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Learning a new language

Student's Name

Institutional Affiliations

Professor's Name

Course

Date
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Learning a new language

My knowledge of English and literature is limited. In regards to the English language and

its differences in the United States and elsewhere, I can only provide my own personal ideas. In

my day job, I write. To that extent, I guess you could say I've always been a language nerd. The

use of words in everyday life has always interested me. I give a lot of thought to the potency of

language and how it may be used to convey an idea, a feeling, an image, a complex concept, or a

straightforward reality. My trade relies heavily on the English language.

My family and I moved from Gambia to the United States when I was seven. We made

the trip from Gambia to the United States. For the entirety of my life, I have been the person who

has had to figure out how to go through many obstacles and challenges. The first year of my time

spent in this nation was the most challenging for me because I arrived here unable to speak any

English and without any prior exposure to the local culture.

My mother instilled in me the belief that nothing is impossible if you set your mind to it,

which has helped me persevere through the difficulties of learning a new language. Even though

many people want you to fail, my mother taught me that nothing is impossible if you set your

mind to it. After taking that advice to heart, I started staying after school almost every day to

work on basic English proficiency abilities. My participation in the ESL (English for Speakers of

Other Languages) program was terminated after a year of diligent effort.

The school decided to expel me because I had made sufficient academic progress and

showed no signs of requiring special accommodations, such as extended testing time or a

translator. To me, it seemed like everyone else had it so much easier than I did when it came to

studying for tests and basic vocabulary quizzes. Still, I had to look up every word in Soninke to
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learn its meaning and then translate it into English to understand what it meant. Although I

wanted to give up on learning the language at times, I realized that the struggle had helped me

become more self-reliant and dedicated to my education. What struck me was not the darkness or

the difficulty of the road ahead but the hope at its end.

It would be great if we could undo all we've done and begin again from the beginning.

This is where we look back and recognize the mistakes we made. But we can only learn from our

mistakes so much before giving up. I remember being unable to focus in class because of my

wild elementary and middle school peers. I had a tough time learning to read and write. Perhaps

it was because I was slow to understand, but I couldn't pinpoint what it was. What exactly was

wrong with learning a new language? Frequently, I would ponder several issues in my mind.

My parents did not speak or understand English when I was growing up. They only spoke

Soninke. Being the eldest of five siblings wasn't easy for me. They were in the dark.

Unfortunately, my parents were not able to assist me in developing my literacy skills. When I

translated, they constantly made an effort to change the subject. I took notes on the suggestions

they returned to me.

To some extent, my mother was bilingual. Since she had a better grasp of the situation

than my father had, she was always there to lend a hand. Even though my dad was well-versed,

he was not always available to lend a hand because of his nighttime job. In elementary school at

Fairfield, I recall getting a book bag on the first night of school. Still, my mum read to me from

such books when I was a kid.

Fortunately, a guy came around and assisted me. He was a tremendous aid to me. He

helped me out with the translation and showed me around. The guy's name was Rashid, and he
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was one of my closest pals. I began spending time with him and eventually probed him for

advice on how to get a handle on the language. He encouraged me to read widely and to

overcome my fears of communicating in public by using just English. I borrowed a book and

immediately started reading it at home. As soon as the teacher assigned homework, I knew it

would be too challenging to complete it alone, so I enlisted Rashid's assistance. While doing my

schoolwork, I encountered a few unfamiliar words, spelled them out, and defined them. Once I

got inside, I read the term like ten times. Though I've made great strides in my English-language

study, I still have a way to go before I reach my goal.

The most significant shift occurred during my junior year internship, which focused on

instructing young people. One of the requirements of my senior year of high school was an

internship at a local school. When I started my training, I was miserable because I felt obligated

to talk with everyone and be pleasant to them. The instructor told us, "Don't be afraid or scared;

you have to talk with everyone," as I sat there. So, I introduced myself to the class, made friends,

and began sharing books with them. I had trouble with the vocabulary and had to ask the

instructor to help me. I attended a primary school in Gambia rather than in the United States. It

helped me a lot that we learned the definitions of various words in elementary school in the

United States of America (USA). I had to do a lot of talking in my line of work, so I picked up

some business jargon along the way. What I picked up throughout my internship is something I

will always be grateful for.

Learning English wasn't simply because I had to memorize thousands of words'

definitions, pronunciations, and example sentences. If you never make any mistakes in your life,

you will never improve. I learned a lot from the many missteps I made during high school.

Talking to my pals helped me pick up the language as well. After struggling to communicate in
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English, I am pleased with how far I have come. I feel a great sense of accomplishment when I

can share in English with another person. My ideal world would be one in which every nation is

precisely like the United States, eliminating the need for international students to study English

and acquire a new language.