Bonza brainwave turns out dinky-di Aussies
Nance Haxton reported this story on Thursday, September 17, 2009 12:50:00
http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2009/s2688619.htm

ELEANOR HALL: Most Australians probably think they speak standard English but for newly arrived migrants colloquial phrases like flat out and give it a crack can be mystifying.

To overcome that language barrier an Adelaide TAFE teacher has designed a website to help people learning Australian English to translate what they hear.

In Adelaide Nance Haxton reports.

TEACHER IN CLASSROOM: If you go over things you look at it again. You look at something, you talk about it together.

NANCE HAXTON: It’s not coming the raw prawn or other bonza cliche slang that confuses most new migrants to Australia.

Keturah de Klerk teaches English at Adelaide TAFE. The words that she found the hardest to translate were often the ones in most common usage.

KETURAH DE KLERK: Simple things like last week I had some great news for my students. I said, “Guess what?” And they didn’t know how to answer me. You know, “can you give us a hand”; “take your time doing this”. Not to mention just you know irony and sarcasm and giving a statement as a question like: “how good is this weather?“You know, and thinking that they have to provide an answer.

NANCE HAXTON: Mrs de Klerk found that students were constantly coming to her for advice on words that they had never heard of before arriving in Australia, even though they had learnt basic English.

NANCE HAXTON: For example the phrase “I’m stuffed” has at least three different meanings which Mrs De Klerk has featured on her e-phrase website.

(Extract from website)

WOMAN: How was work? Are you tired?

MAN: Yeah, I’m stuffed.

MOTHER: Did you study for the test today?

SON: No, I forgot all about it. Oh man, I’m stuffed.

WOMAN: You want any more dinner?

MAN: No thanks. I’m stuffed.

(End of extract)

NANCE HAXTON: Kavita Anil Gourd moved to Australia from India nine months ago. She says the Australian vernacular has taken some getting used to.

KAVITA ANIL GOURD: It is very hard for me because some words very hard like hang on and I reckon, I never understand.

NANCE HAXTON: While Kae Kwon from Korea found that problems arose with the common Australian practice of shortening some words.

KAE KWON: Ta. When I get on the bus and the bus driver say ta. (Laughs) Ta sounds in my country is very different meaning, yeah (laughs).

NANCE HAXTON: It’s not just a matter of understanding casual conversation.

Mrs de Klerk says she knows of some migrants who have lost their jobs because of basic communication barriers.

KETURAH DE KLERK: Students who we get qualified to get into the workplace and have the English level to get the job officially and get the job but don’t maintain it, can’t hold onto it because the boss sees them as not just getting along socially with everyone; which is you know really big, has a high level of importance in Australia.

TEACHER IN THE CLASSROOM: So catch me, could mean maybe if you see me.

STUDENT IN THE CLASSROOM: Not get?

TEACHER IN THE CLASSROOM: No not actually catch me, no.

NANCE HAXTON: The Aussie slang classes are now spreading around the country with other TAFEs introducing similar courses.

Parvati Bhattarai came to Australia from Bhutan and says before doing the course she was constantly confused by Australian colloquialisms.

PARVATI BHATTARAI: They speak English but it is quite different from our tongue and our way of talking and the most important thing for us is to learn the slang word and to understand the jokes.

NANCE HAXTON: Keturah de Klerk simply hopes her classes and the e-phrase web site help new migrants to make sense of Australian sayings that most of us take for granted.

KETURAH DE KLERK: Accent is the biggest problem along with the slang and the idioms and the…

NANCE HAXTON: And shortening the words?

KETURAH DE KLERK: Shortening the words yeah, you know. Mossies, sunnies, chewies, I’m devo. You know all these sort of things is, yeah shortening is just another example.

ELEANOR HALL: Language teacher Keturah de Klerk ending Nance Haxton’s report.

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