I've tried many times to start a blog of some kind - way back when I was in high school (over 6 years ago!), I thought it would be cool to start a Tumblr blog. I made the account and then... stopped for some reason. The same thing happened in my second year of college; I made another Tumblr blog, wrote one sappy post, and now it's become a place for me to re-share my favorite posts from other users.
I tried again this time last year, when I had to make an e-dossier for my senior class in college. I wrote one post, and that was that. Last summer, I tried to create a language blog, and then quit again. The only mini success story I have to-date is my photography blog, where I have a few short blog posts with photos.
I have decided to start this language blog because I see a gap in the language learning industry - especially where learning English is concerned. I have taught English on italki since January 2019 and recently got my TEFL certificate. Throughout my time teaching, I have looked at hundreds of ESL and EFL resources and find that neither one of them is "perfect."
By "perfect," I mean that there is always something not quite right - maybe there are small typos, or the written text doesn't match the recording, the content is disorganized and overwhelming, or worst of all - the phrases are outdated and the explanations for them don't make any sense. No wonder it's difficult for students to know which words or phrases are used in which context, and what native English speakers are actually saying these days.
Time will tell what this website will grow into, but this is for all of you fellow language learners who are looking for updated resources for learning English that won't confuse you nor teach you something that even natives hardly use.
This website is going to go through a few changes as I learn to use this platform to its full potential. If you see anything wrong, email me at practicalenglishwithnicole@gmail.com and I'll fix whatever it might be! Thank you :)
Nicole~
Photo by Ian Schneider on Unsplash