I can proudly say that I have quite a life in terms of language learning myself. Some people might be aware that I have taken several English tests including TOEFL, TOEIC and IELTS. I cannot claim myself an expert but I would name myself ‘a very experienced’ in the field.
I have lost track counting how many times I have taken IELTS. I was first introduced to IELTS in 2004 and the relationship between me and the IELTS has been quite a rough one.
After I took the IELTS prep course for the first time all the way back in 2004, I decided not to take the real one. Not because I was afraid or scared of it, but because I decided to take TOEFL instead since I wanted to apply to schools in the US anyway.
Until I had graduated from the M.A. TESOL program and worked for a few years, I decided to further my doctoral studies and that required me to get back to the old track I left off years ago. In 2012, I, for the second time, took the IELTS prep course and took the test for the very first time. It felt strange and I could feel that the pressure (on myself and by myself) was incredibly high given the degree I had earned. Fortunately, I did an okay job on the first and the one after that. However, they were not enough for my dream school. Thus, a new beginning started there.
I struggled so much with the IELTS, especially with writing. No matter how hard I tried with all the energy and the effort I put in, it never worked. I never got a good-enough score for my dream school.
The most and in fact only problematic part for me was writing. I learned so much about my own writing, thinking system, planning, and Thailand’s English education in general. I found that I had never been taught how to formulate ideas and to write in English (or even in Thai) by my own for the entire schooling experience. Therefore, I struggled generating ideas, outlining, drafing, writing and proofreading, or the entire writing process so to speak. Plus, I was extremely worried that my writing would never be as good as I expected, which I did not even know what to expect in the first place.
I remember spending hours and hours writing nothing and being afraid of making a tiny mistake. Despite my struggle, I tried, I wrote, and I got better and better day by day.
With endless support from teacher, friends, colleagues, and family and nonstop practice of my own, I got the desired score in my fourth IELTS attempt. It was almost two full years from the beginning of the journey. I cannot even express how I felt the day I found out about the results. It was a unique type of joy I cannot describe.
I am not saying that I have succeeded realizing how far I still have to go on this neverending journey. At least, I can proudly count it as a significant milestone in my language learning journey.
I truly hope that this could be a lesson for someone who is learning English or any languages out there that…
You can always achieve what you want as long as you start your journey. Be persistent and work hard towards your goal(s).
Like you and many of us, I too struggle until these days. But I enjoy the journey so much that I will never stop. Never.
1/24/2018 11.10 pm.
Edited 7/4/2018 11.06 pm.
