My Rigorous Efforts In Improving English Listening, Writing, Reading And Speaking Skills...

In order to improve my reading skills, I have tried to get used of New Straits Times online newspaper daily since my speed reading is quite low. Till know I still try to enhance my understanding on reading comprehension in order to get the whole picture of any text I read. Anyway, I do not forget to underline or highlight difficult words or new vocabularies and gather them in my “Vocabulary Book”.

While in listening skills, I have tried to do a lot of exercises within the website given by Miss Eliza (http://www.esl-lab.com/). Many mistakes I do during the exercises that I cannot pick up some words that I listen to. Beside, I also have downloaded several articles like “the aeroplane and global warming”, “birth”, “royalty”, “bilingualism”, “the sea monsters”, “life-of-trees”, “rain forest rule” and many more for me to listen and digest things the talkers do try to say and save it in my MP4, so that I can hear it whenever I go. I also do not forget to download a lot of funny and adventurous stories such as “the Eden Project”, “river”, “where home is”, “tree thieves” and so on. I think it is very important for me to listen to those articles and stories as only this way I may know how to pronounce each word like the native speakers do besides listening to my lecturers’ pronunciations. Last but not least, I start myself, listening to English songs that before this, it is not my lifestyles like my friends do. With the help of one of my classmate, Joseph, that I have been motivated by him a month ago, I realize that listening to English songs is not as bad as I think. And in this opportunity, I would like to thank him for many things he had done to me and I will never forget that.

Sincerely I would like to say that till now I just do speak English to myself. Sometimes I recall anything I hear in English spontaneously especially after I listen to the articles or news. But I try to practise speaking with my friends in order to get used of that language. However, I have to speak Malay in things that I cannot understand especially during our lectures and in the situation when I am going to understand people as well as my friends during discussion session.

While in writing, I attempt to update my blog everyday although there is a gap between the days which it is not on my purpose to make those gaps. I will try to make my blog as a journal. Apart from that, I practise writing through short message system (SMS). Actually, it is not such handwriting but it helps me a lot especially when I am in contact with Lee Chee Wei and Joseph through the method.

Whatever methods we use, I think the most crucial part is that if we have great desire to do something that benefits us and then we start to do it, the success is ours. Never forget that!!!