Cebu Island Stay: Is English Necessary?

If you really needed it, I think you would study it.
If you keep thinking you should do it but haven't started studying, then it probably isn't necessary.

I have been studying at the MeRISE English language school on Cebu Island. The students who come here are naturally aiming to improve their English skills, specifically their listening and speaking abilities. I am the same.

All the batchmates I met came to the Philippines on their own dime. In other words, they are not people forced to be here by company expenses. Therefore, they are highly motivated and dedicated to their English lessons.

Q: Is studying English necessary?

That became a topic of conversation during lunchtime. Since it was a conversation between students at an English school on Cebu Island, the answer was naturally yes.

The students range from those who are under pressure because they work in departments that use English, to those doing it for self-improvement between jobs. As for me, honestly, if I am just talking to Japanese people within a company in Japan, I don't think English study or English proficiency is particularly necessary.

Even though the company I worked for was a foreign-affiliated firm, that is the extent of my perception. When a colleague working in a workplace with only Japanese people asked me, "Is English proficiency absolutely necessary to work at headquarters?", my answer was just, "It's not absolute, but it's better to have it."

In my case, I was transferred to headquarters when I had zero English proficiency. This might also be part of the background. Talented people should be in the appropriate positions. In that case, having high English proficiency and being good at your job are unrelated. "Being good at your job" is the prerequisite, and "also having English proficiency" is better.

There were times when my boss and colleagues were foreigners, so minimal daily conversation was necessary, but interpreters were present for important meetings, so English proficiency is not absolutely necessary for carrying out duties.

Q: Why am I still learning English even after quitting my job?

My English teachers are all Filipino. A characteristic of Filipino English teachers is that they praise you a lot. Being praised, this boost in self-esteem further increases the motivation for learning English.

Of course, in recent years, you can be satisfied with this content through online English conversation, but by coming to Cebu Island and talking face-to-face, that self-esteem and sense of self-affirmation are further enhanced.

Rather than improving my English skills, my purpose is to come here to feel happy.

Japanese English conversation schools are no good

On the other hand, many Japanese people, even those who have a certain level of speaking ability, often make negative statements like, "I can't speak English."

I believe the background to this lies in the teaching methods of English conversation schools within Japan.

I have been to several English conversation schools in Japan, and my impression at the time was that they pointed out minor mistakes.

Whether it was grammar mistakes or pronunciation mistakes.

I could sense a background where they were demanding perfect English from people who couldn't speak English at all yet. Because they are constantly being corrected, I wonder if that is why more and more English learners are becoming hesitant to speak English in front of others.

Since I was in the marketing department, when I look at this cynically, I wonder if this isn't a strategy for English conversation schools in Japan to keep their customers from leaving, or a method to acquire more students.

Q: What is your purpose for studying English?

I believe that as long as I can communicate, that is enough. My goal is not to speak perfect English or to be able to write beautiful sentences.

Being able to come to a foreign country alone and handle daily tasks,
for example,
getting on a plane by myself,
eating at a restaurant alone,
buying products while talking to a clerk,
or speaking to someone when I'm in a bit of trouble, etc.

If we define speaking English as simply being able to do the things we do casually in Japan, then I think most Japanese people can actually speak English.

No, no, I can't do that at all~

For those who think that, isn't it a lack of courage to speak rather than a lack of English ability?

Just as many people are not good at speaking in front of others even in Japanese, isn't it just the same thing in English? You would talk fluently in Japanese about things you like or your hobbies to a friend, wouldn't you? In the same way, when you become friends with a Filipino teacher, you will want to talk about all sorts of things.

Being able to communicate with each other and increasing satisfaction leads to an improvement in self-affirmation, and I feel that I can be happy.

How to increase self-affirmation

You can be happy if you study English in Cebu Island 😄

It is natural that raising your self-esteem and self-affirmation is one of the ways to be happy, isn't it?

The happiness of being able to speak a little bit of the English you were bad at
The happiness of having that noticed and praised
And the happiness of praising others
The happiness of being able to smile at each other

Studying English conversation is full of elements that make you feel happy.

"Your English is reaching me just fine," Teacher Grace told me. When told by such a beautiful teacher, my enthusiasm for studying suddenly heats up 💖

I've been talking about such good things up to this point, but it seems like it will be thought of as having ulterior motives in the end...

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