Jay Walker on the world's English mania

Translator: Alisa Xholi Reviewer: Helena Bedalli

Let's talk about manias.

Le te flasim mbi manite.

Te fillojme me manine e Beatles,

Let's start with Beatlemania.

(Recording of crowd roaring)

adoleshentet histerike,

Hysterical teenagers,

crying, screaming, pandemonium.

duke qare, bertitur, rremuje.

(Recording of crowd roaring)

Mania e sportit:

Sports mania:

deafening crowds,

turma shurdhuese,

all for one idea -- get the ball in the net.

te gjithe per nje ide -- te fusim topin ne rrjet.

(Recording) Goal!

Okay, religious mania:

Ne rregull, mania fetare:

there's rapture, there's weeping,

ka ngazellim, ka te qara,

there's visions.

ka vizione.

Manias can be good.

Manite mund te jene te mira.

Manias can be alarming.

Manite mund te jene alarmante.

Ose manite mund te jene vdjekjeprurese.

Or manias can be deadly.

(Recording of crowd cheering)

The world has a new mania.

Bota ka nje mani te re.

A mania for learning English.

Nje mani per te mesuar anglisht.

Listen as Chinese students practice their English,

Degjoni si studente kineze praktikojne anglishten e tyre

by screaming it:

duke bertitur.

Teacher: ... change my life!

Mesues: ..me ndrysho jeten!

Students: I want to change my life!

Studentet: Do te ndryshoj jeten time.

T: I don't want to let my parents down!

M: Nuk dua te zhgenjej prinderit e mi.

S: I don't want to let my parents down!

S: Nuk dua te zhgenjej prinderit e mi.

T: I don't ever want to let my country down!

M: Nuk dua te zhgenjej kurre atdheun tim.

S: I don't ever want to let my country down!

S: Nuk dua te zhgenjej kurre atdheun tim.

T: Most importantly... S: Most importantly...

M: Me e rendesishmja... S: Me e rendesishmja...

T: I don't want to let myself down!

M: Nuk dua te zhgenjej veten time.

S: I don't want to let myself down!

S: Nuk dua te zhgenjej veten time.

How many people are trying to learn English worldwide?

Jay Walker: Sa njerez ne bote po perpiqen te mesojne anglisht?

Two billion of them.

Dy miliarde.

Studentet: Nje bluze. Nje fustan.

Students: A t-shirt. A dress.

JW: Ne Ameriken latine,

Jay Walker: In Latin America,

in India,

ne Indi, ne Azine juglindore,

in Southeast Asia,

dhe shumica ne Kine.

and most of all, in China.

If you're a Chinese student,

Nese je nje student kinez

you start learning English in the third grade, by law.

e fillon mesimin e anglishtes ne klase te trete, me ligj.

That's why this year,

Per kete arsye kete vit

China will become the world's largest English-speaking country.

Kina do behet shteti me i madh anglisht foles ne bote.

(Laughter)

(Te qeshura)

Why English?

Pse Anglisht? Me nje fjale te vetme: Mundesia.

In a single word: opportunity.

Mundesia per nje jete me te mire, per nje pune,

Opportunity for a better life, a job,

to be able to pay for school, or put better food on the table.

per te qene i afte per te paguar shkollen, ose per te vendosur ushqim me te mire mbi tryeze.

Imagine a student taking a giant test for three full days.

Imagjinoni nje student qe kryen nje provim gjigand per tre dite rrjesht.

Her score on this one test literally determines her future.

Rezultati i saj ne kete provim

fjale per fjale percakton te ardhmen e saj.

She studies 12 hours a day

Ajo studion 12 ore ne dite

for three years to prepare.

per tre vjet per tu pergatitur.

Twenty-five percent of her grade is based on English.

25 per qind e notes se saj

bazohet tek anglishtja.

It's called the gaokao, and 80 million high school Chinese students

Quhet Gaokao, dhe 80 milion nxenes kineze gjimnazi

e kane kryer kete test rraskapites.

have already taken this grueling test.

The intensity to learn English

Intensiteti per te mesuar anglisht

is almost unimaginable, unless you witness it.

eshte i paimagjinueshem, vec nese ti e provon.

Teacher: Perfect! Students: Perfect!

Mesuesi: Perfekte! Studentet: Perfekte!

T: Perfect! S: Perfect!

M: Perfekte! S: Perfekte!

T: I want to speak perfect English!

M: Une dua te flas Anglishte perfekte.

S: I want to speak perfect English!

S: Une dua te flas Anglishte perfekte.

T: I want to speak ... S: I want to speak ...

M: Une dua te flas -- S: Une dua te flas --

T: ... perfect English! S: ... perfect English!

M: Anglishte perfekte. S: Anglishte Perfekte.

M: Une dua te ndryshoj ne jeten time!

T (yelling more loudly): I want to change my life!

S (yelling more loudly): I want to change my life!

S: Une dua te ndryshoj ne jeten time!

JW: Pra mania e Anglishtes eshte e keqe apo e mire?

JW: So is English mania good or bad?

Is English a tsunami, washing away other languages?

Eshte Anglishtja nje tsunami, e cila po shpelan

gjuhet e tjera? Nuk ka gjasa.

Not likely.

English is the world's second language.

Anglishtja eshte gjuha e dyte boterore.

Your native language is your life.

Gjuha juaj meme eshte jeta juaj.

But with English you can become part of a wider conversation --

Por me anglishten ti mund te behesh pjese nje bisede me te gjere:

a global conversation about global problems,

nje bisede globale mbi problemet globale,

like climate change or poverty,

si ndryshimi i klimes ose varferia,

or hunger or disease.

uria ose semundjet.

The world has other universal languages.

Bota ka gjuhe te tjera universale.

Mathematics is the language of science.

Matematika eshte gjuha e shkences.

Music is the language of emotions.

Muzika eshte gjuha e emocioneve.

And now English is becoming the language of problem-solving.

Dhe tani anglishtja po behet gjuha e zgjidhjes se problemeve.

Not because America is pushing it,

Jo sepse Amerika po e shtyn,

but because the world is pulling it.

por sepse bota po e terheq.

Pra mania e anglishtes eshte nje pike kthimi.

So English mania is a turning point.

Like the harnessing of electricity in our cities,

Si shfrytezimi i elektricitetit ne shtepite tona

ose renia e Murit te Berlinit,

or the fall of the Berlin Wall,

English represents hope

Anglishtja perfaqeson shpresen

for a better future --

per nje te ardhme me te mire--

a future where the world has a common language

nje te ardhme ku bota ka nje gjuhe te perbashket

to solve its common problems.

per te zgjidhur problemet e perbashketa.

Ju faleminderit shume.

Thank you very much.

(Applause)

(Duartrokitje)