Open 57

ISSN 2228-0847

EATE Estonian Association of Teachers of English

The EATE Journal Issue No. 57 August 2020

BUILDING A BALANCED LANGUAGE PROGRAM: AN INTRODUCTION TO NATION'S FOUR STRANDS David Herman

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TEACHING PRACTICE RECONSIDERED: TARTU ANNELINNA GYMNASIUM PROJECT Natalja Zagura, Ülle Türk

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PRACTICAL RESOURCES AND SOME TAKEAWAYS FROM THE PLURIMOBIL TRAINING EVENT Pille Põiklik

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THE PLAYING UP OF EDUCATION Carol Kahar

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THE ONION RING SYNDROME AND THE LOST-AND-FOUND IN TRANSLATION Ülle Leis

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FIVE INSIGHTS INTO RUNNING AN ERASMUS+ PROJECT ON THE EXAMPLE OF THE STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP “MAY ICT BE WITH YOU” Triin Lingiene

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JOHANNES SILVET 125, OLEG MUTT 100 Ilmar Anvelt

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INDO-EUROPEAN CONNECTIONS AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE IN INDIA Jari Lutta

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A SPRING LIKE NO OTHER Julia Hirsch

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SEEING IT WITH MY OWN EYES Irina Matviitšuk 56

Experienced Educator TEACHING IS A GREAT WAY OF LEARNING AN INTERVIEW WITH ENE PETERSON

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Reading Recommendation HOW DO WE TALK THEN? Kärt Roomäe

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EATE AUTUMN SEMINAR, Tartu 25 October 2019 Photos by Reet Noorlaid, Krista Ummik, Erika Puusemp

Latvian colleagues – LATE President Inga Linde (middle) and Aija Gudza (left) – with Erika Puusemp

All seminar materials at hand

Workshop of Christiana Osan (right)

Karen Mitchell spoke about teaching English using primary sources

Ursula Erik’s topic was practice for the speaking exam

Scottish folkdances enjoy continuous popularity

Estonian Association of Teachers of English www.eate.ee Chair Erika Puusemp erika.puusemp@gmail.com

Editor of OPEN! Ilmar Anvelt ilmar.anvelt@ut.ee

Current account EE331010152001597007 in SEB

BUILDING A BALANCED LANGUAGE PROGRAM: AN INTRODUCTION TO NATION’S FOUR STRANDS David Herman Foundation for Scholarly Exchange in Taipei, Taiwan

Most language teachers would agree that the purpose of any language course is to help students develop fluent control over features of the target language such as vocabulary, grammar, and discourse features so that they can be used in effective communication. In other words, we teach the language with the goal that our students will be able to use the language. Unfortunately, the ways in which many traditionally teach classes – teacher-centered with an emphasis on vocabulary and grammar – do not provide our students with the practice and practical skills development to become a fluent user of the target language. Achieving the goal of effective communication in the target language requires a broad set of skills across language domains. For example, effective participation in an oral conversation requires skills in both speaking and listening. In order to provide language learners with optimal opportunities to develop all the language skills needed for effective communication, Paul Nation developed what he calls a well-balanced language curriculum. Paul Nation is an emeritus professor from the School of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies at the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand. He specializes in the teaching and learning of vocabulary and in language teaching methodology.

The purpose of Nation’s four strands is to help language teachers and course designers make sure that there is a balance of different learning opportunities in any language course. Nation (1996) notes that it is not uncommon to see courses that do little else than focus on formal features of the target language, such as vocabulary and grammar, and provide little opportunity for students to put what they have learned to practical use. On the other extreme, some courses may have a very strong communicative focus and actively discourse form-focused direct instruction. Nation (2012) argues that neither situation is ideal for helping learners develop practical communication skills. A focus on form is not enough, neither is a focus on communication. What is needed is a balance of proven strategies across the four strands.

Teachers are often looking for the ‘best methods’ when deciding how to teach their students. Nation (1996), however, argues that “it is much more productive to become aware of the important principles of teaching and learning, and to apply these in ways that suit the learners, the teaching conditions and the skills of the teacher” (p. 7). In other words, “it makes more sense to have a range of ways of helping the learning of certain language features and skills than to rely on only one way” (Nation, 2012, p. 168). Nation (1996) even goes so far as to say “...it is not wise for a teacher or course designer to ally themselves with a particular method of language teaching” (p. 7). Therefore, the four strands are presented as a set of principles for creating a well-balanced language curriculum. The specific teaching techniques and activities used, however, are up to the teacher and learners.

Nation (2012) notes that, through the four strands, a teacher or course designer can answer questions such as the following: ● How can I teach vocabulary? ● What should a well-balanced listening course contain? ● How much extensive reading should we do?

● Is it worthwhile doing grammar translation? ● How can I find out if I have a well-balanced conversation course? (p. 169) As the four strands are not content-specific nor are they method-specific, the principles can be applied to language courses of any focus. The answer lies in the balance. Nation argues that by applying roughly equal attention to learning opportunities in each strand, optimal language learning can be achieved. In the following article, I will introduce each of Nation’s four strands including optimal conditions as well as possible activities.

Overview As the name suggests, Nation’s four strands consists of four distinct components: language-focused learning, meaning-focused input, meaning-focused output, and fluency development. Simply put, these strands are designed to help remind teachers to provide a balance of opportunities for their students to engage with the target language for the purpose of developing functional fluency. This requires a mix of direct instruction, meaningful input through reading and listening, meaningful output through speaking and writing, and direct practice engaging with target language more naturally and smoothly. The argument is that, regardless of the course, roughly equal amounts of time and attention, in no particular order, should be given to each strand. This may be done at the course level, unit level, or even lesson level. In addition, the four strands are presented through a learner-centered perspective, meaning the focus is put on what the learner is learning rather than what the teacher is teaching. Furthermore, “[the model] sees the teacher’s most important role as being a planner not a teacher” (Nation, 2012, p. 178). This planner role “... involves deciding what are the most important language items for the learner to be focusing on at a particular stage, and providing a range of learning opportunities across the four strands so that this material will be learned” (Nation, 2012, p. 178). Nation argues that “it is through these strands that learners achieve the learning goals of a language course; namely fluent control of the sounds, spelling, vocabulary, grammar and discourse features of the language, so that they can be used to communicate effectively” (Nation, 1996, p. 7).

In the following section, each strand will be introduced individually including optimal conditions and suggested activities.

Language-focused Learning Form-focused learning is the strand that language teachers and learners are likely most familiar with.

This strand focuses on “...the direct presentation and explanation of language features. Typically, this involves the teaching of spelling, pronunciation, vocabulary, collocations, grammatical features and patterns, and discourse features” (Nation, 2012, p. 178). Nation notes that “...there is plenty of evidence, certainly in vocabulary learning, that deliberate learning can make a very useful contribution to a learner’s language proficiency.”

(Nation, 2012, p. 178). However, he also notes that “...direct teaching is not greatly effective” and that …[direct] “teaching should play a rather reduced role in a language program” (Nation, 2012, p. 178).

In other words, direct language-focused instruction can be an important part of an effective language program, but it should not be the only or even main part.

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Languagefocused learning

Meaningfocused input

25%

25%

25%

25%

Meaningfocused output

Fluency development

Fig. 1 Nation’s Four Strands

Common classroom activities included in this strand include grammar drills, vocabulary flashcards, translation, teacher and peer feedback, dialogue memorization, intensive reading, and dictionary use.

Nation created a list of conditions for a teacher’s direct instruction of a particular language feature to optimally support students’ language learning: 1. The learners should give deliberate attention to language features.

2. The learners should process the language features in deep and thoughtful ways.

3. There should be opportunities to give spaced, repeated attention to the same features.

4. The features that are focused on should be simple and not dependent on developmental knowledge that the learners do not have.

5. Features that are studied in the language-focused learning strand should also occur often in the other three strands of the course. (Nation, 2007, p. 5) The purpose of this strand is both to acknowledge the value of direct instruction in language learning and to remind teachers not to overemphasize it in their classrooms. Direct instruction can be an important part of the language classroom, but it should not take up more than 25% of the total learning time. An overemphasis on form-focused instruction often “leads to a preoccupation with correctness and grammatical knowledge, with hardly any attention to competent and fluent language use” (Funk, 2012, p. 302). As stated earlier, balance is key.

Meaning-focused Input

Another of the four strands is meaning-focused input. As the name suggests, this strand focuses on language input, specifically the receptive skills of listening and reading. Nation (2012) points out that “this is largely incidental learning because the learners’ attention should be focused on comprehending what is being read or listened to” (p. 167). In order to achieve this, learners should read and listen to large amounts of content in their target language that is at a generally comprehensible level with very few new words or structures.

Common activities within this strand may include listening to stories or songs, watching TV or films, and being the listener in a conversation.

In order for this strand to effectively exist, the following conditions should be present: 1. Most of what the learners are listening to or reading is already familiar to them.

2. The learners are interested in the input and want to understand it.

3. Only a small proportion of the language features are unknown to the learners (5%).

4. The learners can gain some knowledge of the unknown language items through context clues and background knowledge.

5. There are large quantities of input. (Nation, 2007, p. 2) In a balanced language course, around one quarter of course time should be spent with learners reading or listening to content which is independently understandable to them. This strand is often neglected as many teachers feel class time is better spent with the teacher introducing new content than with students, for example, reading independently. Extensive reading and listening are important aspects of the language learning process, however, and are not likely to be done by students independently on their own time (unless assigned specifically as homework). Nation states that “the major principle supporting the idea of the four strands is the time-on-task principle” (2012, p.

168). This principle states that the more time you spend doing something, the better you get at it.

Therefore, as the abilities to read and listen are valuable skills for communication, it is important that time is spent doing these things, particularly in meaningful ways.

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Meaning-focused Output The next strand is, in a sense, the opposite of the previous strand. Again referring to the time-ontask principle, if learners wish to become better speakers and writers, they need time and practice speaking and writing. Whereas the previous strand focuses on input, this strand focuses on output or production. Similar to meaning-focused input, meaning-focused output puts focus on meaning making. This means that learners are encouraged to produce language using largely words and structures they already know with the goal of being understood by the listener or reader.

Common activities under this strand may include talking in a conversation, presenting a speech, telling a story, instructing someone in a task, writing a journal or diary entry, taking notes, or writing a letter.

The conditions that apply to meaning-focused input largely apply to meaning-focused output: 1. The learners write and talk about things that are largely familiar to them.

2. The learners’ main goal is to convey their message to someone else.

3. Only a small proportion of the language they need to use is not familiar to them.

4. The learners can use communication strategies, dictionaries or previous input to make up for gaps in their productive knowledge.

5. There are plenty of opportunities to speak and write. (Nation, 2007, p. 3) In sum, the strand of meaning-focused output ensures that learners spend approximately 25% of their learning time producing the target language with a focus on being understood by others. This is not the same as repeating dialogues or reciting poems. Within this strand, students should be producing language in their own words with a focus on meaning over form.

Fluency Development The fourth and final strand of a balanced language course is fluency development. This strand is often the most neglected of the four but is suggested by Nation to be given as much time and attention as all other strands. Nation (2012) defines fluency as “the ability to receive and produce language at a reasonable rate” (p. 168). Fluency development involves all four language skills (reading, writing, speaking, and listening), especially as learners can be more fluent in some language domains over others, and the focus is using language that is already known but attempting to use it faster and more fluidly than usual. Unlike the previous two strands which ask the learner to focus on meaning, this strand asks the learner to focus on speed and fluidity.

Common activities within this strand may include speed reading, repeated retelling, freewriting, listening to easy stories, repeated reading, and skimming and scanning. Nation (2007) notes that “There are two major types of second language fluency activities, those that involve repetitive reception or production of the same material as in 4/3/2 and repeated reading, and those that do not as in easy extensive reading or the traditional speed reading course with passages and questions” (p. 7). Nation (2007) goes on to explain that “studies of the 4/3/2 technique, where the same talk is repeated to different listeners in a decreasing time frame (four minutes, then three minutes then two), have shown increases in fluency during the task, but surprisingly also increases in grammatical accuracy and grammatical complexity” (p. 7).

Conditions for this strand include the following: 1. All of what the learners are listening to, reading, speaking or writing is largely familiar to them.

That is, there is no unfamiliar language content or discourse features.

2. The learners’ focus is on receiving or conveying meaning.

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3. There is some pressure or encouragement to perform at a faster than usual speed.

4. There is a large amount of input or output. (Nation, 2007, p. 6) The fluency development strand states that language learners should spend roughly one-quarter of their learning time developing their language fluency, that is engaging in language that they are familiar with and working at receiving and producing at a quicker pace than they otherwise would.

This is also an often-neglected strand of language learning as teachers and learners may assume that fluency will develop through the different activities typically presented in the language class.

Nation, however, argues that fluency is a skill that should be targeted directly and deserves 25% of the learning time.

Conclusion The overall purpose of Nation’s four strands is to help teachers and curriculum designers to consider the overall needs of a well-rounded classroom curriculum in order to help learners develop the ability to engage fluently with the target language for the purpose of effective communication. Traditional language learning settings tend to be teacher-centered and form-focused leading to an imbalance in learning activities, neglecting certain skills in favor of others. In order to help develop a well-rounded language learner, however, emphasis should be placed on balance. And although Nation (2015) acknowledges that “there is no direct research justification for these proportions, applying the four strands principle provides a rational, justifiable way of deciding how much time should be given to each kind of activity in a course” (p.139). Note that “75% of classroom time is spent on communicating meaning, and the remaining 25% is given to language-focused learning. [Nation] argues that this 75/25 split is important because while language focused learning is efficient, the other three strands are more widely beneficial” (Coxhead, 2010, p. 4).

When teachers spend too much time teaching about the language, learners are left without enough time engaging with the language. And as most teachers acknowledge, students learning a foreign language, especially those in the lower stages, are not likely to engage with the language on their own outside of class. Target language practice is likely largely restricted to the language classroom and through assigned homework. Therefore, it is important that teachers utilize class time and homework to help learners practice and develop all language skills that they will be expected to demonstrate.

This also means paying attention to the kinds of exercises provided to learners. “Exercises should always be designed from the end of the process, that is, the intended learning outcome, taking into account the target task they try to prepare students for” (Funk, 2012, p. 302). In other words, if a final task requires students to demonstrate fluent language use when orally communicating about a particular topic, it follows that the students should be provided ample practice ahead of the final task in developing both their speaking and listening fluencies. In cases like this, form-focused direct instruction is likely to have little practical value.

Funk (2012) notes that “if the correct application of rules is the prime target of teaching and testing, this model will serve this purpose well, since people will eventually get very good at what they practice, provided they are informed about the goals and there is enough time and practice materials” (p. 302). This again refers back to Nation’s time-on-task principle. When trying to determine whether a course is meeting the balance of the four strands, Nation recommends that teachers “keep a record of the activities done in the course, the strand they fit into and the amount of time spent on them” (Nation, 2007, p. 10).

It is important to note that not only is each strand of equal importance, but there is no order in which the strands should be presented in class. In fact, Nation (1996, p. 12) notes that “The last three strands become very difficult to distinguish from each other as learners’ proficiency increases.” This is because as learners become more communicative, the more multiple language skills can be used simultaneously, such as both listening and speaking while participating in a conversation. Nation 5

notes that, especially when working with more advanced learners, “What is more important [than trying to distinguish the strands] is to ensure that the learners are not getting too much of one strand at the expense of another” (p. 12).

In conclusion, Paul Nation’s four strands of a balanced language course are a set of principles that state that a well-balanced language course should provide equal time and attention to four specific areas of learning: language focused learning, meaning-focused input, meaning-focused output, and fluency development. By ensuring this balance across a course, it is argued that learners are provided an optimal balance of learning opportunities during their development toward practical fluency. For more information regarding Nation’s four strands, including downloadable publications, free graded readers, wordlists, and speed reading courses, I recommend visiting his website at https://www.wgtn. ac.nz/lals/about/staff/paul-nation.

REFERENCES Coxhead, A. 2010. Grabbed early by vocabulary: Nation’s ongoing contributions to vocabulary and reading in a foreign language. Reading in a Foreign Language, 22 (1), 1–14. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ887869.pdf Funk, H. 2012. Four Models of Language Learning and Acquisition and Their Methodological Implications for Textbook Design. Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching, 9 (1), 298–311. Retrieved from https://e-flt.nus.edu.sg/v9s12012/funk.pdf Nation, I.S.P. 1996. The four strands of a language course. TESOL in Context, 6 (1), 7–12. Retrieved from https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/about/staff/Publications/paul-nation/1996-Four-strands.pdf Nation, I.S.P. 2007. The Four Strands. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 1 (1), 2–13.

Retrieved from https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/about/staff/Publications/paul-nation/2007-Fourstrands.pdf Nation, I.S.P., & Yamamoto, A. 2012. Applying the Four Strands to Language Learning. International Journal of Innovation in English Language Teaching and Research, 1 (2), 167–181. Retrieved from https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/about/staff/publications/paul-nation/yamamoto-four-strands.pdf

EATE CONGRATULATES

Nora Toots, Associate Professor Emerita of the University of Tartu, who celebrated her 90th birthday on 19 March. Her main speciality was phonetics; in co-authorship with Heino Liiv, she published the textbook Advanced English for the Estonian Learner (Part I, 1978; Part II, 1980). She had the ability to engage her students and make them work hard. Nora was among the founding members of EATE and served for a long time on the EATE Committee.

She is famous for her endless energy, both mental and physical. The photo on the right shows her on her 50th birthday dancing with Jaanus Õunpuu, a student of French philology.

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TEACHING PRACTICE RECONSIDERED: TARTU ANNELINNA GYMNASIUM PROJECT Natalja Zagura, Ülle Türk

Department of English Studies, University of Tartu

The English language seems to be everywhere, and, in most people’s minds, young people “catch” it merely by being exposed to the language through pop culture, social media and computer games. The reality, however, is somewhat different. Though many young people do acquire spoken English fairly easily through the out-of-school use of the language, there are others whose contact with English is mostly limited to the school context and who see this language just as a school subject, not as a means of communication.

This problem of students having surprisingly little contact with the English language and limited motivation to study it came to our attention when visiting Tartu Annelinna Gymnasium, a school where most students’ first language is other than Estonian and where the Estonian language immersion programme has been used successfully for years. It is certainly understandable that with the focus on mastering Estonian, while also developing their Russian language skills, students might find it cognitively difficult to engage with yet another language. Nevertheless, having discussed the problem with the teachers of English, who struggle to improve their students’ language skills, we could see that, partly at least, the problem lies in students’ lack of an urgent need to study English as they do not see its immediate usefulness for them.

It was hypothesised that students’ learning outcomes would improve if they were made aware why it is useful for them to be good at English, how to study the language more effectively and what use could be made of the English language skills outside the school context. To test the hypothesis, it was decided to develop a special elective course for tenth graders, as they would benefit most from some guidance and motivation for studying English, which would hopefully improve their practices and performance during the three-year period of studies at secondary school.

To put this idea into practice, the Department of English Studies of the University of Tartu decided to cooperate with Tartu Annelinna Gymnasium and to apply for funding from the European Structural Fund programme geared to language learning for success in the labour market (Euroopa Liidu Struktuuritoetus). The project was set up in the summer of 2017. Within the two-year project, eight MA students of the Teacher of Foreign Languages programme would design a 35-hour conversational English course, develop materials and activities for it and teach it to tenth-grade students of Tartu Annelinna Gymnasium. Below, the course design process (focussing on the needs analysis), the course content and the most popular activities as well as the lessons learnt will be discussed. We share this information in the hope that our experience could inspire other teachers of English who experience similar problems with their students to supplement their courses with motivating materials and activities.

The conversational English course is meant to supplement the compulsory course of English and 7

its main objectives are to increase students’ motivation for learning English, encourage them to use English more actively outside the school context, introduce various opportunities for language practice as well as make the learners more aware of the possible techniques for language learning.

In short, the aim is to help students realise that English is an important means of communication, not just a school subject, and encourage them to use the language for communicative purposes.

However, the students taking the course are not the only ones benefitting from the project. The MA students involved get an opportunity to design and conduct a course as well as analyse its effectiveness. This gives them a unique opportunity to experience the course development and delivery process from the beginning to the very end, something that the standard ten-week teaching practice that forms part of the teacher education programme does not allow.

