My english experience started in the school. There I had two hours of english per week, so as you can see, it wasn´t enough. And also the quality of the classes weren´t very good too. I mean, the basic grammar, the writting skills were quite good, but the speacking skills were very poor.
In the University, the history didn´t change. I had to take only two english courses in the hole career (It took six years). This was a controversial issue, because all the books that I had to read were in english and a lot of students hadn´t had english classes before. And the University didn´t bring enought oportunities and resources for the students learned english. So, how do the teachers demand to learn new topics throw these books if not all the students can even read those? The other question that the student said that The English is a tool for the future, all the jobs put english as the first requirements, so does the university bring us all the tools that we´ll need in the future?
Well, with all those unresolved questions I decided to take some english courses in private institutes. Some of them are good, but others not too much. I didn´t like english classes like in the school that means like the teacher talks and the students write. I like when the students are the important actors, that means the teacher is the leader, they bring the material, topic, etc. And also they teach new thing and they correct the mistakes. But the students have to show that they are motivated and interested in learning.
Now, I am here. I am trying to learn more and improve as much as I can.
I hope when the course will finish I would talk like an american...or at least with less mistakes and more fluency.
Ximena,
ReplyDeleteWithout a goal, how do we know where we go? How do we know what we have accomplished? I think it's absolutely critical that you have goals and I'm glad you have the chance to set some now :) I've read both of your blog posts, and I am impressed by your ideas. All you need is the opportunity to express them. So I hope you don't mind when I say, I think you are doing rather well.
I think your language learning story is very similar to the other students' stories. Most language schools teach language using the "Grammar and Translation" method. This is fine if your goal is to translate texts or books, but for communicating, it fall short. I want you to think about the following ideas from the field of Second Language Acquisition.
1) It's necessary to make mistakes in order to learn a language. In order for us to understand what works and what doesn't work in a language, we have to create an idea. This might be in the form of a word or a sentence. Then we "test" out how the word or sentence is used. If a person can understand, great. If not, then we have to revise. The point is to constantly reflect on what we are saying, writing, reading, and listening to.
2)You have a very high "Willingness to Communicate" and this serves you well, because you can learn faster and cover more ground than people who are shy. However, be careful not to be come frustrated if someone doesn't understand. That's just part of the process.
Actually, I think your goals are very good. They are specific, achievable, and useful. I'm a little concerned about the wording. I want you to feel good when you achieve them. I want you to say, "I never understood how to use that word, but I researched it, I used in in class, and in my writing, and now I understand it. This feels great." For example, I will review all of my written assignments, write about them in my blog, and then learn how to use the word or phrase in my next assignment. Then when you learn about it, write about it here in your blog :)So for your next blog post, rewrite your goals so you feel positive about them and so that you know how you will accomplish your goals and how you will reflect upon them.
Thanks,
PJ
Thank you! I know that this blog is a kind of assigment, but your words and the way that you wrote make me feel it is a friend who is writting me!
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