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PLATEAUS AS PART OF THE LEARNING PROCESS

Hi, Everyone!

I’m Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help YOU speak English fluently.

In this episode:

• I’ll talk about plateaus when learning English.

• After that, we learn grammar intuitively with a Point of View short lesson.

Ok, let’s get started!

Today, I am going to talk about a very interesting topic. Plateaus when learning English.

Ok, so…what is a plateau? A plateau occurs when you stop your progress despite continuing to do “all the right things”. An interesting expression for this situation is: to hit a plateau. For example:

It seems I hit a plateau because I can’t see any progress with my English, and I’m still studying really hard!

More literally, a plateau is a large flat area of land. This definition makes total sense because if you are walking on a plateau, you are not going up or down. You stay at the same height.

Plateaus are very common not only in learning a new language but in other areas. For example, a very common one: losing weight.

Imagine someone who has been following a diet and has lost some weight. But then, after two months, the lost weight stops, and it stops for a certain time. He or she keeps following the diet, but weight is the same.

The main problem here is not the diet. It’s just that the body needs some time before starting losing weight again. It has to adapt to the new situation.

But here’s the thing. When it comes to learning English, it’s a dangerous situation: It is very common to find this sequence among English students:

• They start learning English, and they get very excited.

• They experience a lot of progress. They are improving fast.

• After some time of continuous improvement, they hit a plateau.

• Since they don’t see results, they lose motivation.

• Finally, they quit.

As you can see, this is the main reason why students quit learning English. They don’t see results, so they quit.

Like I’ve just explained before with the diet, When learning a language, the reason we all hit plateaus is that our brain needs time. Time to organize the new vocabulary, sounds, pronunciation, patterns, etc. This is a complex task. That’s why we apparently stop progressing.

The most important thing to remember here is that we need to keep going. In other words, if you hit a plateau, it doesn’t matter.

You want to invest the same amount of time as before. I promise you that sooner or later, you will be able to see results again.

Or…you can be more aggressive. For a short period, you can double your efforts. That helps to get out of a plateau.

For example, instead of one hour a day, you can spend 2 or 3 hours listening to your favorite English podcast. It can even be fun!

So, here’s my piece of advice: It doesn’t matter if you hit a plateau.

What matters is that you have fun. You’ll see more progress. You just have to keep going!

Ok, let’s move on to the next section.

Here I’ll use the Point of View Technique. The main benefit of this technique is that it’ll help you to learn grammar intuitively, without boring exercises or memorizing any rules.

This is how it works: I’ll tell you a short story more than one time.

Every time, I will change a grammar point. For example, I can change the tense or the person. This way you’ll intuitively recognize the changes.

Ok, let’s start:

Two years ago, I started learning English. I was very excited about the opportunity to learn a new language. I was very committed, and I was very sure I would be successful because I chose a different and more effective approach.

My plan was to spend two hours each day listening to English lessons.

The first week felt a bit difficult because I was not used to the new sounds, but I got used to it. After two weeks, I started to feel more comfortable, although sometimes I had to stop the audio, just to have more time to understand.

After three months, I saw that my English got much better. The material I used in the first month was much easier, and I didn’t need to pause the audio.

However, after four months, my English was more or less the same, or at least it’s how I felt. I tried more advanced materials, but I found them too difficult. I didn’t know what to do.

I decided to change my approach. Instead of just listening for two hours a day, I would listen three hours. Not only at home but also when I was driving and while I was doing exercise.

I didn’t notice any progress in the first two weeks, but after that, I noticed that my English was improving again! That was very exciting, and since then, I tried to listen to English audios at least two hours each day.

Very well. Now, I am going to tell you the same story using the future tense.

In two years from now, I’ll start learning English. I’ll be very excited about the opportunity to learn a new language. I’ll be very committed, and I’ll be very sure that I’ll be successful because I’ll choose a different and more effective approach.

My plan will be to spend two hours each day listening to English lessons.

The first week will feel a bit difficult, because I’ll not be used to the new sounds, but I’ll get used to it. After two weeks, I’ll start to feel more comfortable, although sometimes I’ll have to stop the audio, just to have more time to understand.

After three months, I’ll see that my English will be better. The material I’ll use in the first month will be much easier, and I won’t need to pause the audio.

However, after four months, my English will be more or less the same, or at least it’s how I’ll feel. I’ll try more advanced materials, but I’ll find them too difficult. I won’t know what to do.

I’ll decide to change my approach. Instead of just listening for two hours a day, I will listen three hours. Not only at home but also when I’ll be driving and while I’ll be doing exercise.

I won’t notice any progress in the first two weeks, but after that, I’ll see that my English will be improving again! That will be very exciting, and from that moment on, I’ll try to listen to English audios at least two hours each day.

Ok, this is the end of this short lesson. As you can see, just by changing a point of view of the story, you can learn grammar intuitively. Today we have practiced the past and the future.

This is one of the techniques that I use in my courses. I recommend you to take a look at:

Courses.SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

Ok, this is the end of this episode. Remember to listen to it several times. It will help you with your English.

See you next week and have an awesome day!

Goodbye!