What does it mean to "fail" to learn a language?
Ask yourself a few questions:
•Did you study English for a long time and then stop? Did your English training "hit a wall"? •Did you learn some English but still feel nervous and make mistakes when talking with foreigners? •Do you keep studying and studying but cannot make any real progress? •Do you want to learn but just can't get started? |
This is failing to learn a language. So why do people fail to learn languages? A bigger question is why do people fail to learn, well, ANYTHING?
1. Lack of Planning - "I don't know where to start...so I'll buy a book that looks good and try to study with it. Or I'll take a 'General English' class" 2. Problems with Material - "I'm confused. This stuff is too hard. I think I'm learning the wrong stuff." 3. Poor Motivation - "I'm bored. I'd rather watch a movie. I don't have any reason to learn." 4. Bad Timing - "I'm too busy to learn. I think I need to stop studying for a few weeks (forever)." 5. Implementation Failure - "When I use my English, no one understands me. I can't apply what I learned to my real life." |
As an adult teacher of many years, I have heard all of these reasons many times before. And as a student of Chinese, I have had these problems myself.
(Note: These are NOT excuses - they are reasons and they are valid ones.)
Planning
How do you know you need a new study plan?
•Your plan doesn't help you with your real life. •Your plan doesn't address a specific skill (reading/writing/listening/speaking). •Your plan doesn't address a specific topic (work, entertainment, education, etc). •Most common, you simply don't have a plan. |
How can you overcome these problems?
1.Clearly define your Life Goals 2.Clearly define your English Goals 3.Spend extra time to do a detailed Gap Analysis |
Material
How do you know you have problems with your material?
•You are learning some things that you have already learned. •You are learning some new things that don't seem useful to you. •You feel like you have too much material to learn. •You are not spending equal time on each grammar area (vocabulary, phrases, or sentences). |
How can you overcome these problems?
1.Don't use traditional textbooks or class material. 2.Make sure your Gap Analysis matches your English Goals. |
Remember: Material is where your plan starts to become a reality. Spend extra time to choose the best material.
Motivation
There are a lot of reasons why we lose our motivation when we are learning. Some of these reasons are:
•You are learning about things that aren't useful to you •You are learning about things that you don't like •You are trying to learn using the wrong learning style |
You can overcome these by…
1.Study using your Learning Style. Using the wrong learning style is like writing with the wrong hand. You can do it, but it will be slow and painful. 2.Keep a flexible study schedule. Stay out of a traditional classroom. 3.Make sure your English Goals are small and specific. A lot of small goals mean a lot of small victories. 4.When practicing sentences, write about what you like. [UNDER CONSTRUCTION] |
Timing
There are several timing problems that my students have identified for me. These include:
•When I finish work, I don't have enough time to study. •My personal schedule is always changing so I can't arrange for a regular class. •I can't memorize so much vocabulary in such a short time. •When I memorize vocabulary, I quickly forget it so I spend too much time reviewing. |
Overcome timing problems:
1.Stay out of the classroom. If your life schedule is changing, you need a flexible study schedule as well. 2.Memorize your material properly. Don't waste time learning and forgetting. 3.Use marketing and a good review schedule to develop a long-term memory of the material. |
Implementation
Implementation is the only reason for English training. It means taking what you learn and applying it to your real life.
•I know a lot of English but it never seems to be useful in my real life. •Panic - When I want to use English, my mind goes blank. I can't think of anything to say. •Choke - When I want to use English, my mind is full of words and phrases. I can't choose what to say. •I feel like I know 95% of what I need but I have no one to help me with the other 5%. |
How can we implement properly?
1.Choose your Life Goals and English Goals very carefully. If you are learning the wrong things, you will never apply it to your real life. 2.Memorize properly. Panicking is caused by memory problems. Just because you studied something doesn't mean you can remember it. 3.Practice with a native speaker. Choking is caused by a lack of experience/confidence. Overcome your nervousness before implementing English. |
Conclusion
English training failure happens for many reasons. However, all of these reasons boil down to one thing: we often forget why we are learning English. We forget that learning should have a purpose – Learning should improve our lives.
As long as English training is making your life better, you will keep studying and keep improving.