It would seem that what knowledge of one or several foreign languages ​​can give, given the fact that work and communication between people in our country is conducted in Russian? In fact, a lot! Why is English needed? Why does everyone around want to learn it as best they can? The reason for the excitement lies in the fact that good knowledge of English - learning the language at the proper level, of course - opens up many opportunities!

English everywhere and in everything

A foreign language is one of the 6 official working languages ​​of the UN, the 3rd largest in the number of speakers in the world after Chinese and Spanish. Moreover, it occupies a leading position in international communication, trade, business, and cultural heritage.

That is why college graduates, students, schoolchildren, preschoolers, middle-aged and even retired people around the world strive to learn the subject at one level or another. The goals of each group are different, but it is important that they understand the value of the knowledge gained. Let's think about where English can come in handy?

Here are some fairly simple examples:

Business meeting,
correspondence, communication on social platforms,
personal communication with the carrier,
trips,
business and transactions abroad,
knowledge in the profession: IT, tourism, philology,
self-education.

Most seek to obtain a store of information to facilitate travel abroad or for the duty of the profession.

First category students covers basic conversational skills along with vocabulary that can be useful for long trips. Many manage to achieve significant progress in learning, after which there is a desire to move to the next level - above average, average or high.

For those who wish get skills for work , is more difficult. Business communication, correspondence, negotiating, conferences, making deals with foreigners is a typical job of middle managers. High knowledge is necessary for employees in the field of IT, travel agents for foreign trips, teachers of foreign philology, top managers.

What does knowledge of English give?

The standard question that you should ask yourself before learning is: “What will knowledge of English give me specifically?”. Already today you can get hundreds of answers on exactly how you can use lexical baggage!

First of all, chat with anyone and about anything. Millions of people communicate in social networks, on thematic resources in English. It serves as a link between countries and continents.

Secondly, the possibility of obtaining a prestigious job and profession. It's not too late to think about this at any age! The work of specialists with knowledge of foreign languages ​​is valued much higher than ordinary employees.

Thirdly, it is the boundless horizons of travel. In any corner of the Earth there is someone to whom you can ask a question in English.

Why is English needed? Another answer to the question would be self-education. To know several languages ​​means to increase your intellectual abilities. High knowledge of English, learning the language for doing business or knowledge of colloquial vocabulary will allow you to feel free in any country and communicate with foreigners.

English is considered the world language. Every self-respecting person should know it in order to be able to communicate outside of their country. In addition, there are many other reasons why people should know English.

Why you need to learn English: reasons

Learning a foreign language is necessary not only for communication abroad. You can also highlight the following reasons:

• When you study foreign languages, you train your brain. According to recent studies, people who know at least two languages ​​and are fluent in them are much less likely to develop Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease in old age.
• Social life. Knowledge helps us feel more confident. English is no exception. You are much more likely to not only increase your self-esteem, but also give yourself a chance to find more friends and interests, including abroad.
• Job. Knowing English increases the likelihood that you will find your dream job faster and easier. People with knowledge of languages ​​are more in demand in the labor market and get promoted faster, especially when it comes to large organizations, including international ones.
• If you learn English, you will no longer need to look for translations of books, lyrics, and various programs or even films. A huge world will open up for you - the culture of another country. Isn't it interesting?
• Knowing a language will change your worldview and make your horizons wider, and more opportunities. You will learn to be more objective and mobile.
• If a girl wants to marry a foreigner, it will be difficult for her to do this without knowing the language. Therefore, for those who expect to find their soul mate in another country, knowing English is a must.

In fact, the reasons to learn English are endless, everyone finds something for themselves. If you still decide to approach the issue of learning English seriously, believe me, you will not regret it. If you are a complete beginner, you can work with a tutor. Those who already have basic knowledge of English can study on their own: study from textbooks, read books in English, watch films without translation.

In this issue, we decided to touch on the topic of the English language in the life of a developer. Is it possible to become a good programmer without knowing English or knowing, but only at a basic level? Maybe you can learn technical English from the process of coding and constantly googling problems in foreign forums? Or is it necessary to devote some time to this issue?

Let's give the floor to the experts.

