abcnovels
Chapter 327: [Language Acquisition And Coverage Rate]
Chapter 327: [Language Acquisition And Coverage Rate]
Chapter 327: [Language Acquisition And Coverage Rate]
<‘My words to you!’ It’s Translator Girl Iroha!>
<‘Good morning!’ It’s Ilyena!>
<So today, we want to do a language stream together.>
<Yaaay! I’m so happy about this collaboration with Iroha-sama!>
?Hello, Iroha!
?Good morning, Ilyena! (Ukrainian)
?Ilyena, since it’s a collab with Iroha-chan, you’re starting off at MAX excitement www (Ukrainian)
So, the planned collaboration stream with Ilyena had begun.
And for our purpose, we’ll be using a lot of Ukrainian.
<Among languages, today I’d like to focus on [acquisition].>We have talked about language proficiency on streams before.
However, at that time, the focus was on [school English], and [practical English] wasn’t explored deeply.
In that sense, this stream might be just right for me.
<But you know, I pick up things instantly, so while I can provide knowledge, I can’t share personal experience.>
?Damn, this kid wwww provoking us www (Ukrainian)
?This cheating child! (Ukrainian)
?This is what genius is like www (Ukrainian)
<That’s why I’m here! I’ve got plenty of stories, from struggles to fun experiences!>
<Then, since we’re at it, let’s base the discussion on Ilyena-chan’s stories, shall we?>
<Yes!>
So, Ilyena will provide personal experiences, and I’ll offer knowledge.
Well, it’s the flow we discussed beforehand!
<First, about what’s needed to acquire a language. This is something Iroha-sama mentioned before, but I think it’s a ‘necessity’.>
<Hmm…>
<Or it can be replaced with purpose or goal. In any case, learning a foreign language requires a lot of “effort,” so without a reason, motivation won’t last.>
<I was—>
<Iroha-sama is an exception.>
<You haven’t said anything yet.>
?LOL (Ukrainian)
?Well, Iroha-chan picks up languages in an instant w (Ukrainian)
?Excluding the clear outliers (Ukrainian)
<I was just going to say that “I’m learning a language because it’s ‘necessary’ for my favorite [thing],” but—>
<Oh, sorry!?>
?Oh, is that it www (Ukrainian)
?Sorry www I was totally ready to say “I didn’t ask you!” w (Ukrainian)
?Indeed, Iroha-chan isn’t the type to enjoy studying (Ukrainian)
<Anyway, back to the topic… regarding the reason for this stream, which was “can’t play ‘Hakozuki’ because I don’t understand the language.” To be clear, if you’re going to learn a language—choose English over Japanese!>
<What!? I thought we were talking about Japanese and Ukrainian today!?>
<No, because Japanese clearly has a higher difficulty level! Well, I know it might sound like a contradiction from me.>
?True www (Ukrainian)
?And with English, you can learn it in schools here too (Ukrainian)
?Grammar-wise, English is closer to Japanese (Ukrainian)
<Right, that’s true. There are various standards for language acquisition difficulty, but… like in the comments, proximity to your native language. And also, the “coverage rate” of vocabulary. Either way, Japanese is difficult.>
<Coverage rate?>
?Is this about the office? (Ukrainian)
?I know, I know w (Ukrainian)
?Glad to hear it makes sense! (Ukrainian)
<Exactly!>
<Iroha-sama!?>
<…Huh!? Dangerous, dangerous. Everyone’s talking about VTubers, so I almost gave it away.>
?This teacher role is easy (Ukrainian)
?I wish Iroha-sensei taught me (Ukrainian)
?If Iroha-chan became a school teacher, she might give full marks if you drew fan art on the back of the test paper
<Yeah, I’d give it!>
<Iroha-sama!?>
<Sorry, sorry. So, may I give an example in English, which Ilyena-chan also recommends?>
<Yes, that’s fine. Besides, I’m learning English in Japanese schools too. Many Ukrainians also learn English in school, just like Japanese people do.>
<Thanks. I think Ilyena-chan would understand, but… unlike school English, practical English doesn’t emphasize [grammar accuracy] or [vocabulary size] that much, right?>
<Exactly. I also participate in international events, so [familiarity] is more important than accuracy in English.>
<Right. You could do well in listening tests, but struggle in actual conversations.>
<Yes, that happens!>
<In English, there are many pronunciation omissions or changes, which is the cause.>
?I see, that explains it
?I went on an American trip thinking English was easy, and it was a painful experience
?Do Japan and Ukraine have similar problems with English education? (Ukrainian)
<But in reality, the number of words actually used isn’t that many. So, regarding the coverage rate I mentioned earlier—>
<So what does that mean?>
It measures how many of the most frequently used words you need to learn to cover a conversation in that language…>
<Got it. The number of words needed changes depending on the language.>
<Exactly. Here’s a question! If you want to understand about 80% of English… how many words do you need to know to achieve an 80% coverage rate?>
I posed a quiz to Ilyena and the viewers.
She thought for a moment and answered.
<Hmm, you said it’s not too many, right? Then, 6000… no, 4000 words!>
<Close! The correct answer is…>
<…—Just 1000 words>
<What!? Is it really that few!?>
Yes, that’s all it takes.