Common Questions
English Corner Here are some common questions we get!
Is it difficult to learn English? How can you change the thinking of some people that English is a difficult language?
English is a language that is really different from Indonesian because it has many tenses which are used in the past, present and future. These “parts of speech” must be understood and used in the right way to communicate what a person wants to say. In my experience, English is not too difficult to learn if you are motivated, understand that it takes time, and have a good teacher who is interesting, challenging and fun. English teaching in Indonesia and other Asian countries has been traditionally taught in a “passive” form and so studying in SD, SMP and SMA/SMK has never produced a lot of students who were able to speak English rather only those who can do grammar and reading comprehension to some degree. The way to change this trend is to teach “actively” and get students to ask and answer questions, give presentations to build their confidence and correct them when they are making mistakes.
What should English schools do to reduce the problems of learning English?
English Language Schools are quite popular these days because a lot of parents understand that English is very important for the success of their children. Workers also want to study English to get a better job and a higher salary while others want to travel to other countries and expand their knowledge through the internet and books. Others want to understand and enjoy the many western movies when they go to a cinema.
English schools need to have teachers who are committed to helping students learn English by providing classes that are interesting, challenging and fun so that the learning process is a lot quicker and effective. The classes should be small so that students have to participate in their classes. Generally speaking, many language courses have large classes but those schools with a maximum of 10 students provide the best learning conditions for learning English or for that matter any other subject. With larger classes students who have a lower ability or are not as confident and do not get involved in the class and therefore it is a waste of time and money. It’s up to the English schools to be responsible and care about the outcome of each class and not focus on how much money they can make!
How about the system for teaching in a school, Is it an ideal standard for daily conversation?
English in Indonesian schools is usually taught with a lot of focus on grammar and certainly it is important, but I think there is too much taught and not enough focus given to communication-based activities using grammar in daily conversations and situations. Part of this problem is in the preparation of these activities which take time to make; teachers find it easier to teach from the book they are using and for what the curriculum calls for. Being creative in developing activities and projects can really increase a student’s English ability in a shorter time than what’s being done these days. My students really enjoy the activities we do in the class and with my help and support they are all learning English!
What is the role of the English language in today’s global economy especially in regard to working?
English is well known as the international language of business and communication and so to be successful in dealing with overseas companies Indonesians must have a good English ability. Indonesian people who are looking for a really good job and a high salary need to be able to speak and write English professionally. There are many foreign
companies that are currently in and also thinking of investing in Indonesia and they are looking for Indonesians that can communicate effectively in English.
Most people have difficulty in pronunciation, how can a person solve this problem?
It is very important to be able to pronounce English words correctly as it is for every language. In business this can cause a lot of miscommunications when words especially over the telephone are mispronounced thereby causing a lot of unneeded confusion and stress. The difference between the endings of words that make them past tense need to be pronounced correctly! For example, you might have a conversation with customer overseas and they could ask something like “Did you send our order?” And you reply, “Yes we send the order”. Well, this is not correct and means you will send the order. The correct answer to say is “Yes we sent the order”. You can see that there is big difference in the meaning for an English speaker between the “d” sound in “send” and the “t” sound in “sent”. Pronunciation is bit harder to correct because you need to have someone close by to tell you that you are pronouncing a word incorrectly. The best person to do this is a native teacher but if this is not possible then listening to English learning cassettes/CD’s and watching movies with English text can also help. I would also recommend listening to karaoke songs and following along with the words which is also a lot of fun.
Is it a guarantee that people will be really good in English if they remember a lot of vocabulary words?
Vocabulary is very important in any language but knowing what words mean and not being able to explain them or use them in sentences is useless when trying to communicate with someone. It’s very important to
learn how to make sentences in the past, present and future while you are building your vocabulary.
What should the role be for teachers and/or parents in teaching their students and/or children to be familiar with English pronunciation?
Teachers and parents helping students learn English need to correct their students and children when they make pronunciation mistakes. They should be patient and understanding so that their students and children feel confident to keep trying.
If someone has learned to speak English, is it necessary to hold events such as debates and speech competitions to test them?
English debates and other English competitions are excellent ways to further improve your English ability and confidence in communicating especially ones that are organized and/or judged by Native teachers. These competitions are not for everyone though and are not needed to “judge” a person’s ability in English.
What are your expectations for the development of learning English in Indonesia in the future?
I have seen some changes in the way English has been taught over the past 25 years mainly from the change in the national curriculum in 2023 when the Indonesian government decided to adopt the western focus of speaking, reading comprehension, listening and writing. English teachers have also become more active in their teaching which is a good sign, unfortunately schools don’t seem to realize yet that trying to teach 40 students a new language is very difficult and so the results are not as good as they could be.
I believe that in the next 5-10 years English will become the 2 nd language of Indonesians similar to many countries in Asia and around the world.
This is mainly because to be competitive in the world markets Indonesians really need to learn English to further develop this incredible country!