ENGLISH FOR

COMING AMERICANS

A RATIONAL SYSTEM FOR TEACHING

ENGLISH TO FOREIGNERS

t.e.

PETER ROBERTS, PH. D.

TEACHERS' MANUAL

NEW YORK

YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION PRESS

THE PUBLICATION DEPARTMENT OF

THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE

OF YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATIONS

NINETEEN HUNDRED TEN

PREFACE

During the last year I visited many Associations in the eastern and middle states of the Union, and cooperated with secretaries in organizing classes among foreigners. In every Association the educational director or teacher repeatedly asked me: "How can we teach these men? Give us some system by which we can do the work." To meet such demand, this manual is issued. Francois Gouin's book, "The Art of Teaching and Studying Languages," furnished me the basic idea which is worked out herein. His reasoning in defense of oral instruction as the first step in teaching boys a new language is irrefutable. I have applied this to the work of teaching English to adult foreigners in North America and the result of my experience in twelve different states is extremely gratifying. To trust the ear before the eye and the hand are called into activity is rational and true to nature. To lead the foreigner to pronounce simple phrases in English interests him and inspires the teacher. By this method the learner gets from a man whose mother tongue is English correct pronunciation and correct enunciation. The foreigner is interested, for he begins to talk in the very first lesson and each time he comes to the classroom he learns something new. As he proceeds in the course his interest is sustained as he recognizes, under new relations, words and phrases with which he wrestled in former lessons. He feels a joy akin to that