High School French Learning: Why English Speakers Have an Advantage
高中法语学习：为什么英语背景学生更有优势？
Many students wonder before starting French: how similar are English and French, and does English help with French learning?
In a beginner French class, students often recognise chocolat from “chocolate” and tomate from “tomato.” This is not a coincidence.
From the 11th to the 14th century, French had a strong influence on English law, administration, and culture. As a result, many French words entered English and remain in use today. Linguists often estimate that around 30% of English vocabulary comes directly from French. If we also include shared Latin roots, roughly half of English vocabulary has a similar or related form in French.
This connection is especially clear in formal, academic, and abstractwords, such as Gastronomy / Gastronomie, Environment / Environnement, and Democracy / Démocratie.
For New Zealand students in high school French learning, especially Year 11 and Year 12 French students working at A2 to B1 level, a strong English foundation can be a real advantage. Many advanced French words already feel familiar through English, which supports French reading comprehension, vocabulary building, and exam preparation.
In short, English-speaking students are not starting French from zero. The connection between English and French is supported by history and linguistics, making French learning a natural and achievable choice for many New Zealand high school students.
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很多学生在开始学习法语之前都会问：英语和法语到底有多相似？英语基础是否会帮助法语学习？
在初级法语课堂中，学生看到 chocolat会立刻联想到 “chocolate”，看到 tomate 也很容易想到 “tomato”。这并不是巧合。
11至14世纪期间，法语曾深刻影响英国的法律、行政和文化领域。大量法语词汇进入英语，并一直保留至今。语言学中常见的统计认为，约30%的英语词汇直接来源于法语；如果加上共同的拉丁语词源，约一半英语词汇都能在法语中找到相似对应。
这种联系在正式、学术或抽象词汇中尤其明显。例如：Gastronomy / Gastronomie，Environment / Environnement，Democracy / Démocratie。
对于新西兰学生的高中法语学习来说，尤其是 Year 11 和 Year 12 阶段、正在学习 A2 至 B1 级别法语的学生，扎实的英语基础会成为明显优势。许多高级法语词汇对他们来说并不完全陌生，这有助于法语阅读理解、词汇积累和考试准备。
简而言之，英语背景学生学习法语，并不是从零开始。英语和法语之间的联系，有历史和语言学基础支撑，也让法语学习成为许多新西兰高中学生自然且可实现的选择。
想在奥克兰东区学习法语？
无论是培养兴趣、提升学校法语成绩，还是准备 DELF 官方考试，Chanson Languages 都提供适合儿童、青少年及成人的精品小班法语课程，帮助每位学生建立表达自信，提升真实沟通能力。
