QW 051712 “Why I Quick Write”
Yesterday’s post is my 300th Quick Write piece. It was about a year ago when I stared this Quick Write Forum. Until then, I had been wanting to practice English writing but didn’t really know how. I was writing blog posts in English sometimes, which was far from being enough to develop my writing skills to the level I had expected myself from. Graduate school course work provided me with quite a few opportunities to practice academic writing, which in fact seems much simpler than free essay writing to me. The most important thing that academic writing requires is to convey your logics without being misunderstood. In order to do so, writers will need to follow a certain set of guidelines and format. In other words, as long as those rules are observed, you can write anything. The most important thing is that a writer expresses his or her opinions or research findings in a way that anybody can understand. I’ve never ever considered myself as a good writer for this academic stuff, but so far I haven’t have serious problems to produce papers in terms of technical, writing skills issues.
I, however, wanted to do more. Every time I wrote a blog post in English, this writing business would give me a sense of joy, pleasure, and content. Most of all, “inner serenity” that would be brought by engagement to English writing for a certain period of time never let me go. The more I wrote, the more I became aware that I was lacking the ability to produce pieces that I would be happy with. By then, I haven’t practiced writing intensively. When it was necessary, for instance, preparing for English proficiency tests such as Step Eiken 1st grade, TOEFL iBT, and TOEIC SW tests, I learned and practiced how to write essays that would be rated good on the tests. Put it differently, I practiced only for tests. And it worked quite well. My Eiken Step 1 essay was rated a full mark, and the score of writing section in my first TOEFL iBT was the highest of all four sections, but that’s it. I was so blind back then that I couldn’t see writing as something I could practice and “enjoy” doing for my own sake. Do you know what I mean?
After having written 300 QW pieces, there doesn’t seem to be significant progress or improvement in my writing skills. I might able to see something after I’ve written 1000 pieces, which in fact is my tentative target for QWing, but who knows? These days, I regard this daily QWing as a routine similar to the one that Zen priests would do to discipline themselves, the thought of which makes me feel less empty. Outcome that the routine would bring may not have significant meanings; what is more important here is the act of being engaged in the routine every day. The students whose TOEFL classes I’m teaching are doing the same QWing as their major assignment from the other writing class. They’re expected to produce 72 QW pieces by the end of a three-month semester. The people I teach do QWing almost every day. Why not their teacher, right? I know full well that Zen priests would never do their practices on a commuter train like I do, though.
(60 minutes / 555 words)
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I, however, wanted to do more. Every time I wrote a blog post in English, this writing business would give me a sense of joy, pleasure, and content. Most of all, “inner serenity” that would be brought by engagement to English writing for a certain period of time never let me go. The more I wrote, the more I became aware that I was lacking the ability to produce pieces that I would be happy with. By then, I haven’t practiced writing intensively. When it was necessary, for instance, preparing for English proficiency tests such as Step Eiken 1st grade, TOEFL iBT, and TOEIC SW tests, I learned and practiced how to write essays that would be rated good on the tests. Put it differently, I practiced only for tests. And it worked quite well. My Eiken Step 1 essay was rated a full mark, and the score of writing section in my first TOEFL iBT was the highest of all four sections, but that’s it. I was so blind back then that I couldn’t see writing as something I could practice and “enjoy” doing for my own sake. Do you know what I mean?
After having written 300 QW pieces, there doesn’t seem to be significant progress or improvement in my writing skills. I might able to see something after I’ve written 1000 pieces, which in fact is my tentative target for QWing, but who knows? These days, I regard this daily QWing as a routine similar to the one that Zen priests would do to discipline themselves, the thought of which makes me feel less empty. Outcome that the routine would bring may not have significant meanings; what is more important here is the act of being engaged in the routine every day. The students whose TOEFL classes I’m teaching are doing the same QWing as their major assignment from the other writing class. They’re expected to produce 72 QW pieces by the end of a three-month semester. The people I teach do QWing almost every day. Why not their teacher, right? I know full well that Zen priests would never do their practices on a commuter train like I do, though.
