"ESL speakers express themselves in the only way they know how: in their mother tongue. This is why, whenever I can, I use the word correction instead of mistake."
An ESL speaker says open the light instead of turn on the light because this is how the thought is expressed in her own language. When my own clients say something incorrectly, I first ask them how they would say it in their own language. More often than not, I find they have translated the expression directly from their native tongue, as in the case of open the light.
This is why, whenever I can, I try to use the word correction instead of mistake. ESL speakers express themselves in the only way they know how: in their mother tongue. When ESL speakers make "mistakes," they are actually translating a thought or concept directly into English. They may have no idea of how a particular idea or concept is expressed in English, so they express it in the only way they know. How would they know to say turn on the light when they have never even heard the English expression? This is why I do not like to call it a mistake.
The word mistake implies the speaker has done something wrong, whereas correction implies an adjustment. Correcting someone puts the responsibility on the coach/tutor/teacher/mentor to show, teach, and guide, whereas making a mistake puts the responsibility on the students’ shoulders. Of course, I am not saying that learners do not bear the responsibility of learning, but I do believe one is more positive than the other.
October 19, 2020
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