Almost everyday, I receive emails from my students asking about how to improve their English. Some of them come up with details, saying: I can’t talk fluently. My spoken language is like baby English. I can’t put words together. I can’t talk at length. I can’t express my ideas. I have nothing to say…

Though everyone seems to have different troubles, they all end up asking: Echo, what can I do? What have you been doing to learn English?

It’s a big topic though, I did take time to look back on the long journey I have made. I won’t say it’s a journey full of brilliant choices and methods, I would rather attribute to the habits that make the difference.

Tonight, I am putting down my thoughts in this article, in the hope you will make a start very soon.

If you are going to build a home in the suburbs, all you need do is pour a 6-inch slab of concrete. But if you are going to build the Empire State Building, the first thing you need to do is dig a deep hole and pour a strong foundation.

--Robert Kiyosaki

In this world which values practical efficiency, many people are eager to master a language within a crazily short time. But if you are ready to set on the journey to the real language proficiency, the first thing I want you to keep in your mind is – You can’t build a high-rise on a 6-inch slab.

Just as what I always say in the first class: language study takes time. You can’t be too much in a rush. I ask you to learn not for the test only, but for the real language proficiency which is the true asset in the long run.

Do you still remember 3S? It IS a long journey, full of turns and twists at the beginning. You might have walked for so long but the first milestone is not even close (By the way, that’s what you always write to complain). So, what’s your choice?

Reading this far, if you still ask me for shortcut, sorry I don’t think I can help. But if you tell me you are ready to take the cold long winter nights before embracing the morning sun of the sweet spring, then here is my first sharing of English learning – Read and Recite. And that is what I have been doing to learn English, to improve my mind, to equip myself with boarder knowledge.

Please don’t frown at the suggestion. I know most of you hate recitation. You might say, only kids learn by recitation, not adults.

Well, back to my childhood, I was forced to do a lot of recitation by my grandpa. Just like you, I hated reciting those poems and articles which I barely understood. Later, when I started learning New Concept English, my grandpa required me to read five articles a day. Without finishing the daily assignment, I couldn’t go for the outdoor games. The “good” thing is -- My grandpa doesn’t understand English. So most of time, I just read 2 articles and said: “Grandpa, I’m done. Can I go out and play? ”

You can’t expect too much self-discipline on a young kid. However, with rounds and rounds of reading, all the articles on that book were stored up on my mind. Reciting them came just so naturally.

You might want to ask: What’s the good to recite these stuff?

Well, I didn’t understand at that time either. That’s why I kept trying all means to leave for playing with the least reading~

When I grew older and set out on my own for the real language learning. The recitation I had done for all these years gradually demonstrated their magic power.

When I wanted to express myself, the expressions and ideas I obtained from the articles I had recited would pop out in my mind and naturally come out of my mouth.

It was like a magic.

Language study is a process that you need to “put in” something first and later on you can “take something out”.

I don’t think I am able to talk at length without reading anything about the topic. I don’t think I am able to quote some smart words without memorizing them by heart. Just as I said, you can’t build a high-rise without preparing a solid foundation. So, just as putting concrete in the foundation so as to build a tower, you need to put what you read into your mind so as to speak and write good English.

For many people, school is the end, not the beginning. So you always complain to me that you can’t keep your English level because you don’t have English class in school anymore. But in my view, it is lack of self-discipline that is No.1 defeating factor in your journey.

I once wrote in my blog: Habits make the difference. Life is really a reflection of our habits.

I always say in the class that “English learning is supposed to be a daily practice”. Believe it or not, I still keep doing Read and Recite myself, and I choose daily.

I have quite a few English pocketbooks of nice articles. When I come across some good paragraphs and smart words, I put them down in my own handbook. I have developed a habit of carrying one of these little books in my bag, from which I read a page or two when I am in the periods of waiting.

Besides, I keep some books by my pillow, from which I read the last 15 minutes before I go to sleep. When I come to some good expressions and brilliant ideas in the reading, I stop and read to memorize.

By doing all these things, the magic of “popping out” is still working on me. Sometimes in class, you are always amazed at my naturally reciting or retelling great paragraphs from some classical works. Now you know how it could happen.

Moreover, in reality, the only real asset you have is your mind. It’s the most powerful tool we have domination over. There is an expression like “you are what you eat”. But in the journey of English learning, you become what you read. You mind is so powerful that you become what you put in your head.

So, devote some of your leisure to developing the habit of Read and Recite. All unconsciously, the ideas you derive from the printed pages are stored up. They will definitely work for your future profit. With adequate “putting in”, just get sense of all the wonderful possibilities that are waiting for you to be a good English speaker.

posted on 2006-11-03 00:08 江晓弘 阅读(14679) 评论(100)  编辑  收藏 所属分类: 讲台之上 网摘收藏