If you’re a native English speaker, explain to me why it’s the great big green dragon and not the green great big dragon.
Can’t? That’s okay!
As a native speaker so much of the English language is inherent to you.
It’s the same for other languages too.
My husband is a native German speaker but didn’t know the rules for der, die, and das until I wrote this post.
He knows when something is a mistake in the language but not always why.
As an academic German speaker (meaning I learned from a curriculum, not growing up), I know why, even if I’m not always a perfect speaker.
When it comes to choosing a teacher or tutor for your second language, you want someone to be able to explain the grammar rules, not just tell you something is wrong.
So let’s look at the benefits of the different speaker types as language teachers.
Benefits of a Native Speaker for Second Language Instruction
Native speakers are perfect practice partners.
Not only do they have accurate pronunciation for you to practice comprehension but they also have cultural knowledge to share too!
They’ll speak with an accent but that will give you a chance to hear what locals will sound like before you travel so you’re less likely to misunderstand.
Many German speakers know Hoch Deutsch (high German) which is the academic language in addition to their local slang. Knowing both allows them to help you practice high German (which you can use all over Germany, Austria, and Switzerland) and a local slang which makes you sound more native!
Benefits of learned speaker for second language instruction
The learned speaker might not always sound as native or know slang for various regions. But they do have a foundation in the grammar rules and can often answer questions like the one at the start of this post.
On the other hand native speakers know what to say a lot easier than learned speakers
But learned speakers often know why better.
As I mentioned earlier, my husband, (a Native German speaker) often knew which gendered article to use with a noun, but never knew why. I knew why even though I wasn’t always accurate on which one to use in conversations.
There’s a number of other examples from sentence structure to past tense of verbs.
One caveat with a teacher, who is a learned speaker, who has not been trained as a teacher, or does not have that skill, they might struggle to explain the knowledge they have.
Benefits of a trained teacher who speaks your target language
So taking into account all the benefits listed and all the categories above now, add in somebody who’s had specific training, and how to teach other people skills.
Some people do have this innate ability, but even for them specific training can help refine that skill.
A trained teacher in your target language will not only know how to teach you what to teach you, but also when to teach you various skills. A good trained teacher will also be able to adapt or create curriculums to your specific needs and goals.
A trained teacher will also be able to have resources for you to continue your education even after you’re done in their classroom.
Benefits of native speakers who took their native language as foreign language
There are native speakers who take their native language in a class as a foreign language. They can be some of the best tutors or teachers to teach new learners. Not only do they have the correct accent, the cultural background knowledge, and the built in accuracy detector (for lack of a better term), they can also explain to you why you’re making those mistakes and how to correct them.
Remember in school, the English class (or Language Arts) with a focus on grammar rules and writing knowledge? That’s not the same as taking English as a second language.
As a native English speaker from birth much of the grammar rules are ingrained in our language knowledge and so we’re learning how to do it properly, and how the written form differs.
English as a second language teaches everything from scratch similar to taking German as a second language, the approach is going to be the same.
Students in Germany speak German fluently, so they have to take German as American students have to take an English class. Think of it more as a grammar and writing class rather than a language class.
Speakers who take their native language as a second language often are more knowledgeable because they have both native knowledge and learned knowledge.
How do you choose a second language teacher?
After all this information, how do you decide what type of second language teacher you need?
First determine your goals and needs. This post here can help with goal determination.
If you need support to pass a class or the language for academics then I recommend a trained and licensed second language instructor. They will not only have the knowledge you need but also the certification so you can get appropriate credits.
If you’re just learning for fun or want practice then consider a tutor or language buddy.
You are more than welcome to have both a tutor and a teacher!
Just be wary of some mixing of information between the native speaker on cultural aspects and the teacher’s knowledge.
For example the Scharfes ß is no longer used in Hoch Deutsch. I was taught this in college but recently discovered it’s no longer used. Native speakers often know cultural changes like that before academics.
So which teacher fits your language goals?