Study New Concept English 2

Author: None
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-01-01
Features: When using this book, it is important to thoroughly study the text from both grammatical and semantic perspectives. Below, I will discuss the importance of these two aspects.
1. The Importance of Grammar for Chinese Learners of English
Currently, many learners of English neglect grammar. In reality, grammar is a shortcut for foreigners learning English, especially considering the practical situation of Chinese learners. English teaching in China is divided into two categories: college English and professional English teaching. Generally, those who specialize in English tend to reach an ideal level of proficiency after graduation, while students of college English are significantly weaker in comparison. The reason is straightforward: college English offers 200 hours of instruction, while professional English offers 1,000 hours, and there is also an initial proficiency gap between the two. If you refuse to face this reality, you cannot adopt practical methods, and without practical methods, you cannot achieve good results. Grammar is a language rule summarized to improve the efficiency of language learning. In a Chinese language environment, neglecting grammar when learning English is indeed unwise. Therefore, when reading the text, students should always ask themselves: what role does this word play in the sentence? In the initial stages, you must force yourself to do this, especially when encountering difficult parts. As your proficiency improves, especially with simpler sentences, you can skip this step. However, please note that even highly proficient English professors must analyze the grammar of difficult sentences. If a student scores below 8 on the CET-4 exam or below 10 on the postgraduate entrance exam in English, the main problem lies in their weak fundamental language skills and basic grammar and vocabulary. For such students, improving writing skills does not mean learning to write essays but rather focusing on rigorous grammar analysis of the text.
2. The Importance of Translation for Chinese Learners of English
Many students’ understanding of the text is at the level of "fragmentary phrases." Some students are quite honest and ask, "Teacher, is reading English about understanding it with fragmented Chinese phrases?" From my experience, during exams, due to time constraints, what is referred to as "reading comprehension" is largely understood through fragmented Chinese phrases. However, when reading intensive texts regularly, this approach is absolutely unacceptable. You must use accurate, complete, and fluent Chinese to understand English—the essence of translation. In our country, English teaching places excessive emphasis on thinking in English and neglects translation teaching. Yet the results have not been ideal—how many have truly developed English thinking? Decades of practice by Chinese learners of English have proven that translation is a shortcut for non-English majors to improve their English proficiency. This book does not, like similar books, arbitrarily display the authors' own "talents" by piecing together excessive extensions and elaborations. The main problem for Chinese students when reading texts is poor digestion. To treat poor digestion, you should not feed them more but rather reduce their intake and chew more thoroughly. We believe that as long as you deeply study the text itself, understand it thoroughly, and master it, you will have achieved the goal of learning English well. Many students’ reality is that they seem to have learned a lot but excel at nothing and understand nothing deeply. The explanation order of the text in this book is divided into four steps: 1. Original Text - 2. Translation - 3. Analysis - 4. Explanation.
1. Original Text: The original text of the lesson, arranged sentence by sentence.
2. Translation: For an accurate understanding of the original text and fluent expression in Chinese, it serves as a marker of whether you have truly read the text. If you encounter relatively simple sentences, with your own efforts, you can translate them to a level comparable to the translation provided in the book, and you may not need to look at the "Analysis" or "Explanation" below. Therefore, in this book, the translation is directly placed after the original text. If you cannot translate it, it means you have not truly understood the text, so please read the "Analysis" and "Explanation" below.
3. Analysis: An analysis of the sentence structure of the original text.
4. Explanation: Refers to the explanation of linguistic points in the original text and a supplement to the grammatical analysis.
When using this book, individuals can choose one of the following four modes based on their situation: 1-2; 1-2-3; 1-2-4; 1-2-3-4.
The author of this book has pinpointed the habitual errors in pronunciation that Chinese learners of English often make and has arranged a large number of targeted corrective exercises to transform Chinese pronunciation into American pronunciation, creating a miracle—speaking beautiful American English in a Chinese environment. This book teaches authentic, idiomatic, and interesting, commonly used spoken English (beginner level). You don’t need to memorize difficult grammar to express your ideas vividly and clearly. In the past, Chinese learners had "mute English" and couldn’t speak; now they can speak, but once a few sentences are finished, they run out of things to say. How to have in-depth conversations in English—this is the problem this book solves. It seamlessly integrates English learning with life’s reflections, the study of life, and the appreciation of beautiful literature, creating an effective exam-oriented learning method.
Entering American movies is like a child who has just learned to walk in the U.S. starting a new life in a native language environment, making English learning easier, more enjoyable, and more natural. Some say watching one American movie is equivalent to living in the U.S. for 10 days, and watching dozens of American movies makes you an American who has lived in the U.S. for years. Learning English through English-language movies is undoubtedly the best method, but many people don’t understand the movie dialogues. The explanation part of this series does not miss any difficult points, helping you fully understand the movies.