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'How to learn English' is a common question English learners always ask their English tutors. I am not an education or language expert, nor am I an English native speaker, but since I have been asked this question many times, I reflected on it so that I could give some tips to my students. Hence, my opinion on this matter is primarily based on my experience learning the language and then teaching it.
The most obvious answer to the question on how to learn English, or any other language for that matter, is to have full immersion in the language. Full immersion usually means spending a good amount of time in the environment (country, region) where the language is widely used. Language is intimately linked with people’s culture and ways of perceiving, so the best way to naturally understand and internalize the nuances of a language is through immersion.
However, acknowledging the fact that language immersion is not always a ready option for many language learners, what are other ways to learn a foreign language?
There could be unlimited ways to learn English (or any other language) but some of the already established ones are as follows:
1. Reading – Reading a lot of English texts will help the learner pick up correct grammar, word order, sentence structure, and vocabulary. Reading aloud also helps with pronunciation and vocabulary retention.
When I was in school, I don’t remember studying a lot of grammar. It didn’t help that I didn’t like rules and structures and so grammar study did not stick well with me. Fortunately, in my school, English grammar was just a little part of our overall English curriculum. Instead, we were made to read a lot and answer reading comprehension questions. Luckily for me, I liked reading and I mostly read about topics that interested me. I didn’t know at that time, that by simply reading fun and interesting stories, I was already building my English language foundation.
2. Writing – One common problem faced by English learners is the habit to constantly translate from their native language to English, and vice-versa. This is, of course, understandable as we are not used to think in a foreign language. But if your purpose is language mastery, thinking in your target language is very important.
One way of training the mind to think in English is to write in English. If you are someone who makes grocery lists, start by writing your list in English. Or better yet, write a journal/diary in English. Since it is a personal journal, you don’t need to worry about the correctness of your written English. The goal for this technique is to get your mind into English-thinking mode. In time, as you do more English writing practice, you’ll find it easier and even effortless to shift into English-thinking mode. And as you get used to this practice and ready for more, you can begin refining your writing skills by paying more attention to grammar while adding more to your vocabulary and making your sentences longer or more complex. Do it at your own pace, one step at a time, be gentle with yourself. You have to enjoy the process so you will look forward to doing it.
3. Listening – For a non-native speaker to understand a native speaker who speaks in normal native speaker speed, listening could be the most challenging aspect to deal with. However, this is also the most important skill to develop. In my opinion, listening is the most direct way to learn a language. If we think about it, when we were children, we began to acquire our language by simply listening and then mimicking the words we hear. Even if we, at first, spoke broken sentences, as we hear or listen more and more, we are also able to mimic more until we can construct full sentences.
There are many ways to improve listening skills which include listening to podcasts and songs, watching movies and YouTube videos, and conversing with other English speakers.
4. Speaking – The ability to express oneself through speech is the most common reason why we are learning a language in the first place. Some of the key elements that contribute to spoken fluency are already mentioned above. It goes without saying, however, that a language teacher would stress the importance of having a lot of speaking practice, as it is the most practical way to actually apply a language learned in real life situations. As the saying goes, “if you don’t use it, you lose it”.
In conclusion, I want to emphasize the following:
- Think in English.
- Be patient, you don’t need to absorb everything all at once and be overwhelmed that you’ll end up frustrated.
- Practice, practice, and more practice
- Don’t forget to have fun. Remember that learning is a never-ending journey, so might as well enjoy it!
xxx.Geoffrey John Rowley
2019년 10월 15일
Excellent advice, especially listening and thinking in English!