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JacksonFive's Free "Path2English" Newsletter,
http://www.path2english.com/
Issue: 58            "Misconception 1"      Feb 3, 2002
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Dear Reader,

  Since the start of my English school, I have seen many different
  types of children coming to my school. Some of them come with a
  strong dislike for learning English. Just yesterday, I had two that
  arrived at my door, not wanting to come in. One even slept in the
  car for 2 hours refusing to come in. "What happened to cause them
  to fear English?" you ask.

  For the most part, they have gone to English schools where the
  environment isn't fun and stimulating. Because it isn't stimulating,
  their motivation to learn is low and the result is poor. And because
  parents expect results, these schools have resorted to using familiar
  Asian techniques of education: memorization, memorization and testing
  to get the result they need. If they can't memorize enough at school,
  what else can you do? Of course, send the material home as homework!
  Try to squeeze in as much English data as possible whether these
  children like it or not, which just makes the learning even less
  appealing. Very soon, many of these children will be become the
  examples I told you about at the beginning-- children that hate
  English.

  Doesn't this sound sad? And you know the saddest of all? Sometimes
  parents become the biggest stumbling block in their children's
  learning process. Because most parents grew up in just such a
  learning environment, they knowingly or unknowingly encourage this
  familiar cycle of learning. When you hear other parents or
  yourself saying, "Can you give my child more challenge? She is
  very smart." You know it is starting. If the school gives in, it
  is the beginning of the end in my view for this child and his or
  her enjoyment of learning.

  What it comes to is this, if the student is happy learning, he is
  self-motivated. You don't have to push him to learn; he will push
  the teacher to teach. The result will be beyond your expectations.
  This sounds so easy, but to achieve it requires the right school
  philosophy and the right parents.

  What do I mean by "right parents"? Some parents I find say they
  want their children to be happy when learning, but when they
  actually find a school that doesn't give homework or do weekly
  testing, they feel lost because they don't have a reference point.
  I believe it is because of the way they were educated themselves.
  In their own experience, they have never encountered anything
  like this so unconsciously they have their doubts.

  So in order to find a good school for your children, first ask
  why are they learning English. If it is only to pass tests, then
  whether they enjoy it or not isn't that important. If the purpose
  is to gain a tool that will benefit and enrich their lives, then
  it is important for them to fall in love with it so they can enjoy
  it for life (testing pressure isn't there for life). As a parent
  and teacher, my advice to you is to find a fun and enriching
  learning environment that isn't fixated on homework and testing.
  Trust me, if children are enjoying themselves, over the long run,
  they will learn, retain, and use more English than if not. Break
  the vicious cycle and don't let yourself be your own children's
  worst enemy. Please let English become their lifelong friend and
  ally, and not an adversary to be feared and hated.

LATEST BABY NEWS:

  Having a newborn baby around the house is great! I really can't
  wait to look at my baby, Chloe, everyday. Between classes and in
  the evening, I try to squeeze in as "holding time" as I can. She
  is so cute and quickly growing.

  Two weeks ago, one parent came into my school telling me I should
  buy a lottery ticket because newborn babies bring good luck. I
  didn't really believe her at the time because I never thought of
  myself as being luckier than the average person. However, that
  night I found $500 on the ground next to my car when I opened my
  car door. A few days before this, I won a $1,000 promotional draw
  from my visa company.

  Never being this lucky before, this lead me to think there maybe
  something in this old wives tale. I went out to buy $750 worth of
  lottery ticket and guess what... two of my tickets had 4 numbers
  that matched. That would be $4,017 each multiply by two or about
  $8,000. I wonder how long my "baby luck" will hold out?

  You can see some of her first pictures on this page,
  http://www.path2english.com/Baby/Baby.htm I will update this page
  regularly because she is changing/growing so rapidly.

                                            Sharing my joy,
                                            JacksonFive

NEXT ISSUE's FEATURED TOPIC:

    "Misconception #2: All foreign teachers are good teachers"