Why English?

Maria Paula Santos

Maria Paula Santos is from Bogota, Columbia and is Ezana Habte's student. (Ezana has contributed a number of articles to HLT.) Maria has willingly replied to my call for contributions from learners of English and students. E-mail: mariasamor@unisabana.edu.co

Learning any language is a difficult process, but when you start to know how language works and why its importance, the learning process gets easier. Mainly if you meet good teachers, ones capable of developing passion for language learning and making you appreciate not only the results but also the learning process.

Knowing English has been a great opportunity for me because it has given me the possibility to communicate with people from all over the world and therefore to learn about their culture and lifestyle. It has also been easier to travel because I am not afraid to ask for help or having a conversation.

I have also gained technical knowledge about my studies and that has made me a more competitive person compared to other students who will be my competition in a future. Hence, my chances for professional and personal success are higher. All about business today is international so if I want to be successful in my profession I need to develop great English skills. English is also important for me because I can not only improve my professional skills but also enjoy original movies, books and music from all over the world, so it allows me to explore culture and other aspects of my life.

I think my parents had a greate vision when understanding the importance of English in the world before it really started to get involved in our culture. We live in Colombia, a tropical and friendly county in Latin American. We speak Spanish as our native language and for long time we thought that knowing Spanish was enough for living and interacting in this world. Nevertheless, I think that it´s not enough and fortunatly, my partents understood it too. Nowadays, with the globalization and its influence, it is very important to know languages so as to be succesful and get advantage of new world wide opportunities, no matter the county you live in.

My parents wanted me to be open minded and cultural aware. I am thankful to them because they chose a bilingual school for me that started shaping who I am now. I have been in touch with the English language since I was a little girl and that allowed me to appreciate the language and the role that it plays in my life.
At school we had English classes and then we started to have math, geography and other classes, also in English. This fact helped me to get vocabulary from different areas and also encouraged me to start thinking in English: a big challenge when you are learning a foreign language.

I believe that a very good way to improve the language learning is by getting involved with it in many aspects of our life. So if you are acquiring knowledge at school, you can also get it in English. If you like culture, you can read books, listen to music or watch movies also in English and therefore, you would not link the language study to a classroom. You will be motivated to learn it not only for academic purposes such as getting a grade, but also for getting a better understanding of other things outside the school.

The most important fact that I consider when learning a language is to really learn to enjoy the knowledge gained and acquire passion for the language. Finally you will see the results faster than you could have imagined and you will experience the happiness you feel when you have achieved something important.