Student Stories.
These stories were written by my students in Vietnam. And while not being perfect it gives an insight into what is popular and how they think. I admire their determination in learning English. To learn English as a foreign language can be very difficult.
The levels of learning range from Starters to Advanced and they are then tested through an English examination such as IELTS. But more on that later.
Lets jump straight in. All these stories are written by 13 year old children who have been in lockdown for 4 months. All names used are nicknames the children choose for themselves.
Jenny
My life when the city just lockdown is normal. I usually spend most of my time playing games and watching TV. I usually sleep at 10:30 and wake up at 7:30. I have breakfast with my family, then I do the housework for my mother.
In my free time, I play games with my friends and brother, or listen to music or read comics.At ten-thirty, I will cook rice and help my mother cook.
Then around 11 o’clock I had lunch with my family. In the afternoon, I continue watching movies with my family or texting with friends.
On Monday, Wednesday and Saturday I have an English class from 7:30 to 8:30. At 9 o’clock I will spend my free time doing the things I like until bedtime.
The end(≧▽≦)
Julie
Because of covid 19 I had to stay at home, during that time, I stayed at home and slept a lot. I usually don’t eat breakfast because I wake up at noon.
I played the game on my phone with my friends. I stayed up late until 3-4am playing games with them. I also learned English online at home.
I read books in my free time and often listen to music during my nap. i played my rubik’s cube. Because I have a lot of time at home.
I have spent a lot of time practicing to play Rubik’s faster. It is very difficult. And I also lie in bed to surf social media. I’m too lazy to exercise at home. Every night, me and my sister, aunt and mother used to pray for the end of covid 19.
JESSICA
“Hi, i’m Jessica ( Tường )
My life when my city just lock down still very normal. I usually wake up at a quarter to eight. I have breakfast at eight o’ clock. Then i watch TV and play with my dogs :D.
At a quarter to eleven i sometimes help my mom to make lunch. I take a nap at twelve o’ clock. In the afternoon, ’cause i’ m lock down so i just turn on and watch TV again ;-;.
I take a bath at hafl past four and have dinner at half past five. At Monday, Wednesday and Saturday i have a English class from half past seven to half past eight in the evening. I play games with my friends and go to bed at half past ten .
Jessica
Sorry if it’s bad 😀
May
In a normal day like before, in the morning at 6:30 I went out of the house to go to school and then I studied from 7 a.m to 5 p.m. I went home to eat lunch and next I went back to school.
But now during the lockdown, I can only stay at home and not go anywhere. In the morning, I get up at about 11 o’clock, have lunch, watch movies.
I will take a nap around 2 o’clock and get up at 4 o’clock to prepare for the extra English class. And finally, I started sleeping again at 3a.m because I like nocturnal type. Stay up late with out parents’ permission is interesting. Every day is the same, it can be said to be quite boring.
Levels of learning English.
Common European Framework of Reference for Languages
The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment, abbreviated in English as CEFR or CEF or CEFRL, is a guideline used to describe achievements of learners of foreign languages across Europe and, increasingly, in other countries. The CEFR is also intended to make it easier for educational institutions and employers to understand the ability of these speakers of English.
There are seven basic levels of learning English. These can be broken down into Starter, Flyer, Mover, Pre – Intermediate, Intermediate, Upper Intermediate and Advanced.
Starter.
Is for those who have a basic level of English or have just started learning English.
Flyer
For the student who has successfully learnt the basics and is ready to move on to the next level of learning.
Mover
This level introduces the student to both the written and spoken side of English. It focuses on everyday usage of English and helps the students build confidence in their abilities.
Pre Intermediate
Pre Intermediate offers speaking practice to help students learn and practise useful phrases. This will help them to speak English clearly and effectively.
Intermediate
Intermediate students will be able to understand the main points of familiar matters that are regularly encountered at work, school, or in a leisure activity. They will be able to deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is predominantly spoken.
Upper Intermediate
The upper Intermediate section offers reading practice to help the student understand texts that have a wide vocabulary range. They will need to consider the writer’s opinion. Texts include articles, reports, messages, short stories and reviews.
Advanced
Polish your English skills and explore different styles of writing and advanced vocabulary. This is what Advanced learning is all about. Students might look at various subjects such as Business, Analytics, Computer Science and much much more.
Admiration.
Learning any language can be difficult. And because of the structure of the Vietnamese language, learning English is difficult.
The Vietnamese language is a tonal language.There are six tones used in the Vietnamese language. These are mid level, low falling, low rising, high broken, high rising and low broken.
To learn the stress in English can be a challenge for any student. But there are also many other challenges as well.
It can be difficult to understand the differences between different varieties of English.
Think about the differences between formal and informal language, as well as the differences between spoken and written language.
This causes students to write words phonetically, that is, how they would pronounce them rather than how they are actually spelled.
And also using informal language, possibly even slang, in formal contexts. Easy for someone who has been brought up on English but considerably more difficult for those who use English as a second language.
Good luck with one of the most difficult languages to learn.
How do we learn languages.
As babies we listen to our parents and this is the way we learn. The first skill is listening. The second speaking, the third reading and the most difficult is writing. So it is with great admiration for my students that they can communicate, while not perfectly, at least understandably.
I challenge you to learn a language and set your mind free. Studies have shown that learning a second language increases your IQ and opens doors that would not normally be available to a speaker of only one language.
Michigan State University has an excellent article on the benefits of learning a second language. You can find the link here.
I hope you found this article interesting and please feel free to leave any comments.
Please check out my recommendations for tools to learn other languages on my website.
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Thanks.
Stephen.