3 Myths about Learning English: Hear from 5 Fluent Speakers

Hi everyone. I’m Jennifer from English with Jennifer.

I’ve been teaching English for over 25 years. I’ve been online since 2007.

That’s quite some time. Do I ever get tired?

Yes, I do, but do you know what keeps me going? It’s all my students.

Learners like you. I feel inspired when I see how well my students learn and what they do with their knowledge.

I also look around at others in my field. I see other teachers with the same passion and desire

to help people communicate and become the best they can be…in English.

As a teacher, I’ve observed different attitudes towards learning English,

and I see which ones can lift a student up and which ones can hold a student back.

As a language learner myself, I know which bad habits I need to stop, like negative self-talk, that is, criticizing myself and my weaknesses.

And I know which habits I need to keep in place, like regular practice and the willingness to receive corrections.

I could give you advice about language learning, but I think it’s time to put a number of voices together

and let you hear from non-native speakers who have already attained a high level of proficiency in English.

They are fluent English. In fact, the people that I've invited to contribute to this video all teach English in some way.

Together, their stories can help dispel some myths about becoming fluent in English.

What’s a myth? It’s an idea that some believe to be true, but in fact, it’s not.

To dispel a myth is to prove it wrong. It's to put an end to that false belief.

It’s like when we turn on a light and make the shadows disappear.

Let me introduce you to some successful English language learners and dedicated educators.

I've asked each of them to tell me how long they’ve been learning English and what practices they’ve found helpful.

I'm Nathaly, but most people on the internet know me as Teacher Nathaly.

I'm from Brazil, and I've been studying English since middle school, so that was back in 2005.

Well, it was a mandatory subject in school, so I'd say that I intentionally started

um, studying English in 2011. And that's when I started watching Jennifer's videos.

I remember I would watch lots of YouTube videos, and I would write down the new words I was learning.

And I would try to listen and repeat the sentences. And, yeah, I was just really like a parrot,

just copying everything. And that's how I started to improve my English.

Because the more I listened to videos, the more I watched videos, and the more I practiced, the better I got.

Hey guys. My name is Aliona. I'm from Ukraine, and I started studying English over two decades ago when I was 10 years old.

As a non-native English teacher, I always try to improve my English.

I do it by listening to different podcasts, watching Netflix, talking to my English-speaking friends, and working on my pronunciation.

Hi everyone. My name is Ivan Crespo. I'm originally from Brazil.

I started learning English when I was a toddler, and I'm 40 now, so I've been studying English for 37, maybe 38 years.

What I do to continue improving my English, um, I'm a grad student here at University of Illinois.

And I'm also a teacher. I teach listening and speaking in our ESL program.

So I have a lot of contact with the English language.

I think I only speak Portuguese, my native language, when I talk to my wife or my kids or maybe when I call my parents.

I also like to read, listen to music, uh, watch movies...yeah. I think this is...

Oh! In my free time, I also study grammar. I like grammar.

I think this is the way I study English nowadays.

Hello. My name is Daniela -- from English with Daniela.

I'm an online English teacher, and I'm originally from Italy

although two years ago I moved to the US.

I started learning English in middle school in Italy, and quite frankly, I never stopped

because I continued all the way through high school, university and beyond. I continue studying English today.

What do I do to study English and to keep improving my English?

As a teacher, I have a whole repertoire of grammar books, vocabulary, phrasal verbs, collocations...

As a student, as an English lover, um, I watch videos on YouTube on Instagram.

I watch films in English. I read books in English.

And I take part in English clubs, like for example, the Patreon group that Jennifer has.

Hey guys. My name is Chelsea, and I am from South Korea.

And I moved to the United States when I was 17.

So, I was taught "textbook English" growing up in school, just like anyone, but it wasn’t until I was 17 when I realized there’s real English to be learned.

I actually follow a 3-step process to do this.

1. When others speak, I pay attention.

2. I take note of interesting things that I can learn from that person.

3. In my next conversation with whomever, I try to use that thing that I've learned

or mimic that person in that conversation.

So, I'm still constantly trying to improve my English whether it's range of vocabulary or how I structure my narrative or story.

Um, how I do this is I watch a lot of TED Talk speakers or I watch other people have conversations.

If I spot a really good communicator, I try to figure out why that person was a good communicator, and I try to copy that person in my next conversation.

What I love about their responses is that we understand they have not stopped learning. They continue to improve.

No one’s English is perfect. Even as a native speaker, there’s always something new for me to learn,

like an academic word or some slang that I hear my children use. I also practice to get better at my writing.

Well, maybe you’re already impressed by how well my guests speak.

If you get the chance to study with one of them, you’ll find out how nice they are as people, how positive and supportive they are.

I’m now going to ask the other teachers to help me dispel three myths about becoming fluent in English.

Not true. When I was 17 and moved to the United States, we moved to this city that was full of Korean community.

I could live there without speaking English.

But as you know, if you don't speak English, you won't get better.

So, what I tried to do was make a lot of international friends, whether online or offline.

That really helped me. Practicing English with other people who don't speak Korean

helped me tremendously.

Some learners think that they need to live in an English-speaking country to become fluent in English.

But I completely disagree with that.

I know a lot of people here in the United States, people that have lived here for decades,

that don't speak English at all, not even a single word.

And I know a lot of people from Brazil that have never been abroad and speak English fluently.

And I became fluent in English when I lived in Brazil, not here in the U.S.

So yes, it it possible to become fluent in English in your country.

