English Corner

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English Corner

Guidelines

Definitions

Definition: Time

All time expressions use Asia/Shanghai (GMT+8) as their timezone.

Each week starts on Monday at 7:00 and ends the following Monday at 7:00.

The first day of the week begins on Monday at 7:00 and ends on Tuesday at 7:00.

Definition: Task

I have divided English learning into four components: Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing. Each of your tasks must correspond to one of these:

Listening: Intensively listen to an article (which must be more than 200 words), and submit your notes or other proof of completion.

Speaking: Speak an article (which must be more than 200 words), and submit your speaking recordings.

Reading: Intensively read an article (which must be more than 200 words), and submit your notes or other proof of completion.

Writing: Write an article (which must be more than 200 words), and submit the article you have written.

These four components are used for simplicity and are not the absolute rule. Many studies can match multiple components, but you should choose the most relevant component as your task when submitting.

Rules

Only English is allowed in the group. You must use English in all communications, including your check-in submissions.

If you’re unsure how to express something in English, try describing it or use tools such as AI for assistance. If you try your best but still don’t know how to say it in English, you can use Pinyin as a last resort.

If you have questions regarding this page, you must also discuss them in English in the group. I will not respond to questions in Chinese or to private inquiries.

You must have an English name (or nickname) and set it as your remark in the WeChat group.

If you don’t have one, you must choose one now.

This rule makes it easier for other group members to mention you (in English).

You must complete at least one task each week, and you must send your initial task on the first day of each week. (See definitions for Time and Task above.)

The rule splits the Check-in part into two steps: set your task and complete it later.

You must set your initial task on the first day of the week and complete it later during the week. There will be a solitaire (or WeChat just calls it “Group Note”) created by Bryan every Monday, please join it and write down your task.

The task you choose must be one of Listening, Speaking, Reading, or Writing. You can also attach some other remarks to your tasks. Use the remark to note exactly what you aim to learn; these remarks won’t be checked at the end of the week.

You can only choose one initial task during the first day of the week. But you can (and I personally recommend you should) complete one more task each week. Choosing an initial task gives you the opportunity to try something new.

You must complete the initial task you choose. You may assign yourself additional tasks and complete them as you wish, but please ensure each task is tagged appropriately as Listening, Speaking, Reading, or Writing.

When submitting your task, add a #check-in tag to allow Bryan to find and recognize it easily.

You will be removed from the group if you haven’t completed this in two continuous weeks. There is no penalty preventing you from rejoining the group, but you may need to wait until there is an available spot (even if you apply to join immediately after you’re removed from the group, other people on the waitlist may enter and cause the group to be full).

The maximum group size is 10. If you want to join, please get in touch with WeChat singeewx to join the waitlist. I will invite you as spots become available.

The group owner, Bryan, reserves the right to change the rules.

Recommendations

(These recommendations are not part of the group rules. They are just suggestions from Bryan.)

Throw away your translator (including tools like Immersive Translate). I suggest you stop using translators from now on, and only translate words or sentences when necessary. The more you read and write in English, the quicker you will improve.

Do not set too many tasks at the start. Willpower is finite. If you set too many tasks for yourself, you will more easily give up. Prevent burnout. Long-time effort is more effective than a one-time intense effort. Start with tasks that are easy to stick with and only increase them after you have consistently completed them for a certain period (e.g., 21 days).

Comment on others’ task submissions. The English Corner is a place to encourage using English more often. Topics may not appear too frequently, but task submission will. Comment on other members’ submissions, study what they have learned, point out any mistakes, and offer encouragement. Every member’s submission is an opportunity for you to practice English.

Study every day (and set up a daily plan). Although the group only requires you to complete one task per week, I recommend you study English every day. Practice speaking daily, or learn some new words daily. It’s obvious that studying daily is much more effective than studying just once a week.

Do not be afraid of making mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes. The more mistakes you make, the quicker you learn. Do not let mistakes discourage you. Consider each mistake as an opportunity to improve.

Do not be afraid of accents. Communication is much more important than perfect pronunciation. The goal of studying English isn’t to become a pronunciation expert but to communicate effectively with others. Having an accent is common, especially among foreign speakers. Accept it, and focus on improving it only once you can already communicate fluently.

Software / Resource Recommendations

⁠

Speak⁠

: The ultimate English studying app, designed to improve communication skills.

⁠

墨墨背单词⁠

：An app designed to help you memorize English vocabulary using spaced repetition algorithms.

⁠

墨墨背单词 - 词汇测试⁠

: A tool for testing the size of your vocabulary.

⁠

Trancy⁠

: A browser extension and a web app that facilitate English learning. It features a text-selection translation tool for quick dictionary lookups and provides an AI tutor to help you practice communication skills. It is much cheaper than Speak, making it a good alternative for practicing communication skills via voice.

⁠

Relingo⁠

: Both a browser extension and an app that assists in English study. It offers a text-selection translation tool for faster dictionary lookups and a mobile app to review words saved with the browser extension.

⁠

扇贝阅读⁠

: An app for finding and studying reading materials, including books and news. Ideal for those who prefer learning through reading.

⁠

LingQ⁠

: An app that allows you to learn English through reading and listening. Suitable for studying foreign books or your own ebooks, which you can upload to the platform.

⁠

扇贝听力⁠

: An app dedicated to improving your English listening skills.

⁠

English Pod⁠

: Listening materials for studying everyday English (life and work).

Studying Material Recommendations

Listening:

扇贝听力⁠

or DDM (see below)

Speaking:

Speak⁠

and PIRF (see below)

Reading:

扇贝阅读⁠

LingQ⁠

⁠

Writing: IELTS Writing

Perks

(Note: These perks may not be available to members in Mainland China due to network and legal restrictions.)

AI

I provide free AI access to group members. You can use this to improve your English skills by asking it to help you work on texts. You won’t be charged, so feel free to use the most effective (and indeed, the most expensive) models, such as GPT-4 Turbo and Claude 3 Opus, to aid your studies.

Note: The AI access provided to group members is text-only. Multi-modal features (such as voice and image) are not available. If you want to improve your communication skills by speaking, consider using

Speak⁠

Trancy⁠

LME

I will provide you with free access to

LME⁠

courses, including both

DDM⁠

and

PIRF⁠

. DDM focuses on enhancing listening skills, while PIRF targets speaking skills. However, you can also use these courses to improve your reading and writing skills by completing their comprehensive exercises.

Due to copyright and timing issues, I won’t provide access to the latest course. Official live courses are also not accessible through this offer. If you wish to master English more effectively, you may consider purchasing access directly from the official website.

I will provide one DDM and one PIRF course each week, uploaded every Monday.

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