“My teacher gave us a list of questions and told us that we should prompt (insert choice of AI here) to give us some good answers for us to learn. Should I be doing that for German too?”
Pretty shocking, isn’t it.
This was the start of a conversation with one of my independent candidates during their lesson this week. They are studying one European language at school, and German with me.
It probably won’t come as much of a surprise to learn that I was not in favour of this idea, either for German or for the language this student is learning at school. Is it cheating? Frankly, yes! However, that is not the only reason that I advised against this course of action. This is a talented student who will be taking GCSE German (their third or fourth language) early (ie they are not yet in Year 11). Put simply, I don’t want them to deliver pre-scripted robotic-sounding answers and DROP marks that they are capable of earning for themselves, using their own hard work. Will they make some mistakes? Quite probably. But the grade they receive will be a result of their own hard work and will be something they can be proud of.
Is it possible to train your AI well enough that it starts to sound like you (or you start to sound like it), delivers colloquial language predominantly using the GCSE vocabulary list, gives answers tailored to your exam board, and scores well? Maybe. Is it possible for a student age 13-16 to do this well? Much more tricky. Will such an attempt either end up sounding like they have cheated (which they have) or make no sense at all to a “real” speaker of the language? Well, I guess we will see in the next couple of years if this school and others continue to make such suggestions….
Naturally, the school will remain unnamed. Bearing in mind the wide geographical area I cover when teaching online, if it sounds familiar, then you may like to wonder just how widespread this is.
It is often recommended that exam students try to include some idioms in their writing, to show that they have a good knowledge of the language they are learning. While this can be useful, it is a tip that should be used with caution as idioms, by their very nature, don’t translate directly, and so it is very easy to use them incorrectly, or to misunderstand when they would be appropriate.
Following on from the sausage-related German idioms found in our October blog, here are some French ones, all related to food.
1. Ça ne mange pas de pain. Direct translation: That does not eat any bread. Meaning: It doesn’t cost anything.
2. Garder une poire pour la soif. Direct translation: To keep a pear for the thirst. Meaning: To keep something back for a rainy day.
3. Je m’occupe de ma pomme. Direct translation: I take care of my apple. Meaning: I’m looking after number one (i.e. myself).
4. On ne peut pas avoir le beurre et l’argent du beurre. Direct translation: You cannot have the butter and the money for the butter. (Presumably to do with farmer’s wives making butter for the family to eat, or to sell for extra money). Meaning: You can’t have your cake and eat it.
5. N’en fait pas tout un fromage. Direct translation: Do not make a whole cheese out of it. Meaning: Don’t make such a fuss.
I hope you can have some fun with these. Which English idioms do you think would be the hardest to explain for the non-native speaker?
Idioms – those colourful phrases that don’t always translate directly very well, but which add interest to our speech and show that we aren’t just stuck with the formal language taught in school.
It can be tricky to learn idioms in a classroom environment, at least partly because it is hard to remember phrases that come without context. Some teachers therefore prefer to either group the idioms by theme, or to teach a small selection within a particular setting. Do remember that context is everything. Using too many idioms all at once can make your meaning unclear, so try to use them sparingly.
Our gift to you this month – 8 German idioms which are all to do with sausages!
Das ist mir Wurst. Direct translation: that is sausage to me. Hidden meaning: I don’t care. It’s not important to me.
Es geht um die Wurst. Direct translation: it’s about the sausage. Meaning: It’s a really important thing.
Die beleidigte Leberwurst spielen. Direct translation: to play the offended/huffy liver sausage. Meaning: to sulk
Alles hat ein Ende nur die Wurst hat zwei. Direct translation: Everything has an end, only the sausage has two. Meaning: Everything comes to an end.
Du armes Würstchen. Direct: You poor little sausage. Meaning: This expression shows sympathy, sometimes ironic, for someone in an uncomfortable situation.
Eine Extrawurst verlangen. Direct: to demand a pork sausage. Meaning: The Extrawurst is a special treat kind of sausage. So, this means to ask for special treatment.
In der Not schmeckt die Wurst auch ohne Brot. Direct translation: In an emergency the sausage tastes good even without bread. Meaning: in hardship you can make do without some things.
Sein Senf dazu geben. Direct translation: to add one’s mustard to it (after all, every Wurst needs a bit of mustard!). Meaning: to add one’s opinion, even if it is not wanted.
I hope you have fun with these. If you would like to find more German idioms, try looking for those which include the “Fuß” (foot) or the one with the old Swedish man “Alter Schwede”!
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