(60 minutes / 555 words)
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QW 051612 “How to Give Feedback 1”
Repeatedly listening to audio files recorded during Skype pronunciation lessons makes me discover amazingly more than I thought. The more I listen to it, the more I learn from it not only as a learner but also as a teacher. Currently I’m trying to learn how to give feedback to a learner in English. The way my pronunciation teacher points out my weaknesses and proposes how to improve them is something I’d really like to master as an English teacher. Here’re some instances to be shared:
1) “One of the words that non-native speakers seem to be confused with is… For example, a case in point there is …”
If feedback starts with generalization, not personalization, a learner would feel comfortable receiving teacher’s corrective feedback.
2) “This is something that’s sort of unique to Japanese people… There’s usually a tendency for you guys to… This is a phenomenon, I would say, that’s unique to Japanese speaking people,… I just need you to know, Aya, you did that.”
Again, first generalization, then personalization.
3) “It’s almost negligible the way you said it, but just for clarity…”
“negligible” is a good adjective to state that a learner achieved 80-90% already, but still needs some more refinement.
4) “The reason, again, Aya, I would just predicate the reason why I notice all these nuances is because, again, I was…”
Firstly, the word choice of “nuances”, not “weakness” or “errors”, would make the statement easier for a learner to take. Another learning point for me as a teacher is that my pronunciation teacher repeatedly predicates why he notices every little thing in my mispronounced speech, which is because, in my interpretation, he’s trying to make his corrective feedback easier for me to take, and to avoid making me feel uncomfortable or even offended by his correction.
5) (Learner: Are you sure??) Positive. 110 percent.
Yeah, a teacher should sound confident in his or her teaching.
(40 minutes / 321 words)
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1) “One of the words that non-native speakers seem to be confused with is… For example, a case in point there is …”
If feedback starts with generalization, not personalization, a learner would feel comfortable receiving teacher’s corrective feedback.
2) “This is something that’s sort of unique to Japanese people… There’s usually a tendency for you guys to… This is a phenomenon, I would say, that’s unique to Japanese speaking people,… I just need you to know, Aya, you did that.”
Again, first generalization, then personalization.
3) “It’s almost negligible the way you said it, but just for clarity…”
“negligible” is a good adjective to state that a learner achieved 80-90% already, but still needs some more refinement.
4) “The reason, again, Aya, I would just predicate the reason why I notice all these nuances is because, again, I was…”
Firstly, the word choice of “nuances”, not “weakness” or “errors”, would make the statement easier for a learner to take. Another learning point for me as a teacher is that my pronunciation teacher repeatedly predicates why he notices every little thing in my mispronounced speech, which is because, in my interpretation, he’s trying to make his corrective feedback easier for me to take, and to avoid making me feel uncomfortable or even offended by his correction.
5) (Learner: Are you sure??) Positive. 110 percent.
Yeah, a teacher should sound confident in his or her teaching.
(40 minutes / 321 words)
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QW 051512 “Core of My Onion”
It was an interesting conversation on Twitter between people I follow there. Here’s the quote:
T: Life is like an onion. You peel off layer after layer and then you find there is nothing in it.
L: … and then you realize that the layers actually were the onion.
Haven’t you had thought like this? Consider the things you’ve been committed for quite a long time. Haven’t you thought about fulfilling such commitments as just like an endless business of peeling an onion? There is this onion right in front of you, and there’s nothing else as far as you can see. You know full well that it was you, no one else, who picked up the onion to peel. Or there was nothing left for you to working on that onion. Whatever. Anyway you’ve convinced yourself that this is the right thing to do, and started peeling your onion. There’s one thing that keeps coming back to you; when, or even whether, this peeling job will finish. Sometimes you’d peel extremely carefully and attentively. Sometimes you’d be completely sick and tired of the whole business. Sometimes you’d be unsure about why you’re being engaged in this job. You see a growing pile of onion layers right before your eyes, but you cannot possibly see how you could regard or interpret this heap of those layers that you’ve produced.
