How I Know If Someone Will Succeed

After over 10 years of teaching English, its now very easy for me to predict which students will succeed and do well with English, and which will not.  Of course, most will not.

What's the problem?  The problem is that most students are stuck in a cycle of frustration.  The definition of "frustration" is wanting something but being unable to get it.  The problem, in other words, is not an educational problem.  The problem is emotional. 

Most students want to learn English and use it effortlessly.  They want to chat easily.  They want to easily understand native speakers, understand English language articles and books, and understand speeches and movies.  They want to use English without struggling.  But most learners never reach these goals.  As time goes by, they become more and more frustrated.  They think, "I've been studying English for 5 years, why can't I use it yet?"   

Most answer that question in the wrong way.  They think, "I just need another year of study" or...  "I just need to learn more grammar" or.... "I just need to memorize more vocabulary".   So they keep struggling for another year.  And at the end of that year, they are still frustrated.  They ask the same question again.. and again give the same answers.  And so the cycle continues.

The problem is, these students have been using the wrong methods from the beginning-- methods that increase their frustrations and negative feelings about the language.  Where did they learn how to study English?  Most learned in middle school or high school-- from teachers who had no idea how to teach.    As children, the learners were taught to respect these people-- but the truth is that most English teachers have no idea how to teach the language. The success rate for most English schools is less than 5% (less than 5% reach conversational fluency).   These teachers don't know what they are doing, they just follow textbooks that their school gives them.

When learners leave school, they continue to use the same study methods used by their teachers-- because that's all they know.  But these methods are total failures. Over time, the negative emotions grow stronger and deeper.

It always amazes me that so many students hold on to failed methods.  In every class, I have very frustrated students who complain to me.  They complain that their English is bad-- after years of study.  They complain that their progress is slow.  They complain that they hate studying English.  They complain about artificial textbooks.

Yet when we actually use English in class- they look bored.  They don't want to read articles or books, discuss issues, or listen to podcasts and movies.  These students prefer to analyze English and debate tiny grammar points.  They can describe the past perfect progressive in detail, but they can't hold a 5 minute conversation with a native speaker. 

Unfortunately, many of these learners just can't seem to change their attitudes and beliefs.  They stick to the old methods, fail again... and then complain to me again. I can see their frustration growing, but there's nothing I can do.  Eventually I just laugh and ask, "I've already given you my advice, what do you want me to do?"  

These are the students that make teaching an unpleasant job at times.  But luckily, there is another group of students who make my job fun.  These students know the absolute secret to English success.

That secret is passion.   The most successful students are always the independent and passionate ones.  They are emotionally connected to the language.   They are excited about learning English.  They are filled with enthusiasm.  And they don't whine and cry and wait for a teacher to force them to learn.  The successful students are active learners.  They seek out authentic English--  conversation partners, TV shows, books, comics, movies, websites, magazines, essays, podcasts, CDs, etc. 

These learners don't analyze grammar.  Instead, they analyze their own study methods. They don't simply repeat the same boring methods they learned in school.  Instead, they try many different ways of learning.   They talk to people who have already succeeded and ask for advice.  They talk to professors and ask for advice.  And they listen to that advice and try the suggestions. 

In the first five minutes of a new class, I immediately know who the successful learners will be.  They are the ones who are sitting near the front, smiling, and listening intently.   They look curious and excited.  They are eager.  It doesn't matter what their level is,... they will always succeed in the end.

And the guaranteed failures?  They're the ones sitting near the back, with grim faces.  They're the ones who complain about English.  They are the ones who always have the super complicated grammar questions-- using grammar analysis to avoid the authentic language.  They are the ones who are focused on some test, rather than on people and cultures. 

So there it is.  If you want to succeed with English, you don't need talent.  You don't need great intelligence.  You don't need amazing willpower.  You don't need to analyze grammar.  You don't need a super memory.

All you need is a genuine passion for the language and the people who speak it.  Develop that, and everything else will happen automatically. 

Cultivate your passion for English, and you are guaranteed to succeed.