The course design process started in the autumn of the academic year of 2017–2018. The four MA students, guided by the university instructors, first compiled a preliminary syllabus and then conducted a needs analysis using a short questionnaire and face-to-face interviews with the students of Grade 10. Taking into account the responses of the students, the course syllabus was modified and the course materials designed. The course was taught for the first time in January – April 2018 to two groups of tenth graders, 31 students in all. A university instructor was present at the majority of the lessons to give student teachers feedback on their work and advice for further improvement. At the end of the course, student feedback was collected and the effectiveness of the course evaluated.

This resulted in suggestions for modifications to the course syllabus and materials.

In the second year of the project, another team of four MA students taught an upgraded version of the course to two more groups of 10th-graders, 41 students this time, as students’ interest in this elective course had increased. Before the course was taught, the initial team met the new team of four MA students to discuss their experiences and the modifications that could be introduced in order to make the course even more useful and motivating for the target audience. Then the second team upgraded the study materials, conducted the course in January – April 2019 and, at the end of the course, collected feedback from tenth graders and evaluated the improved version of the course. Such a systematic approach has proved to be successful and provided a good basis for the continuing course development and teaching by new teams of student teachers of English.

As one of the main purposes of the course was to increase the students’ motivation for learning English by providing them with the activities and topics they might find interesting, it was decided to first establish what their subjective needs as well as strengths and weaknesses are. For that purpose, the MA students designed a questionnaire (available at http://bit.ly/qqq2017) and asked all the students who had registered for the course to fill it in online. This was followed by group interviews conducted in English. The latter gave the MA students also some idea of the students’ level of spoken English as their language competence was not formally tested.

Although by the end of the basic school students are expected to reach level B1 in English, seven students out of the 26 who filled in the questionnaire thought they were at level A2 in spoken interaction, spoken production and writing, and two at level A1 in all five skills (see Figure 1).

These results show that the students are quite critical of their English language skills as even those

Figure 1: How would you assess your level of English skills?

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whose English was indeed below the average could cope better than a student at level A1 would.

Not surprisingly, the students thought they were better at reading and listening skills and worse at the productive skills as they had had few opportunities to use the language productively outside the classroom.

When asked about the aspects of learning and using English that they find challenging, the students often answered that grammar is difficult because they cannot remember and apply all the rules. The most challenging aspect, however, turned out to be listening, with students explaining that at school lessons they do not practise listening as often as they would like to and in listening activities people tend to speak too fast and “swallow” some words. Interestingly, speaking and writing were mentioned considerably less often as problematic aspects.

The questionnaire confirmed our initial opinion that the students do not use English outside school as extensively as they could. As Figure 2 indicates, only half of the students mentioned surfing the Internet and watching films, which were the two most popular contexts after school. The other more popular contexts included travelling (mentioned by 42 per cent), and computer games, reading books and communicating with friends (all mentioned by about a third of the students). Using English in the social media was mentioned by a quarter of the respondents, which is not surprising, because students mostly use the Russian language and Russian-based platforms ВКонтакте and Odnoklassniki for communicating with friends. Five students out of twenty-six mentioned attending additional lessons of English in their spare time – a tendency quite common among Russian-speaking students. The use of private tutors probably reflects the parents’ belief that a larger amount of formal instruction would improve their children’s language skills.

Figure 2: Where do you use English in your everyday life?

The students were also asked how they would learn English if they had a choice (see Figure 3). It was surprising to see that 73 per cent of the respondents claimed reading to be their preferred way of learning, with communication (either face-to-face or through the social media) only the second most

Figure 3: If you could choose, how would you learn English?

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popular answer with 65 per cent of the respondents suggesting this option. Approximately half of the respondents also considered grammar exercises, writing, listening and watching films as desirable language learning activities. It can be assumed that the answers were influenced by the respondents’ previous experience of learning English and the activities that they were familiar with, not by their actual personal preferences. In fact, when the course started, the students were not very eager to read longer texts or complete writing activities.

The needs analysis findings confirmed our initial concern that some students do not see much need for using English outside school and are not aware of what they themselves could do to develop their language skills. Therefore, it was decided that the importance of good English skills will be addressed repeatedly during the course and that attempts will be made to raise the students’ awareness of effective study skills.

Taking into account the students’ preferences for the issues to be included in this elective course, the following list of topics was created, with the aim of dedicating two to four academic hours to each: 1. Introduction to ourselves and the course 2. Learning styles, time management 3. Media in the English-speaking world, critical reading 4. Social media 5. Cultural norms and differences 6. British (pop)culture 7. American (pop)culture 8. Environment, ecological footprint 9. Health and healthy lifestyle 10. Visiting the University of Tartu, further studies, university life 11. Work life, career 12. Meeting foreign exchange students 13. Travelling The feedback from the two cohorts of students who have taken the course so far has been positive.

The students have enjoyed the topics of British and American (pop)culture and healthy lifestyle the most, though the issues related to further studies and work life were also considered motivating. Quite a number of the students were interested in learning more effective study skills and time management techniques.

Of the various activities in the course, the one that practically all the participants loved was meeting some foreign exchange students studying at the University of Tartu. The exchange students came to the school and the tenth-graders first interviewed them in small groups and then showed them around their school. All the communication was in English and the tenth graders could experience how successful they were at speaking the language and how confident they felt in a situation where English is the only common language. The foreign exchange students, in their turn, were excited to see a local school and talk to young people. We could see that bringing English-speaking guests to an English classroom can be an enriching practice if the occasion is well planned and suitable activities are selected.

Another activity that proved to be highly popular with the course participants was creating podcasts or videos. Students worked in groups of three or four and created a 5–10-minute podcast or video on the topic of their own choice. As an introduction to the task, the students watched and analysed posts of several YouTubers and discussed technical solutions for podcasts and videos. It was impressive to see how good some school students are at using various tools for editing videos and how creative and humorous videos they produced.

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A selection of materials developed by the two teams of MA students – future teachers of English – are available at http://bit.ly/TAGmaterials. These are the activities that were tested during the conversational English course and that seemed to appeal to the students of grade ten. They are mostly pair- and group-work activities, but include a couple of individual reading and writing activities as well. We do hope that other teachers of English might find some interesting ideas that they can integrate into their own English lessons among them.

What the tenth-graders especially liked about the elective course, however, was the fact that the teachers were young people, almost their peers and, as a result, the atmosphere in the classroom was somewhat more informal and less stressful than usual. This was exactly what the shyer students needed to start talking more freely. The fact that more students applied to take the course in the second year of the project than in the first year is an indication that the experience was considered positive overall.

Similarly, the MA students who have been teaching the course have found the experience useful and enjoyable. Some of them have mentioned that it has convinced them that they have chosen the right profession, and all of them have appreciated the opportunity to teach a course where they are responsible for all stages and aspects. As they have taught the course in pairs, they have enhanced their collaboration skills, and most of them have been positively surprised by the good rapport they managed to establish with the students.

The areas that have caused difficulties have been engaging all the students, particularly the shy ones, in pair- and group-work activities and ensuring that the students keep to the deadlines with major homework activities. The greatest challenge has been to strike the right balance between the teacher and the students talking time. It is obvious that even in a conversation class some input is needed, otherwise there is nothing for students to talk about. The issue is, however, who should provide this input so that the participants do not become passive observers. In the first year of the project, this caused some difficulty as presentations by the MA students took up too much of the class time, which was also pointed out in the student feedback. We learned from the experience and in the second year less time was devoted to teacher presentations, which left more time for students to talk.

To conclude, though the two-year project has ended, the cooperation between Annelinna Gymnasium and our department continues. This academic year, a third group of MA students upgraded, taught and evaluated the course and were as enthusiastic as the previous groups about the experience. The student feedback collected was even more positive than in the previous years. The school leadership sees the course as a useful supplement to the compulsory courses of English; it has expressed the wish that the course be taught every year, and it has been added into the list of elective courses recommended to the tenth-graders of Tartu Annelinna Gymnasium. Thus, we hope that this mutually beneficial endeavour will continue and our MA students will have the opportunity to teach the course that has been designed and make use of the activities developed as an alternative to the more traditional teaching practice in the future as well.

REFERENCES Euroopa Liidu Struktuuritoetus. Keeleõppetegevused edukamaks toimetulekuks tööturul. Available at https://www.struktuurifondid.ee/et/uudised/innove-avas-taotlusvooru-keeleoppetegevusededukamaks-toimetulekuks-tooturul, accessed 25 May 2018.

11

PRACTICAL RESOURCES AND SOME TAKEAWAYS FROM THE PLURIMOBIL TRAINING EVENT Pille Põiklik Language Policy Department, Ministry of Education and Research

In 2020, Estonia has welcomed two European Centre for Modern Languages (ECML)1 training events that support language teachers and language education. In February, we welcomed the PluriMobil seminar in Tallinn and in March, the RELANG event in Tartu. RELANG (offered in cooperation with the European Commission) helps countries better link their teaching and testing practices to the Common European Framework of Reference. PluriMobil focuses on helping teachers support students in their mobility. Since PluriMobil involves practical materials that are more directly applicable in the classroom, the following takes a look at what it offers to teachers.

The PluriMobil (Plurilingual and Intercultural Learning through Mobility) seminar was led by Kristin Brogan (Ireland) and Chantal Muller (Belgium), two members of the PluriMobil team. They were joined by 24 teachers, teacher trainers and others working in language education. PluriMobil is an ECML project which has developed materials that help teachers support students before, during and after mobility. Students have many opportunities to spend time abroad and these experiences need framing and reflection to best contribute to their developing skills.

Mobility experiences are made more valuable for students if teachers can assist them in the process.

Mobility is a great opportunity not just to put one’s foreign language skills to the test but also to specifically develop skills of intercultural communication. The latter needs conscious effort, starting with introducing it as a concept and providing students with the necessary language to talk about the various aspects of culture and communication they might pay attention to, focus on in some detail and later reflect on.

PluriMobil materials offer five sets of lesson plans (for primary school, basic school, upper secondary school, vocational secondary school and teacher education) as well as a handbook and a quick start guide for their use. All materials are freely available on the project website (https://plurimobil.ecml. at). The lesson plans include ready-made resources that can be used in classrooms and, if needed, easily altered for specific contexts. They address all stages of mobility: they can be used to prepare for mobility, to record the experiences while on mobility, and to reflect on what has been observed and learnt afterwards.

To prepare students for thinking and speaking/writing about identities and cultures as well as communication between them, the necessary first step is to have them explore their own identities and cultures. Learning about others always also means learning about ourselves. For this, tasks involving the tip of the ice berg or figures to explore one’s multiple identities can be used (Figures 1 and 2).

While students are in mobility (which can also involve extended contacts with visitors here at home or virtual mobility), they could use different learning diaries to track their experiences. One example can 1

The European Centre for Modern Languages is an organisation under the Council of Europe. The centre has 33 members, including Estonia (since March 1995). The centre works at the intersection of language policy and its practice, developing resources for more efficient language education.

12

Figure 1. Lesson plan “The Visible, The Less Visible, The Invisible”2

Figure 2. Lesson plan “My Multiple Identity”3

be found in the PluriMobil materials for lower secondary school: the lesson plan “My Learning Diary” (Table 1).

Subject area/topic

Examples found before the mobility Examples found during the mobility activity activity

Signs

No smoking!

Danger, keep out!

Staff only!

...

False friends

Actually Pension Novel

...

Idioms

‘learn something by heart’ ‘be on cloud nine’

...

Classroom language

‘Sit down!’

‘Open your workbook’ ‘Listen and repeat’

...

Table 1. Lesson plan “My Learning Diary”4 Many of the PluriMobil lesson plans can be used in all three stages: the materials include instructions on how to adapt them to before, during or after periods, many handouts are already set up for all three stages, such as the goal-setting handouts to map students’ plans for the entire mobility arc (e.g., “The European Language Portfolio: How Do I Learn and How Do I Want to Learn?” in Lesson Plans for Lower Secondary School, p 42).

In some regards, the decisive element of mobility is the follow-up. The benefit of having gained international experiences and practiced intercultural communication can be greatly enhanced if the experiences are reflected upon. PluriMobil offers its own lesson plans for this, but also draws upon a number of existing resources well suited for this. One such material is the European Language Portfolio (ELP), which has also been adopted to our context.5 The ELP can be used in all stages of mobility and the PluriMobil materials make use of this resource as well.

2

Lesson Plans for Upper Secondary School – General, p 7, https://plurimobil.ecml.at/Portals/37/LP_UPPER%20 SECONDARY%20GENERAL%20FINAL.pdf 3 Lesson Plans for Upper Secondary School – General, p 13, https://plurimobil.ecml.at/Portals/37/LP_UPPER%20 SECONDARY%20GENERAL%20FINAL.pdf 4 Lesson Plans for Lower Secondary School, p 45, https://plurimobil.ecml.at/Portals/37/basic/PluriMobil-lesson-plan-lowersecondary-EN.pdf 5 Euroopa keelemapp, https://oppekava.innove.ee/pohiharidus/voorkeeled/keelemapp/ (printed copies available from the Ministry of Education and Research).

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There is also the Autobiography of Intercultural Encounters6 (AIE), another Council of Europe tool.

AIE invites students to choose one particular encounter they had with someone from another country/ cultural background and explore its various aspects. AIE invites students to reflect on the encounter in a very detailed manner, write down their own thoughts and feelings and reflect on those of the other participant/participants. It then directs them to analyse similarities and differences that they noticed and to also analyse if and how they modified their own language or style of communication in the course of the encounter.

Although the materials are mainly developed to be used with students, one set is also for use in teacher education.7 These make use of some of the same tasks that would be used with students but also add some that have to do with analysing the differences of educational systems or recording one’s development as a language teacher. These materials also refer to EPOSTL, the European portfolio for student teachers of languages.8 PluriMobil offers a wealth of practical resources to learn and talk about different cultures, identities and communication in a foreign language and with people from different backgrounds. Still, one key message of the PluriMobil seminar was to keep in mind that the goal of mobility and reflection is not to underline differences between people/languages/cultures but to also stress the similarities that connect people of different languages and cultures.

At the time of writing this short overview, thoughts of (physical) mobility seem impractical perhaps.

However, guiding students to think about their own identities and culture and to foster an open mind towards other cultures and languages is always worthwhile, so I hope there is something to explore and use for all of you in the PluriMobil materials.

EATE CONGRATULATES

Pilvi Rajamäe, lecturer at the University of Tartu, on her 60th birthday, which was on 28 February. Pilvi teaches British literature and history and a variety of courses related to culture and art. She has been an active presenter at EATE events. In recent times, she has been engaged in researching history of teaching English at the University of Tartu.

6

Autobiography of Intercultural Encounters, https://www.coe.int/en/web/autobiography-intercultural-encounters/ autobiography-of-intercultural-encounters 7

Lesson Plans for Student Teachers, https://plurimobil.ecml.at/Portals/37/Documents/LP_STUDENT_TEACHER_FINAL.pdf

8

European Portfolio for Student Teachers of Languages. A Reflection Tool for Language Teacher Education, http://archive. ecml.at/mtp2/fte/pdf/C3_Epostl_E.pdf

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THE PLAYING UP OF EDUCATION Carol Kahar Vineland, Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada

Play. Does play matter? Is it important to the welfare of the child? Should play have an important place in the school curriculum?

The General Assembly of the United Nations answered these questions by declaring play a human right of the child.

Along with the basic needs of nutrition, health, and shelter, the United Nations considers play vital to the development and potential of the child. Play is a legitimate right of childhood, a crucial aspect of physical, intellectual, and social development. Play should be an integral part of the child’s education (Article 31 of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations, November 20, 1989) https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/crc.aspx “Play is the work of childhood.”

Jean Piaget, Swiss child psychologist (1896–1980) Jean Piaget emphasized that for children play is not a relief from serious learning, “play is serious learning.”

COVID-19, the Coronavirus, has radically changed our world for some time to come. It has necessitated a remodelling of society as we know it today. Parents in many countries find themselves in the position of homeschooling – monitoring their children’s online lessons, a component of homeschooling – while coping with the many challenges of working from home. There is a heightened need to liaise with the family unit during this stormy period of enforced self-isolation and social distancing.

How best to cope with these major changes to the lifestyle of families? Child psychologists and other experts in the field recommend that leisure time be set aside each day. Children are very aware of their surroundings and experience worry, anxiety, and fear, as do adults in their world. Family downtime is essential and can take many forms: role-playing and board games, free play, nature walks, virtual tours of museums and other age-appropriate use of the Internet. There are many online activities that can make learning fun. Time for free play is also essential as it allows children time to explore on their own without the constraints of parental supervision.

Parents, as well as their children, need some diversion from their ‘workday’. Today’s parents are urged to provide some quiet time but, most importantly, to have fun with their children in an ageappropriate context. Minimizing family stress is essential in these disquieting times.

This remodelling of society will in all likelihood be permanent.

The daily routine of the family has been pleasantly affected. Not only is the child’s day more inviting with the inclusion of leisure time but also that of their parents. All family members need a time out 15

from work. Downtime for children decreases their anxiety and worry as well as benefiting their physical and mental health.

A major reworking of society is an essential part of this pandemic. It will continue to drastically alter all aspects of life as we knew it, from the largest bodies of authority to the smallest family unit. What can we as educators learn from this pandemic?

What we have come to realize is that education will never be the same again post-Coronavirus.

Online learning and distance education will inevitably become incorporated into the school program.

Inadvertently, COVID-19 has equipped parents as well as teachers with the necessary tools to cope with the many difficulties that currently complicate their lives: homeschooling and working from home with the resulting pressure, stress, and angst.

Schools have always allotted time for play in the primary grades. Teachers can learn from the tips given to parents today. All children need to have fun and we need to ensure that play is incorporated into the programs for students of all ages. Teenagers should not be excluded.

Classroom teachers already have their hands full: large classes comprising students at varying academic levels, ongoing pressures to adopt the latest change of direction but with insufficient time and/or equipment to do so. All that is to say that being stretched to the limit is nothing new.

Classroom teachers are very familiar with stress, and on a daily level. The demands and obligations confronting parents during this pandemic will inevitably become apparent through the students.

So many of the very strategies put into practice by parents today will benefit teachers when schools finally reopen.

Play activities already familiar from home can be integrated into the classroom schedule at all levels of instruction. Every child needs engaging and fun ways to learn. New strategies can be included into the daily program with ease, as children love – and thrive on – games and role-playing. Let’s let kids be kids.

Here in Ontario, Canada, the new generation of teachers has come under increased pressure to adhere strictly to curricula. This has greatly constrained most teachers’ creativity and ability to introduce elements of play into the classroom.

I would hope that playful learning habits and routines could potentially provide an effusion of fresh air when schools reopen in Ontario.

*** For the activities listed below, informal groupings or pairings are preferable to traditional rows. Roleplay and a variety of language games can be carried out with ease if the students are seated in groups as opposed to regimented arrangements.

These activities can be easily modified for the teacher of English (or any other language) and adjusted to be age-appropriate or dependent on language fluency.

Bingo Children will match the spoken word (of the target language) to the picture on their bingo card. As with regular bingo, the winner will be the student who successfully completes a row on his/her card.

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A small prize should be awarded. (Making the bingo cards can be a class project.)

Complete the sentence This game will encourage young students to increase their vocabulary in the target language. E.g. I love spaghetti because […].

Who am I? One student has a word taped to her forehead. She must ask questions of the class until she determines who or what she is. The teacher (or another student) will limit the number of questions and offer guidance, depending on the age group involved.

Role-play Children love to mimic adults, and role-play activities allow them to do just that. Role-play activities can be adjusted to the age, language proficiency and fluency of any particular class.

Fairy tales These culturally rooted stories always spark the imagination of children. Children can easily relate to fairy tales and enjoy recreating them. Students would enjoy making simple costumes or sets. “Three Little Pigs” or “Goldilocks” are perfect play ideas for the students to learn in the target language.

Grocery Store In this role-playing game, students will experience shopping for groceries and paying for them.

A pretend grocery store can be easily constructed using the imagination and creativity of the students. This is an entertaining and interesting way to teach related vocabulary. Social as well as communication skills are enhanced. In role-playing situations, students are highly motivated and develop fluency with ease.

Playing Detective Children put on their Sherlock Holmes deerstalker hats for this activity. Their task is to investigate the loss of a specific object somewhere in the classroom. Helpful clues are given by the teacher. This activity can help fuel the child’s inquisitive mind and boost problem-solving skills, while keeping them fully engaged in the activity.

Telephone Conversation This role-play is best if the students have reasonable proficiency and fluency in the target language.

The topic of the conversation will be provided by the teacher.

