New Year resolutions: learn English in Amsterdam!

We all know that goals are useful for giving our lives direction and purpose, and this is also true for learning English. So, if your New Year resolution is to start English classes, it’s important to create useful goals which will support your English learning.

Learn English language goal

Here is an example of an unhelpful language goal:

By the end of this year, I will be able to have a phone conversation in English.

This goal is unhelpful partly because the time frame is too long and it isn’t clear what exactly, in language terms, is meant by ‘phone conversation’. Here is a suggested alternative:

By the end of this month, I will have learned how to use basic telephone phrases such as, “Who are you calling for?” and “Dr. Smith is not available at the moment.”

The time frame here is more manageable and the goal is focused on a specific language area (basic telephone phrases).

A useful pattern to follow when setting your goals is SMART:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable/achievable
• Relevant
• Timely

Example English language goal

Here is another example of a helpful language learning goal:

I want to be able to approach people in Australia in a friendly way, ask them some simple questions about themselves, their families and their lives and talk about and compliment the surroundings. I don’t need to show off, so having two or three ways to talk about each of these things is fine.

I’m not great at remembering things, but if I set aside enough time to practise I can do it. I’ll be talking to local people so I should learn words and phrases that are appropriate to that area. I’m travelling in the summer, so that gives me six months to get ready.

So not only does this goal have a good time frame and specific language areas, it also recognises what is relevant i.e. that she will only need 2 or 3 alternatives and it also begins to address what is achievable by noting the fact that she is not good at remembering things.

At MixTree Languages goals are fundamental to our English classes. From your first free intake where you discuss your learning goals with a teacher, to the CEFR goals which guide our English learning programmes, effective goals will support you to improve your English.

Please contact us to arrange your free intake to discuss your learning goals.