, Microsoft Technology Evangelist, Associate Professor at Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Moscow Aviation Institute, teacher at the JUNIO-R children's camp

Lack of knowledge of English is critical for any modern person working in the creative field. Indeed, without a language, you limit your circle of communication only to Russian-speaking interlocutors, while there are many active talented people all over the world. We must also take into account the fact that most of the best courses, reference and training materials are available in English. Therefore, it is better to immediately learn the language well, and then, in the course of communication on the forums, improve and improve it.

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Knowledge of English is quite critical. The localization of resources does not always keep up with their update. Those. in general, it can be done. How much you can get by with depends heavily on the area in which the developer works. At the same time, of course, you can learn to read English in the process of coding and constantly googling problems in foreign forums. That is how I learned to read technical texts in English myself.

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Now it is no longer critical (about 15-20 years ago it was critical). But, of course, without a full knowledge of English, it will not be possible to become a highly qualified specialist and make a career in most areas of the IT industry.

It is impossible to learn English in the process of coding and googling. This way you will reach the maximum level of Google Translate, but it makes no sense to compete with it, then just use it. You will be able to understand the general meaning of the text. But you will not always understand the nuances correctly (and often you have to google such questions in which the nuances are just important), you will not be able to ask questions on your own.

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Ignorance of the language is absolutely unacceptable - you cannot name variables with functions using transliteration. At the same time, grammar and literary English are not particularly needed. And forums, especially if they are not only read, but also written, help well. But slowly.

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It all depends on the area in which the programmer works. If this is an area, a platform, a framework with a developed Russian-speaking community, where a fairly large reference base has been accumulated, then a specialist without knowledge of English will feel quite comfortable there. On the contrary, if this area is new, rapidly growing, then there, most likely, support for the Russian language will, at a minimum, lag significantly behind, or, in general, be absent. Today, it so happened that the most popular and high-quality IT products are developed by international teams, for which English is the universal working language. Therefore, if you want to stay in trend, then learn English.

Still, it’s worth starting to learn a language with basic skills: with grammar, syntax, this will greatly facilitate your task. Further, in my opinion, it is worth switching to watching and reading interesting, but not difficult material for you: books, films. And after you can understand simple speech, you can move on to technical literature, forums, etc. In other words, reading computer-related text will certainly advance your knowledge of English in this area, but only if you have a base.

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A well-written query in Google saves a lot of time. So without knowing English, you will work twice as slow as the rest, and you will be sent to write in 1C pretty quickly. "End of Procedure".

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Become coder monkey quite possible without knowledge of English. You will even successfully solve problems from your field, build a career, but this will not be enough to be called a real programmer and always be in the trend of modern technologies.

It so happened in the world that English has become the de facto standard: in almost any country, in any online service, you can solve your problem knowing only this language. And the world of programming is no exception - the international community communicates in English. Depriving yourself of communication with the entire community is unreasonable, waiting for translations into Russian is a long time. Moreover, not understanding the details, knowing only general words, is also not the best option, since it is the nuances that are often important. I'm not talking about a large vocabulary and knowledge of specific words, but rather that the language needs to be "felt", to understand the very principles of its construction in order to be able to assimilate texts directly in the original language, without first translating them in your head into your native language .

But when you pass this threshold and stop being afraid of English speech, you can start improving your skills on forums and on Google. At the same time, I recommend looking for the meanings of words not in a translator, but in explanatory dictionaries, which also give explanations in English. Better understand the real meaning of the word and the context of its application.

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Knowledge of English is absolutely critical: all documentation and books are written in it. In addition, technologies change very quickly, and translations categorically do not keep up with them.

Of course, you can get some knowledge of English when programming and reading forums. However, I recommend "pulling up" the language in the courses if you feel insecure in it - sooner or later you will personally communicate with English-speaking colleagues from other countries. In my experience, extreme courses that take place several times a week and last for 2-3 hours give a greater effect.

Learning foreign languages ​​is important nowadays. I think that any educated person must learn foreign languages. But I prefer English to other foreign languages. Why? English is becoming a global language. A half of billion people in the world use English at home or work. English is the language which is known for the most part of our fine, magnificent and surprising world. English is so widespread that it has become the standard language for all kinds of international communication.

A lot of problems of the 21st century, such as the problems of war and peace, ecology, can not be solved without speaking the same language.

The English language is now the first language of about 350 million people, the native language of 12 nations and the official language of more than 33 nations. It means that one of seven people in the world speaks English.

