English Milestones

English Milestones A milestone is a mark of progress. Setting and reaching milestones is important for student motivation.

1. Holding a two-minute conversation entirely in English. This is a good preliminary goal for students. 2. Holding a complete conversation over the telephone in English. This is difficult because students are robbed of visual cues – facial expressions and gestures and body language. 3. Spending a week in a foreign country without a tour group or guide or other Chinese people (L1 enablers). Being placed in a situation where you must speak English to survive creates a very real and immediate need. Students respond to that. 4. Making friends – actual friends – with a native speaker. I have asked too many of my students about their “foreign friends.” Most of them don’t remember their names. Those are not real friends. You know the names of your friends. If there is no real interaction there is no relationship. 5. Tutoring or teaching another learner some English. It is much more difficult to teach a concept than to understand one. Teaching will force you to consider English from new perspectives and different depths. 6. Watching an English-language TV show or movie without Chinese audio or subtitles and understanding it. This is one of the very last things many language learners are able to do. It’s hard for me after three years in Zhengzhou. 7. Passing an examination (IELTS or TOEFL or the SAT). This gives students a concrete goal to work for and very tangible feedback. 8. Taking a course where English is the language of instruction and not the subject matter (i.e. math or science.) This requires that all instructions and classroom interactions are in English. This is difficult. 9. Taking an position at an international school or international company where you will be expected to speak English. a. (This can be an unpaid guide position. It doesn’t matter.) Working as a tour guide is great for language learners. Your wards will be unpredictable in their tastes and demands. Any situation where you cannot control language input forces you to pay attention and think. 10. Being published or paid for your English work or skills (an essay or short story or a translation). This is a good indicator that your work and skills possess quality. 11. Participate in or win an English speaking competition. Like taking and passing examinations this gives students a concrete goal to work towards and very tangible feedback. Renato Ganoza for EF Zhengzhou, 2009