Create a Class Board Game Use the model of such board games as Trivia, Quest, etc.

Word-finder crosswords It only takes a few minutes to draw a crossword puzzle graph. Compose a series of questions in columns on either side of the puzzle graph. Then write in the answers to the questions in the puzzle graph – single words, phrases, titles, lyrics – and then let the child have a go at it. While most kids 17

love the challenge of finding the words, they also need nimble minds and sharp memories to answer trivia questions. The advantage of creating one’s own crossword puzzle is that the questions, answers and themes can be tailored to the interests of the young player. Older students will be able to put together their own word-finder to challenge the class.

In closing, I would like to add a favourite quote that resonates with all adults: “A child who does not play is not a child, but the man who doesn’t play has lost forever the child who lived in him and who he will miss terribly.”

Pablo Neruda (1904–1973) Here is a sampling of online adventures for students of all ages: Louvre Online Tours https://www.louvre.fr/en/visites-en-ligne Vincent van Gogh comes to you https://vangoghmuseum.nl/en/whats-on/we-bring-the-museum-to-you?v=1 Gemäldegalerie in Berlin with paintings from the 13th to 18th century https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/gemaldegalerie-staatliche-museen-zu-berlin Discover the British Museum to explore the history of humankind https://www.britishmuseum.org/closure Google Arts & Culture (a variety of options that change weekly) https://artsandculture.google.com/explore Versailles: The Palace is yours https://artsandculture.google.com/project/versailles The Dali Theatre-Museum https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=K5MKrKcfyRW Eureka! The National Children’s Museum https://www.eureka.org.uk/ National Museum of Finland https://www.kansallismuseo.fi/en/kansallismuseo/frontpage Webcams in Estonia https://www.geocam.ru/en/in/estonia/ Carol M. Kahar Retired teacher and computer coordinator with fond memories of all grades from kindergarten to university. She has lived and taught in several Ontario cities (Canada) and in Estonia.

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THE ONION RING SYNDROME AND THE LOST-AND-FOUND IN TRANSLATION Ülle Leis

Conference interpreter, trainer and columnist

“Oh, onion rings! I wish I’d known; I would have ordered some, too,” my British friend said and looked wistfully at my plate. “I love onion rings!”

He had taken his time reading the menu at a popular restaurant in Tallinn’s Old Town. How come he had overlooked his favourite dish? Well, he hadn’t. He simply had not recognised it, masked as Piirissaare onions baked in beer dough. The onion ring incident is a prime example of a translation completely lost on the foreign visitor that nevertheless looks like a good job to Estonians, many of whom would say that the English name is an “exact and correct” translation of the Estonian õlletaignas küpsetatud Piirissaare sibulad.

It was a beautiful case of Lost-in-Translation (LiT), and ever since that fateful day I have used a code name for similar instances – the Onion Ring Syndrome (ORS, “Sibularõngaste sündroom ehk Tõlge Eesti moodi”). The ORS stands for a translation (written) or interpretation (oral) where the text user cannot recognise an onion ring (or something else) or where an onion ring is not really what the text user would call an onion ring. This may be a good time to ask yourself how you would grade Piirissaare onions baked in beer dough and onion rings if these were your students’ translations of õlletaignas küpsetatud Piirissaare sibulad.

A LiT a day keeps the ORS away Avoiding the ORS, a source of considerable confusion, bitter disappointment and acute embarrassment, should be a key objective both when learning a language and when using it in a reallife situation. I believe that LiT incidents can be a handy language teaching tool to combat the ORS. Misunderstandings are gold dust, as Geoff Lindsey, a prominent phonetician and Honorary Lecturer in Linguistics at University College London, has said: “When I teach – always – one of the things that characterizes my teaching is grabbing hold of every misunderstanding that happens. They’re just gold dust. As humans, whenever we try to communicate using languages other than our mother tongue, misunderstandings arise, but instinctively we try to ignore those misunderstandings, we immediately try to rephrase, to repair the damage, we get embarrassed and we want to just simply step over the obstacle. Whereas I do the opposite. I immediately want to freeze time, hit the pause button, wind back and try to really examine closely, precisely what went wrong. Because every time you do that, you can be sure that you will learn something very significant about what matters. It will tell you what is important, what problems are the significant ones that arise in the interface between speakers of that language and speakers of English. Grabbing hold of errors, treating errors as a sort of gift from above, a gold dust that tells you what goes wrong.”

LiT cases can teach us as much as textbooks, often more. They also stand a better chance of being remembered because they are usually interesting, visualisable, unusual, understandable and/or 19

useful (IVUUU), especially when we combine the text with images (TLE “Kutse vastuvõtule Vinnide vennaskonnas”) and steer clear of linguistic jargon. A typical dissection of a LiT case would start with a comparison between the intended or assumed and the actual meaning, examine possible reasons for blunders and suggest prevention strategies. I have used the same approach in my biweekly Tõlkes leitud Eesti (TLE, ‘Estonia Found in Translation’) column in the national daily Postimees.

Interpretation as a language enhancement tool Years of teaching interpreting at universities and private workshops and courses have made me reflect more and more about the chicken-and-egg relationship between language learning and translation and interpreting (T & I): do we need to learn a language for T & I or do we need to do T & I in order to learn a language? Although language proficiency is a prerequisite to applying for an MA in conference interpreting, that assumed proficiency often fails in interpreting class, and feedback from tutors - professional conference interpreters and particularly from native speakers among them - leaves students shell-shocked. A number of them may already have interpreted at events, and some have done it for years. They have to distance themselves from the rights and wrongs of the translation exercises that they did at school and give up habits, many of which are deeply ingrained and extremely difficult if not impossible to change. When somebody from Tallinn says Tiheda liikluse pärast on meie kontori address nüüd Pärnu maantee 12 asemel Pärnu maantee 222, it would be a crime to interpret it as Because of heavy traffic our office is now at Pärnu maantee 222 instead of Pärnu maantee 12. Conversely, Because of heavy traffic we have moved our office from central Tallinn to the outskirts would be welcomed with wholehearted approval in an interpreting class but would probably be condemned at a language lesson as a barbaric translation crime. I have lost count of the times when students have interpreted Kallid külalised! Kallid kolleegid! Kallid sõbrad!, the typical greetings at the beginning of a speech, as Dear guests! Dear colleagues! Dear friends!, and been told by dozens of native speaker interpreters the same thing – never use Dear with these words, except for friends. They insist on Guests, colleagues, dear friends, the same that you can see in speeches by native speakers. Are you shocked?

It is not a question of an interpreting class being right and a language class being wrong, mind you, and using the first to correct the second. A language class cannot and does not have to be like an interpreting class, but it can draw inspiration and handy tips from the latter. After all, the people who study to be an interpreter or a translator learn to do somebody else’s talking or writing in another language. Why not use the same tools to teach pupils to do their own talking or writing, to add variety, reality and fun to language lessons, to increase the pull factor and pupils’ motivation? And let’s not forget that prevention is better than cure.

What is interpreting and how do you measure interpreting quality?

The layperson’s understanding of the words ‘interpretation’ and ‘translation’ for which we usually use the same word (tõlkimine) in Estonian, is heavily influenced by language lessons and exercises at school which, however, lack many of the fundamental elements of professional interpreting: - authentic speaker (a minister, a doctor, a businessman), authentic customer and authentic setting (a press conference, an opening ceremony, a factory visit, a training course, a court hearing); there is no genuine need to communicate and to match one’s language to the occasion (e.g. formal or informal); there is limited exposure to real people whose native and non-native language and manner of speaking vary a great deal; - intercultural communication: students are not required or expected to think how to make sure that somebody from a different country or culture understands things Estonian (places, people, traditions, food, e.g. Munamägi, kohuke, the Song Celebration) or how to adjust their language and behaviour to the people for whom they are interpreting; 20

- there is a dominance of written language whereas interpreters interpret spoken language into spoken language, a language radically different from and much simpler than written language. The vocabulary and the dos and don’ts of spoken and written English are quite different, e.g. native speakers always speak with contractions (there’s, I’m) which should be avoided in formal writing.

Longman dictionaries (see Longman Communication 3000) highlight the differences between spoken and written frequency; - there is not much at stake, apart from a grade, contrary to real life where there is a genuine need to understand and to be understood, and where stakes are very high – professional reputation, lucrative contracts, dream jobs, successful products, human lives.

Professional interpreting means (in simple terms) converting to another language • what is being said (the message) • in the manner in which it is said (how: tone, register etc), bearing in mind • the occasion (where) and • the audience (to whom) Interpreting quality cannot be measured in absolute units like seconds or metres. There are, however, certain key criteria and a ranking that emerged in two landmark studies that examined quality expectations among interpreters (Bühler) and users of interpretation (Kurz). The ranking is a point of reference in interpreter training and conference interpreting worldwide, but priorities may change depending on the occasion, for example fluency may rank much higher in a TV broadcast and correct terminology at an experts’ meeting. The following criteria were considered as important by Interpreters % Bühler 1986

Users % Kurz 1989

Sense consistency with original message

96

81

Logical cohesion of utterance

83

72

Correct terminology

49

45

Completeness of interpretation

47

36

Fluency of delivery

49

28

Correct grammatical usage

48

11

Native accent

23

11

Pleasant voice

28

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There are fascinating findings, highly relevant both for interpreting class and language learning. Look at Sense consistency with original message (#1) and Completeness of interpretation (#4). Many people would probably assume that they mean the same thing, i.e. if everything has been interpreted the rendering matches the original message and vice versa, in order to convey the message of the original you need to interpret everything. In reality the two are separate notions and interpretation can match the original message without being ‘complete’. Moreover, sense consistency is about twice as important as completeness. And did you see that logical cohesion ranks second?

The interpreting process Interpreting is a bit like a bird’s-eye view of a house – you see the roof (the result) but not what is 21

under it (how it was achieved, TLE “Ood labajalgadele”). Interpreting can also be compared to putting up a multi-storey building where you start from the foundation and progress in a fixed order, floor by floor. Well, the ‘floors’ may and do overlap in professional interpreting but I am keeping things simple here for the language class. Interpreting starts from listening. Before starting to interpret we need to listen, understand and analyse the content (main message, who-what-why-when, structure, hierarchy and links), the form (style, formal / informal etc) and non-verbal communication (intonation, tone, body language). Only then can we move on to (re)creating the same message in the target language, bearing in mind the audience, the occasion, intercultural differences and our non-verbal communication. And all of this has to be done in a split second. For a detailed overview of each of the stages in the interpreting process, please see my article “Elukutse: tõlk”.

Each floor in the house of interpretation has its own whys and hows, drills and remedies. Difficulties and problems should be traced back to the relevant floor. A student’s interpretation may deviate from the original or be difficult to understand for a variety of reasons, e.g. insufficient knowledge of the target language, memory failure, neglected analysis, gaps in general knowledge, insufficient knowledge of the source language, problems with listening etc. Each problem has a different cure and order of priority. Perfecting target language pronunciation is not very urgent when major misunderstandings occur because of inattentive listening, a very rocky foundation.

How do you get lost in translation?

LiT trouble may start from the meaning of a word, and not necessarily in a foreign language but already in Estonian, the source language. If one assumes that ‘ametikäik’ is ‘ametlik käik’ and ‘ehe’ is ‘mitte võltsitud’ (TLE “Tagauksest Soome” and “Sibularõngaste sündroom ehk tõlge Eesti moodi”) these mistakes will pass on to the English translation (Official entrance, instead of Staff only, and genuine liqueur, instead of authentic liqueur). It is true that ‘mägi’ is ‘a hill’ in English but it is significantly more important that the word that we use in English matches what it describes, rather than the source word in a dictionary (TLE “Aga sõnaraamatus ...”). People tend to associate a word with one dominant meaning (vähisupp > cancer soup, instead of crayfish soup, TLE “Kas võtame geeli või könti?”), often the one learnt at school, but most words have multiple meanings whose use and frequency may change over time (TLE “Üks lugu ühest”). Even a Yes may mean No: if you ask an Englishman “Don’t you have a copy?” and he says “No” it is the equivalent of “Yes” in Japanese and a number of other languages, meaning that he does not have a copy (TLE “Kohtumine lüka-tõmbaga”). Many LiT mistakes happen when a similar word is assumed to have the same meaning (TLE “Robustne järeldus taktitundelisest seedimisest”, “Taktitundeline aluspesu ja d-Eesti”, “Mood ja veoautod tõlkeorkaanis”).

Focusing exclusively on words and ignoring non-verbal cues that carry most of the meaning (TLE “Üks surnud mutt”) can result in fascinating LiT exchanges like the one where an Estonian reporter asked film students in America for their verdict on the Estonian film Vehkleja (‘The Fencer’). The reporter thought that the student who said “Good” meant praise, even though the intonation was anything but complimentary, as the reporter was to find out after his follow-up question.

Words do not exist and cannot be used in a vacuum. Putting words together may spell more LiT trouble. First there is what I call the chemical reaction of words, similar to what happens when you mix yellow and blue or baking soda and vinegar. A + b may mean ab in one language but x in another language, for example kõrg + kool and high + school (TLE “Kuidas saada orgasmi” and “Kutse vastuvõtule Vinnide vennaskonnas”). Secondly there is the tooth brushing principle – you 22

need to know which words are used together (TLE “Punamütsikesest, kes läks vanaemale”). Teeth are brushed in English but (literally) washed in Estonian. Knowing that pesema is wash and hambad is teeth is not enough to say “Lähen pesen hambad ära” – you would end up with I’ll go wash my teeth, instead of I’ll go brush my teeth.

Thirdly, words must suit not just each other but also their user, the people involved in communication and the occasion (formal / informal, oral / written etc, TLE “Aga on ju sõna ehk viis nippi õige sõna valikul”, “Tudisevad tikk-kontsad ja valehabe ehk keelemardisandi teejuht”). There is etiquette in language, just like in behaviour and dress (TLE “Frakk ja kollased sandaalid”). There is what the British say and what the British mean, and what others understand.

The last but definitely not the least LiT cause is the curse of knowledge, unknown to even many experienced multilingual communicators (TLE “Teadmise needus”). We find it hard to imagine that others might not know things that are perfectly obvious to us, and even if, we do realise it, we often struggle to explain them.

How to teach interpreting?

Teaching interpreting is essentially the same as teaching how to drive a car – a brief introduction of the rules followed by supervised practice. Conference interpreting students move from consecutive (first into Estonian and then into a foreign language) to simultaneous (into Estonian and then into a foreign language), from easier topics and speeches to more challenging work that resembles real-life assignments. Similar to a driving instructor who must be a driver, interpreting classes at interpretertraining programmes must be taught by practising conference interpreters. In addition to being an interpreter, one also needs to know how to teach interpreting. I have had the good fortune to attend many Train the Trainer courses and workshops with world-renowned experts, e.g. Gile, Pöchhacker, Gillies, Moser-Mercer, Fleming, Kurz, Harmer and numerous others. The following is a combination of key takeaways from these specialist events and my own teaching experience.

Practice material (we call them speeches) is crucial. The right dose and mix of adrenalin and difficulty, a surprising subject, a special occasion and/or a memorable speaker will work wonders.

Students of conference interpreting mostly interpret each other’s speeches and occasionally guest speakers and videos. For your language lessons, however, it is better that you pick videos, at least in the beginning, so that speeches fit the students and their skills and are suitable for interpretation. Try talk shows (Ringvaade, Hommik Anuga), TEDx Talks, use search words in Youtube (see below). Look for natural conversation. Avoid news programmes and read-out speeches. Having pupils prepare and deliver speeches would be great for language, general knowledge and public speaking, but they would need to be trained first and also trusted to do their homework. An unsuitable speech wastes time and dampens enthusiasm. You can, however, ask students to bring clips, once they have seen the routine. They can then interpret (= be) their beloved heroes and favourite subjects, which will only add to the fun and excitement.

Speech difficulty, another extremely important criterion, depends on the topic (practical < abstract < emotional), the speech type (narrative / descriptive < argumentative < formal / emotional / small talk) and many other factors, e.g. familiarity with the subject, structure (clear or vague), use of visuals, style (e.g. irony, colourful language), language (e.g. native or non-native, plain or technical, spoken or written), delivery (read, monotonous, fast) and density. A dense speech is packed with information (facts, names, numbers) and needs preparation, advanced processing skills and the endurance that beginners do not have.

Sound quality is critical – interpreting begins with listening and we can only listen to what we hear, so steer clear of clips with background music or noise. When you play a clip check with the students whether they can hear the speaker well and ask them to tell you immediately when they have problems with the sound.

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Prepare the ground with paraphrasing i.e. interpreting within one language as done at interpreting schools worldwide. Students have to change the wording, word order and sentence structure as much as possible but keep the original meaning and make sure that the outcome sounds natural (Meie juures tormab > Siin puhub kõva tuul). Paraphrasing • forces the student to separate words from the meaning and focus on the latter. Interpreting has been compared to parachuting because interpretation (the jump) only begins when you exit source text wording (an aircraft) and your parachute opens. Interpreting is also described as undressing the meaning of the source text (taking off the clothes of words) and dressing the meaning in a new wording in the target language.

• forces the student to look at larger text passages, instead of just one word at a time, a source of many mistakes • is a litmus test of language, both passive and active • shows how (and how differently) students have understood the source text • is a training ground for the interpreting technique and tools • helps to do an interpretation that sounds natural in the target language and is free from source language influence Start with narrative or descriptive speeches that tell a story or give practical advice and that are visualisable, relatable and/or predictable. You can find them easily by googling videos with Kuidas and how to or using the same search words on Youtube: How to Repair a Hole in a T-Shirt, How to Fix A Running Toilet, Patient Walk-through of Wisdom Teeth Extraction, British Airways tour of the A380, Kuidas teha pannkooke, Ekskursioon Sky Plusis, Kompostiljon: kompostimise 3 põhimõtet, Kuidas disainida isetehtud kaitsemaski?

Do not think that you can only use videos with familiar words. You and your students will be surprised that it is possible to understand and interpret the plumber in the running toilet video, even though he uses terms that none of you have heard before, terms for which you do not know the Estonian equivalent. Contrary to popular belief it is very often possible to understand (and interpret) a text without understanding every word, and conversely, to misunderstand (and misinterpret) a text that does not have a single unfamiliar word in it. When a street sweeper taking great pride in her work talks at length in a video and says, “Mul on olnud see maja seitse aastat ja kunagi pole kaebusi [koristamise kohta] olnud” one would think that the meaning is crystal clear – ‘I have been sweeping the street around the house for seven years and never had a single complaint [about my work]”. It is therefore surprising to hear it interpreted as “I have been the owner of the house for seven years and never had a single complaint”. It is a literary translation that clings stubbornly to the words of the original and ignores all the pointers – the context, the questionable logic of the lady being both the owner of a house and its hired street sweeper who has never had a single complaint (from herself?) etc.

Do not think that you have to use videos with “perfect speakers”. I can still see and hear the stunned student in my interpreting class at university who asked “Is this really how people speak?” after a video that he had had to interpret. He confessed that until then he had only interpreted speeches of his fellow students so he was blissfully unaware of what it was like in the “real world”. A speaker like Anand Kumar can offer a much more exciting challenge than somebody speaking perfect English.

What is more important, these encounters prepare for survival in real life, for driving in all weather and road conditions.

The next step is argumentative speeches (Miks/Why). Why you should wake up early, Why can’t you use phones on planes?, Why you should love statistics, Miks on TTÜ parim ülikool?, Miks müüa kinnisvara talvel?, Miks on küberkiusamisele vastu astumine suurim julgus? They help to learn to tell the difference between facts and opinions, to understand argumentative discourse and develop analytical skills.

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The last category is formal speeches and small talk: Most amazing welcome speech at Georgia Tech, The Graham Norton show, president Barack Obama’s hilarious final White House correspondents’ dinner speech, president Toomas Hendrik Ilvese kõne noorte laulu- ja tantsupeo avamisel, Janeli Normeti lõpukõne, intervjuu Ott Tänakuga. This is where the how (emotions, atmosphere, entertainment) usually matters much more than the what. It is at first surprisingly difficult for students to sound as if they really mean the words of appreciation or as if the speech is really meant to create a convivial atmosphere. They can get better quickly, though, if you draw their attention to it and insist on them making the effort. But you must insist.

Set-up at class Make sure that everybody knows the basic rules before you begin. Here is an example of a brief.

