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How do you learn Teeline? It is an often-asked question.

One of the challenges of learning shorthand is building a robust vocabulary. But where to begin? Do you just start acquiring outlines for any word you can think of?

This is where the New General Service List ("NGSL") comes in handy.

If you missed it, please refer to our 8 April 2023 blog post entitled "Further Thoughts On The New General Service List" for some background.

The New General Service List (NGSL), developed by Dr. Charles Browne, Dr. Brent Culligan and Joseph Phillips in 2013, is a list of 2,801 words which comprise the most important high-frequency words in English, giving the highest possible coverage with the fewest possible words. Although there are over 600,000 words in English, the 2,801 words of the NGSL give over 90% coverage. The NGSL was created using a 273 million word subsection of the two billion word Cambridge English Corpus, meaning its corpus was over 100 times as large as that used for the original General Service List (GSL).

For shorthand students, the NGSL list can be an invaluable resource. Here are several reasons why:

Efficiency: The NGSL list allows shorthand students to focus their efforts on learning the words that are most often used in everyday writing. Instead of wasting time memorizing obscure words you may never encounter, you can focus on the most common words and phrases. This can ultimately save you a significant amount of time and energy.

Relevance: The NGSL list is not just a random assortment of words. They are the words most often used in newspapers, websites, books, television and movies. This means that shorthand students who learn these words will be better equipped to understand and transcribe real-world conversations; a valuable skill in many professional contexts.

Consistency: The NGSL list is a standardised list of words, meaning that it is the same for everyone.

Complementary: The NGSL list can be used alongside other shorthand resources. It can provide a useful supplement to these resources, allowing students to build their vocabulary in a more structured and systematic way.

Overall, if used wisely, the NGSL list is a valuable tool. By working through the list, students can build a strong foundation of vocabulary that will help them excel in their professional careers and beyond.

You will find a link to a PDF document that contains the first 500 words on the NGSL on our Teeline Resources page.

Also see our blog post entitled "Important Words - Part 1" for a good NGSL exercise.

Taken from our May 2023 Newsletter