Influence of Native Language and Society

on English Proficiency

A comparison-based study between

Japan and Thailand

Pipat MethavanitpongDoctoral Student

ppmet.th@vlsi.ce.titech.ac.jpKunieda-Isshiki Laboratory

Department of Communications and Computer EngineeringTokyo Institute of Technology

Effective Presentation in English A/2014

Presentation #1

About Me

Pipat MethavanitpongBangkok, ThailandInterest: Computer Architecture

[Current] Doctoral student @ Tokyo Tech – Comm. and Computer Engr.

M.Eng. from Tokyo Tech – Comm. and Integrated Systems

B.Eng. from SIIT – Electronics and Comm. Engineering

Has lived in Japan for 2 years

22 YEARS 2 YEARS

Better Life with English

Source: EF EPI Infographic 2013

Assumption #1 (2)

Source: EF EPI Infographic 2013

Better Income $ = Better English

Gross National Income of Year 2013

[1] Norway USD 102,610 HIGH income group

[14] Japan USD 46,140 HIGH income group

[15] Germany USD 46,100 HIGH income group

[25] South Korea USD 25,920 HIGH income group

[37] Chile USD 15,230 HIGH income group

[73] Iraq USD 6,710 UPPER-MID income group

[84] Thailand USD 5,370 UPPER-MID income group

Source: Wikipedia – List of countries by GNI (nominal, Atlas method) per capita . cited Nov 14, 2014.

The GNI per capita is the dollar value of a country’s final income in a year, divided by its population. It reflects the average income of a country’s citizens.

Source: EF English Proficiency Index 3rd edition http://www.ef.co.th/epi/ .cited on Nov 12, 2014

English Proficiency

Index by Region

• [1] Norway [2] VERY HIGH proficiency

• [14] Japan [26] MODERATE proficiency

• [15] Germany [14] HIGH proficiency

• [25] South Korea [24] MODERATE proficiency

• [37] Chile [44] VERY LOW proficiency

• [73] Iraq [60] VERY LOW proficiency

• [84] Thailand [55] VERY LOW proficiency

GNI and EF English Proficiency Index

• [1] Norway [2] VERY HIGH proficiency

• [14] Japan [26] MODERATE proficiency

• [15] Germany [14] HIGH proficiency

• [25] South Korea [24] MODERATE proficiency

• [37] Chile [44] VERY LOW proficiency

• [73] Iraq [60] VERY LOW proficiency

• [84] Thailand [55] VERY LOW proficiency

GNI and EF English Proficiency Index (2)

USD 102,610

USD 5,370

• [1] Norway [2] VERY HIGH proficiency

• [14] Japan [26] MODERATE proficiency

• [15] Germany [14] HIGH proficiency

• [25] South Korea [24] MODERATE proficiency

• [37] Chile [44] VERY LOW proficiency

• [73] Iraq [60] VERY LOW proficiency

• [84] Thailand [55] VERY LOW proficiency

GNI and EF English Proficiency Index (3)

USD 46,140

USD 46,100

• [1] Norway [2] VERY HIGH proficiency

• [14] Japan [26] MODERATE proficiency

• [15] Germany [14] HIGH proficiency

• [25] South Korea [24] MODERATE proficiency

• [37] Chile [44] VERY LOW proficiency

• [73] Iraq [60] VERY LOW proficiency

• [84] Thailand [55] VERY LOW proficiency

GNI and EF English Proficiency Index (4)

USD 25,920

USD 46,140

Although HIGH INCOME

JAPANESE people are

NOT PROFICIENT

as they should be

Assumption #2

MONEY $ is not the only contributor to

ENGLISH proficiency

• South Korea has same rank• South Korea has lesser GNI by half

• Germany follows Assumption #1• Rich and Fluent

• Germany is better

• Thailand follows Assumption #1• Poor and Nonfluent

Fluent Nonfluent

Assumption #2 (2)

Learner’s environment• Native language

• Society

Japan’s and Thailand’s share some similarities

• Have their own language• Not used elsewhere

• Their 2nd language is English

COMMON SIMILARITIES may affect proficiency

Native Language

Japanese Characters

か

Hiragana

カ

Katakana

漢字

Kanji

• Each character represents a syllable• Syllable = Combination of

• Consonant

• Vowel

• A copy of Hiragana• Borrowed words version

• e.g. EN, DE

• Adopted from Chinese • Each has meaning(s)• Each has pronunciation(s)• Each pronunciation has

Hiragana syllable(s)

わたし 学校ハンバーガーがっ こう

Hiragana and Katakana Character Chart

Source: http://www.saiga-jp.com/japanese_language.html. cited Nov 14, 2014.