You’re the speaker in another language so when the speaker says, “I think” you say “I think”, not “s/he thinks”. You have to interpret what the speaker’s saying and the way s/he’s saying it (happily, sadly etc). Please come to the front of the class. I’ll play the video for a few sentences and then stop it so that you can interpret. Look at your audience (classmates), don’t look only at the speaker or me. Tell the story. Communicate. Your customers need your help here and now. Don’t think of words, think of the meaning and words will follow. Use simple language. Saying the same thing (message, not words) as the speaker is king. Being clear is a close second. You can change the word order. You can cut up a long sentence into several short sentences.

If you get stuck don’t ask “How do you say x in English?”. It’s useless, we’ll not tell you. I don’t mind that you don’t know the word. We all have moments when we don’t know a word. There are many ways to say the same thing, there’s no single right or wrong wording. We’ll wait until you find another way to say it, remember paraphrasing? We’ll cheer you for finding the way out on your own. It’s a precious skill. You’ll always need it, whatever you do.

Interpretation is a package. Your language can be great but it‘s useless if the customer at the back of the room can’t hear you or if you sound as if you are doubting every word. We don’t want to see the blood, sweat and tears of your work. We just want to know what the speaker’s saying. Think of the exercise as a bungee jump. See where it takes you, what happens. Have fun. End of brief.

Do a quick pre-speech warm-up before take-off. Who is the speaker? Do you know him? What do you know about the subject? Why is s/he talking about it and where? What do you think s/he will say?

What special vocabulary do you think will come up? Agree on who the audience is and ask what it means for the interpreter.

Think about where to find a real customer. One of the reasons why many interpretation problems go unnoticed by Estonians and emerge only in the ears of native speakers is that native speakers who do not understand Estonian rely on the interpretation as an independent, autonomous text. They want to understand it, they want it to be clear. If you understand both the source and target language, however, your impression of the interpretation is influenced by your understanding of the original speech.

A real customer does not necessarily have to be somebody who does not understand the source language. You can have the student who is interpreting listen to the speech on earphones and the rest of the class will be “real customers” who can watch but not hear the original speaker. This can be an eye-opener on non-verbal communication because the class will often form expectations on what’s to come based on the speaker’s facial expressions (e.g. anger or laughter) and body language. If the interpretation does not match them, it would be useful to discuss why. You can also get real customers if you arrange students in groups of three where A tells B a story without C hearing it, and B interprets the story (or tells it in the same language) to C, with A present. It is extremely useful to 25

experience what it is like to hear yourself being interpreted, and for the interpreter to get feedback straight from the speaker. We all tend to take things much more personally when we hear “our” story being interpreted.

Feedback “I think I did quite well. [---] Feedback was positive.”

“Whispered simultaneous was quite easy [compared to interpreting in front of the audience]”.

These were some of the comments of the pupils involved in an event about which a triumphant headline proclaimed in the Estonian teachers’ newspaper (Õpetajate Leht), “The international education conference was interpreted by pupils”. A week earlier the same paper had published an article by Mari Uusküla, Associate Professor of Translation studies at Tallinn University, describing the wide-spread myth that translating was a piece of cake.

I reflected on the interpretation arrangements of the conference in my column “Lapstööjõud tõlkepõllul” (‘Child labour in the interpretation market’): “The pupils’ post-conference comments show where the myths [that translating was a piece of cake] come from. [---] If pupils are given work that requires specific skills, knowledge, experience and competent supervision but there are neither the skills, knowledge, experience nor supervision, it makes ripe ground for misconceptions.

Matters are made even worse if pupils, complete novices, are asked to rate their performance and the self-assessment is assumed to be realistic and objective. From there it is a tiny step to the firm conviction that one can interpret and is a great interpreter because one has interpreted John or Mary or has interpreted at event x. [---] Having pupils with no interpreting experience do whispered interpretation equals a medical student performing heart surgery on day one of his or her studies.

Interpretation can complement language lessons with the same thrill that popular experiments bring to chemistry lessons. Operating guidelines and safety procedures are important both in a chemical lab and at interpretation trials because words can also cause allergic reactions, burns, fires, and even explosions that are no less damaging, despite being mental and not physical.”

Feedback and self-assessment are not mutually exclusive but mutually complementing. They are not substitutes for each other, though. Feedback should not be confused with the “Thank you, very nice” or “Your English is great!” that people say more out of politeness than because they really mean it.

The earlier your students realise it the better.

Leave feedback to the end of the student’s turn and start by asking the student what s/he thought of his/her interpretation. Students often think that they have to list only the mistakes, and all of them. No. Tell students that finding something positive in their performance is a must and negative observations are optional. If they mention problems, try to talk them through why they thought they had the problems. If they misinterpreted something, do not say that they interpreted x as w, but they should have interpreted it as z. Remember that in order to improve it is crucial to diagnose and treat the root cause and not the consequences. Go back to what it was in the source language and ask the student to paraphrase it to check how they had understood the meaning. Give them a second chance to interpret it. Steer them to as many equivalents as possible, never insist on one solution.

After self-assessment it is the turn of the real customer, followed by anybody else.

Feedback from the teacher should be kept for last. Make it structured (content – language – delivery) and prioritise. Always find something to praise. Avoid a chronological list of each and every slip. Tell students that they can comment on your feedback.

Content: Did it match the original? Was it clear? Did it achieve its purpose – would the listener be able to make pancakes, understand why it was useful to wake up early, feel the special atmosphere?

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Remember that interpretation can match the original message without being ‘complete’.

Language: Differentiate between language problems that interfere with intelligibility and minor issues.

Focus on the first.

Delivery: Was it audible? Clearly enunciated? Convincing? Did non-verbal communication (tone, intonation) support and match the content?

Neil deGrasse Tyson, one of America’s best-known scientists and a popular science communicator has written in his Letters from an Astrophysicist: “You asked what I teach my children. My answer is – I do not worry about what they know as much as I worry about how they think. This just might be the highest of all pedagogical goals, because the most important moments in life occur at times when how we think will matter more than what we know.”

What we know about a language is not as important as the way we think about a language. Language is a means to an end where the two should go together like a horse and carriage. LiT incidents, the ORS and interpreting can help us see the end, the wood behind the trees. They can add spice to language lessons and give both teachers and students food for thought. Real food, too, delivered through mouth-watering translations and interpreting. For example, onion rings.

The author thanks the Irene Tiivel Fund at the Estonian National Culture Foundation for its support.

The next annual scholarship round is open from 1 September to 15 October 2020. www.wordwaltz.eu, FB Tõlk Ülle Leis, ulle.leis[at]gmail.com Further reading Leis, Ü. (2018). Võõrkeelse suhtluse käsiraamat.

Leis, Ü. (2017). Elukutse: tõlk. – Tõlkimise tahud. Artiklite kogumik.

Leis, Ü. (2018). Milleks õppida suulist tõlget.

Leis, Ü. Tõlkes leitud Eesti (‘Estonia Found in Translation’) biweekly column in Postimees since August 2017.

Seleskovitch, D. and Lederer, M. (1995). A systematic approach to teaching interpretation.

Jones, R. (1998). Conference Interpreting Explained.

Gillies, A. (2013). Conference Interpreting. A student’s practice book.

URVE HANKO IN MEMORIAM EATE commemorates Urve Hanko (11 November 1926 – 4 October 2019), Associate Professor Emerita of the University of Tartu. She taught mainly stylistics, lexicology and translation studies. In cooperation with Gustav Liiv, she published the voluminous English-Estonian Dictionary of Idioms (1998) and numerous study aids, among the best-known of which is Ilukirjanduse tõlkimisest eesti keelde (On Translation of Literature into Estonian, 1972).

Urve Hanko was also a prolific translator of literature (e.g.

Kingsley Amis, Charles Percy Snow, David Herbert Lawrence, John Irving, John Fowles, Thomas Hardy, Margaret Atwood, Harold Pinter, Herman Melville).

We will always remember her kind and hospitable attitude to colleagues and students, her bright and charming smile.

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FIVE INSIGHTS INTO RUNNING AN ERASMUS+ PROJECT ON THE EXAMPLE OF THE STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP “MAY ICT BE WITH YOU” Triin Lingiene

Coordinator of Erasmus+ projects at Tartu Tamme Gymnasium

The first insight is about unity among Europeans, and how Erasmus+ projects help to build it in a concerted action. The majority of those who have got a taste for transnational collaboration will probably agree that it feeds their professional curiosity and builds bridges between like-minded teachers. The same is true for Tartu Tamme Gymnasium. We carried out our first staff mobility project in 2014 with only three teachers participating, but six years and four projects later, we find ourselves coordinating yet another strategic partnership, which already involves nearly 100 participants. It is a smart language project that revolves around European values and aims to teach language with film and content with language. Not only have five partner schools come together to pursue their stated objectives, but they have also joined forces to help their students and teachers grow as European citizens.

The second insight takes us to the priorities of the Erasmus+ programme and their role in project activities. Quite rigid at first view, those priorities can be adopted with some divergent thinking rather easily. For example, we have decided on “Open education and innovative practices in a digital era”, “Promoting a comprehensive approach to language teaching and learning”, and “ICT ‒ new technologies ‒ digital competences”, which we interpret as the Six-T’s Approach to Content-Based Instruction, soft CLIL and blended learning. Also, we are seeking some good answers to the following questions: 1. To what extent will teaching language with film motivate students to work harder and achieve higher?

2. To what extent will teaching content with language make foreign language instruction more effective?

3. To what extent will combining e-learning with face-to-face instruction encourage teachers to modify their teaching practices, and students improve their learning skills?

The third insight allows us to discuss the impact that Erasmus+ mobility flows have on participants.

Surely most students (and many teachers) join Erasmus+ projects because of free travel, language practice and new contacts. Some of them soon find out that travelling is hard work and project activities are too intensive; still others understand that flexibility and good humour, as well as thinking outside one’s cultural space, do come in handy. In the end, what matters most is a sense of accomplishment. Students feel it because project work makes them grow in multiple ways, be it intercultural awareness, language skills or transnational teamwork. Teachers feel it because project work enables them to look for a better balance between demanding high and stepping aside. Mobility flows are at the core of any Erasmus+ project as they inspire teachers and students alike, and they certainly add European dimension to the partner schools’ development activities.

The fourth insight looks into European youth and how wonderful it is for them to go and make things 28

happen together with their peers. For instance, during our first exchange of groups of pupils, we could nothing but admire how good our students were at reading the screen while discussing their film reviews. Also, we were able to take pride in seeing our young Estonians, Belgians, Danes, Germans and Spaniards debating for and against a given motion in English ‒ a foreign language to them all.

They got started with lots of scaffolding, but with ample practice, everyone will have a chance to become a more eloquent debater and a more confident English speaker as the project unfolds. All in all, fond memories of other cultures, beautiful places, and making new friends are often mentioned in students’ reflection papers, and so are personal growth along with multifaceted learning experience.

What else can we wish for?

Teacher training event in Tartu, 5 December 2019 Finally, the fifth insight puts teachers in the limelight, for without them, Erasmus+ school projects would not stand a chance. When a teacher feels that he or she has a say in important questions, they want to contribute. When a teacher knows that he or she is not alone with their concerns, inspiration is quick to come. Teacher motivation matters, for peer learning, sharing experiences and working on a common goal fosters collegial solidarity. So does teacher autonomy. Knowing that one can choose their own path will make teachers more than willing to transfer their new knowledge and skills back to their daily practices. Being able to make teachers’ voice heard will help everyone enjoy the art of teaching utmost, and that seems to be the very point of running an Erasmus+ project, at least for us.

May ICT be with you  A strategic partnership (2019‒2021) between Tartu Tamme Gümnaasium (Estonia), C.E. Rivas Luna (Spain), Wilhelm-Leibl-Realschule (Germany), Maria-Goretti-Sekundarschule (Belgium) and 10 I Campus (Denmark)  21

months of local, transnational and interactive project activities

 Three

short-term teacher training events: in Tartu, Bad Aibling and Brussels

 Three

short-term exchanges of groups of pupils: in L’Eliana (Valencia), Sankt Vith and Varde

 Three

central themes: “Human Dignity & Freedom”, “Humanity & Democracy” and “The Rule of Law & Human Rights”.

 Three

films: Wonder (2017), Keeping Mum (2005) and The Breakfast Club (1985) 29

Exchange of student groups in Lâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Eliana, Spain, March 2020 Abstract The title of our project directly refers to a legendary film series we greatly admire, but it is also true that we see ICT as the driving force behind our ambition. We intend to pursue wisdom and skilfulness by capitalizing upon our strengths and building upon our limitations, just like the aspiring Padawans and their devoted Jedi masters in Star Wars did. Besides, it will take six Episodes (transnational learning, teaching and training activities) to track our progress in doing so. Essentially, we will be using film to improve our studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; English skills in parallel with using the English language to enrich their understanding of European values. Promoting critical thinking and creativity along with intercultural awareness is substantial for us, and so is synergy between like-minded teachers.

The homepage of the project can be found at https://griterasmusplus.eu/

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DISCOVER THE NIAGARA REGION, ONTARIO, CANADA Photos on p. 64 1. Horseshoe Falls is the Canadian side of Niagara Falls with the highest flow rate and beauty.

Horseshoe Niagara Falls becomes a holiday spot for millions of people every year. Horseshoe Falls is a great source of hydraulic power for the province of Ontario.

2. The FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre is a new cultural complex located in St. Catharines, Ontario, the result of a partnership between the City of St. Catharines and Brock University. The Centre hosts a variety of international and local performing artists in its recital hall, dance/theatre, and film auditorium. The photo includes Mayor Walter Sendzik and the Art Centre architects.

3. Brock University is a public research university in St. Catharines, Ontario. It is the only university in Canada in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, at the centre of Canada’s Niagara Peninsula on the Niagara Escarpment. Brock offers a wide range of programmes at the undergraduate and graduate levels, including professional degrees. Brock was ranked third among Canadian universities in the undergraduate category. The university bears the name of Major-General Sir Isaac Brock (6 October 1769 – 13 October 1812), a British Army officer assigned to Lower Canada in 1802. He was promoted to major general and became responsible for defending Upper Canada against the United States during the War of 1812. When the war broke out, Brock’s actions, particularly his success at Detroit, earned him accolades including a knighthood in the Order of the Bath and the sobriquet “The Hero of Upper Canada”. His name is often linked with that of the Native American leader Tecumseh, although the two men collaborated in person only for a few days. Brock died at the Battle of Queenston Heights, which the British won.

4. Wind machines are protection against radiant frosts. They work by directing warmer air from above the inversion layer downward around the vines, and at the same time, they displace the colder air on the ground away from the vineyard. After more than $25-million worth of grapes were lost in 2005 when temperatures plunged to -25οC in the Niagara area, the Ontario vineyard industry was swift to adopt wind machines. There are now over 500 in the Niagara Peninsula alone.

5. Ice wine is a type of dessert wine produced from grapes that have been frozen while still on the vine.

The frozen grapes are then pressed, resulting in a smaller amount of more concentrated, very sweet wine. With ice wines, the freezing happens before the fermentation, not afterwards.

6. Welland Canal is a ship canal in Ontario, connecting Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. It forms a key section of the St. Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes Waterway. Building began in 1824. The canal enables ocean-going ships to ascend and descend the Niagara Escarpment and bypass Niagara Falls all the way to Chicago. About 3,000 ships that transport about 40,000,000 tons of cargo pass through the canal each year. It was a major factor in the growth of the city of Toronto, Ontario, as well as several heavily industrialized areas of the United States.

7. Dundurn Castle is a historic neoclassical mansion in Hamilton, Ontario. It was built by Sir Allan MacNab, a millionaire politician and was completed in 1835. The 40-room castle featured the latest conveniences of gas lighting and running water. It is currently owned by the City of Hamilton and has been restored to its original grandeur. Costumed interpreters guide visitors through the home, illustrating daily life from the 1850s. The Duchess of Cornwall, a descendant of Sir Allan MacNab, is the Royal Patron of Dundurn Castle.

Map of the Niagara Region. The Niagara River (on the right) flows from Lake Erie into Lake Ontario. It forms the border between the province of Ontario, Canada, and New York State, US. The river branches into two and flows around Grand Island. There are several smaller islands in the river, including Goat Island, which separates the Canadian and American parts of Niagara Falls.

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JOHANNES SILVET 125, OLEG MUTT 100 Ilmar Anvelt

Editor of OPEN!

Early in May this year, we marked the birth anniversaries of two grand old men in English language teaching in Estonia – 125 years from the birth of Johannes Silvet (12 May 1895 – 17 February1979) and 100 years from the birth of Oleg Mutt (6 May 1920 – 19 February 1986). In the current article, I will try to view their life and work in parallel.

Johannes Silvet was born to a poor working-class family in Tartu.

As Estonia was part of the Tsarist Russian Empire then, he received his education in Russian; the only subjects taught in Estonian were the Estonian language and religious instruction. Still, he says, “I do not remember the time when I could not read in Estonian, and books (usually borrowed from others) were the objects of my greatest interest long before I went to school” (TÜR KHO, F 118, s. 16). No foreign languages were taught at the schools he attended. Being interested in languages, Silvet learned German on his own and French from a Swiss woman residing in Tartu. It remains, however, unclear from whom and how he received his initial knowledge of English.

In 1917, during World War I, the Tartu Teacher Institute where Silvet was a student was evacuated to Herson in Ukraine. Before the evacuation, one professor (Vasili Fidrovski) and one student (Silvet) were sent to Herson to prepare for the relocation. They travelled through St Petersburg where Silvet met a Brit for the first time in his life – Professor Fidrovski’s wife (TÜR KHO, F 118, s. 16). Although the professor and his wife talked in English, Silvet could not have acquired much of the language during this short stopover.

J. Silvet’s way back home after graduating from the institute in Herson was adventurous. He voluntarily joined the White Guard and fought in Denikin’s and Wrangler’s armies. Johannes Silvet’s granddaughter, Marju Silvet (2018), thinks that he might have learnt some English from British officers who served in the Russian White Guard Army. Throughout his life, Silvet considered fighting against communists in the Russian Civil War important, and collaboration with communists, whom he called “reds”, was unacceptable for him. To return to Estonia, he had to travel through several countries – Bulgaria, Serbia, Austria and Germany (EAA.2100.1.15538).

By 1920, when Oleg Mutt was born, Johannes Silvet had returned to Estonia and was working as a primary school teacher in Tartu. He had even qualified as a temporary teacher of English for primary school classes.

Oleg Mutt was born into the newly independent Republic of Estonia, and his social background was quite different from Silvet’s. His father, Victor, had a military and diplomatic career. His mother Eugenie was a teacher of history. Victor Mutt participated as a military expert in the negotiations of the Tartu Peace Treaty, later he served as an Estonian diplomat in the United States, for the longest time as the chief consul in New York (1926–1932) (Mutt, M. 2009a: 57). During their stay in the USA, Eugenie Mutt published a collection of Estonian fairy tales in English translation (Fairy Tales… 1930).

As Oleg Mutt went to America with his parents at an early age, this had a profound influence on 32

his linguistic formation. His son, writer Mihkel Mutt writes (2009b: 53): “Although father was an ethnic Estonian born in Tartu, and, from twelve years of age to his death, lived in an Estonian-speaking environment, Estonian was not for him, so to say, his first language.”

While Oleg Mutt acquired his English at an American kindergarten and primary school, Johannes Silvet’s first visit to an English-speaking country – the UK – took place when he had already graduated from the University of Tartu with a master’s degree. He studied English philology at Tartu from 1921–1925. After graduation, he applied for a scholarship to continue his studies but was given “the scholarship holder’s rights without a scholarship” (stipendiaadi õigused ilma stipendiumita) (EAA.2100.2.1095). The documents do not reveal what special rights besides getting the scholarship the scholarship holder might have had.

Colonel Victor Mutt

The Finnish-Estonian writer Aino Kallas, wife of Oskar Kallas, the Estonian ambassador to London, writes: “The day before yesterday Mr Schwalbe MA [J. Schwalbe changed his name to Silvet in 1929] arrived from Tartu. The man had given lessons for two years in order to save 45 pounds to come here” (Kallas 1996: 217). Before World War II, J. Silvet visited Britain several times, staying in London, Oxford, Cambridge, Devonshire County (Torquay and Plymouth), Wales (Swansea) and Scotland (Glasgow and Edinburgh). His first visit to Britain was during the General Strike of 1926, and he got his “first best language and ear practice” at meetings where he could improve his understanding of dialects (TÜR KHO, F. 118 s. 16).