English is also the international language of businesspeople, pilots and air traffic controllers, sportsmen, scientists and students. If you want to be a stewardess, a pilot or an air control officer you have to learn English, the language of international communication. Every year thousands of people from Russia go to different countries as tourists or to work. They can't go without knowing the language of the country they are going to. A modern engineer or even a worker cannot work with an imported instrument or a machine if he is not able to read the instruction how to do that.

Some people learn English because they need it in their work; others to travel aboard and for lots of people learning English is just a hobby.

I have been learning English since the age of 11. I like learning English very much. But I like and know well my native language, Russian. The great German poet Goethe once said: “He, who knows no foreign language, does not know his own one.” I agree with him. The knowledge of English helps me to learn Russian.

The knowledge of English is a great power. I need to know English. I must appreciate and embrace this knowledge as the key to achievement of my dream. I hope my progress in English will be very good.

Translation:

Learning foreign languages ​​is important these days. I think that a cultured and modern person should learn foreign languages. But I prefer English. Why? English is becoming a global language. Half a billion people in the world use English at home or at work. English is a language that is known throughout our beautiful, majestic and wonderful world. English is so widespread that it has become the standard language for all kinds of international communication.

The problems of the 21st century, such as the problems of war and peace, ecology, cannot be solved without speaking the same language.

English is spoken by more than 350 million people, is the native language of 12 nations and the official language of more than 33 nationalities. This means that every seventh person in the world speaks English.

English is also the international language of businessmen, pilots and air traffic controllers, athletes, scientists and students. If you want to be a flight attendant, pilot or air traffic controller, you must learn English, the language of international communication. Every year thousands of people from Russia go to different countries as tourists or work. They cannot go without knowing the language of the country they are going to. A modern engineer, or even a worker, cannot work with an imported tool or machine unless he is able to read the instructions on how to do it.

Some people learn English because they need it at work, others travel abroad a lot, and for many, learning English is a favorite pastime.

I started learning the language at the age of 11. I really like him. But I also love my native Russian. The great German poet Goethe once said: "He who does not know a foreign language does not know his own." I agree with him, everything is known in comparison. Knowing English helps me learn Russian.

Knowing English is a great power. I need to know English. I must appreciate and accept this knowledge as the key to achieving my dreams. I hope that my progress in English will be good.

Tanskaya Galina

When traveling, English helps a lot, but I rarely travel. Pictured is Hoover Dam, USA, 2010.

When they say that “without English, nowhere”, they primarily mean looking for work or travel. English helped me myself both at work and on trips abroad, but I believe that knowledge of English gives the most advantages in ordinary, everyday life. You can use English in different ways, I will tell you about my experience, about how I use English.

1. I use the English Internet

4. I read books in the original

I do not read all the books in the original, many are satisfied with the translation. But sometimes there is such a problem with the translation that it is better to read in English. A vivid example is the new translation of "Harry Potter" by the "Swallowtail" publishing house (the very sensational one, where Hagrid's name is Hagrid, and Severus Snape's name is Villainous Snape). Not so long ago I decided to read these books, but it turned out that in printed form there is only a new translation, and in electronic translation there are several and it is not clear which is better. As a result, I had to read in the original - I didn’t regret it a bit, it was an unforgettable experience, which I’ve already mentioned.

Or another case. I wanted to read the book Altered Carbon, which is based on the TV series of the same name. On the second page, I came across a phrase that made me find the original and compare the passages - I could not believe that such a gross mistake in translation could be made. It turned out that you can:

Any teenager who plays computer shooters will tell you that “Fire in the hole” is a standard military phrase, an explosion warning, it is usually translated as “Grenade!” or “Watch out!”, but how could you think of “Shoot the hole”? After such a pearl, I decided that this book should be read in the original.

5. I watch films in the original

I watch films in Russian only if it is not possible to watch in English, for example, in a cinema. In my opinion, films lose a lot when they are dubbed: somewhere the meaning is lost or distorted, jokes disappear somewhere. It is not only a matter of translation, a special problem of dubbing is the need for “text laying”, editing of the translation, in which the text is adjusted to the movements of the lips of the actor. The viewer should have the illusion that the actors speak Russian. Sometimes, for the sake of articulatory coincidence, you have to slightly distort the translation, finding a compromise solution.

