Does progress in English slow as you get more advanced?

Ian Wood
A young woman sat in a library with headphones around her neck reading a book
Okuma zamanı: 4 minutes

Why does progression seem to slow down as an English learner moves from beginner to more advanced skills?

The journey of learning English

When presenting at ELT conferences, I often ask the audience – typically teachers and school administrators – “When you left home today, to start your journey here, did you know where you were going?” The audience invariably responds with a laugh and says yes, of course. I then ask, “Did you know roughly when you would arrive at your destination?” Again the answer is, of course, yes. “But what about your students on their English learning journey? Can they say the same?” At this point, the laughter stops.

All too often English learners find themselves without a clear picture of the journey they are embarking on and the steps they will need to take to achieve their goals. We all share a fundamental need for orientation, and in a world of mobile phone GPS we take it for granted. Questions such as: Where am I? Where am I going? When will I get there? are answered instantly at the touch of a screen. If you’re driving along a motorway, you get a mileage sign every three miles.

When they stop appearing regularly we soon feel uneasy. How often do English language learners see mileage signs counting down to their learning goal? Do they even have a specific goal?

Am I there yet?

The key thing about GPS is that it’s very precise. You can see your start point, where you are heading and tell, to the mile or kilometer, how long your journey will be. You can also get an estimated time of arrival to the minute. As Mike Mayor mentioned in his post about what it means to be fluent, the same can’t be said for understanding and measuring English proficiency. For several decades, the ELL industry got by with the terms ‘beginner’, ‘elementary’, ‘pre-intermediate’ and ‘advanced’ – even though there was no definition of what they meant, where they started and where they ended.

The CEFR has become widely accepted as a measure of English proficiency, bringing an element of shared understanding of what it means to be at a particular level in English. However, the wide bands that make up the CEFR can result in a situation where learners start a course of study as B1 and, when they end the course, they are still within the B1 band. That doesn’t necessarily mean that their English skills haven’t improved – they might have developed substantially – but it’s just that the measurement system isn’t granular enough to pick up these improvements in proficiency.

So here’s the first weakness in our English language GPS and one that’s well on the way to being remedied with the Global Scale of English (GSE). Because the GSE measures proficiency on a 10-90 scale across each of the four skills, students using assessment tools reporting on the GSE are able to see incremental progress in their skills even within a CEFR level. So we have the map for an English language GPS to be able to track location and plot the journey to the end goal.

‘The intermediate plateau’

When it comes to pinpointing how long it’s going to take to reach that goal, we need to factor in the fact that the amount of effort it takes to improve your English increases as you become more proficient. Although the bands in the CEFR are approximately the same width, the law of diminishing returns means that the better your English is to begin with, the harder it is to make further progress – and the harder it is to feel that progress is being made.

That’s why many an English language-learning journey gets abandoned on the intermediate plateau. With no sense of progression or a tangible, achievable goal on the horizon, the learner can become disoriented and demoralised.

To draw another travel analogy, when you climb 100 meters up a mountain at 5,000 meters above sea level the effort required is greater than when you climb 100 meters of gentle slope down in the foothills. It’s exactly the same 100 meter distance, it’s just that those hundred 100 meters require progressively more effort the higher up you are, and the steeper the slope. So, how do we keep learners motivated as they pass through the intermediate plateau?

Education, effort and motivation

We have a number of tools available to keep learners on track as they start to experience the law of diminishing returns. We can show every bit of progress they are making using tools that capture incremental improvements in ability. We can also provide new content that challenges the learner in a way that’s realistic.

Setting unrealistic expectations and promising outcomes that aren’t deliverable is hugely demotivating for the learner. It also has a negative impact on teachers – it’s hard to feel job satisfaction when your students are feeling increasingly frustrated by their apparent lack of progress.

Big data is providing a growing bank of information. In the long term this will deliver a much more precise estimate of effort required to reach higher levels of proficiency, even down to a recommendation of the hours required to go from A to B and how those hours are best invested. That way, learners and teachers alike would be able to see where they are now, where they want to be and a path to get there. It’s a fully functioning English language learning GPS system, if you like.

Learn about the Global Scale of English learning objectives

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    2. You need fancy materials to do STEAM

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    1. Bob’s your uncle

    Let’s start with a classic British saying: “Bob’s your uncle.” This phrase is used to indicate that something will be simple or straightforward. For example, “Just add water, and Bob’s your uncle”. But who is Bob, and why is he your uncle? The origins are unclear, but it’s a fun way to say, “And there you have it”.

    2. The bee’s knees

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    3. More holes than Swiss cheese

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    4. Bamboozle

    To “bamboozle” someone means to trick or confuse them. This word itself sounds like a bit of a trick, doesn’t it? It’s believed to have originated in the 17th century, and it’s a perfect word to use on April Fool's Day when you’re pulling pranks on your friends.

    5. Fuddy-duddy

    A “fuddy-duddy” is someone who is old-fashioned or fussy. This term is often used affectionately to describe someone who is a bit behind the times. It’s a funny-sounding word that’s sure to bring a smile to your face.

    6. Gobbledygook

    “Gobbledygook” refers to language that is meaningless or hard to understand, often used to describe overly complex jargon. It was coined during World War II by a Texas congressman who compared confusing bureaucratic language to the sound of a turkey’s gobble. It’s a perfect word for describing those moments when someone is talking but you have no idea what they’re saying.

    7. Mad as a hatter

    If someone is “mad as a hatter,” they’re completely crazy. This saying dates back to the 19th century when hat makers (hatters) often suffered from mercury poisoning due to the chemicals used in hat production, leading to erratic behavior. It’s a whimsical way to describe someone who’s a bit off their rocker.

    8. Raining cats and dogs

    When it’s “raining cats and dogs”, it’s raining very heavily. The origins of this saying are unclear, but it’s a vivid and amusing way to describe a downpour. Just imagine cats and dogs falling from the sky!

    9. Lollygag

    To “lollygag” means to dawdle or waste time. It’s a playful word that perfectly captures the essence of goofing off. So, if you find yourself procrastinating today, just tell everyone you’re lollygagging.

    10. The whole shebang

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    11. Cat got your tongue?

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    12. As cool as a cucumber

    If someone is “as cool as a cucumber,” they’re very calm and composed, even in stressful situations. This saying is amusing because it compares a person’s demeanor to a vegetable known for its refreshing coolness. It’s a fun way to compliment someone’s ability to stay unruffled.

    How many unusual English sayings do you know?

    English is a wonderfully weird language, full of sayings and words that can leave us amused and bewildered. On this April Fool's Day, we hope you’ve enjoyed this lighthearted look at some of the funniest expressions English has to offer. So go ahead, sprinkle these sayings into your conversations, and share a laugh with your friends. After all, laughter is the best medicine, and today is the perfect day to embrace the humor in our language.