Johannes Silvet and Oleg Mutt maintained connections with two famous Estonian schools where they either taught or studied. Even before graduation from the university, Silvet became a teacher at Hugo Treffner Gymnasium in Tartu; he worked there until the communist coup in 1940. Oleg Mutt was a student of Jakob Westholm Gymnasium in Tallinn and completed his secondary education there in 1938 (EAA.2100.1a.383).

Along with being a full-time teacher at Treffner, Silvet did a short stint at the University of Tartu. He was employed as an acting lecturer after the dismissal of the “scandalous experimental phonetician” Willy Peters in 1931 (see Anvelt 2019: 24–28). He worked there for half of the spring semester of 1931 and the whole academic year 1931/1932. The archive documents show him as a competent lecturer who achieved good relationships with his students. It is not known why he did not stay at the university longer and apply for a permanent lecturer’s post.

Oleg Lembit Mutt became a law student at the University of Tartu in 1938 (EAA.2100.1a.383). On a personal note, I worked as Mutt’s assistant for many years and handled all kinds of official documents, but, before studying his archive folder, I did not know that he had a middle name – he always used the name Oleg only. As a child, he had painted in watercolours and oils and wanted to be an artist and, in parallel with his university studies, he attended courses at Pallas Art School. His ideal in art was Günther Reindorff (Mutt, M. 2009b: 35–36).

Besides teaching, Silvet became increasingly engaged in lexicography – he was lucky enough to publish the first edition of his best-known work – the large English-Estonian dictionary – in 1939/1940, just before the outbreak of World War II. His dictionary was largely based on the 1934 edition of The Pocket Oxford Dictionary, but he also used English-Russian, -German and -French dictionaries and terminology dictionaries of many specialities, most of which he had borrowed from the Estonian lecturer Johannes Voldemar Veski (TÜR KHO, F. 118, s. 16).

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Johannes Silvet returned to the University of Tartu after the annexation of Estonia by the Soviet Union in 1940. At first, he was employed to teach Russian because of the increased need for this language, but he was soon transferred to the post of English lecturer. He also worked at the university throughout the German occupation of Estonia and, after Prof. Ants Oras’ escape to the West in 1943, had to fulfil the duties of the professor (EAA.2100.2b.1095).

Oleg Mutt became a law student at the University of Tartu in 1938 in independent Estonia and continued his studies during the first Soviet occupation of 1940–1941. At this time and in the later Soviet period, students had small booklets where their exam results were recorded. It is interesting that, in O. Mutt’s booklet, “comparative private law” has been crossed out and replaced with “collective farm law”. He passed this exam on 16 January 1941 with an excellent grade (EAA.2100.1a.383).

First edition of Silvet’s English-Estonian dictionary with a thumb index

Mutt interrupted his studies at the beginning of the German occupation. In October 1944, when Estonia was, once again, under Soviet rule, he wrote an application to the Rector where he explained his situation as follows: “In June 1941, due to the beginning of the German occupation and the evacuation of my father to the USSR, I began to manage my parents’ farm at Kiidjärve, Tartu County, and did this throughout the whole occupation time. During the intervals from fieldwork and in the last three winters, I have used my spare time to delve into various philological questions. Now, resuming my university studies after a three-year break, I feel that I have found the speciality to which I could dedicate myself most beneficially.

Upon these considerations, I ask you, Comrade Rector, to allow me to be transferred for my further studies from the Faculty of Law to the Faculty of History and Philosophy” (EAA.5311.1/50.103).

The above-mentioned farm was the “heart of Kiidjärve manor” (Kiidjärve mõisasüda) which Oleg Mutt’s father, Colonel Victor Mutt, had received for his services in the Estonian War of Independence (Mutt, M. 2009a: 55).

Kiidjärve manor (drawing by Oleg Mutt)

Oleg Mutt was particularly interested in international law and wanted to become a diplomat. Under the changed political circumstances, this career had become impossible for him. “Obviously he understood that one of the few opportunities in life and ways to earn a livelihood for himself and his family – leaving aside unskilled work, of course – was foreign language teaching. The Iron Curtain had dropped, and no native English speakers would be coming 34

to the USSR, except to a few of the most important universities” (Mutt, M. 2009b: 57–58).

Thus, Oleg Mutt became a student of English at Tartu State University (as it was called then) and graduated in 1948. One of his teachers was Johannes Silvet who taught him foreign language teaching methodology, the history of the English language, a course on Americanisms, a special seminar in English literature, and present-day English.

Among his teachers, we can find a pleiad of other wellknown scholars, most of whom Oleg Mutt’s study record book had started their careers before World War II – Villem Ernits (Russian), Paul Ariste (introduction to linguistics, general phonetics), Friedrich Puksoo (bibliography), Arthur Robert Hone (English and American literature), Boris Pravdin (literature of the peoples of the Soviet Union), Leopold Kivimägi (English), Jaan Konks (general history, history of the peoples of the Soviet Union), Konstantin Ramul (psychology), Villem Alttoa (ancient and West-European literature), Léon Vaganay (French), Alfred Koort, Rector of Tartu State University at that time (logic). O. Mutt wrote his graduation thesis under J. Silvet’s supervision; its theme was American English in Sinclair Lewis’ Novels (EAA.5311.1/50.103).

For Johannes Silvet, the end of the war brought unexpected troubles. While Tartu was still occupied

by Germany, university staff members were sent to defend a bridge from the advancing Red Army.

Silvet was severely wounded in his arm, and the retreating German troops took him along and sent him for treatment in Austria. He returned from Austria as soon as possible as he wanted to join his family. Immediately after his arrival in Tartu in autumn 1945, he was appointed Associate Professor of English and acting head of the Department of the Philologies of Western European Nations (EAA.5311.134.140).

The first post-war years were relatively successful for him.

His pre-war master’s degree was recognised as a Soviet candidate’s degree.

The second edition of his large English-Estonian dictionary was published, although, for ideological reasons, he had to make some changes, particularly leaving out words related to religion and “reactionary” philosophy. In 1950, however, an unexpected turn happened – he was made redundant because of

Oleg Mutt with colleagues (from left Amanda Kriit, Urve Lehtsalu-Hanko, Helgi Pulk) 35

“restructuring of staff” (koosseisude ümberkomplekteerimise tõttu) (EAA.5311.134.140). In those years of the Stalinist purge of “bourgeois nationalists”, many renowned scholars were dismissed from the university.

After graduation, Oleg Mutt remained at the university and worked his way up from a teacher to associate professor and head of department. His student and later colleague, Assoc. Prof. Emeritus Nora Toots recalls: “Oleg Mutt is unforgettable. I was most lucky to be among his first students. He apologised endlessly – he even apologised that he didn’t know how to teach!!! We were so foolish that we didn’t appreciate him as much as we should have done. I have kept many of his lectures with his idiosyncratic phrases. He was our only TEACHER, because this was the time when everyone was purged, at our department included. Silvet, Hone and some others, so that there was no one who could have taught us. Oleg Mutt was the only one who could teach us. This was a very valuable service. We recalled this time even later when I was a member of the department. It was only then that I really understood what kind of person had taught us” (Toots 2020).

After dismissal from the University of Tartu, Johannes Silvet found work as a substitute teacher at small country schools – Ahja, Pala and Nina – and Secondary School no. 1 in Tartu (formerly and now, Hugo Treffner Gymnasium).

Despite all difficulties, he continued lexicographic work, making additions and corrections to his English-Estonian dictionary for its new edition.

House in Kalevi Street, Tartu, where J. Silvet lived

Silvet was able to return to the university in 1956 due to the general warming of the political climate (“the Khrushchev thaw”) and greater significance that the Communist Party and the government attributed to the teaching of foreign languages.

This also brought about an increase in staff engaged in foreign language teaching.

Johannes Silvet and Oleg Mutt worked together as colleagues for a relatively short period – from 1956–1960 when the Department of Foreign Languages was headed by the French philologist Kallista Kann. Johannes Silvet retired in 1960. In his resignation application, he mentions his 36

J. Silvet’s home in Elva

deteriorating health and the wish to continue work on his dictionaries, which he was unable to do in addition to his associate professor’s work (EAA.5311.134.140). He left Tartu and settled in a small house in Elva, not far from Tartu.

This was also the period when Silvet worked actively on his Estonian-English dictionary and kept a detailed diary on his work.

The diary includes an entry on finishing the dictionary: “The last word in the manuscript (x-jalad) [=x-legs] was entered at 01:30 on 12 May 1960, i.e. in the early morning of my 65th birthday. Sent to the publisher on 12 May 1960 (in the daytime)” (TÜR KHO, F. 118, s.13). The publishing process was slow, and the reviewers appointed by the publisher – Silvet’s colleagues Arthur Hone and Leopold Kivimägi – did not hurry. The dictionary was finally published in 1965.

O. Mutt’s house in Võru Street, Tartu

In 1959, Oleg Mutt defended his Candidate’s dissertation К вопросу о возникновении и развитии атрибутивного употребления существительных в английском языке (On the Formation and Development of Attributive Use of Nouns in English) at Leningrad University. The language of the thesis and the place of its defence may seem surprising for our younger readers, but even dissertations about the English language had to be written in Russian in the Soviet Union. Mutt became a charismatic lecturer, particularly in History of the English language. He published comprehensively on a variety of subjects, e.g. a series of brochures on the History of English (1963–1986), Social and Regional Varieties of Present-day English (1977), A Short Introduction to Germanic Philology for the Student of English (1973), Inglise keele foneetika (1978), American Life and Institutions (1976), An Introduction to English Stylistics (1973, in cooperation with Urve Lehtsalu and Gustav Liiv), Inglise keele grammatika (1962, in cooperation with Leopold Kivimägi, Johannes Silvet, Laine Võsamäe-Hone).

In 1961, the Department of Foreign Languages was divided into the Departments of English and German, and Oleg Mutt became Head of the Department of English. He remained in this post until 1978 when, because of deteriorating health, he gave his position over to Heino Liiv. When resigning from the post, Mutt wrote to J. Silvet: “So this is the end of a chapter as far as I am concerned.

At one time I thought I would run the Department for twenty years and then retire for good. It so happens that I limped along for sixteen and a half years. Looking back on it all, I feel more convinced than ever that I wasn’t suited for an administrative job.

Fortunately, my colleagues were all very sensible and helpful – otherwise I wouldn’t have managed as long as I did” (TÜR KHO F 118 s 76). He continued teaching for a few years until retirement.

Johannes Silvet started preparations for publishing the third edition of his English-Estonian dictionary as early as in 1955, but

Johannes Silvet 37

the publishing process was extremely slow. He did not want to issue a reprint of the earlier edition but a thoroughly revised version. He concluded an official contract with the publisher only in 1964 (TRÜ KHO, F 118, s. 12). I remember him repeatedly saying, “My eyes will not see it.” Unfortunately, this was true. The third edition of Silvet’s English-Estonian dictionary (in two volumes) was published as late as 1989, ten years after the author’s death.

J. Silvet’s notebook for BBC and VoA

For both Johannes Silvet and Oleg Mutt, radio was, in those days when contacts with the western world were minimal, one of the ways to keep up with developments in language and follow world affairs. Mihkel Mutt says that his father, until the end of his life, was greatly interested in foreign politics and knew more about it than most commentators in the Estonia of that time (Mutt, M. 2009b: 61). Johannes Silvet had a special notebook where he jotted down words and sentences that he had heard from the BBC and the Voice of America (TÜR KHO, F. 118, s. 21).

Mihkel Mutt describes Oleg Mutt’s writing desk, made at Kiidjärve manor in 1924, as disproportionally large for his relatively small room. A period piece on the table was “Lenin’s lamp” with a green shade; there was also a Philips radio (2009b: 37–39).

Mihkel Mutt comments: “Father’s almost fanatical involvement with English was a kind of protest against the surrounding reality. He would have never had the courage to protest openly, oh, no. His protest was cultural, safe, unnoticeable and for which he could have even been praised officially.

But it was still protest. This was his world – a niche or case he had created that others were not allowed to enter” (2009b: 59).

Although Oleg Mutt spent his formative years in the US and always spoke English to everyone who understood it, he could set his foot on the British soil as late as in 1976. He had kept up the language so well that British professors could not recognise that he was a person from behind the Iron Curtain (Mutt, M. 2009b: 59).

Page from J. Silvet’s diary 38

After retirement, Johannes Silvet continued doing smaller assignments for the university, such as examining

postgraduate students, supervising and reviewing graduation theses. In 1972 he wrote in his diary: “I feel that today (Thursday, 22 Dec. 1972) is probably the last time that I was at work as a member of the Department of English. I’m in quite a pessimistic mood, particularly because of O. M’s illness. // I took the train back to my comfy little Elva where a good dinner and a warm room were waiting for me.” The note has later been crossed out in red pencil and replaced with “Work goes on” (TÜR KHO, F. 118, s. 25). The last time J. Silvet did any work for the University of Tartu was in 1976.

Johannes Silvet seems to have anticipated his death. He wrote to Ants Oras on 15 January 1979: “It is possible that this is the last letter from me, as a few weeks ago, I was struck by quite an acute disease. I’m an invalid now both physically and psychically.

I have lived to an even too old age and experienced quite a lot.

[---] This letter is not meant to be whining – on the contrary, I’m satisfied with everything I’ve gone through” (KM EKLA, F 237, M 25:17 l. 20/32).

J. Silvet’s gravestone in Elva cemetery

Johannes Silvet died on 17 February 1979 and is buried in Elva cemetery. His gravestone, which resembles a large dictionary and bears his signature, was designed and made by Einar Grišakov (Eesti… 1995). For a more detailed account of Johannes Silvet’s life and work, see my article in Akadeemia no. 4, 2020.

Oleg Mutt had asthma from the age of 16 and he later developed high blood pressure (Mutt, M. 2009b: 65). I remember that he always liked to write a lot on the blackboard during his lectures. The constant breathing in of chalk dust must have also had an aggravating effect on his health. Oleg Mutt died at a relatively young age of 65 on 19 February 1986. Mihkel Mutt (2009b: 68) estimates that a lot of work his father had hoped to do during his retirement, particularly translating Estonian literature into English, Gravestone of the Mutt family in Raadi cemetery, Tartu remained undone. Nonetheless, he managed to translate a collection of short stories by Friedebert Tuglas, Riders in the Sky (1982) and a few other stories, including, as Mihkel Mutt says, his own “first artistically mature” story “My Fair Suburb” (1984).

Oleg Mutt was buried in Raadi cemetery in Tartu.

Johannes Silvet’s and Oleg Mutt’s legacy is living on in hundreds of their students. It is greatly thanks to them that the English language was kept alive at the University of Tartu under the Soviet isolation.

REFERENCES Anvelt, Ilmar. 2019. Scandalous experimental phonetician. Open! The EATE Journal, 56, 24–28.

Anvelt, Ilmar. 2020. Johannes Silvet – legendaarne leksikograaf. Akadeemia, 4, 667–711.

EAA = National Archives of Estonia.

Eesti Inglise Keele Õpetajate Selts. 1995. Johannes Silvet 100. Õpetajate Leht, 5 May. 39

Fairy Tales from Baltic Shores: folk-lore stories from Estonia. 1930. Translated and adapted by Eugenie Mutt, illustrated by Jeanette Berkowitz. Philadelphia: Penn Publishing Company.

Kallas, Aino. 1996. Suurlinnade udus ja säras: Päevaraamat aastaist 1922–1926. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat.

KM EKLA = The Estonian Cultural History Archives, Estonian Literary Museum.

Mutt, Mihkel. 1984. My Fair Suburb. The Play: Short stories by young Estonian authors. Translated by Oleg Mutt. Tallinn: Perioodika. 165–172.

Mutt, Mihkel. 2009a. Mälestused I: Eesti doomino. Eelmälestused. Fabian.

Mutt, Mihkel. 2009b. Mälestused II: Võru tänav. Lapsepõlv. Fabian.

Silvet, Marju. 2018. E-mails to Ilmar Anvelt, 25 and 26 Oct. Toots, Nora. 2020. E-mail to Ilmar Anvelt, 16 May. Tuglas, Friedebert. 1982. Riders in the Sky: A collection of short stories. Translated by Oleg Mutt.

Tallinn: Perioodika.

TÜR KHO = Department of Manuscripts and Rare Books, University of Tartu Library.

INDO-EUROPEAN CONNECTIONS AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE IN INDIA Jari Lutta

Language school InterLink, Narva, Estonia

PART III Can the Past Tense be changed into Present or Future? ● The streets of Calcutta with British flavour ● What has India gained from Great Britain and what did India mean to the British in both World Wars? ● Tagore as a self-translator into English ● Tagore and King George V as a ‘dispenser of destiny’ ● Controversial relationship between Britain and India: forced marriage, divorce and mature friendship ‘In the streets of Calcutta I sometimes imagine myself a foreigner, and only then do I discover how much is to be seen, which is lost so long as its full value in attention is not paid. It is the hunger to really see which drives people to travel to strange places.’ (R. Tagore, ‘My Reminiscences’) Perhaps, this article would better start off with an advert of a ‘UV sanitizer travel wand’ for cleaning doorknobs and other unavoidable surfaces (regrettably, that’s a new reality we have to face). Well, humans can get used to almost anything, as we know from the world history. Just staying at home isn’t too much, it’s tolerable. Who knows, maybe people will see it suitable and a ‘capsule-like life’ will become normal, with a new form of existence having evolved, a socially distanced human, this time not only in Northern Europe?... But at the moment, in April 2020, staying in self-isolation during the devastating pandemic, we feel it’s all new for us and we are just preoccupied with the thoughts: ‘When is this seclusion going to end?’ and ‘What results are we expected to have after all this mess?...’

The worries are many, if we take into consideration the economic and social consequences of this unfortunate development, but we tend to forget the fact that nobody has ever guaranteed us stability and eternal peace in this temporary existence. It seems that we are now involuntary witnesses to another major historic rearrangement, and we have no other choice than just to accept it. Were we 40

running too fast and were halted by the nature? Or is it a short stop before a faster race?...

Can the Past Tense be changed into Present or Future?

Somerset Maugham started his Razor’s Edge with these words: “I have never begun a novel with more misgiving. […] I have little story to tell and I end neither with a death nor a marriage.”

In this modest composition too, no one’s going ‘to ‘Indian Roller bird on sandalwood branch’ from the die or marry’. Those who wished so or were forced ‘Impey Album’, 1780. Minneapolis Institute of Art by natural circumstances have already done it, individually or countrywise. But speaking seriously, this third part of my article has been somewhat difficult for me to write, because apart from language topics it touches upon such a thing as ‘historical inevitability’ (be it a war or pandemic), and it might be sensitive or even painful in some ways. Not long ago, amidst the piles of my art stuff, I found a plaque with a witty saying in Finnish, which could be translated into English as: “If you’re able to forget what isn’t possible to change, then you can be happy.” I thought it was admirable and placed it on my wall among other queer things. History is all about that, I suppose: you’re not in power to change the past (just like in grammar); you can just make efforts to reconcile whatever is possible and do some changes in the present time. Past, Present and Future are inevitable daily companions of all teachers of English, and History gives us enough ‘food’ to think about the deeper meaning of these grammar tenses. History has no ‘happy end’ or ‘sad end’ simply because History never ends, and we hardly know where it’s going to turn next. The most enthralling games are those having features of unexpectedness and surprise (can anything be better than chess in this regard?). People are born, live their lives – ordinary, remarkable or great – and then move on somewhere further, but either we ‘marry or die’, the world goes on following its own surprising ways. Indians believe that souls just change bodies and thus, as a result, we would behold all different periods in history. It would be positively amusing, but so far, we have no empiric proof of that. Nevertheless, reincarnation might be the reason why people in India are so unhurried and rather cheerful.

In the previous part of the article, I tried to show the strong ties of Calcutta with Great Britain of the colonial times, but there’s still something more to be added. Calcutta is not only buildings and historical facts – it’s all about unpredictable destiny, human spirit and unstoppable yearning for freedom and truth. Each country had periods of its own historical ‘grindstone’, either being a ruler for others or a subject to others’ ruling. Each country has had to accept the consequences of that, be they favourable or adverse. (Could an average Roman living in the Pax Romana period, the golden age of ancient Rome, ever think that the great Empire would come to its end?) Nothing remains the same forever, that’s the nature’s law, and observing historical changes of different countries can be one of the most peculiar things for philosophical minds. Inevitably, language is also involved in this process. In case of Britain and India, both were studying each other in various ways, beginning with language, as the first means of communication, and then views, customs, beliefs and personalities.

