Change your thinking and habits to learn English effectively every day

Students reluctantly study, satisfied with average test scores, thinking that is enough. In fact, it is their negative perception and attitude towards this subject that is the obstacle for them to conquer English, not that English is a difficult language to learn.

In today's global era, mastering foreign languages, especially English, is very important. People from different cultures cannot communicate with each other if they do not know a common language. And currently English is still the most widely used language compared to other languages. In Vietnam, English has been taught from primary school with the expectation that the younger generations will be popularized and able to use English to communicate and study. However, it can be seen that at university level, students still face many difficulties in using English. Not to mention objective reasons such as textbooks, teachers, environment or learning support tools, the biggest obstacle is students' thinking about learning foreign languages, perhaps a negative attitude since primary school.

So is English really difficult? The answer is yes and no. Yes because English is a foreign language, to master a language you need to understand the culture, customs, lifestyle... of the native people. And factors related to social culture need to be accumulated and studied over a long period of time. Like other foreign languages, because of the long learning process, English becomes difficult. However, compared to other foreign languages, English is not necessarily difficult. Think about it, is it difficult for foreigners to learn Vietnamese? The tones in Vietnamese are very difficult to pronounce correctly, and the way of addressing is also a maze that makes foreigners struggle to conquer. Or is learning Chinese easier? Recognizing and writing Chinese characters takes more time than learning English vocabulary.

There are several reasons why learning a foreign language is difficult. First is fear and uncertainty when learning a foreign language. Some factors that lead to this fear include the amount of knowledge, difficulty in communication and intolerance of mistakes. Many learners think that they do not have enough time to learn everything related to the foreign language and subconsciously remind themselves that they cannot learn it. They think that there are too many differences in vocabulary, phonetics, grammar compared to their mother tongue, so just the thought of having to learn that amount of knowledge makes them afraid. The second factor is that they are afraid to use the foreign language to communicate, the more afraid they are, the more difficult it is to express their ideas. Finally, there is the fear of making mistakes when using a foreign language. Making mistakes is a very natural process in learning a foreign language. However, many learners do not understand that. They are afraid of being embarrassed because their teachers or friends might judge them when they make mistakes, and from there they become more hesitant in trying to communicate in a foreign language.

So what is the first thing to do to learn English effectively? It is to change your thinking. A positive attitude plays an extremely important role in the desire and aspiration to conquer English. Compared to other foreign languages, English is not that difficult. There are many examples and role models of all ages who have successfully conquered English. Learn from them, and from there find the most suitable learning method for yourself. And believe that you can master it, imagine what you will be like when you succeed to reset your goals and have a really positive attitude during the learning process.

In addition, you can start to practice some other habits, try applying them for 30 consecutive days and see. The results will be unexpected.

1. Every day, instead of spending time reading the news in Vietnamese, read articles in English first, take notes of vocabulary that you find interesting. If you surf Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, find English study groups, watch videos in English. Collect interesting English sayings or write down your own thoughts and express them on your personal page.
2. Learn vocabulary every day in your own way. You can learn vocabulary through memes, pictures, puzzles… Try to apply that vocabulary immediately in a specific context.
3. Expose yourself to English as much as possible every day, by passive listening and active listening. There are a wide variety of listening sources on technology platforms. You can take advantage of learning about a field you love with videos or podcasts in English on YouTube. The topics are very diverse: health care, cooking, music, dance, movies, sports, video games, skin care, exercise, celebrities, current events, politics... depending on your interests. Experiencing the things you love in English is both fun and useful.
4. Once you have accumulated enough time with English, it is time to practice speaking. You can form groups to practice speaking English together, or join some English speaking clubs. Or more simply, you can learn to speak by yourself with methods such as imitating native speakers speaking English, talking to yourself, or practicing with speaking practice applications and websites.

Of course, you will still encounter some problems when learning English, but with a positive attitude, you will be more persistent and patient to achieve your goal of mastering English. From there, you will find ways to solve the problems you encounter. Maintaining a positive attitude on the learning journey is also very important. Try to create joy every day, from there you will find that conquering English becomes easier than ever.

MSc. Nguyen Thi Nhung – Lecturer of English Language Department, Dai Nam University