Learning English, as everything in life worth something, takes time and it’s all about the journey.
To look back and say “I had a wonderful life” doesn’t happen in your twenties, as most of us have already realized. To graduate in your dream profession, doesn’t happen in 6 months and with English as a second language (ESL) it isn’t any different, it is not going to happen in 3 months if you never had contact with the language before but yes, it is possible to be something quick and pleasant if your expectations are according to reality.
If you’re part of the 95% of Brazilians who still don’t speak English, you are probably in the group of people who have tried multiple options and heard miracle promises but are still fighting for a better position in the corporate world or are still trying to accomplish that dream. And nowadays there seem to be so many fast options, there is so much information available, from traditional courses, books, forums, apps, even Netflix knows we need to learn to speak English. And that goal is shared by thousands of people around the world, as that’s one of the most spoken languages worldwide. Yet, it’s essential to acknowledge that it is not a goal you reach in little time, it requires patience, persistence and lots, and lots of practice. After all, how many years did we need to become fluent in our mother tongue? Whereas, if you know what you’re up against, it will be easier to avoid certain mistakes, that may become huge obstacles when not recognized.
1. Frustration
To create a new habit can be tiring, at start, for our brain. We are designed to look for easiness and our brain longs for a comfortable routine. Learning English doesn’t fit that pattern. Unless a person likes changes a lot (unfortunately, not so usual), it will feel physical and emotional tiredness by developing a new custom and that’s where most people give up. They try a course for a few months, or with a teacher, and then just think “this is not for me”, “I’m too old” or any other excuse, and then go back to their old routine. The brain takes time to internalize something as part of your life. So, first of all: don’t quit! As we always say at Brisk: “take a chance, all you have to do is try!”
2. Mother language interference or literal translation!
It’s undeniable that, when we’re learning a different language, we need to compare it with our first language – in our case, Portuguese. We have an article at Brisk’s blog, in case you want to take a look, which brings lots of evidences of the importance of the mother tongue in the learning process, but we still deeply think that nobody learns English by speaking Portuguese. Mainly because of the bloody translation. While their first language can bring the comfort the student needs at first, it cannot be a recurrent interference because it won’t help when you are trying to learn slangs, for instance, as they are mostly untranslatable. The secret of learning slangs and idioms, it’s focusing on chunks, vocabulary and the culture of the language you’re trying to learn. Try to acquire as much vocabulary as you can daily, and be as simple as you can. Basic even. Don’t be embarrassed to be a person of few words, but an assertive one, it’s unreal to have the expectation of expressing yourself in the language you’re learning in the same way you express yourself in your mother tongue. Use freely expressions like “How can I say ________, in English?” (Como eu digo ____ em Inglês?) and have daily contact with the language, whether through movies, TV series, music, reading, etc, will be extremely helpful to start mastering slangs and idiomatic expressions.
3. Pronunciation
It seems one of the most complicated barriers to solve, but in fact, depending on your level, a good teacher will be able to help you a lot. You just need to learn the correct sound of the vowels and consonants and practice a lot with the teacher in class to avoid the most common mistakes like:
TH sound: put your tongue between your upper and lower teeth and blow the air out of your mouth;
CH: It is not pronounced as in chave, but as in tchau;
TION: it’s always xãn (like in frustration = frãstreixãn).
There are also very confusing words like woman and women (this last one being read uímen) but, at first you can take notes of the correct pronunciation of the words beside them, so you can remember the sounds and practice later.
4. Listening
Have you ever stopped to think that it’s so much easier to understand a foreign person speaking than a native? And why is that, have you wondered? That’s because of lack of fluency, for us as listeners of the languages as to the foreigner who is speaking and doesn’t master the language to the point of connecting the speech as a native would. Natives tend to connect their speech through contraction of words and linking sounds. Therefore, we suggest investing a little of your time improving your listening to help you in real life situations, specially if you’re in a conference call, with the rest of the office, and you miss a direct order from the CEO. And practice makes perfect in any situation, so it’s a good thing to listen to the language a lot. Although it might not be very comfortable to listen to something you don’t really understand at first, when you start understanding, it becomes very pleasant and your performance during a conversation will improve immensely.
5. Rhythm and intonation
Metrics is the study of rhythm and intonation of a language. This is even related to the previous topic because in English there are certain differences in sentences structure, when we change from a question to a negative phrase, but in Portuguese we see its absolute importance, once the only difference between a negative, affirmative or question, is simply the mark at the end of the phrase. Look at the examples:
Você está feliz.
Você está feliz?
Você não é pobre.
Você não é pobre?
In Portuguese there is no difference in the structure of the sentences, so when speaking, intonation is of extreme importance. In English, on the other hand, the auxiliary verbs have the function of aiding one’s understanding to whether the sentence is an affirmation, a question or a negative. But using rhythm and intonation will also make you an excellent communicator. Remember, excellent is better than good!
6. Lack of time
Time is our most precious commodity nowadays, right? It seems like we never have time enough to balance work, family, social life, hobbies and, being honest, the last thing on our mind after a day’s work is driving to an English school or even to a private teacher’s house. Luckily, we have a very simple solution for this issue – online classes. You will save time and money and although ‘online’ might sound boring you just have to look for a teacher with experience and a school who hasn’t just adapted to the new normal but has the ability to make you forget you are in front of a screen and engage in the class as if you were face-to-face. Time can also be the excuse of the century and it’s the same one that has made you quit from other goals in life. Time will always be in your way if you have poorly defined or unimportant goals. If something is really important for you and your life you will make time for it, and an experienced teacher can help you with that goal and online classes can save you, at least, 30 minutes of your day in traffic.
7. No study partners to practice and no accountability!
As we know, to practice a language is a never-ending task. Therefore, if you took a 3 year course and you stopped for a couple years, and then had an interview where you had to speak and couldn’t remember a thing, don’t worry, cause it’s absolutely normal. Many people study for years and end up forgetting everything due to lack of practice, because they didn’t have a partner to speak with or they accepted a certificate establishing their fluency was ensured. But the lack of a partner cannot be an excuse, and we should always bear in mind that we must keep practicing. Nowadays there are a lot of apps that put you in contact with natives and the language itself, and even if you don’t like that approach, or don’t know anyone to practice with, find a school where the teacher is able to select topics of your interest to practice so you don’t stop using the language. Remember that the brain recycles information that is not a priority, meaning, it erases information we don’t use. And most important of all, if you don’t have a partner to practice that is good enough to correct you and remind you of the responsibility you took by signing up an English course, than a teacher is of utmost importance because this is where accountability comes in. Those who practice sports or want to be good in any area, know how important it is to have someone to guide you, demand your effort and points out our evolution so that we can keep motivated.
8. Wrong method or material
This is the easiest obstacle to overcome, at least to the Brisk students, because, in fact, there is no ideal method for everyone but a specific method that will work on each individual. Every student has their own means to learn, their own linguistic context and background with the language and everybody learns in a different way. The combination of experience of our teachers surpasses 30 years of teaching and, together, we’ve had contact with thousands of students and we know that what we do works because it is designed to each student. If you like to go to the gym, buy a good book or even eat properly, you are investing in yourself. Well done! But, don’t think that you don’t need to invest in a second language because that’s part of human evolution, to keep you improving as it brings you out of your comfort zone. And don’t be cheap on yourself, hire the best to guide you, with love, dedication, knowing that learning a new language can also become a passion. We know people pursue better results, we are here to provide that.
Study hard and have a wonderful week!