Name: Keiko Osada                                                                                                                                 

Year: 1996

 

     English is my favorite subject since I was a junior high school student. When I was in elementary school, I was poor at other subjects. So for me,  English was a new one that almost everybody had never studied and I expected that English would become my favorite and strongest subject. Starting to learn English at first,  of course, we learned grammar and easy conversation expressions. At the beginning of English class, our teacher always said, "Good morning everyone."  We said, "Good morning Ms--". Except for that, we didn't have a conversation with the teacher and our classmates. We just read the textbook and did our homework. But English was interesting for me. I didn't think it was boring. Then, I wanted to be an English teacher. However, I had no confidence in my speaking and listening ability, so I almost gave up.      After I entered high school, I decided to go to an English conversation school in order to improve my speaking and listening ability. I don't know whether my language skills improved, but I can tell you that my interest in English increased. My teacher was American and in her class I always had a good time. Moreover, she held several parties, for Halloween, Christmas and so on. Through them I came to have an interest in speaking English and their culture. And also movies! I wanted strongly to come to see movies without subtitles. I think movies, as well as music, are great teaching materials.

     In high school,  English classes were divided into three courses and we took similar classes as before. We had lots of homework and vocabulary tests every day. Gradually teachers started to teach just for the entrance examinations. That kind of class was boring. We just learned by heart. And teachers often said, "This is important for the exams" and "They prepare this question every year. So check it!"

     I didn't want to hear such words. I didn't like such teachers. But, I enjoyed learning English. I think it's so important to have sufficient grounding in English grammar and other elementary knowledge. If we want to master English,  I believe "School English" is helpful. I just didn't want to hear teachers saying "for the exams" many times. I felt sad whenever I thought I was studying just for the exams. So I don't agree that we have no need to study School English.      

    Another reason I continued to like English was that I remembered a teacher I respected when I was in second year. He was a teacher of our reading class and he put emphasis on speaking voluntarily and listening to native speakers speaking. His class was obviously different from other teachers' classes. He taught us with the textbook,  but he spoke in English a lot in class and we couldn't catch up with it by just listening and he brought in an A. E. T. (Assistant English Teacher) as much as he could.

     The AET and we had a conversation,  but almost all the students were not used to talking with foreign people. We became nervous and couldn't express what we wanted to say. Whenever he came to our class, I realized I couldn't speak well and thought I had better make more effort. It was a nice experience!

     Also my reading teacher was a such a  positive man. He frequently visited the United States and told us what he'd experienced. His pronunciation was so Japanese, I remember. However he didn't mind it at all. He always said that the most important thing was to communicate and that even if we could speak English perfectly, we would fail to communicate if we didn't try to speak willingly. I liked his thinking and that's why I chose to study English. Unfortunately I took his class only one year because of his transfer, however, I'm sure he had a great effect on my thinking in English.

     When I passed the entrance exam of university, I was expecting to master English, of course, to study abroad and to make friends with foreigners. At first, I remember I was surprised at playing music, taking a class outside and videoing. It was so exciting because I'd taken it for granted to take a class just sitting quietly. This class was completely different from other classes. I'd learned "English" until then. But in this class I feel I learned the attitude toward learning English. No grammar. No pronunciation. Moreover the teacher said, "I love mistakes"! 

     But I had no confidence in speaking English. There were some people who could speak very fluently from the beginning. I was afraid of talking with them. Sometimes I couldn't understand what they were saying. I didn't even ask them to speak more slowly. It may be because of my feeling embarrassed. Time passed and around the end of first semester, I realized my improvement in speaking and the attitude thanks to videoing.

     Videoing is a really good way to know how I've improved. I was so glad to notice that. And also self-talk and discussion are helpful. Especially the four "Junkthoughts" were very useful for finding that I tended to express things in an exaggerated way.

     Through taking this O. C. class, it's my attitude toward English that has changed the most. When I was a high school student, I thought there should be the environment in which I could study. But now I'm sure it's important to make the environment by myself.

     Also about studying abroad, it's not always necessary. I believe like the Matsuyama woman, wherever I am, I can learn English.

            So I want to say to next year's freshmen that having interest and your own goals are very important. And act voluntarily. Don't be afraid of mistakes. If you want to learn,  there're lots of things you can learn anywhere, of course in this university, too! I believe everyone has potential ability. I will make an effort from now on, too.