We received a question from a fella earlier about speaking. I hope perhaps you can help suggest what's best for her. Here it is..
So the question was: how to cope with awkwardness (rasa canggung) when trying to speak in English. Have you experienced the same?
A good first step is to get good input. It is said that you will never be able to utter a word if you have never heard of it.
And unlike bahasa Indonesia, English's spelling is totally different from its pronunciation. That's why reading only is not enough.
Many of my students say that they can't speak English fluently because they don't have enough vocabulary. Do you agree?
By saying vocabulary, it is not only limited to words, but can also be phrases, sentences, expressions, idioms, etc.
I like to think our memory is like a cupboard. You put what you listen/read in it, and that includes the vocabulary you get.
Now imagine.. If you never listen/read anything, do you think that that cupboard will ever be filled by something? Like Vocabulary?
Good input produces good output. Oftentimes the problem is there isn't enough input. In other words, we don't listen enough.