Several years ago, my parents gave me the opportunity to
study in Singapore. They are still waiting with hope that I can develop wider visions and better communication skills in an environment where English language skills are vital. However, I did not cherish the opportunity. In secondary school, I chose
to speak to speak Mandarin rather than English to make my life easier and more
comfortable. Of course, that also made my academic life a tough one, especially
when preparing for O-level. Unfortunately, I still refused to pay attention to
the problem, until the day I went for an interview of internship opportunity to
Oxford University. Of the three candidates, I was the only deprived of the
opportunity! The confusion shown by the interviewer from the university already
suggested that he failed to understand my English before I left the interview
room! Yes, with consideration of my silliness, I would never ever work inside
the university again after losing this opportunity to others! I just lost to
others on the skill of communication! I did not value English adequately in term of speaking. That is
why my friend, who read English story books and watched SBC (Scottish Broadcast
Channel) and MTV Asia everyday, received good results and ended up studying in National
University of Singapore, oh my god! After the interview, I finally stepped up to salvage my English! I commenced to communicate in English with others, even during the time of talking claps. I
switched my phone setting to English. I watched Channel 5 rather than channel
8.
Due to my effort, I have made the life of my lecturers easier since nowadays they save
a lot of effort in understanding me! Perhaps what I need to do in the future is
to make English story books interesting to me which is a challenging task!
Editted 16.9.2015
You can try watching more American movies or tv series (if you like shows). I've tried it and I think it benefited me a lot in pronunciation and in the way I speak to the people around me. Glad to see that your effort paid off in learning English.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Hennesey, for this initial reflective post. You do a good job chronicling your evolving experience with English language learning. The clear anecdote you present on the difficult interview that you had with Oxford University is illustrative of just how important developing fluent language skills can be. And you add to that by mentioning your buddy who was accepted into NUS.
ReplyDeleteIn an effort to further enhance your skills, please take note of these sentences:
1) They wait, wait until today with hope that I can have wider vision and better communication skills in an environment of a universal language. >>>
They are still waiting with the hope that I can develop wider vision and better communication skills in an environment where English language skills are so vital
2) I made life of my lecturers easier when they nowadays save a lot of effort in understanding me! >>> I have made the life of my lecturers easier since nowadays they save a lot of effort in understanding me!
3) Perhaps what I need to do in the future is to make English story books interesting to me, though the books do not seem to be. >>> ?
I appreciate your effort.
Thanks, Bred! The last sentence means I try to make myself feel good to read story books though the books are not really interesting for me, haha...
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ReplyDeleteHi Hinnessy,
ReplyDeleteThe obstacles that you have brought up in the reflection are pretty relatable. One of such problems will be the ability to speak and writing coherently.I believe that the education system in Singapore plays a part.Certain secondary schools place heavier emphasis on Maths and Science. My classmates and even some teachers alike scoff at subjects like the Languages and other Arts subjects as useless and a waste of time.This is probably why most of us find it hard to express ourselves in English in the Polytechnic/JC and university!
That aside, I applaud you for your efforts in improving English through the simple things in life, like through talking and texting. I'm also glad that you didn't give up on improving your English despite the numerous setback you've faced! For that, I salute you!
Lastly, thanks for sharing with us your worries!
Hi Hinnessy
ReplyDeleteIts a pity that Oxford lost such a hardworking student like you!
You have great determination by setting your phone to English, watching English channel and speaking more English.
http://myenglishjourney1102.blogspot.sg/
ReplyDeletehttp://myenglishjourney1102.blogspot.sg/
ReplyDelete