Both countries received something valuable from each other in the process of historical interaction.

But before speaking about that, I’d like to to complete the overview of Calcutta, the capital of British India or ‘The City of Joy’, and add something that couldn’t be fitted into the previous part.

The streets of Calcutta with British flavour The intrinsic ‘code’ of Calcutta is hidden not only in its sights but also in the names of the streets, often quaint or fanciful. In this city you can observe a blend of ancient Hindu heritage and British culture (remaining now in India only as a shadow or reflection). Walking around Calcutta, you hear an 41

English-sounding street name and try to match it with the Indian day-to-day reality around. Externally it’s a post-colonial ‘hodgepodge’ (a word liked by Indians) with a number of original British ‘artifacts’ staying intact. Among the streets with ‘British flavour’, the first to be mentioned is Park Street, a famous thoroughfare in the city centre, which got its name because it runs through what was earlier Deer Park of Sir Elijah Impey, the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court at the end of the 18th century. He was educated at Westminster School of London and Trinity College of Cambridge, then he was appointed for service in Calcutta where he lived for about 17 years (see Impey’s remarkable art collection called ‘Impey Album’ with fine drawings of birds, animals and plants by local artists; Johan Zoffany once painted a portrait of Sir Elijah Impey, which is now in the National Portrait Gallery in London). Park Street used to be British Indian elegance personified and an evening recreation zone for Calcuttans. Stately English mansions came up at this western end of the city replacing the shabby huts that had been here before. The area became known as ‘shaheb para’, ‘the place of foreigners’, or ‘the White Town’. Nowadays, Park Street remains Calcutta’s foremost dining district, with many restaurants and cafés (e.g. The Bridge, Mocambo, Peter Cat and Marco Polo), jazz musicians and various street performers. It’s also known as the ‘Food Street’ and the ‘Street that Never Sleeps’. Being on Park Street means life doesn’t have to be boring – you can easily see it on the faces of walkers. And if you happen to get there, you could observe the remnants of the British era, like the sign of the Oxford Book Store on Park Street letting us know that it was established in 1920 ‘by appointment of H.E. The Lord Irwin and H.E. The Lord Mountbatten’, both once Viceroys and Governor-Generals of India.

Camac Street is known for its high-end shopping, and it was named after Sir William Camac, a rich merchant of the British time. Theatre Road (later renamed as Shakespeare Sarani) is near Chowringhee and was called this way because the Theatre of Calcutta was located there from 1813 to 1839. The theatre burned down in 1839 and has never been rebuilt since. Sudder Street (just near Park Street) is where Rabindranath Tagore lived at times and wrote some of his best poems. It got its anglicized name after ‘sadar’ (a court of appeal). Since the 1960s, this notorious Queens Mansion, the crossing of Park Street street has been visited by European and American and Russel Street, Calcutta dreamers, including Allen Ginsberg, a celebrity of the ‘Beat generation’. He was interested in all kinds of odd localities in Calcutta while making attempts ‘to overcome the fear of death’, as he worded it. He captured the feel and rhythm of the place in his poem “Last Night in Calcutta” (1968): If the brain changes matter, breathes fearfully back on man – but now the great crash of buildings and planets breaks thru the walls of language and drowns me under its Ganges heaviness forever.

Places like Sudder Street, where ‘unregulated’ and ‘outcaste’ foreigners like to hang out, are surely frowned upon and avoided by any typical ‘bhadralok’ (pious, traditional locals). Inexpensive guest houses and diners as well as proximity to all the main sights attract foreign tourists to stay in that area.

Sudder Street, Calcutta, in the late 19th century 42

Lovelock Street has nothing to do with loving affairs. It was named after the British businessman Arthur Samuel Lovelock, one of the partners of Lovelock & Lewes Co., who lived in Ballygunge neighbourhood and died in the early 1900s. His house is still there, like many other buildings of the British era in Calcutta. No trace of novelty, to put it mildly, can be seen in them, but it still remains the evidence of the British elegancy of the past. Harrison Road (now Mahatma Gandhi Rd) was originally named so in deference to the then Chairman of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation, Sir Henry Leland Harrison (1837–1892) born in Dover, Kent. Waterloo Street was named, needless to say, after the famous battle of 1815 where Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington, along with the forces of the coalition, gained victory over Napoleon. Born in Dublin, the Duke of Wellington had sailed to Calcutta long before that, in 1796, to start his service in India where he had won several notable victories in battles and stayed till 1805. His elder brother Richard Colley Wellesley (Lord Mornington) served as Governor-General of Bengal in 1798–1805. Brabourne Road was one of the places for commerce.

The foreign communities who came to make a living in Calcutta – Chinese, Jews, Armenians – all settled here and built their religious structures nearby. Harrington Street got its name after John Herbert Harrington (1765–1828), a notable judge and scholar of orientology. He was born in Salisbury and, at a very young age, he started his service in India where he lived for most of his life. Outram Ghat by the river Ganges was named after a brave British General, Sir James Outram (1803–1863).

Kyd Street was named after Colonel Robert Kyd (1746–1793), an engineer and lover of horticulture, who lived on that street. He served in India as the Military Secretary of the Government of Bengal and had other positions of service. Robert Kyd was the founder of Royal Botanical Gardens of Calcutta.

He was born in Forfarshire (Angus), Scotland, served for many years in Bengal and died in Calcutta.

Other members of his family also served in India (in administration and shipbuilding) and for this reason one of Calcutta’s large neighbourhoods was called Kidderpore. In the very centre of the city, there is Russel Street, which got its name after Sir Henry Russell, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1806–1813, who owned a house on that street. In Calcutta you may encounter even such strange names like Old Dog Racecourse Road. Dog racing was popular in that neighbourhood and so the street got its rightful name.

A few more names of Calcutta streets and places with ‘British flavour’ can be mentioned: Lansdowne Road, Wellington Square, Cornwallis Street, Bentinck Street, Lyons Range, Wood Street, Lyndsay Street, Woodburn Park, Royd Street, Wellesley Street, Middleton Row, Minto Park, Elgin Road, Hungerford Street, Townshend Road.

In the last years, some of the streets with British names were renamed by the government of West Bengal (e.g. Park Street became Mother Teresa Sarani and Grey Street became Arabinda Sarani), but numerous Calcuttans haven’t appreciated those decisions and still use the old names, which are dear to them as historical to their ‘British-made’ city. Renaming brought much confusion, and so the locals say that ‘British Raj hangover stood the test of time’, meaning that simply renaming the streets couldn’t make Calcuttans less nostalgic about the names they were so familiar with since childhood.

Every little street and lane speaks of Calcutta’s rich history connected with Britain, so perhaps right are those who think there was no need to change this city’s street names in favour of ‘Indianization’.

To its bad luck, the state of West Bengal was being ruled by the communist party of India for 34 years till 2011, so don’t be surprised to see the remnants of communist symbols painted in red colour on the walls of the buildings all over West Bengal, including Calcutta. The communist rule in this Indian state didn’t mean total control and absence of freedom like in some other countries with communist regimes, but it still brought many negative consequences for economy, culture and education of this Indian state. In 2011, the communist rule finally ended when the Trinamool party came in power.

Despite the attempts of the Soviets in the 1960s and 1970s to propagate their ideas in Bengal by supporting local communist parties, the majority of population in this Indian state didn’t accept the communist ideology. For almost three centuries, India stayed together with the British, and this couldn’t remain without effect on the mentality of people.

43

When Indians speak about their former rulers, they sometimes use the word ‘Britishers’, which is an informal old-fashioned British English word (OED, Lexico 2019). In Indian languages the British people are called ‘Ingrej’ (English), and, in fact, any European-looking person is called this way by Indians. Even more amusing is when simple people call any white foreigner as an ‘American’. ‘Saheb’ is another word that a foreigner may hear when he/she is spoken about by Indians. In former times, it was a respectful address to Europeans, as this word came from Hindi/Urdu ‘sahib’ (‘master, lord’), originally from Arabic ‘sahib’ (‘friend, companion’). ‘Memsahib’ is the respectful form of address to a European woman.

The aforementioned judge Sir Henry Russell once sentenced the British cadet John Grant to death penalty because the latter was found guilty of maliciously setting fire to an Indian’s hut. The case attracted much attention at the time (1808).

Announcing his judgment, the chief justice said: “The natives are entitled to have their characters, property and lives protected; and as long as they enjoy that privilege from us, they give their affection and allegiance in return.” Russell was an amiable British officer (it couldn’t be said about all colonial officers), and the Indian people, being very open and loyal to good rulers, never forgot such things.

Sir John Horsford, whose poem was the epigraph to the previous part of the article, not only became known as a brave soldier who rose to the rank British soldiers in Calcutta in the 1940s (the last of Major-General but also as a poet and a highly years of the British rule); Indian boys are giving them some gifts from a local festival. The sign in the educated person, like a number of servicemen of background reads: ‘Hamilton & Co. Ltd. Jewellers the British Army. His story was extraordinary as Gold and Silver Smiths. By appointment he abruptly gave up a fellowship at Oxford, and, to His Majesty the King.’ without his reputed father’s knowledge, he enlisted for service in India with the East India Company under the assumed name of ‘John Rover’. Why he abandoned Oxford is not entirely clear, but he claimed that his pursuit of poetry ‘ruined him’, and, perhaps for that reason, he headed for India. Keeping somewhat low profile, John Horsford spent his first six years in the ranks of Bengal Artillery, until he caught the attention of its commander Colonel Thomas Dean Pearse.

One day, Horsford pointed out an error in a Greek quotation in some papers he was copying for Pearse, who immediately recognized him and called him by his right name. Pearse notified Capt. Watkin Thelwall that, from that day, the latter’s subordinate ‘Sergeant John Rover’ was appointed a cadet of artillery under the name of ‘John Horsford’. The matter is that Thomas Pearse, apart from his military achievements, was a learned man interested in languages and astronomy and conducted many surveys during his service in India. For many years, he faithfully served the British Crown and died on the Ganges in 1789. Pearse memorial column is located in the courtyard of St. Stephen’s school in Calcutta. It’s also an interesting fact that both John Horsford and Thomas Pearse, as well as Job Charnock (the founder of Calcutta), were married to local Indian women. Horsford’s anxiety towards his daughters born by his Indian wife led him to condemn discrimination against ‘Eurasians’ or ‘East Indians’ as mixed-race individuals were referred to in Britain at the time. He published a number of poems defending such inter-racial relationships.

He also lent support to the Bengal Orphan Institute founded by Lieutenant Colonel of the East India Company army James Achilles Kirkpatrick (another distinguished soldier and linguist simultaneously, who was born at Fort St.George in Madras in 1764, lived most of his life in India and 44

was also married to an Indian lady). In a poem called “Art of Living in India”, John Horsford praised the biracial ‘auburn beauties’ in the Howrah orphanage and encouraged young British men in India to marry them. Horsford, a ‘man of perfect integrity’, served in the military for forty-five years, during which it is said he never had a day’s leave from his duties. He published two books of his poetry in Calcutta: A Collection of Poems Written in the East Indies (1797) and Poems in Three Parts (1800). He died in Cawnpore (nowadays Kanpur, the state of Uttar Pradesh) in 1817.

What has India gained from Great Britain and what did India mean to the British in both World Wars?

If you asked educated Calcuttans about the British rule, you might get quite diverse opinions which range from national wrath to a calm and more sensible approach to the subject. I suppose, the latter is always preferable if we speak about India and Britain. The ancient culture of India is beautiful and admirable; its history is rich, but in the 18th century India was a rather chaotic pattern of separate princely states. We have to remember that most Indian states had been ruled by various Muslim dynasties for centuries, and for the Hindu population it wasn’t easy at all. The British overpowered the Mughals, gained a very strong position and brought something new and ‘progressive’. If we look at the positive side, India has gained a lot from the British: first, the system of education with schools and universities (in addition to its own system of knowledge, very different from the European one). The ‘Britishers’ arranged efficient administration, civil services and law system, formed a welltrained army, established postal service and set telegraph lines, trained judges, doctors and teachers, constructed railways and hospitals. And what is also very significant, they brought the culture of the English language!

India of today owes much to the institutions set by the British. One of the best things Independence strategists did was to adopt the ‘British-given India’ as it was, meaning that Indians literally copypasted many laws because they worked during the British rule. Was it sensible to drop them?

Perhaps, Indians were lucky to get Britain and not some other empire to govern them in the era of colonialism, if ‘lucky’ could be the right word in this case. Indians were also fortunate to obtain independence at the proper time (exactly after the WW2) and have such wise leaders who could retain the best traditions set by the British. Along with that, they revised and reinforced their own national ideas, customs, and lifestyle.

The opinions on the British presence in India differ a lot, but the truth, as always, must be somewhere in the middle. Like everything we get in this life is not only bright and joyful but a bit baffling at times, India too has got its own pains and benefits. Let’s consider this: hasn’t Britain got its own pains and benefits through all the periods of its history? The British nation has also had its fair share of suffering, invasions, civil wars, famines and chaos. Indeed, is there any country in the world that is free from historical ‘injuries’? If you once happen to become an attentive observer staying in Calcutta at least for some time, you may acutely feel this controversial twist of history, witnessing the British and the traditional Indian heritage, which are so contrasting and inseparable at the same time.

Undeniably, any colonial rule means severe control and various hardships for the colonised. Only a few decades back, the planet overcame the downright colonial policies, and just recently the planet witnessed concentration camps, gulags and apartheid – after all, what is 50–60 years in terms of the long human history? Philosophically speaking, has the humanity made much moral progress by the second decade of the 21st century? Wars and exploitation continue till now, social disparity, vanity and greed for power still exist. At the same time, in democratic societies, everything looks much better in comparison with some other ones. ‘More developed’ nations have been able to give some help to those which are ‘less developed’.

In the period of the official British rule, Great Britain invested a few hundred million pounds in different areas of development of India. They brought in an irrigation programme, which increased the amount 45

of land available for farming by eight times. They developed a coal industry, which had not existed in India before. Public health and life expectancy increased under the British rule, mainly due to improved water supplies and the introduction of quinine treatment against malaria. Indian landowners, princes, the middle classes all gained in terms of job opportunities, business opportunities and careers in areas like law and education. The argument still continues about whether the British rule made much difference to the lives of ordinary Indians. Many historians think that the majority of Indians would have remained poor even if they had been ruled by their countrymen.

We could look at it from yet another angle: was the life of ordinary people in Britain any better than that of ordinary Indians in the 19th century? It seems, not much better – we can get a lot of evidence for that, and not only from the novels written by Dickens. When Thomas John Barnardo, the founder of a famous charity for children called ‘Barnardo’s’, arrived from Dublin to London in the 1860s to train as a doctor, he was shocked to find many children of London living in terrible conditions, with no access to education, proper food, medical care, etc. Poverty and disease were so widespread that one in five children died before their fifth birthday. So, even in the capital of the British Empire, destitute life was reality for many, what to speak of imperial colonies. Indian society has been famous for its caste system, but can we say that British society was devoid of the same when it was deeply divided by class? For much of the 1800s, an average Indian peasant had no more say in the way he was ruled than an average worker in the United Kingdom.

During the British rule, a tiny number of British officials and troops (about 20,000 in all) ruled over hundreds of millions of Indians. This was often seen as evidence that most Indians accepted and even approved of this rule. Needless to say, Britain could not have controlled India without the cooperation of Indian princes and local leaders, as well as huge numbers of Indian army recruits, police officers, civil servants, etc. Some historians point out that the British rule could exist because Indian society was so divided that it could not unite against the British. The foreign rulers even encouraged those local divisions (which is quite understandable, as the ancient principle divide et impera has always been highly effective in politics). The better-off classes of Indians were educated in English schools. They had good positions in the British army or in the civil service. They effectively joined the British to rule their poorer fellow Indians. So, injustice doesn’t depend on nationality; its roots are to be seen in imperfect human nature.

Sometimes, the British view tended to portray their rule in India as a sort of ‘charitable exercise’ – their people suffered India’s environment (e.g. climate and diseases) in order to bring a good government and economic development to India. Other historians point out that ruling India brought huge benefits primarily to Britain. India’s natural resources served the Crown to utmost extent. The huge population made India an attractive market for British industry. In the 1880s, for example, about 20% of Britain’s total exports went to India, and by 1910 those exports were worth £137 mln. India also exported huge quantities of its products to Britain, especially spices and tea, which were exported on from Britain to other countries. Then there were the human resources. The enormous Indian army serving the Crown was one of the greatest assets for Britain. Around 40% of India’s wealth was spent on the army, which was used by Britain all over the world, including the wars in South Africa in 1899–1902 and both World Wars. The Indian army was truly the backbone of the power of the British Empire. In 1901, the British Viceroy (Governor) of India, Lord Curzon, said: “As long as we rule India, we are the greatest power in the world. If we lose it we shall straightway drop to a third rate power.” For some reason, it is often forgotten that the number of Indian soldiers who fought for the British in WW1 was about 1,500,000, and in WW2 this number was almost doubled: 2,500,000! British Field Marshal Sir Claude Auchinleck asserted the British “couldn’t have come through both World Wars if they hadn’t had the Indian army.”

During WW2, the British Indian army’s action was centered mostly on the South East Asian theatre (particularly the Burma campaign) fighting the Japanese and Axis forces advancing towards India. Its second biggest action was in North and East Africa. Some Indian troops fought in Middle East and 46

also played a significant role in liberating Italy from Nazi control, being the third largest Allied contingent in the Italian campaign after the US and British forces.

Besides, being a British colony in WW2 was also a tale of sacrifice of a great number of poor Indian farmers in Bengal who gave all their crops to the Allied war effort but unjustly met their end in the great famine of Bengal that followed in 1942. That’s especially amazing if we consider the fact that the Indian National Congress party led by Mahatma Gandhi and other national leaders denounced Nazi Germany but wouldn’t fight it or anyone else until Indian infantrymen of the 7th Rajput Regiment of India was independent. Right in the middle of WW2 the British Indian Army on the Arakan front in Burma fighting against the Japanese, 1944. War (August 1942), the Indian Congress party launched office WW2 official collection, iwm.org.uk’ the ‘Quit India’ movement which eventually turned to be successful and allowed India to become independent from the British rule in 1947. An interesting part of history of that time is that Subhash Chandra Bose (Netaji), one of the most active nationalist leaders of the Congress party, started implementing his own plan: with his troops he sided with Germany in order to stop the British rule, but eventually his efforts were unsuccessful. The British had to quit India in 1947 because of Gandhi’s civil disobedience movement and other reasons. It was a bitter reality which had to be accepted by the Crown.

Tagore as a self-translator into English It’s not possible to speak about Calcutta without mentioning its great citizen and poet Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941). The air of this city is filled with his presence and legacy – the Indian genius was born and lived in Calcutta, and there he received love and adoration from both elite society and simple people. He became known to the world by his poems translated from Bengali into English by himself. The collection of poems called Gitanjali (Song-offerings, 1912) fetched him the Nobel Prize for literature in 1913. The preface to the English edition of this book was written by William Butler Yeats.

Tagore’s literary works were highly esteemed in the English-speaking world by Ernest Percival Rhys, Ezra Pound, Robert Bridges, Thomas Sturge Moore and other writers and poets of his time. Tagore’s own renderings of his works into English were regarded as ‘a miracle of translation’, despite the fact that even Yeats, his admirer, criticised his English, pointing out that actually “no Indian knows English” (Bhattacharya, 2001).

It’s doubtful that Tagore tried to compete in knowledge of English with native speakers. He is, first of all, a national poet and most of his works were written in Bengali. Tagore was not awarded the Nobel Prize for his English but for his sublime poetry shared with the world through English. Nevertheless, he wrote that he “had become world-famous as a writer in English” (self-translating) and therefore felt “extreme reluctance in accepting alterations” in his poems translated into English by others (Tagore’s letter to William Rothenstein, 1915; Dutta & Robinson, 1995).

For a poet it’s certainly afflictive to see any significant changes in meaning or style of his translated writings. Once, Tagore even refused to translate and send some of his short stories to famous Macmillan Co. (which published his Gitanjali) for the reason that “the beauty of the original can hardly be preserved in translation”, and the stories actually “required rewriting in English, not translating.” In his lectures on literature around the world, Tagore sometimes mentioned about retaining ‘dynamism’ 47

of the original in translations (Das Gupta, 2017).

