Young adults in Europe dream of moving to the United States, fabled new land of freedom and opportunity, while their counterparts in the USA save their money to start a new life among the rich traditions of the Old World. Well, “Die Kirschen aus Nachbars Garten schmecken immer besser,” as they say – the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, according to the English proverb. Many students arrive for an overseas year and find that they’re not at all prepared for changes in lifestyle or language. That’s why learning the language of your new country is crucial, and why English language classes are popular in Germany and elsewhere. English teacher Joerg Poehland has put together a website that has all of the essential information needed to learn English correctly and easily. We asked him a few questions about the resources on his site, and on the use of English around the world.

UV: How long have you been teaching English in Germany?

JP: I have been teaching English for 25 years.

UV: Your site is written in German, but there’s also an English version that has the same information. Why did you decide to offer the site in translation?

JP: More and more users (their mother tongue was not German) asked to provide the information not only in German. So I decided to translate the site.

UV: The forums section gives people an opportunity to ask questions and discuss topics in both German and English. Do you find that the people in the user community are able to answer questions for each other, or do you step in to help out with problems or translations?

JP: At the beginning of the forum I stepped in and helped but now I don’t. We have some reliable users who are really good at English. They are happy to help. I only step in and delete postings and users who try to post “nonsense”. I try to read every single posting.

UV: As well as information on the English language, you also have sections on the history and culture of the major English-speaking countries. Do you find that many people who use your site are planning on moving to those countries, or are more people simply learning English to be able to work in today’s global marketplace?

JP: I think that most of the people who use our website would like to learn English.

UV: You’ve got a lot of great games on the site, and many of them are perfect for younger children. If parents want to help their kids get good English skills, how early should they start to focus on learning English?

JP: The early the better!

Parents should look for a kindergarten where English can be spoken – at least once a week.