Each has 46 characters

Have same syllables

Thai Consonants, Vowels and

Tones

44 consonants

31 vowels

5 tones

Source: http://stujay.com/2010/10/03/12-easy-steps-to-reading-thai. cited Nov 14, 2014.

English Alphabets

• 26 Consonants

• 5 Vowels• A I U E O

• Same as Japanese

• Consonant + Vowel = New sound• Thai Vowels

Source: Student Handouts – Print ManuscriptAlphabet.http://www.studenthandouts.com/01-Web-Pages/Lot-01/Free-Printable-Print-ABCs-Alphabet-for-Kids.html.cited Nov 15, 2014.

Mimicking English Syllable

Sin

English

シンJapanese

ซินThai

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Sin?s=t

English pronunciations are lost due to

1. Limited set of consonants

2. Limited set of vowels

3. Different final consonant concept

Mimicking English Syllable (2)

Heard

English

ハードJapanese

เฮิร์ดThai

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/heard?s=t

English pronunciations are lost due to

1. Limited set of consonants

2. Limited set of vowels

3. Different final consonant concept

Mimicking English Syllable (3)

DuckEnglish

ダック

Japanese

ดัก๊Thai

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/duck

English pronunciations are lost due to

1. Limited set of consonants

2. Limited set of vowels

3. Different final consonant concept

Sentence Building

Subject + Verb + ObjectEnglish

Subject + Object + VerbJapanese

Subject + Verb + ObjectThai

Time-altered Verb

Eat / Ate / Eaten / EatingEnglish

食べる / 食べた / 食べているJapanese

Thai

Language Difficulty Ranking

Source: Voxy – What are the hardest Languages To Learn.https://voxy.com/blog/index.php/2011/03/hardest-languages-infographic/.cited Nov 14,2014.

Vocabulary Building

学生がく せい

= Student = นกัเรียน

大学だい がく

= University = มหาวิทยาลยั

学校がっ こう

= School = โรงเรียน

Katakana Conflict

• Mix of Western languages• English Hamburger ハンバーガー• German Arbeit アルバイト• Portuguese• Dutch• French Café au lait カフェオレ

• Inaccurate syllable trait from Hiragana

• English vocabulary boost on start• Penalize overwriting wrong pronunciations

Source: WikiTravel – Japanese Phrasebook.http://wikitravel.org/en/Japanese_phrasebook.cited Nov 15,2014.

Society

Education Comparison

Japan Thailand

Own Language Japanese Thai

Native Language Used Only in Japan Only in Thailand

2nd Language English English

1st English Class 5th Grade 1st Grade

Main English Teachers Japanese Thai

Teaching Style Teacher-centric Teacher-centric

Main English Usage Examination Examination

Most taken English test TOEIC TOEIC

Social Comparison

Japan Thailand

Exposure to English Speakers Condensed in cities• Tokyo• Yokohama• Osaka• FukuokaTravel destinations• Tokyo• Kyoto

Condensed in cities• Bangkok• ChiangmaiTravel destinations• Bangkok• Pattaya• Phuket

Assertiveness in Public No Yes

Assertiveness in Public to English Speaking Strangers

No No

World Role Heavy industriesResearchTravel

AgricultureAssemblyTravel

Influence Summary

• Native Language• Thai shares a lot of similarities with English• Thai people perform bad• Japanese has a high learning curve• Japanese has Katakana replacing English• Native language does not affect much

• Society• Same education orientation• Chances to speak are limited to popular spots• Don’t take chance to speak English• Different world roles

Conclusion

• Income and English proficiency have correlation

• Native language does not affect learning English

• Social environment affects English skill• Education

• English speaker encountering chance

• Assertiveness

Thank you for your attention