It seems to me as just another analogue for my English learning. I’ve kept peeling this onion for more than three decades, but I’ll never know when to finish it. Which is perfectly okay because I’m determined to go on with English learning for the rest of my life. What hits me hard sometimes is that I’d feel as if I would never reach its core. There is NO core of the onion to begin with, but there is this me who’s eager to reach its core if there’s any and see some noticeable results or achievements. Well, as my twitter friend said, it’s just “you realize that the layers actually were the onion.” Then, peeling my onion itself is the results or achievements that could possibly be expected from my whole English learning life? Okay, that’s good enough. “English learning life is like an onion. You peel off layer after layer and then you find there is nothing in it. Those layers were actually an onion, your English learning life.”
(60 minutes / 400 words)
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T: Life is like an onion. You peel off layer after layer and then you find there is nothing in it.
L: … and then you realize that the layers actually were the onion.
Haven’t you had thought like this? Consider the things you’ve been committed for quite a long time. Haven’t you thought about fulfilling such commitments as just like an endless business of peeling an onion? There is this onion right in front of you, and there’s nothing else as far as you can see. You know full well that it was you, no one else, who picked up the onion to peel. Or there was nothing left for you to working on that onion. Whatever. Anyway you’ve convinced yourself that this is the right thing to do, and started peeling your onion. There’s one thing that keeps coming back to you; when, or even whether, this peeling job will finish. Sometimes you’d peel extremely carefully and attentively. Sometimes you’d be completely sick and tired of the whole business. Sometimes you’d be unsure about why you’re being engaged in this job. You see a growing pile of onion layers right before your eyes, but you cannot possibly see how you could regard or interpret this heap of those layers that you’ve produced.
It seems to me as just another analogue for my English learning. I’ve kept peeling this onion for more than three decades, but I’ll never know when to finish it. Which is perfectly okay because I’m determined to go on with English learning for the rest of my life. What hits me hard sometimes is that I’d feel as if I would never reach its core. There is NO core of the onion to begin with, but there is this me who’s eager to reach its core if there’s any and see some noticeable results or achievements. Well, as my twitter friend said, it’s just “you realize that the layers actually were the onion.” Then, peeling my onion itself is the results or achievements that could possibly be expected from my whole English learning life? Okay, that’s good enough. “English learning life is like an onion. You peel off layer after layer and then you find there is nothing in it. Those layers were actually an onion, your English learning life.”
(60 minutes / 400 words)
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QW 051412 “Enhanced Awareness”
Well, my Operation Vowels was hit by the news that the online English school I’ve sign up for will suspend all of their services for at least one week. There might be more than 100 thousand English learners out there who’re trying to find other options to keep their English learning going without the lessons they used to take daily. It’s very likely that my next pronunciation session might be more than one week ahead, so I’ll need to work on the project by myself in the meantime. Which in fact is the way it should be. To begin with, I reviewed the old article that I practiced a week ago, for which the teacher gave me suggestions some of which didn’t make full sense to me. After intensively practicing the article from the last session, I was more able to locate the areas that I need to work on although I haven’t completely improved all of them yet. Still, isn’t it a progress? Isn’t it thanks to enhanced awareness? I believe it’s so. I believe awareness is the very first step for progress.
Last night on Twitter I tweeted, “I don't know what nativelikeness is. I'm not sure I'd go for it if I knew what it is. I just want to be able to speak in the way I long for.” It may not sound right as an English teacher, but that’s the way I truly feel as an English learner. I’ve always has role models of English speakers, almost always male speakers as I previously wrote, to emulate. Whether my role models are natives or non-natives, I just want to speak like those people that I simply like. My twitter buddy kindly replied to my tweet, quote, “Nativelikeness never existed, to begin with. I believe it's all about feeling comfortable in speaking another language.” This message made me want to respond like, “True. With passion and devotion, I'll find the way to such comfortableness. I can just give it time.” Well, to be honest, this sentence construction was borrowed from one of my favorite RATT songs. Can you locate the part that I arranged? Yeah, copying and arranging speeches and writings by natives is a good way of learning, right?