Here’s one of Tagore’s most interesting statements on the subject: “Translations, however clever, can only transfigure dancing into acrobatic tricks, in most cases playing treason against the majesty of the original” (Dutta & Robinson, 1995). Tagore was really a polymath: a poet, a philosopher, an artist, a composer, a writer and a playwright. In the early 20th century, his works became rapidly known in Great Britain and worldwide. Apart from being a talented poet and writer, Tagore was also an educator. He founded Vishva-Bharati University in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, and all the money received for the Nobel Prize he contributed to the development of this educational institution.

Rabindranath Tagore at his desk

In 1937, Tagore reacted positively to the Soviet experiment of eradicating lack of education (seeing this as a good example for India), but he warned of any attempt to curb “freedom of mind”. He wrote: “It would be an uninteresting and sterile world of mechanical regularity if all our opinions were forcibly made alike… Opinions are constantly changed and rechanged only through free circulation of intellectual forces. Violence begets violence and blind stupidity. Freedom of mind is needed for the reception of truth; terror hopelessly kills it.” Could it be said any better?

Tagore’s apprehension came true, as the freedom of mind was something deeply lacking in the theory and practice of the Soviet system, despite of its various external achievements. No ‘man of arts’ would ever exchange freedom of spirit for industrial progress of any extent. If education makes people’s minds template-molded and stereotyped for the sake of making population into small screws of an ideological machine or state system, then what is ultimately the use of such education? Obviously, this reminds of the anti-utopian novels like Zamyatin’s We or Orwell’s 1984 (the former lived under totalitarianism and fully experienced its ugly impact on human society, and the latter was significantly inspired by Zamyatin’s literary work to write his 1984).

Tagore simply didn’t fit into any external system. His relationship with the British Empire was also not that explicit: the poet, feeling loyal to his homeland and at the same time being ‘a man of the world’, occasionally had to take painful decisions. In 1915, by the will of the King (George V), Tagore was awarded the title of Knight, which he accepted with some degree of hesitance. After four years he renounced his knighthood and wrote a challenging letter to Lord Chelmsford, Viceroy of India.

Tagore with ordinary English people at a train station in London, the 1910s. National Portrait Gallery, npg.org.uk

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Tagore always admired talented and broad-minded British individuals, not only among the intelligentsia but also among government officers, and still he was reluctant to remain silent at political or social injustices caused by the foreign rule. The obvious evidence for that is, for instance, his open letter of 1941 to Miss Rathbone, a British MP, politician and campaigner, who charged Indians with “not giving enough support” to the British Army during WW2, though, in fact, the support was immense. Tagore answered Miss Rathbone in quite a straightforward and bold way, explaining the feelings of his fellow countrymen about the occupation of his motherland by foreigners.

At the same time, Tagore was averse towards rigid patriotism and, as a poet of sublime ideas, tended to have a broader vision of things. In his famous novel Ghore o Baire (The Home and the World), he reveals this contradiction within himself by showing two main characters as opposing to each other. The novel was translated into English by the author’s nephew with input from the author. Due to his conflicting feelings and thoughts about Indian independence, Tagore wasn’t unanimous with the contemporary national movement leaders, but simultaneously he couldn’t be called a ‘yes-man’ Welcoming the Nobel Prize laureate in London, of the British rule (his letter to Miss Rathbone and the 1910s. Topical Press Agency, gettyimages.com his abandonment of knighthood being the evidence for that). Rather he remained himself, with love for his motherland and respect for the culture and language of Britain. In his extensive travels around the globe, Tagore interacted with such thinkers as Henri Bergson, Albert Einstein, Robert Frost, Thomas Mann, George Bernard Shaw, Herbert George Wells and Romain Rolland, and he often addressed relations between Indian and British civilizations.

Tagore and King George V as a ‘Dispenser of Destiny’ There is an interesting account of the controversy around the anthem written by Tagore. The song “Jana Gana Mana” (“Thou Art the Ruler of the Minds of All People”) was composed by him in 1911 and was sung before King George V to welcome His Majesty during his first visit to Calcutta. The Englishman newspaper reported: “The proceedings began with the singing by Rabindranath Tagore of a song specially composed by him in honour of the Emperor” (Englishman, 1911). The words Bharat-bhagya-vidhata meaning ‘the Dispenser of India’s destiny’ were understood by the British as attributed to the Emperor, and supposedly for that reason George V bestowed the Knighthood to Tagore in 1915.

But Tagore himself later denied this attribution saying that he eulogized the Supreme and not the Sovereign. In 1937, Tagore wrote a letter to P.B. Sen about the controversy: “A certain high official in His Majesty’s service, who was also my friend, had requested that I write a song of felicitation towards the Emperor. The request simply amazed me. It caused a great stir in my heart. In response to that great mental turmoil, I pronounced the victory in “Jana Gana Mana” of that Bhagya Vidhata [Lord of Destiny] of India who has from age after age held steadfast the reins of India’s chariot through rise and fall, through the straight path and the curved.

That Lord of Destiny, that Reader of the Collective Mind of India, that Perennial Guide, could never be George V, George VI, or any other George. Even my official friend understood this about the song.

After all, even if his admiration for the crown was excessive, he was not lacking in simple common sense” (Mukherjee, 1946). In his letter of 1939, King George V and Queen Mary at the ‘Court Tagore wrote: “I should only insult myself if I cared of Delhi’, Indian imperial ceremony and mass to answer those who consider me capable of such assembly, in December 1911. It was the very first unbounded stupidity as to sing in praise of George visit of a British monarch to Indian soil. After their the Fourth or George the Fifth as the Eternal coronation in London six months earlier, George V and Mary were proclaimed as Emperor and Empress Charioteer leading the pilgrims on their journey of India before the Indian princes and rulers. through countless ages of the timeless history 49

of mankind” (Purbhasha, 1948). However, Tagore’s clarifications on the controversy came only after the death of George V in 1936, as Tagore himself didn’t want to contradict it during the lifetime of the Emperor. Why it was so could only be known to him.

Thus, learning more about this illustrious Calcuttan’s life and personality, we can observe the complexity in discourse between the British and Indian cultures, the strong ties and profound difference at the same time.

“I will not buy glass for the price of diamonds, and I will never allow patriotism to triumph over humanity as long as I live” (From Tagore’s letter to his friend A.M. Bose, 1908). Thus, it can be concluded that in a higher sense Tagore was more of a universal than national type of poet, with humanistic eternal values above all. For him, trust and love were a priority, be it a relationship between individuals or between nations. That’s the key message in his letter to Miss Rathbone and not a hateful feeling of one nation towards another as some choose to think. Like millions of other Indians, he was a subject of the British Empire, and he could clearly see the advantages and deprivations of being ruled by foreigners.

Rabindranath Tagore’s house and museum (‘Jorasanko Thakurbari’) is located near Girish Park on Chittaranjan Avenue in Calcutta. Should the respected readers want to know more about Tagore’s numerous writings in English, they can consult the corresponding publications listed in References.

Controversial relationship between Britain and India: forced marriage, divorce and mature friendship Now, we can see the positive results of the former British rule for India of modern time. First of all, India is one the member states of the Commonwealth with Her Majesty the Queen as the Head of this free association. According to the London Declaration of the Commonwealth of Nations accepted in 1949 by eight states (Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom), all the member states were viewed as free, independent and equal, having no legal obligations to one another, but connected through their use of the English language and historical ties. They recognized the then King (George VI) as the symbolic head of their association, known as the Commonwealth of Nations. Several dozen countries have joined since. Typically, joiners have a historical connection to Britain as its former colonies and part of the former British Empire, but other countries can also join if they demonstrate a commitment to democracy, including fair elections and representative legislatures, accept that intra-Commonwealth discussions happen in English and acknowledge Queen Elizabeth II as their ceremonial leader.

When countries had recently achieved their independence from the UK, it was important for them to stress the change in their relationship, from dependent status to equal partnership. The emphasis on equality has helped the association to play leading roles in decolonisation, combating racism, advancing sustainable development in less developed countries and achieving democracy and peace.

Thus, the Commonwealth is a product of historical developments. Commonwealth member countries benefit from being parts of a mutually supportive community, aided by more than 80 Commonwealth organisations. The membership gives various privileges, e.g. hosting the Commonwealth Games.

Commonwealth citizens have special rights when living in the United Kingdom – more than what any other immigrant would get. An Indian citizen who resides anywhere in the United Kingdom has the right to vote in local and national elections. If an Indian citizen travels somewhere without an Indian Embassy, he or she can get assistance at the UK Embassy instead. Drawing from the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation (which amounts to about £29 mln per year), the Commonwealth provides its needier member states with advisers on trade and land-use strategies, or consultants to help restructure public services, for example.

The Commonwealth is basically a big club or network. Commonwealth consultation is a continuous 50

process which takes place at many levels and in many ways in the fields of education, environment, finance, foreign affairs, gender affairs, health, law, tourism and youth. Thus, the Commonwealth has apparently been an honest attempt by the UK to come to terms with its colonial past. Certainly, such issues can’t be univocal, and, among the British themselves, there have been many disputes on their former colonialism and the status of the Commonwealth, especially in the context of Brexit nowadays.

India has become the world’s fastest growing economy with an 7.5% estimated GDP rate, though it still must overcome many economic, social, and political problems before it can be considered a superpower. Indian IT specialists, lawyers, teachers and doctors are valued around the world, as they are very diligent, patient and dedicated workers. Despite its social and economic problems, India is the largest democracy of the world (being the second biggest country on the planet). Haven’t Indians learned about democracy from the British? Sure, they have. India owns a great amount of natural resources, which they have learned to use and trade from the British.

A poor Indian street vendor selling images of King George V and Queen Mary, 1911

And it can’t be unnoticed that there is a great number of Indians living in the UK. They feel very comfortable in the country of their former rulers. British Indians are otherwise called ‘Indian British’ people or ‘Indian Britons’. This includes people of Indian descent born in the UK and Indian-born people who have migrated to the UK. Today, Indians comprise about 1.5 mln in the UK (not including those of mixed Indian and other ancestry), thus being the single largest ethnic minority population in the country. Some Indian Britons nowadays are the members of the British Parliament – could it be imagined in the 18th century or even a few decades ago? Many of Indian Britons keep the traditions and customs of their ancestors, at the same time being ‘normal’ British, as modern Britain is known for its traditions of tolerance and humanistic approach to all people. A study by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation shows that British Indians have the lowest poverty rates among different ethnic groups in the UK, second only to white British. According to the official UK Government figures, British Indians have had the highest employment rate of all ethnic minorities.

Decent employment is inevitably connected with education, and so it cannot be overlooked that Indians have always had respect for knowledge and learning. As far as I could observe in India, plenty of educated Indians are happy and well-to-do people, who consider themselves a part of the world (mostly owing to their British colonial heritage and the English language) and who follow their own traditions.

So, there are enough grounds to conclude that both Great Britain and India have gained significantly from their ‘forced marriage’, then ‘divorce’ and later ‘mature friendship’. Should there be a dispute over who has gained or lost more? It would be rather imprudent

The bronze bust of Tagore in Gordon Square, Bloomsbury, Central London, unveiled by the Prince of Wales in 2011. On either side of the plinth there are Tagore’s poems in English and his native language.

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to judge this way, since history has no ‘subjunctive mood’, as we know. Time inevitably passes on, with its new turns and twists; all things change, leaving no hope for going backwards, and good people of any nation keep creating a ‘real history’ which is always on a wise and positive side. Da Vinci, Mozart and Shakespeare are remembered by humanity much more than those who invented weapons of mass destruction or who were guilty of violence. Luckily, this idea remains to be delight and justification of existence, notwithstanding some bitter sides of it.

In this journal for teachers, it wouldn’t be out of place to quote a noteworthy remark by Tagore about education, which could be most relevant in the modern digital world: “When material is in profusion, the mind gets lazy and leaves everything to it, forgetting that for a successful feast of joy its internal equipment counts for more than the external. This is the chief lesson which his infant state has to teach to man. There his possessions are few and trivial, yet he needs no more for his happiness.

The world of play is spoilt for an unfortunate youngster who is burdened with an unlimited quantity of playthings.” (R. Tagore, My Reminiscences) REFERENCES Bhattacharya, S. 2001. Translating Tagore, The Hindu, Chennai, India. September 2.

Commonwealth Network. www.commonwealthofnations.org Das Gupta, Subhas Chandra. 2017. Tagore on Translating Poetry. Visva-Bharati Quarterly Journal, vol. 25, no. 4.

Das, S.K., ed. 1966. The English Writings of Rabindranath Tagore. New Delhi: Sahitya Academy.

Dutta, K. and Robinson, A. 1995. Rabindranath Tagore: The Myriad-Minded Man. London: Bloomsbury, Ethnicity Facts and Figures: Work, pay and benefits: Employment. 2018. UK Government.

Gibson, Mary Ellis. 2011. Anglophone Poetry in Colonial India, 1780-1913: A Critical Anthology. Ohio University Press.

Kreling, Beth. 2009. India and the Commonwealth: A Symbiotic Relationship?

The Round Table. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00358530802598239 Maugham, S. 1944. The Razor’s Edge. New York, Garden City: Doubleday, Doran & Co. Mukherjee P.K. 1946. Rabindra-jivani (Tagore’s biography) vol. II. Calcutta.

National Archives of the UK. https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/empire/ ODNB, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 2004.

OED, Lexico.com. www.lexico.com Poverty rates among ethnic groups in Great Britain. 2007–2010. Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Purbasha journal. 1948. March.

Tagore, Rabindranath. 1917. My Reminiscences. New York: Macmillan and Co. The Englishman, newspaper (Calcutta). 1911. Dec. 28.

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A SPRING LIKE NO OTHER Julia Hirsch

Professor Emerita Brooklyn College (City University of New York)

At first it seemed just a strange bit of news, a curiosity: a doctor in Wuhan, China had discovered a new virus. I didn’t pay much attention. What was topmost on my mind was the prospective presidential election, the debates, the subtext of the enterprise. But then insidiously that news item grew in significance. The Chinese doctor was alarmed. But it was December, holiday time, the end of the year. Time to think of family gatherings, of the new year and what one hoped for it.

In February, the doctor died of the virus he had tried to warn people about.

The virus was making its appearance in Italy, in Spain, on a cruise ship.

“Corona” was swelling into a tidal wave of disease and death spreading to every shore. This past year has had its horrors, to name but a few: the hurricanes devastating parts of the southern United States, fires in California and Australia where they decimated homes and wildlife. But this was more elusive, more ominous, with no end in sight.

By the end of the month I began to think that I should pay some serious attention to the virus, not just dismiss it as another potential inconvenience akin to a subway strike or a major snowstorm. In order to force myself to pay attention and not hide behind a cloak of denial I decided to note each day something that signaled the growing severity of the virus. By March 6th, the supermarket shelves were emptying out of Purex, a popular hand disinfectant which soon became entirely unavailable.

Paper towel, tissues and most dramatically of all, toilet paper disappeared both from supermarkets and from pharmacies. A small discount store near me which usually has no more than two or three customers at a time was suddenly crammed with anxious shoppers whose numbers overflowed into the street. On March 8th, they were also out of Purex and placed large plastic bins stacked with disinfectant “wipes,” near the front of their store with a sign indicating only one to a customer. My younger daughter (the one whose sailing adventures I wrote about last year and who is now back home in New Paltz, a small college town 80 miles north of New York City) called me in alarm to tell me she could no longer find the products that my discount store seemed to have in quantity.

I promised to shop for her.

The lines at the supermarket were getting longer than on the day before Thanksgiving ( the most widely celebrated holiday in the American calendar), or Christmas and New Year’s Eve, snaking back and forth from the front to the back of the store like the lines at Disneyworld. As I waited in line for up to an hour, I peeked into other people’s shopping carts to see what they were buying. Everyone had some notion of the product they had to have: ice cream, spaghetti, tomato sauce, salami, cheese, eggs, milk, bread, chicken—and the inestimable toilet paper which was gone by the middle of the month. My own basket was filled with dried beans which I use for soup—a staple in my diet—apples, lettuce and avocados. As I looked around, I worried whether I’d made the right choices. At the wine store, where I picked up a bottle of a favorite chardonnay,

Shop sign 53

people were buying six or seven or a dozen bottles at a time. I asked one of the salesmen, “Is this holiday time?” “It’s busier than New Year’s Eve,” he said. Again, I wondered whether I was missing something. I wasn’t facing up to the long haul that lay ahead. Perhaps this virus was going to be another one of those historical moments I’d lived through before. Maybe it was going to be like the Berlin Wall, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Kennedy assassination, the War in Iraq, the bombing of the World Trade Center, one of those events that marks a turning point that changes everything.

By March 11th, entire shelves of supplies at the supermarket were empty. The wall of nut butters was empty. The chicken was all gone. Canned beans and rice had vanished. The people checking out customers began wearing latex gloves. At the discount store, to which I returned every day to stock up for my daughter, a woman was buying numerous bottles of Vitamin C. “That’ll help,” she said. She pointed to one lone bottle of Zinc.

“You should get that,” she urged. “It builds up your immune system.”

On March 13th, I decided to go to New Paltz and consider staying there for a week or so to see how things developed.

I balked at having to change my plans. What of the opera for which I had a ticket? What of the writing group I was meeting at the end of the week? What of my volunteer work with asylum seekers?

The highway is empty

Three days later, these questions seemed irrelevant. The virus was spreading and the directive to “shelter in place” had become urgent. Mid-week I wanted to go back to the city for the day just to “see how things are going.” My daughter insisted I not go. I didn’t.

That was a month ago. I’m learning a new way of life and some new skills—not without some difficulty.

The internet had become more of a lifeline than ever. I spend far too much time at my computer shopping for groceries. A delivery service is available for a small fee (less than I would spend taking a taxi home from the store), but a week to ten days go by before the groceries appear at my door. My daughter fills in the gaps. I send her a shopping list as a Google-doc and she stops by every three or four days, staying six feet away from me as I unload the groceries, wipe them down with a disinfectant wipe, and return her huge IKEA bag. “Shop more strategically,” she urges me. “Buy bigger quantities.”

“But I don’t have enough storage room,” I tell her. “Don’t tell me about storage room. I lived on 35-foot sailboat for a year and we never ran out of food.”

On March 19th, I “met” with my writing group for the first time on Zoom. There are four of us and we’ve been together for five or six years nurturing each other’s creativity. I was dismayed when I looked at my face reflected back to me from my computer screen. It captured me at a most unflattering angle.

The next day a friend told me to raise the computer so that the camera would view me from above, not below. That did improve matters.

It is now April 15th. I go for a walk of 2 to 5 miles every day, trying to vary my course. The roads around here are off the main street that runs through New Paltz and if I meet anyone they stay on the other side of the road, to be sure to maintain the recommended six feet (1.8 meters) of “social distancing.” A few small shops in a little shopping center a mile away urge customers to wear gloves and masks. In one shop, the salesperson is protected by a plastic shield and payment by credit card is made on a small machine he has set up on the other side of the shield. In the shop next door, the owner wears neither a mask nor gloves. I wonder why he is so indifferent to public health.

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The center of town is empty, except for the occasional passing car. The students were sent home a month ago. The schools are closed as are the public library, beauty parlors, barbers, and gift stores.

I can no longer hear the hum of traffic on the main highway about 2 kilometers from my house. It’s usually loud and clear as New Paltz, with its lovely mountain trails and scenic walks is a beloved destination for weekenders, honeymooners, hikers and rock climbers. But the voice of the “peepers” (little frogs) who live in the marsh across the street is far louder than usual, and so is the call of birds who eagerly flock to my feeder.

Hours go by and I’m not sure how I’ve filled them. I have trouble concentrating, staying at task. Friends report the same difficulty. When “shelter-in-place” first began, I thought it would provide an opportunity to finish writing an essay I’d started a few years back, to label boxes of family photographs, to develop my skills at embroidery. But after half an hour or an hour at a task, I go to the internet and look for messages or read the latest headlines. The phone beckons and I check in with friends. I look out the window and watch a delicate green gauze of new growth appear on the trees.

Thank you sign Flags are now flying at half-mast in New York State as well as in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan and California in honor of the victims of the Virus and particularly the doctors, nurses, emergency ambulance drivers, food delivery personnel, and the diverse workers who are risking their lives to keep ours going. The statistics of illness and death are frightening and at the moment I have no plans to return to the city.

