Should you take an English class,
like an actual English class in a classroom?
Should you go to your local college
or your local community center and sign up for a night class
or maybe a weekend class where you can learn English?
I mean, you can learn a lot of English
by yourself these days.
There's apps.
You can use YouTube like you're doing right now.
You can find so many resources where you can teach yourself.
So, is a formal traditional English class still valuable?
Well, I think it is.
And in this English lesson, I will tell you
why I still think it's a good idea
to come to a classroom like this and learn English.
(upbeat music)
The first thing that I think is really cool
about taking a night class
or a class on the weekend to learn English
is that you will be around other people.
You'll be with other people
who are learning the same language as you.
And what's cool about that
is that they will be able to help you find things
that you can use to learn English.
They'll give you recommendations for good English songs,
good YouTube channels,
recommendations for the latest app
that they've found to learn English.
So being connected to other English learners
has a lot of value.
In addition to that,
there might be a little bit of competition.
If you're a competitive person
and you're in a class with other people,
you might try to do better than them.
Competition can be a great motivator.
And lastly, being around other people
who are doing the same thing
could lead to some really cool friendships.
So, number one,
one really cool thing about being in an English class
is that you will meet other people
and they can help you with your English learning journey.
The second thing that's kind of cool
about taking an English class, but maybe not so cool,
but it's certainly motivating,
is the fact that usually you have to pay for that class.
When you pay for something, at least for me,
when I pay for something,
I'm more likely to do it.
I don't know if this works for you,
but it certainly works for a lot of people in the world.
When you decide to take an English class
and when you pay the fee,
when you pay for that class,
that can really motivate you to go every week,
because you want to get your money's worth.
If you pay for the class,
you're probably thinking, this class costs $100 or $200.
I am going to go to every single class
because I wanna get the most value I can
for the money that I've spent.
So the second thing that's cool about an English class,
and also maybe not cool,
is that you have to pay for it.
And the fact that you paid for it can be highly motivating.
The third thing that's really cool
about taking an English class is that there is a teacher.
Now, I'm a teacher,
so maybe I'm a little biased when I say that,
because I think teachers are awesome.
But let's talk a little bit
about what it's like to have a teacher.
When you have a teacher, you get regular feedback.
A teacher will help you to find your mistakes
and correct them.
When you have a teacher,
the teacher will regularly grade your assignments.
You will take quizzes and tests and you will get a score.
So having a teacher in the classroom,
having someone who's an expert
at teaching the English language
means that you are constantly getting feedback,
you're constantly getting corrections,
and you're constantly being measured.
And all of those things can really help you
on your English learning journey.
When you learn on your own,
you can do some of these things,
but I don't think it's quite as effective.
And don't get me wrong,
you should be doing lots of English learning on your own,
but there's something kind of special
about being in a classroom
and having a teacher that cares about you
and helps you make progress.
I really like schedules.
And I think when you take an English class,
it helps you to create a really good schedule.
Let's say you're taking an English class
every Wednesday night for a couple of hours.
What that means is that the Wednesday night class
can act as an anchor point for your English learning.
On the days leading up to the class,
you will do your homework or prepare for the class.
And after the class,
you can reflect on the things that you have learned.
So having an English class in your weekly schedule,
knowing that every week you have that class,
can really motivate you to learn new things,
so that when you get to class,
you can maybe show off a little bit,
show off some of the new vocabulary you learned.
And it gives you maybe some followup work,
some homework to do after the class.
And all of that can really help you set
a really good schedule.
So anyways, the fourth cool thing
about taking an English class,
it helps you set a good schedule.
I think we still live in a world
where having a certificate or a diploma
is a very powerful thing.
When you take an English class,
you will most likely get a certificate at the end.
Or if you take several classes,
maybe you'll get some kind of diploma.
Having a certificate or diploma
allows you to tell other people
that you did some official learning.
When you apply for a job,
you can put on your resume or your CV
that you actually took English classes.
Putting that on your resume or CV has a lot of validity.
If you put on your resume that you just watched
a lot of Bob the Canadian's YouTube videos,
that doesn't really carry the same weight.
So the cool thing about taking a class
is you will most likely get some kind of piece of paper,
some kind of recognition that you took that class,
and then you can then put it on job applications
and you can tell people that you actually did it,
and you'll have the proof.
The sixth thing that I think is kind of awesome
about learning in an actual classroom with other people
is that you can do things when you're together
that you can't really do in a Zoom meeting
or if you're learning on your own.
Here's a couple of examples.
Let me think of something that's fun
and something that might make you a little bit nervous.
In a classroom, you can play games,
you can play games that help you learn English.
There are games you can play on Zoom,
and I know you can play games by yourself on an app,
but there are games you can play
in a language learning classroom
that you can only play with other people in a classroom,
and that makes learning a lot of fun.
The second example I'll give you
might be something that would make you nervous.
There's nothing quite like standing up
in front of other people in real life
and doing some kind of presentation or a speech.
So that's the sixth thing I like about the classroom.
There are things you can do when you're with other people
that are exciting and that are fun,
and maybe things that make you a little bit nervous,
but they're all really good things to do
when you're learning English.
Well, thank you so much for listening to me
talk about how I think taking an English class
is still a good thing to do.
Now, I should tell you,
I am a teacher, I do love the classroom,
so maybe I'm a little bit biased in my opinion.
But I think I gave some really good examples
as to why I think taking a class
with other people and a teacher is still a good idea.
Thanks again for watching.
Remember, if this is your first time here,
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And give me a thumbs up
if this video helped you learn
just a little bit more English.
And if you have the time,
why don't you stick around and watch another English lesson?
(upbeat music)