(40 minutes / 373 words)
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[広告] VPS
Last night on Twitter I tweeted, “I don't know what nativelikeness is. I'm not sure I'd go for it if I knew what it is. I just want to be able to speak in the way I long for.” It may not sound right as an English teacher, but that’s the way I truly feel as an English learner. I’ve always has role models of English speakers, almost always male speakers as I previously wrote, to emulate. Whether my role models are natives or non-natives, I just want to speak like those people that I simply like. My twitter buddy kindly replied to my tweet, quote, “Nativelikeness never existed, to begin with. I believe it's all about feeling comfortable in speaking another language.” This message made me want to respond like, “True. With passion and devotion, I'll find the way to such comfortableness. I can just give it time.” Well, to be honest, this sentence construction was borrowed from one of my favorite RATT songs. Can you locate the part that I arranged? Yeah, copying and arranging speeches and writings by natives is a good way of learning, right?
(40 minutes / 373 words)
Post your QW product to "Quick Write Forum"!
[広告] VPS
QW 051312 “Until Next Time”
To be honest, I still haven’t got over the shock. Just 30 minutes before tonight’s lesson would start, the whole server system of the online English school got shut down (again). I’ve been intensively practicing the previous material over and over since yesterday, and was truly looking forward to having the teacher listen to my recording. Come to think of it, however, I started suspecting that I may have practiced just to be acknowledged, praised, and rewarded by the teacher. Well, the whole thing might as well to be considered as a good opportunity for me to remember that I’m the one who’s responsible for my English learning.
Until the next pronunciation session temporarily scheduled this coming Saturday morning, I’ll keep working on the following points:
1) Variation of intonation patterns
2) [y] in “yearly”
3) [i:] as in “increased” and “diseases”
4) Consistence in pronunciation of proper nouns (e.g. Warren Buffet)
5) Final “a” without [r] as in “formula” and “Obama”
6) Clear [ou] in “association”
7) Vowels like [ey] [a] [ǝ (schwa)]
Above all things mentioned, what I really need to work hard is, as the teacher pointed out, to fully focus on pronouncing the word that I’m reading “real-time”. I have a tendency to shift my focus and attention to words and phrases coming right after too early, and be inattentive to the words that I’m reading “right now”. It’s partially because, I guess, I’m eager not to sound choppy and to realize “liaison” (i.e. sounding of a consonant that is normally silent at the end of a word because the next word begins with a vowel), and end up failing to pronounce the word as it’s supposed to sound. And last but not least, I should really keep that in mind:
“Remember that, you know, you’re studying English, studying accents for all these things. Because you wanna communicate. You wanna communicate with people. And that’s one of the most important components for communication; for the speaker to be understood.”
(40 minutes / 332 words)
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Until the next pronunciation session temporarily scheduled this coming Saturday morning, I’ll keep working on the following points:
1) Variation of intonation patterns
2) [y] in “yearly”
3) [i:] as in “increased” and “diseases”
4) Consistence in pronunciation of proper nouns (e.g. Warren Buffet)
5) Final “a” without [r] as in “formula” and “Obama”
6) Clear [ou] in “association”
7) Vowels like [ey] [a] [ǝ (schwa)]
Above all things mentioned, what I really need to work hard is, as the teacher pointed out, to fully focus on pronouncing the word that I’m reading “real-time”. I have a tendency to shift my focus and attention to words and phrases coming right after too early, and be inattentive to the words that I’m reading “right now”. It’s partially because, I guess, I’m eager not to sound choppy and to realize “liaison” (i.e. sounding of a consonant that is normally silent at the end of a word because the next word begins with a vowel), and end up failing to pronounce the word as it’s supposed to sound. And last but not least, I should really keep that in mind:
“Remember that, you know, you’re studying English, studying accents for all these things. Because you wanna communicate. You wanna communicate with people. And that’s one of the most important components for communication; for the speaker to be understood.”
(40 minutes / 332 words)
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