Chen Jin

    Last week, I had my first interview as an interviewer.

    I asked my fellow students about their attitude towards examinations. At first I tried to ask them in English, but they just kept saying: “Oh, I’m not good at English, could you speak Chinese?”

    They tried various ways to avoid answering my questions. Finally, some girls thought for several minutes and said a few words. It seemed that the questions were a little difficult for them to answer, although they had admitted their marks in English were good.

    So when I asked them if they felt upset about the upcoming mid-term exams, most of them told me they were worried about the English speaking and listening parts, which are the hardest for Chinese English learners.

    It is obvious that speaking and listening are big problems for us. Most students around us do well in writing and grammar, but they are poor in speaking and listening. They are afraid to speak aloud because they don’t want to make mistakes and feel embarrassed.

    As we all know, learning English is quite different from learning Chinese. We should focus on listening and speaking skills. If we can choose the right answers or write them on the test paper but cannot say them, what’s the point of learning the language? We have to remember that we are learning a language to use it. It’s unnecessary to think too much before opening your mouth. I hope that we can form a good English environment together and talk more in English. Just speak out!