BBC Learning English \ People and places - Albert Little- US VSO in Jamaica | Текст песни

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BBC Learning English
People and Places
Albert Little- US VSO in Jamaica
bbclearningenglish.com

Yvonne: Welcome to "People and Places" – where we meet interesting people and find
out about interesting places with bbclearningenglish.com. Hello, I'm Yvonne
Archer.
On a recent visit to Jamaica, which is about 550 miles or 885 kilometres South
of Miami, I met an interesting man who is a long way from home. So I wanted
to know why he's there and what language he's been learning. Jamaicans speak
English and so does he… don't they speak the same kind of English?
Albert Little
My name is Albert Little and I'm from Indianapolis, Indiana from the United States…
Yvonne: Albert Little is an American and he obviously speaks American English…more
on that later. But what is he doing in such a rural part of Jamaica – deep in the
countryside where most people are farmers – and away from the places where
tourists usually go? Try to catch Albert's two reasons for his presence in
Jamaica…
Albert Little
One thing about me is that I love to travel so I looked into the Peace Corps and I thought of it
as an opportunity to learn about different cultures and things like that.
Yvonne: Albert loves to travel and he enjoys learning about other cultures and thought it
would provide him with a good opportunity – a great chance – to do both.
The Peace Corps is an American organisation which has been running for more
than 40 years and Albert Little is one of about 170,000 voluntary workers. So far, volunteers like Albert, have left their home and way of life in the United
States to work for no pay in about 170 different countries around the world.
They work with local communities to help in areas such as education, youth
work, community development, the environment and IT – Information
Technology.
Albert was sent to Jamaica to work in the field of IT – so he helps local people
make the best use of the information technology that's available to them. Albert
didn't go to Africa because he didn't have all the medical test results that were
needed. And, Albert didn't go to South America because he didn't have enough
time to sort out his flat and his car before he had to leave the United States.
Listen again, but this time, try to catch the American English word Albert uses
for 'flat', the term he uses to mean 'to make arrangements' or 'to sort out', and
the term he uses to talk about not having enough time…
Albert Little
When I first joined the Peace Corps, they were going to send me to Africa but I did not get
medically cleared for that. So then they were going to send me to South America, and the
time-frame for me to move out of my apartment and deal with my car and everything was too
short.
Yvonne: Albert couldn't go to South America because the 'time-frame was too short' –
he didn't have enough time 'to deal with' – to sort out his car and his 'apartment'
– the American English word for 'flat'. So, off he went to Jamaica and the first
thing he had to do was complete a two month training course. Albert obviously
speaks American English, but in Jamaica, he's been learning another kind of
English. Let's find out what it is…

Albert Little
The training period basically focuses on things like language, learning the patois, cultures,
some of the social norms and things like that.
Yvonne: Albert's been learning about Jamaican culture – its traditions, and as he put
it in American English: 'the social norms' - how to behave amongst
Jamaican people so that he doesn't upset them.. But why is Albert also
learning 'patois' – Jamaican English – when they can all understand each
other?
Albert Little
One of the major things about integration is that, you know, you have to be able to
communicate with the people. And also in terms of safety, you

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