Classroom Survey

At the writing class on April 29, 2009, everyone in the class conducted a survey in order to find out one another's opinions on the best ways of improving different English skills. The skills was catergorized into reading ability, writing proficiency, listening skills, speaking ability, grammar knowledge, and vocabulary.

First, in order to improve reading skills, everyone I interviewed except Se-young recommend to read more. Sera, Kanghoon, and Hwanki all suggested to read as much as possible. Among them, Kanghoon noted the importance of the contents of the reading material. According to him, reading material must be relevant and practical, so English newspaper seems to provide the best reading. Unlike others, Se-young argued that improving vocabulary is of the utmost importance for enhancing reading ability. Since vocabulary forms the very foundation of one's reading ability, it must be the top priority. Every one of them provided a valuable and useful tip for improving readling skills. However, it was really interesting to notice that no one's opinion comes close to mine. I believe that rigid training in bilingual tranlstion is the most effective way to develop reading skills. I have studied English for a number of year, and it proved to be the best. I do not disagree with others who recommended to read more. What I am suggesting is that concious efforts are more efficient, and translation allows us to be the most attentive to reading. Improving reading skills is not just a matter of how much you read, but you should be careful also about how you do the reading.

Following the tips about reading ability are the recommendations for improving writing proficiency. Just as reading skills, most of us agreed that the key for developing writing proficiency is do it a lot. Jason, In-kap, Kwang-hoon, and I all recommended that great amount of writing should entail to improve writing skills. In the detailed ways of conducting writing, however, our opinions varied. My opinion was that writing with time restraint is especially effective, while Jason recommended that writing regularly, one a week at least, with different styles is essential. Furthermore, Inkab added that writing on various topics is also important in improving writing proficiency. It was intereting that Sujin's opinion was significantly different from the rest of us. She recommended from her experience that reading and memorizing a lot of good examples are the most efficient way of developing writing skills. This strategy is particularly beneficial for those who just began to learn writing in English, but we should not forget that once certain level of proficiency is achieved, it is equally important to develop our own styles of writing.

The investigation moved on to listening skills. Namsook, Hwanki, and Se-young were all united in the opinion that the best thing to do to enhance listening abilities is to get exposed to English speech. In addition, Se-young added that sufficient exposure can be achieved by making a good use of TV and radio shows in English. Sera's opinion was unique, in which she pointed out the effectiveness of speaking and repeating after listening. It was interesting to note that active production of speech sound is more efficient than passive retrieval. This idea is in line with my suggestion that we should practice listening by writing down the speech sound. Certainly, passive exposure to English sound does help improving listening proficiency, but it is my opinion that active
participation and concious efforts are more rewarding.

The next skill investigated was speaking. As we share our opinions of the number one priority in becoming a more able speaker of English, we all agreed that anxiety is the biggest obstacle to speaking excellency. Jason, Hwan-ki, Su-jin, and I all commented that it is particularly important not to be afraid of making mistakes. Jason made a point that being a risk-taker and not being sensitive to misunderstanding are the most benficial attitude for developing speaking proficiency. Consenting to the basic idea that lowered anxiety and inhibition are key values in improving speaking abilities, Nasook went futher with her suggestion that learners must actively look for opportunities to speak in English. From this survey, it has become obvious that we are all recognize that optimism and active participation as essential qualties of a skilled speaker of English.

In addition, we as a class investigated what other class members think is most necessary to gain a better understanding of grammar. I made a point that using grammartical patterns in meaningful contexts can significantly boost understanding in grammar. Similarly, Sujin pointed out that active use of various grammar patterns in writing and speaking is essential in advancing grammar comprehension. On the other hand, Namsook and Hee-young both reccomended to read a lot and learn grammar naturally. Besides reading, Hee-young indicated that studying grammar books and consciously apply grammar knowledge in writing must be accompanied. Unlike others, Se-young emphasized the importance of the right reference material. Active use and application facilitates the process of internalizing knowledge, but all the efforts will do more harm and good if the knowledge is based on false presumptions. From this perspective, Se-young's opinion lays the foundation to the rest of our opinions.

The last skill investigated was vocabulary. We told one another what we would say to someone looking to improve this particular liguistic abilities. Both Inkab and Kwanghoon accentuated the significance of memorizing words repetitively. Moreover, Se-young recommended to experience various language usages that contain new words. I made a similar point to Se-young's that in order to improve vocabulary, it is important to use new words constantly in meaningful contexts. Four of our opinions are not in fact different but rather complementary to one another. In order to develop this aspect of English, it is curcial to intake more words and their correct meaning and uses. Memorizing is the easiest way of doing this, and by active use of the in-taken knowledge solidify its retention. Sera, on the other hand, approached this from a rather different direction by suggesting an etymological approach in which words are learned in groups of synonyms, or according to prefix or suffix.

This survey was an interesting opportunity for us to consider what it takes to improve each of six aspects of English. As I investigated various opinions of class members, I had a chance to contemplate my own English-learning strategies and compare them with others'. As we share our opinions, we all could realize that there are, in fact, a variety of ways to reach liguistic proficiency. I personally learned that each one of us is unique, and thus different methods must apply to different people. As I am preparing to become an English teacher, I keep this lesson in mind that once I become the teacher, I will make my best efforts to reflect the uniqueness of individual students.