Albert Little- US VSO in Jamaica

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

Yvonne: Welcome to "People and Places" – where we meet

interesting people and find

out about interesting places with bbclearningenglish.com.

Hello, I'm Yvonne

Archer¹.

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 Corps² 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 organisation³ 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…
 

The training period basically focuses on things like

language, learning the patois⁴, cultures,

some of the social norms⁵ 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 integration⁶ is that, you

know, you have to be able to communicate with the people.

And also in terms of safety, you know, if someone

approaches you, it would be good to know, you know, the

chat - the patois… because when they first see you, they

think 'tourists'.

Yvonne: Albert and the Peace Corps believe that being able

to speak 'patois' – Jamaican English – can help to keep

him safe because people might not just see him as a rich

tourist – a visitor to the island. And speaking with

people using their own type of English helps Albert to

integrate⁷ – it becomes easier for him to live and work

within Jamaican communities. So, what can he say in patois

so far?

Albert Little

Well right now, it's mainly just some greetings. You know,

I say 'waa gwaan' or 'w'appen' or, you know, things like

that. But I can't really, you know, go into an in-depth

conversation in patios⁸, not yet anyway.

Yvonne: 'Waa gwaan?' – what's going on? And 'w'appen?' –

what's happening?... Are greetings, ways of saying 'hello'.

And Albert hopes he'll be able to say lots more soon. But

for now, he's happy to tell us in American English:
 

My main objective⁹ is really to make people self-sustainable

in terms of technology so they

won't have to rely on someone to do things for them - you

know, just everyday things to keep pace with the rest of

the world. You know, to see people live and the struggles

that they have to go through day by day, I feel really

blessed.

1 archer   

n.射手，弓箭手

参考例句：

• The archer strung his bow and aimed an arrow at the target.弓箭手拉紧弓弦将箭瞄准靶子。
• The archer's shot was a perfect bull's-eye.射手的那一箭正中靶心。

2 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

3 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

4 patois   

n.方言；混合语

参考例句：

• In France patois was spoken in rural,less developed regions.在法国，欠发达的农村地区说方言。
• A substantial proportion of the population speak a French-based patois.人口中有一大部分说以法语为基础的混合语。

5 norms   

n. 规范 名词norm的复数形式

参考例句：

• deviation from the previously accepted norms 违背事先接受的准则
• Everyone should abide by our social norms. 我们每个人都应该遵守社会行为准则。

6 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

7 integrate   

v.（使）结合，（使）一体化 adj.完整的，综合的

参考例句：

• A customs union would integrate the economies of these countries.关税联盟会把这些国家的经济紧密结合在一起。
• We must integrate theory with practice.我们必须把理论与实际结合起来。

8 patios   

n.露台，平台( patio的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Concrete slab for making pathways or patios. 用于建造通道或天井的混凝土板。 来自互联网
• Typically, houses with patios crowd along narrow streets around a mosque with a square minaret. 沿着狭窄的街道是拥挤的带有天井的房子，环绕着一个有正方形尖塔的清真寺。 来自互联网

9 objective   

adj.客观的；n.目标，目的

参考例句：

• He tried to take an objective view of the situation.他试图对形势有个客观的看法。
• The cultivation in good taste is our main objective.培养高雅情趣是我们的主要目标。