I don't think you need to live in an English-speaking country in order to become fluent in English.

Nowadays we have access to an enormous quantity of resources thanks to the advent of internet.

So, ideally, you could surround yourself with English 24 hours a day if you wanted to.

What you need is to practice as much as you can. And to do that, you can, um, approach some tourists,

take some short trips abroad, or even speak to yourself in the mirror. So, anything helps.

Well, actually, I've never even been to an English-speaking country, and I consider myself quite fluent.

So no, you definitely don't need to live in an English-speaking country to become fluent in English.

Nowadays you don't even need to leave your house to become fluent. There's internet, guys!

On the internet, you can do anything you want. You can study English. You can find English-speaking friends.

You can listen to music in English. You can do anything.

I'll tell you right away: you don't have to travel to an English-speaking country in order to become fluent in English.

There's no magic or something in the air that makes you pick up the language immediately. No. It's not about that.

When I was still in Brazil, I was already fluent in English before I moved to the United States. Yeah.

So, it's about creating your own immersion where you are, making English part of your life.

And so many people speak English on a daily basis, and they don't even live in an English-speaking country.

You know, a lot of people work for an international companies, so it's not about the place.

No, I don't agree with that. Fluency and accent are two different things.

Your accent is your identity.

I have an accent. You have an accent. Everyone has an accent.

It is actually good to have an accent, and nobody would think that you are more fluent in English just because you don't have an accent.

Just because you speak English without an accent. No.

Not true, although that is how I first felt when I came to the United States from Korea.

I was really embarrassed by my accent.

But having met a lot of people who are excellent communicators from Brazil, Mexico, India, Russia...Brazil, etc.

um, with strong accents, I was able to learn that what matters is your ability to communicate and be understood by others.

But not accent.

People will consider you fluent not if you don't have any accent, but if you speak clearly, accurately, and with a variety of vocabulary.

Um, being able to respond adequately depending on the situation...that's what makes you fluent.

Um, of course, you can aim to reduce your accent, but the goal is not to speak like a native speaker.

It's to have a neutral accent if you want.

Nope. You don't have to lose your foreign accent. People understand you.

Accent is very different from mispronunciation, and you know what? Your accent is part of who you are.

I once read that an accent is a sign of bravery.

Also, speak like a native speaker? Who is a native speaker nowadays?

You know there are so many different countries that have English as an official language. So yeah. Think about these things.

Your accent has nothing to do with how fluent you are.

There are so many people who live in English-speaking countries, who build their careers in English, whose whole live is in English, and they never lose their foreign accent.

Well, if you want to reduce your accent, that's okay. You can work on it. It's up to you.

But don't forget that having an accent is not a bad thing.

Can I become fluent fast? Well, remember that we all learn differently. What do you mean by fast?

For some people, it might take a while for them to learn, and it's totally okay.

Something else is that fluency is very subjective. It depends on what you're talking about.

So, you may actually be fluent in topics related to your everyday life, but for me, for example, I'm not a lawyer.

And if somebody asks me to explain a case or talk about law and all this kind of stuff, I'm going to be a little bit lost

because I'm not very used to that vocabulary, so fluency is subjective. Fluency has to do with flowing, so you're speaking naturally. You're not feeling that you're stuck.

And it takes a while, you know, and there's nothing wrong with that. It's just part of our human nature.

Personally, I believe there is no way to become fluent fast if you are a beginner. First, you have to study and practice a lot.

Fluency will come over time.

But let's say your English level is intermediate. In this case, going to live in an English-speaking country can definitely speed up the process.

But please, guys, don't believe those courses that promise to make you fluent in a month. That's just a lie.

Becoming fluent takes time. Good luck, guys.

No, there are no shortcuts. Nobody becomes fluent in English in three months, four months, six months. No. That's not possible.

If you want to become fluent in English, you have to study hard. You have to practice your speaking skills, your listening skills...

the four skills. You'll probably take some time, and that's great as long as you have fun while you learn English.

There are some materials that promise to make you fluent fast. Um, generally they focus on mindless repetition.

Um, they help. I think they help. I took some, and they helped me to stop thinking in Italian.

So thinking straight in English, which is what you want. But I don't think they're really complete.

What you need is to practice as much as you can.

So, any opportunity you have -- you need to take it, and that will actually help you to become fluent.

Yes and no. There's no trick to fluency, but there are things you can do.

1. Enjoy the process. And 2, use effective method[s].

What I mean by that is, let's say you consider learning English to be a chore, like homework.

You're not going to be putting in the same amount of energy and effort as, you know, someone who loves English and feels like it's play...it's a game.

And regarding method, let's say you're someone who only reads textbooks and only listens to English courses online, pre-recorded.

And if you're someone who is only reading and listening to pre-recorded English courses online or English textbooks,

you won't speak fluently, um, faster than someone who goes out there and speaks to people.

Basically, you need a balance between input and output.

I hope this helps. You can find me on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram with @immigo.io

Or on YouTube @Learn English with Chelsea. Bye!

I’m glad Chelsea told you where to find her. Look in the video description and you’ll find all the links to all the teachers you''ve met in this video.

I believe it’s helpful to learn from more than one source.

You can have more than one English textbook in your library. You can have more than one English dictionary bookmarked in your browser.

And you can study with more than one teacher online.

Learning from different sources exposes you to different explanations, approaches, and forms of practice.

That’s all for now. I hope you enjoyed our video. I hope we gave you food for thought – things to consider.

Please remember to like and share the video As always, thanks for watching and happy studies!

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