% of what is said.
Adapting one’s speaking for a non-native speaker is a distinct skill, and (my guess is that) most native English speakers have never even considered it. While things like accent are harder to be aware of and to control, word choice and speed are easy to adapt. For anyone looking for tips, here is what helped me:
Speaking at normal pace or at 90-95% of a normal pace was very helpful, as opposed to speaking at an I’m-so-excited-about-this pace.
Using words that are common (such as “location” or “building” rather than “venue”) were a big help for me. Often when I didn’t understand something, it was simply because the speaker used a word I didn’t know, but I knew a more common/simple word for the same thing (such as using the word “residence” or “domicile” instead of using the world “house” or “home”).
Prefacing or giving a subject line. Instead of starting a new topic directly, first say “I’d like to talk about TOPIC.”
It can be easy to accidently appear patronizing if you slow down too much or over-enunciate, so try to be aware of the other person and of your social dynamics with the person.
I love the subject line suggestion, this seems really helpful! A few other suggestions (also based on my experiences as a native English speaker living in non-English-speaking countries):
Slow (especially with distinct gaps between words) makes more of a difference than simple, and is MUCH better than loud, which mostly distorts what you’re trying to say.
Be careful about mistaking accent for content; if you’re not careful, you might assume someone isn’t putting together fluent sentences when in fact they are just mispronouncing some words.
Speaking in your non-native language is very cognitively demanding, and if someone taps out of a discussion early, it might be because of that rather than because of a lack of interest or things to say.
Comprehension of a second (or third) language is much easier than speaking; don’t necessarily assume someone isn’t following the discussion because they speak hesitantly.
I’m a native English speaker who lived in a country with a different language for most of my adult life. There is a huge difference between someone who consciously adapts their speaking and a random person on the street. The difference can be as stark as me understanding 95-99% of what is said and me understanding 20-50% of what is said.
Adapting one’s speaking for a non-native speaker is a distinct skill, and (my guess is that) most native English speakers have never even considered it. While things like accent are harder to be aware of and to control, word choice and speed are easy to adapt. For anyone looking for tips, here is what helped me:
Speaking at normal pace or at 90-95% of a normal pace was very helpful, as opposed to speaking at an I’m-so-excited-about-this pace.
Using words that are common (such as “location” or “building” rather than “venue”) were a big help for me. Often when I didn’t understand something, it was simply because the speaker used a word I didn’t know, but I knew a more common/simple word for the same thing (such as using the word “residence” or “domicile” instead of using the world “house” or “home”).
Prefacing or giving a subject line. Instead of starting a new topic directly, first say “I’d like to talk about TOPIC.”
It can be easy to accidently appear patronizing if you slow down too much or over-enunciate, so try to be aware of the other person and of your social dynamics with the person.
I love the subject line suggestion, this seems really helpful! A few other suggestions (also based on my experiences as a native English speaker living in non-English-speaking countries):
Slow (especially with distinct gaps between words) makes more of a difference than simple, and is MUCH better than loud, which mostly distorts what you’re trying to say.
Be careful about mistaking accent for content; if you’re not careful, you might assume someone isn’t putting together fluent sentences when in fact they are just mispronouncing some words.
Speaking in your non-native language is very cognitively demanding, and if someone taps out of a discussion early, it might be because of that rather than because of a lack of interest or things to say.
Comprehension of a second (or third) language is much easier than speaking; don’t necessarily assume someone isn’t following the discussion because they speak hesitantly.