S: Why can't I speak English?
T: Daily you need immersion--story, talk shows, native conversation and to stop focusing on grammar.
S: Why?
T: It's peripheral, map learning, not language--which is intuitive, human.
Here 'peripheral' means:
a. wrong
b. extra
c. unimportant
日本語訳
Twitterより。生徒「なぜ英語が話せないの？」。先生「毎日、物語やトーク番組、ネイティブとの会話に浸り、文法ばかりに集中するのをやめる必要がある」。生徒「なぜ？」。先生「文法は言語そのものではなく、その周辺にある地図のような学習だから」。ここで peripheral は wrong / extra / unimportant のどれに近いでしょう。
The answer is 'b'. The meaning of peripheral is actually on or at the limits of, on the edge of or just outside of
What is meant here is not that grammar is unimportant, but that it is a method of setting down or establishing rules for consistency in language. Grammar did not come first--language did. And so it is felt that language is natural and thus can be understood naturally. Indeed, the research of linguists shows that human beings have an innate and evolved ability to comprehend grammar. The point is students may need to understand grammar, but to become fluent they have to know when to depart from grammar and start trusting their brain and their daily use of the language. This is how to develop fluency. Not by turning every corner by looking at the map, but by trusting the instinct and exploring without it.
解答・解説の日本語訳
答えは b. extra。peripheral は「周辺の、中心から離れた」という意味です。文法が不要だというのではありません。言葉が先に存在し、それを整理し、一貫した規則として示したものが文法です。人間には言語の仕組みを理解する能力があります。流ちょうに話すには文法を学ぶだけでなく、毎日言葉を使い、自分の感覚を信じることも必要です。曲がり角ごとに地図を確認するより、地図から目を離して歩いてみる、という比喩です。