The visual rendering of the “Corona” virus is a circle surrounded by spikes on its rim. This image suggests the jewel-studded headgear of a monarch. This terrible disease is ruling us. It is destroying lives, devastating economies, stopping the free movement of people, attacking the poor and disenfranchised with particular brutality.

Like people all over the world I wonder what the long-range effects of the Virus will be. We can only hope that by August, when OPEN! appears, we will be in a better place, looking back at the pandemic as merely a terrible nightmare.

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SEEING IT WITH MY OWN EYES Irina Matviitšuk

Language school InterLink, Narva, Estonia

This autumn I came up with a new (for me) reason why it is worth travelling. When I got an invitation to travel to the USA, I was, frankly speaking, skeptical enough that this trip might be real – a visa, such a long distance, flights. But having applied for ESTA, to my surprise, I got a reply within 3–4 days: Welcome to the USA!

The author at Cloud Gate in Millennium Park, Chicago

Though I stayed there only one week, I visited three cities in two states; even now I couldn’t believe how I managed it. My first stop was Chicago. From the first moments, I was impressed by its magnificent skyscrapers dotted along the river. It immediately took my breath away – they are of different shape and style. One reflects the water and changes its color depending on the weather and time of the day, another symbolizes unity with the previous centuries’ architecture. Interestingly, they don’t have windows, which gave the architects freedom to put their ambitions into life.

Surprisingly, this doesn’t cause a chaos – on the contrary, it’s an ensemble united by its own concept. It is a rather amazing fact that nowadays only conceptual architecture is allowed in the city. I wondered what concept the architecture in Narva has? That’s a good question…

My next place of destination was Urbana-Champaign – a city, renowned for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I had been planning to take my time walking to the university to see how the city drifted by, but once I left the house, I was immediately taken along by a stream of young people of different nationalities and races who were rushing all together in one direction. Some minutes later this stream disappeared and I found myself standing in the middle of a huge territory with nobody around. I realized that it was a campus of one of the oldest and biggest universities in the USA. It’s like a city in the city with its own life – a library, a museum, a bell tower, a concert hall and, of course, numerous of educational premises.

The surprises didn’t stop there.

Having explored the campus, I decided to go to another part of the city Urbana, which is famous for its picturesque and tranquil scenery. I 56

Chicago skyscrapers

took the bus to go to the park and asked the driver (by the way, almost all of them are women) to show me the stop I should get off. She was a very helpful woman and did it with pleasure.

I have to stop here to describe my admiration of the park. Secluded tracks, wild lakes, which gave an impression that there is a crocodile around the corner, fairy bright leaves with the colors of the American fall – nothing left me indifferent.

Having walked around the park, I set off for home.

I was walking along the deserted street when, suddenly, I heard a signal; I turned around and saw a bus. I realized that the signal had come from it.

First, I got scared that I had broken a traffic rule, but then I realized that I hadn’t done anything wrong. All of a sudden the bus stopped, the door opened and … there was the same driver, asking me whether I was going home. I said: “Yes, but only another way.”

She invited me in, closed the door, took me about 300 meters then stopped again and showed my bus stop on the opposite side. I was shocked: how did she recognize me from the back, not saying that she managed to remember me?

City Park in Urbana-Champaign

My second surprise was the next day when I decided to go to the local outlet. I had been warned that I should have some small money to buy a ticket. I had a 10-dollar note and was sure it wasn’t really “big” money. When the bus arrived, which I had been waiting for 25 minutes, and I gave the banknote to the driver, to my surprise she didn’t accept it, because it’s a rule that in order to get a ticket passengers have to insert money into the bus machine, which doesn’t give change. Imagine my disappointment when I realized that I had to go back to the store to change the money and wait for the next bus for half an hour.

Needless to say how tired I was after shopping. However, at this very moment I heard: “Don’t worry, I’ll give you the money.” I turned around and saw a young man. I have no right to say that he was a beggar or homeless, I’ll leave it to you to judge, but he was sitting with two huge dogs and a mattress rolled up. I was confused not knowing what to do: my mind said:”No,” because of some prejudice and misconception, but my intuition said: “Take the money, you might offend the man, who wants to help you,” and I accepted.

These episodes say that kindness and responsiveness don’t have any nationalities and borders. Unfortunately or fortunately, we can only learn it when we see it with our own eyes…

The the final part of my trip was Madison, Wisconsin. On a whim we decided to go to the neighboring state, Wisconsin, to visit its capital Madison. Due to objective reasons we stayed there only one day. What impressions do I have from this city? I remember the high blue sky and the blue water of the lakes around the city, the domed State Capitol with a big square in front. Interestingly, every

Wisconsin State Capitol 57

Saturday morning there is a fair, where all farmers bring their homegrown and home-made gastronomic delights. We also went to the Botanical Garden where the light festival turned the place into a fairy tale. On this note, one day in Madison is certainly not enough to explore the entire city. Hence, I asked my friend who went to the college in Madison to share his impressions of student life in Madison and here is his answer: “For me, studying in Madison offered a unique combination of immaculate scenery and challenging coursework. I lived on one of Madison’s four lakes for the final two years of my studies. I made it an important aspect of my time in Madison to enjoy the parks and lakes as much as possible. My absolute favorite place is the Terrace which overlooks the lake Mendota with iconic seating and views.

I consider Madison to be the gem of the Midwest and encourage everyone to visit.”

Wisconsin Badger

Experienced Educator TEACHING IS A GREAT WAY OF LEARNING AN INTERVIEW WITH ENE PETERSON, CHAIR OF THE ESTONIAN ASSOCIATION OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHERS

What could you say about your educational background and professional career?

I come from Viljandi and finished Viljandi Carl Robert Jakobson Secondary School in 1968. After that I entered Tartu State University and obtained the speciality of a philologist and teacher of the English language. After graduating from the university, I have worked at three different schools (Võhma Secondary School, Viljandi Secondary School, Kohtla-Järve Järve Upper-Secondary School) for eight years and more than 30 years at Virumaa College of Tallinn University of Technology. I have worked for two years as a visiting lecturer of English teaching methodology at Narva College of the University of Tartu. In the 58

academic year 1995/1996 I had an opportunity to study second language teaching methodology at the University of New Brunswick (UNB) in Fredericton in Canada in the framework of an international development project called the Estonian Language Training Project. In 2015 I attended FIPLV World Congress in Niagara Falls as a presenter. The most exciting experience at the congress was meeting my Canadian colleague Paula Kristmanson who I collaborated with twenty years ago at the UNB. I acquired a MA in Education Science (Andragogy) at Tallinn University. My professional career has been a mix of teaching, administrative work (head of the chair of the Humanities and Social Sciences at Virumaa College), curriculum development, teacher training, work in expert commissions, writing articles, preparation of study and methodological materials, involvement in projects and project management, personal development activities and sharing experience at conferences, seminars, courses. At present I am in adult education and training.

What in your learning/teaching history has inspired you?

Changes and challenges. As an Aries I hate dull and repetitive routine. I constantly set myself challenges to keep pace with changes in teaching and learning. Teaching is a great way of learning, and vice versa. Each challenge is an opportunity for personal growth and self-improvement. New challenges in teaching represent an opportunity for personal growth. There are three books that have inspired me and helped me to cope with changes and handle the challenge of change better. I have used these books during the English for Specific Purpose and Business English courses.

Firstly, Physics of the Future written by the internationally acclaimed physicist Dr Michio Kaku who gives us an insider’s perspective on the revolutionary advances, the inventions that will transform our lives in 100 years.

Secondly, Our Iceberg is Melting is a simple fable about doing well in an ever-changing world based on the award-winning work of Harvard`s John Kotter. The fable is about a penguin colony in Antarctica. The characters in the story, Fred, Alice, Louis, Buddy, the Professor, and NoNo, are like people we recognize – even ourselves. Their tale is one of resistance to change occurring in different forms all around us today – but the penguins handle the very real challenges a great deal better than most of us.

Thirdly, Screw It, Let`s Do It written by Richard Branson, a British business magnate, investor, author and philanthropist, the founder of the Virgin Group. Every chapter in his book begins with 5–10 mottos. Mottos that have guided me in my life are: Believe in yourself. Try and try again. Have a positive outlook on life. Don’t waste time – grab your chances. Calculate the risks and take them. Try new things. Challenge yourself. Have no regrets.

Who has inspired you?

First and foremost, my parents. They taught me the value of a hard work, responsibility, and the importance of a good education. I did not have any doubts about continuing my studies at the university, but it was difficult for me to make a choice between Tallinn Pedagogical Institute and Tartu State University.

Secondly, my teacher of English at Viljandi Secondary School was a huge inspiration to me, too. Her passion for teaching English was motivating and put the fire in me to choose the teacher’s career and to start my studies at the University of Tartu.

Thirdly, face-to-face meetings with world-famous linguists, lecturers, authors, methodologists, teacher trainers, storytellers, such as David Crystal, Nik Peachey, Russell Stannard, Keith Kelly, Mario Rinvolucri, Gavin Dudeney, Nicky Hockly, Kieran Donaghy, Andrew Wright, Sonia Carmona Tapa.

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They have enriched my professional life as a lecturer of English and a teacher trainer. For example, David Crystal inspired me to plunge into the world of words, Gavin Dudeney and Nicky Hockly have helped me familiarise myself with the full range of digital literacies, Kieran Donaghy encouraged me to use film and video in language teaching and provoke interest in visual literacy, Andrew Wright inspired me to use poems and stories and Sonia Carmona Tapa arose interest in storytelling. I follow Nik Pecahey`s blog on digital materials that can be used in the online or physical classroom. I subscribe to Russell Stannard`s Newsletter to become more confident to incorporate technology into my teaching.

How did you hit on the idea of founding the Estonian Association of Foreign Language Teachers (EAFLT)?

As an Aries I am motivated by challenges. The foundation of the Estonian Association of Foreign Language Teachers (EAFLT) has been one of the toughest challenges in my life. It was not an easy task and the preparatory work took about two years. There was an opportunity to attend an international conference of the Foreign Language Teachers’ Association of Lithuania (LKPA) “Language as a Pathway to a Multilingual Europe” on 20–21 June 2008 in Vilnius. The Estonian Ministry of Education and Research had sent three representatives of Estonian foreign languages teachers’ associations to the Vilnius conference. LKPA president Eglė Šleinotienė and Lithuanian foreign language teachers shared their experience, encouraged us to establish an umbrella organization of foreign language teachers. On the initiative of the Association of the Teachers of Estonian as a Second Language, the conference “Languages Open the Doors” was organized in Tartu on 29 October 2008. The purpose of the conference was to initiate cooperation between foreign language teachers and all seven foreign language teachers’ associations with more than 100 participants took part in the conference.

The springboard of the EAFLT was the Estonian Foreign Language Strategy, launched on 17 March 2009. One of the aims of the strategy was to diversify the possibilities to study foreign languages, and an important role to achieve this aims was seen in the foundation of “an umbrella organisation uniting foreign language teachers who shall be created with the support of the state and shall maintain active operations. The organisation shall plan in-service training, provide advisory services, provide information on opportunities for international cooperation and training abroad and share experience and best practise.”

Although there were obstacles, we received encouragement, advice and moral support from Eglė Šleinotienė (former LKPA president), Raija Airio (former chair of NBR region of FIPLV 2008–2010), Denis Cunningham (former Secretary-General of FIPLV Executive Committee), and Sigurborg Jonsdottir (FIPLV NBR president).

And finally, we DID it! The Estonian Association of Foreign Language Teachers (EAFLT) was established on 5 December 2009. Its founding members are the Association of Teachers of Estonian as a Second Language, the Association of Teachers of German and the Association of Teachers of Finnish. During the following years other associations joined: the Association of Teachers of Russian (2012), the Estonian Association of Teachers of English (2015), the Estonian Association of Teachers of Swedish (2018). Our motto is “Together we are stronger, together we have more possibilities!”

What has the Estonian Association of Foreign Language Teachers given to you?

The foundation of the EAFLT and being the chair of the association for ten years has been an integral part of my life – facing and overcoming challenges, meeting inspiring colleagues from all over the world, becoming more tolerant and better at dealing with people, negotiating and organisational skills.

I have learned the secrets of organising and running effective conferences (including international) from the scratch. Managing the project “An International Examination” has supplied me with the skills 60

of launching a project and keeping the project on track. On everyday basis I have learned many more skills that I had never thought I would need in my life, e.g. basic accounting, budget monitoring, drawing up contracts, recordkeeping, keeping up with the knowledge of legislation in the field of education, language learning and teaching.

I would like to thank our board members who have trusted, supported, and encouraged me during these years.

How does it happen that you smile in every picture?

As matter of fact, I acquired the habit of smiling when being photographed when I studied in Canada at the University of New Brunswick twenty years ago. And I haven’t got rid of this “habit”. It`s become a natural process for me to smile when being photographed. I don’t want to see myself sad or gloomy, and, therefore, I smile. I believe it adds beauty to the face. I think that there’s always a reason to smile, you just must find it.

What makes you seem to be in high spirit all the time?

It surprises me that I have made such an impression. A high-spirited person is energetic and happy and likes doing exciting and enjoyable things. I am happy because I can do the things I Iike, have a supporting family and wonderful colleagues. It is true to say that I try to think positive, see the brighter side of life, encourage, and inspire other people as well.

What are the challenges and the opportunities that language teachers’ associations face?

I do believe that there is still – perhaps more than ever – a need for teachers’ associations which can instil in their members a strong sense of belonging to a wider community of caring and committed professionals. Teachers who join teachers’ associations value first and foremost practical benefits: a chance to attend conferences or seminars at a reduced price, receive newsletters and fresh information about language teaching events and courses, be a member of electronic discussion lists, get in touch with other teachers and get the energy from being with like-minded professionals.

However, the greatest challenge is how to guarantee the sustainable development of language teachers’ associations (LTAs). You need finances (membership fees do not cover all expenses), and you need energetic people wanting to make a difference and change things. One of the key conditions for the existence of an association is that it can attract new members and retain their membership for as long as possible. In Estonia, only 10–20 % of foreign language teachers have joined different language teacher associations. It is increasingly important that associations can effectively present themselves to the world and communicate the advantages that come with membership. To encourage foreign language teachers to become a member of one of our member associations, the EAFLT prepared a videoclip. You can watch it (with subtitles in English) here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzuJeGj8PNM Based on my own board member experience, the most important other requirements for guaranteeing the sustainability of LTAs are the following: time (readiness to work for extra hours on a voluntary basis apart from your main job responsibilities), team mindedness (a good team is the foundation of an effective association), responsibility (each board member should have a duty to deal with and act concientiously to fulfil his/her tasks), and skills (each board member should demonstrate readiness to acquire new skills needed for the development of the association).

What would you like to change at school or in education in general?

This is a difficult question to answer. 20–30 years ago, we used to have a centralised education 61

system with teacher-directed teaching, and traditional methods were used. At present, schools and teachers have more freedom with an overwhelming range of possibilities. There is more flexibility and focus on individuality. There are different schools, and traditional education is being broken down from bigger bundles of knowledge into small segments that can be mixed and matched to suit the needs of each prospective learner (the so-called learner-centered teaching). Are all schools and teachers ready to make good choices, evaluate their options and understand the responsibility that choice brings and the consequences of their decisions? I do not know because when we consider the advances that have been made in technology over the past 20 years, it is difficult to recommend what I like to change at school or in education now. According to different surveys, Estonian education system ranks among the best education systems in the world; according to OECD’s international survey PISA Estonian students rank 1st in Europe in all three domains of assessment. Schools have their success stories. So do foreign language teachers and teachers’ associations. Now it is your turn to share your expertise and know-how.

Our foreign language teachers should be more active sharing their expertise and best practices at conferences in Estonia and outside it. It is no secret that sharing best practices is an excellent way to improve the performance, make your school/association visible and, apart from that, introduce Estonia, Estonian schools, language teachers’ associations, language teaching and language policy to the wider world.

Ene Peterson was interviewed by EATE Committee members

Reading Recommendation HOW DO WE TALK THEN? Kärt Roomäe

MA student, University of Tartu

Enfield, Nick J. 2017. How We Talk: The Inner Workings of Conversation. New York: Basic Books.

It can be argued that spoken language reveals more about the deeper patterns of our cognition than writing. Human language was created through conversation, and there are many languages in the world that do not have a written form. However, in everyday life, we generally pay little attention to how exactly we talk, or how others perceive what we are saying. Have you ever considered, for example, how can conversation be compared to group work?

How We Talk: The Inner Workings of Conversation, a book published in 2017, was written by N. J. Enfield, Professor of Linguistics at the University of Sydney. While having been written by an academician, this book is clearly intended for a general audience and is not a collection of scholarly articles. It is a 257-page hardback, so not very light-weight, but not too much of a commitment either thanks to its relatively short length, making it accessible for reading.

The main claim of How We Talk is that fillers like oh and huh form a salient part of exchanging ideas and cooperating while talking to other people. These little words in addition to glances, pauses, and changes in tone, even though often frowned upon, give the speakers a chance to gather their thoughts, among other reasons. Those are sometimes used seemingly unconsciously due to the speed of cognitive processing.

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The book starts with a list of seemingly random facts in the introduction, then discussing each issue later in the book.

The author explains wide-spread controversies such as the seemingly slow talkers in the rural wilds of Scandinavia, who, as you will learn, might only seem slow due to conversation partner’s expectations, but will still never compete with those living in midtown Manhattan. The reader will find out why saying “I don’t know” takes longer than answering questions with “yes” or “no”, and the connection between a delayed response and dogs baring their teeth. This book lends insight into the reasons why people do not normally allow for pauses that last longer than one second. These details provide information about different aspects of conversations, relating them to everyday situations, and aid in understanding the argumentation of the whole book.

The book moreover shows why sometimes dictionaries and grammar books just are not enough. Audio and video recordings of everyday interactions show language in its so-called raw form. As Enfield says on page 8, “[t]o find out how people really talk, a researcher needs a special kind of direct access to language in its wild environment.” Another point he makes is that conversation is not one-sided; it requires, alternatively, a “high-level interpersonal cognition,” (page 11) and is “inherently cooperative” (page 16). These aspects are a testament to the importance of teaching informal register and spoken language, especially in higher-level classes of English. Only then will students be able to produce natural-sounding, idiomatic English. It is true that prescriptive grammar and basic rules must be learned first to create the framework, but teachers should not underestimate the less rule-based features of language. How We Talk will also be of some help for understanding what and why your students are saying, in addition to what kind of language they use.

The methods employed in different studies about both humans (such as Margaret Thatcher’s interviews) and animals (such as marmoset and capuchin monkeys) are discussed in the text, revealing Enfield’s background in conversation analysis. Each chapter has its own introduction and conclusion. Of course, some chapters are more technical, like chapter 3, “Split-Second Timing” with its adapted scatter plots and diagrams from different studies, such as the timing of people’s responses.

More detailed information about the studies mentioned in How We Talk, conducted both by Enfield and other researchers from various decades, can be accessed in the back – all the references and further comments about the topics discussed are available at the end of the book, chapter by chapter.

This makes for a better reading experience for non-specialist readers while enabling those interested in the topic to find the original sources. It is possible to read only some parts of the book; however, chapter titles such as “Traffic Signals” might not reveal much without actually reading the previous chapter, and the narrative is easier to follow when chapters are read in the order presented in the book.

As for stylistic analysis, active voice predominates, and the tone is conversational, as if Enfield was telling the reader a story. Interestingly, there are only a couple of examples of contracted forms, which are quite frequent in popular science. Sentences are short and digestible. It is pleasant to see that important scientific discoveries can be introduced in an accessible way without having to work your way through dense prose and lots of number crunching. Thanks to Enfield’s long career this is likely to be easier for him than for novice writers. Examples from everyday life and transcribed conversations add to the book’s appeal. Additionally, nominalization, i.e. nouns derived from verbs is avoided; instead, Enfield prefers phrasal verbs. This shows how How We Talk deviates from strictly academic register. The author avoided an overuse of scientific terminology as well.

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DISCOVER THE NIAGARA REGION, ONTARIO, CANADA (answers on p. 31)

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EATE AUTUMN SEMINAR, Tartu 25 October 2019 Photos by Reet Noorlaid and Krista Ummik

Booksales by Allecto

Committee members Ilmar Anvelt, Erika Puusemp, Kati Bakaradze and Merit Harju

Lunch in MHG canteen

Kadi Ulst, bookseller from Krisostomus

Tiiu Vitsut and Erika Puusemp at Miina Härma’s statue

Folk Dancing was supervised

by Kristi Jalukse

Choosing calendars