Posted by Jeff (24.30.53.181) on November 20, 2001 at 22:22:32:
David,
I have been thinking about your experience with the Assyrian Day Care Center in Australia (ahem, I mean, "Sooreth Language Classes") and I have a question for you: Do you suppose that there is ANY way for someone like you to teach, or me to learn, our language without being obstructed by fools?
Let me share my experience with you: I tried, years ago, to learn our language. Since my family speaks English all the time (except when they are trying to talk behind the backs of the younger members of the family), I could not learn from them. They speak it well enough to hold a simple conversation, but not much better (and at least 20-30% of what they speak is Arabic). Anyway, I took a class at Church, for 2 years, which taught be over and over again how to read and write our language. IT also taught basic vocabulary, and, of course, various religions terms and songs. To be honest, I have never once used the word "Calamity" in English, or Sooreth, and I never will. Anyway, so I can read and write it, and I know a few very short phrases and simple words now, and I even bought Assyrian music and tried reading all of these sites online... and purchased a "Teach yoruself modern syriac" CD, but it was all for nothing. One person even told me "You can't learn the language unless you are around it every day... the only way you could be around it all the time is if your family speaks it (mine doesn't) or if you go to Detroit (where the "newly arrived" stay). I just don't get it. I know that I can learn language, I learned Spanish (of course, I took it for 4 years in an organized, well-thought out curriculum) [but I will NEVER use this phrase: establecer una zona peotonal = to establish a pedestrian zone!] ... but I do know of someone, in the Detroit area, a cracker (whitey) who married a Chaldean woman, and according to my friend, speaks better Chaldean than ANY chaldean that you would ever meet. The person that told me this was VERY fluent, and she said that his Chaldean blew hers away... could speaking it on a regular basis really help that much? If that's the case, why do so many of our people have trouble with EENGLISH... when they use it every single day?
Man, I am asking you too many questions. Basically, the point that I am getting at is, how can we develop a method or curriculum or ... institution which will teach children what has so far eluded me (our language), and other aspects of our culture?
Anybody, feel free to put your two cents in.
El Jefe