simply give the answer that the teacher wants. Even worse is when a
student, already feeling nervous, tries to speak English with the whole class
listening. They are just learning, so of course they will make mistakes.
When the teacher corrects these mistakes, the student is embarrassed and
becomes even more nervous. Eventually, most students try to avoid
speaking English because the situation is so painful.
By punishing and correcting mistakes, schools punish risk taking. Little
by little, they train students to avoid risk and avoid doing anything they
can’t do perfectly. Yet there is no perfection with English speaking. Even
native speakers make mistakes. We make grammar mistakes. We
mispronounce words. We forget vocabulary words. It doesn’t matter,
because we are focused on communicating, not on tests and grades.
Of course, the fear of mistakes goes far beyond English class. After years
of school, most people learn to avoid risk in most parts of their life. School
trains them to be passive, rigid, timid, and obedient. This not only hurts
your English speaking, it also harms your career and limits your success in
all areas of life. Fortune favors the bold. Those who are active, flexible, and
passionate are the ones who achieve the greatest success in life. The passive
and obedient rarely live their dreams.
You will make many mistakes as you improve your English speaking.
There is no need to be upset by this. The truth is, most native speakers don’t
care. They don’t care if you make grammar mistakes. They just want to
communicate with you. They want to share thoughts, ideas and feelings.
They want to communicate with you as a human being, not as an “English
student.” To communicate effectively, you must forget the idea of
perfection and learn to be flexible.
The Dirty Secret of English Teaching
If the hidden curriculum is so bad, why do schools and teachers continue to
follow it? The truth about our education system is that the curriculum exists
to benefit the schools, not the students. Teachers use these methods because
