Is the tense system in English for you also so confusing?

[Dingo]

In contrast to German, the English tense system is very huge and there are tenses which are don’t exist in German. Especially the progressive tenses are the kind of tenses which are the most confusing for me. Besides that, the rules for the if clauses are very subtleties.

I have the experience that learning English according grammar rules causes more and more problems. To practice the learned grammar rules in real world is therefore not really applicable. Instead of going this approach, I’ve tried to read and listen more English. Due my interests in programming (mainly English), I’ve the feeling that my English has become better. But I until now still can’t understand how to write according grammar rules.

I try to continuously improve my English. My question now is whether I should go the way to studying grammar or to learn English by the practical approach. What do you think? Which experience do you have while learning English or a new language? I would be grateful for any suggestion! BTW: Feel free to correct my English!

[SanDiego]

HiDingo,
First of all I think that you have a good understanding of the English language. I would say that there are just a few grammatical- and vocabulary errors. Maybe you can also work a little bit on your clause position but other than that I think you are doing a good job.
I know that grammar rules can be very confusing when trying to use them in the everyday life. Most of the time you try to remember what you have just learned…which tense do I use, is this word better or should I rather use another vocabulary word, is my clause position correct…there are so many things you can think about when talking- or writing to someone in English. Of course it is easier to write to someone in English because you can always use your references. Let me just tell you that native speakers don´t always use the right grammar themselves.
I think that it is good that you try to learn the different grammar rules to get a basic idea on how the English language “works” but for me it is also very important just to practice the language. I know that this is easier said than done but “using” the foreign language that you are studying helps you feel more comfortable with the language.
My suggestions for you are:
-Try to watch English movies / English news
-Read English books / there are also English audio books
-You can buy different news papers or magazines in English
- Maybe find someone in your area or in the World Wide Web with whom you can communicate in English. Only by talking and practicing your English skills you will become more comfortable and you will stop thinking about all the different grammar rules you once learned.
I had a look at your text and made a few corrections…see below.

In contrast to the German language, the English tense system is very huge and there are tenses which don´t exist in German. Especially the progressive tenses are the kind of tenses which are the most confusing for me. Besides that, the rules for the if clauses are very subtleties.

I have made the experience that learning English according to grammar rules causes more and more problems. It is not really possible to use the learned grammar rules in the “real” world. Instead of talking English I’ve tried to read and listen to more English. Due my interests in programming (mainly English), I’ve the feeling that my English has become better. But until now I still can´t understand how to write according grammar rules.

I continuously try to improve my English. My question now is whether I should go the way to studying grammar or to learning English by practical approach. What do you think? Which experience do you have with learning English or a new language? I would be grateful for any suggestion! BTW: Feel free to correct my English!

[Dingo]

Thanks for you correction!

[Tanya L]

Hi Dingo

I think learning grammar by reading alone may be rather unproductive. It takes much devotion and concentration to spot different structures, analyse why these or that ones are used in particular situations, etc.
Yet, I am sure you are familiar with grammar rules to some extent and may find it boring to reread Gr books.
What may work for you is to copy all your English posts in forums or work-related writing and paste at resourses like Lang-8, where native speakers will correct you. Following the corrections you may check this or that tricky Gr issue and drill it online. Maybe this way your learning won't be as consistent as by going through a complete Gr course but you'll be able to track down your most common mistakes and eliminate them right away.

Good luck

[Dingo]

Hi Tanya! What does "Gr" mean? Lang-8 sounds cool. Thanks for the hint.