Hello. My name is Duncan Brown and I am an English Facilitator, here are some of my thoughts about learning the English language.
A very good place to start
When learning something new, we all have to start at the beginning. Some may have a better start than others but when learning a language it’s a marathon, not a sprint. It would be great if we were the perfect student but most of us aren’t built that way.
The problem is
With beginners, I have seen and practised, certain problems that keep us at the beginning. Wouldn’t it be better to be aware of these common traps that hold us back? Below are some of my observations that will not support your language learning, and believe me, I’m guilty of some of these too!
The problems are
- Unrealistic expectations – It’s good to be ambitious, optimistic, and enthusiastic but as I wrote earlier, learning a language takes time and effort. If you expect fluency by using a smartphone application or absorbing the language by living in a country where they speak it, you are only going to learn disappointment. This disappointment is understandably demotivating, so, be realistic about how much effort you can give and how much you can retain at once.
- Fail frustration – Getting things wrong is part of learning and that’s it. How many times must you get it wrong? As many as it takes to get it correct. Knowing why you got it wrong is the answer to getting it right.
- Impatience – Just because you don’t understand something at first, it doesn’t mean you will never understand it. The key to understanding could be: more information, a different explanation, or just accepting “that’s the rule”. Expect, “I don’t understand this” moments but always add “…yet” to that sentence.
- Not reviewing – Repetition is key to success, ask any Gold Medal winner. Repeated reviewing of what you have learned consolidates that knowledge and helps you move on to the next thing.
- Not getting uncomfortable – Do you keep practising the same lessons/tests/apps etc. because they are easy or fun? That’s very comfortable. Doing something new takes you out of your comfort zone, and it’s uncomfortable, but only at first. Eventually, it will become part of your comfort zone, keep stepping into the discomfort zone, little by little.
There’s more?
These are just a few of my observations of students and of myself when learning something. There are many more that I’m sure you are aware of and so am I therefore, I’ll write part 2, soon.
*****お知らせ*****
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【ご自身の英語のコミュニケーションの改善点】を知りたい方はお問合せから
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興味に合った教材や方法を用いたテイラーメイドの英語コミュニケーションプログラムです。
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