Just a Few Words

English proficiency has become more and more important nowadays. It is required not only to graduate from schools, but also to obtain scholarships either from foreign or Indonesian universities, to enter a job or to create one’s own job, to make friends, to have fun with the world, and so on. Some people of your siblings, neighbors, or your former classmates might be abroad now, either working or studying, either in the United States, Great Britain, Canada, or other countries. They are very fortunate. And, I was also fortunate enough to be able to travel from Vancouver, a picturesque city on the west coast of Canada, to Montreal, a Paris-like city in North America. Feeling the unique sensation of being on the CN Tower, the tallest building in the world, when viewing the small looking skyscrapers below it when I was in Toronto, the largest Canadian city, is one of my unforgettable great experiences. Look at the picture of this blog header! It’s a night view of Toronto, along with its CN tower on the right hand side. So, don’t you get motivated to travel to a place you always dream of while you’re studying or working abroad? I believe you do. And I believe you will make your dream come true someday.

First of all, however, you must start to learn English seriously. Without seriousness, your English skill will not improve steadily even though you have learned it since you were kindergarten. Some people find it hard to be serious in learning English. How to break this obstacle? The answer is “Get motivated and find the right methods!” When your motivation is high, you will feel enjoyable to spend hours of reading, memorizing patterns, looking up dictionary, and practicing English. And when you have found the right methods, the road to achieve a high English skill will be smooth. Means of creating high motivation and finding good methods are solely dependent on your character and lifestyle. A means that is good for others might not be suitable for you, and vice versa.

The English books written for elementary and high school students are all great. However, in my opinion, they are too advanced. Elementary school students have been given junior high school topics, and so on. Explanations in Indonesian words are not given. I think this is one of the many reasons teenagers are not greatly interested in learning English. They barely have motivation. They are very dependent on guidance from others. They cannot be by-their-own self learners.

Due to those facts, I try to write English notes page-by-page, and as you can see on this simple blog, explanations in Indonesian are purposely given to increase your understanding on each topic. Moreover, direct translations are also provided on most sentences. Because of the direct translations, they are not good Indonesian sentences. However, these are intended to avoid confusion that may emerge when comparing the English patterns to the Indonesian ones.

Well, this is just a few words from me to get you motivated. I hope you enjoy this blog. Should you have any question after reading a certain topic, please don’t hesitate to post a question or leave a comment. Thank you.

Best regards,

Swara Bhaskara