There is such an episode in the movie "Deadpool 2". Deadpool talks to Domino, asking what her superpower is. Domino replies that her superpower is luck. What follows is a strange argument:

“Luck is not a superpower.
- No. She.
- Right now, yeah.
- No. She.
- No, ma'am!
- She is!

Why does Domino respond so strangely, unnaturally? Anyone in her place would answer, rather, “No, luck is a superpower” or “No, superpower,” but the phrase “No, she” seems far-fetched. The fact is that in this episode Domino is shown in close-up, the movement of her lips is clearly visible, obviously, she says: “Yes, it is”, “Yes, it is”, “It is”, it was simply not possible to fit this articulation better text.

There were no problems with Deadpool, because he was wearing a mask.

Deadpool is the perfect dubbing character

Besides, I just feel sorry for the actors - a significant part of their work is excluded from the film, they are literally deprived of their voice, especially the voice actors. For example, in The Jungle Book in 2016, actors such as Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Scarlett Johansson voiced roles, but there was nothing left of their work in dubbing.

6. I play computer games

I started playing computer games even before I met . There were no translated games at that time. We understood almost nothing, but in most games there was little text (they had not yet been voiced), only games where nothing could be done without understanding the text could not be done.

Such games could be played without English

The games are different now.

A game can have hundreds of hours of dialogue, thousands of pages of script. I play in English for the same reason that I watch films in the original: a lot is lost in translation and dubbing, and the quality of game dubbing is often lower than that of films. In addition, some games are still not translated, so without knowing English, you can’t play them at all. Of course, I mean games where the plot is important, the story, and not puzzles like “match three stones in a row”.

Life is Strange is an interactive story about teenagers with fantasy and detective elements.

For example, I really liked the game Life is Strange, but for some reason it was not released in Russian, even the subtitles were not translated (except for the pirated translation for PC, I played on PS4). Without knowing English, I would not play it. In the game, you need to carefully listen to the dialogues, read the descriptions of objects, carefully choose the lines, in general, the whole game is built on history, and it is impossible to play without understanding it.

7. I study languages

That's right, knowing English helps you learn English. And not only.

If you need to find the answer to some difficult question in English, I look for it on the English-speaking Internet. This is especially true of the nuances of the use of words, expressions in different situations. If you need to ask if this or that phrase sounds natural, when it is appropriate to use it, how it looks from the point of view of etiquette, you need to ask a native speaker, a person who knows the language and culture from the inside. Here, for example, is the answer of a British teacher to the question how to respond to the greeting “How do you do?”

The answer to the question about English on quora.com

“If someone tells you that, then this person is either learning English without listening to native English speakers, or sarcastically trying to portray an upper class to which he does not belong.

Either way, feel free to answer.

I have often corrected my students using this expression because it does NOT apply to common English. I can imagine only one extremely official circumstance when you will have to respond to such a greeting - a meeting and conversation with a member of the royal family (not a very common case).

But even then I'm not sure what etiquette would need to be answered, maybe just repeat the same phrase in response, shaking hands and smiling / bowing.

Knowledge of English also helps with the study of other languages ​​- at different times I studied French and Spanish a little. Firstly, both of these languages ​​have a lot in common with English (and with each other), which already simplifies the task. Secondly, there are many useful resources for French and Spanish in English, that is, knowledge of English allows you to learn other languages, as it were, not from Russian, but from English. In some ways, it is even easier, because these languages ​​are closer to English than to Russian. Thirdly, if I communicate with native speakers of a language I do not know, we can use English as a common language.

Conclusion

The greatest benefit from knowing English was felt when I worked with foreigners and on trips abroad, but this does not mean that I need English on a case-by-case basis.

Yes, when I started studying English, I was most interested in the fact that it would help to find a job. I was also struck by the very thought that I would be able to talk with foreigners and we would understand each other - it seemed something fantastic. Later, I realized that I could use English-language sources, which for many do not care that they do not exist. Then I realized that very little is being translated into Russian, especially literature, and what is being translated cannot always be read or watched without tears. Now I understand that without English, life would not stop, but would become much more limited.

Friends! I don't do tutoring right now, but if you need a teacher, I recommend this wonderful site- there are native (and non-native) teachers there 👅 for all occasions and for every pocket 🙂 I myself went through more than 80 lessons with teachers that I found there! I advise you to try it too!