Help! Im stranded on the intermediate plateau...

Posted on: 29/09/2011 by Laura to http://www.londonschool.com/language-talk/blog/article/help-im-stranded-on-the-intermediate-plateau-159/

After spending a few days in wonderful Paris and attempting to get by on my schoolgirl French, I
realised that I feel like many of our students; I know quite a lot but really struggle to use it on the
spot and I know that my level wont improve without a lot of hard work. We English teachers even
have an expression for this situation you are on the intermediate plateau. Progress seems slow
because youve learnt all the basics and now getting to advanced level is an uphill struggle.
Read my descriptors below to see if you too are stuck on the intermediate plateau.
1) You wonder if youll ever improve.
2) You wonder if going out with an English person will improve your English, but you just dont find
them sexy. Lookswise you prefer Americans and find American English much easier to
understand but you love The Beatles/have seen Notting Hill over twenty times/really like
Manchester United/once had tea in The Ritz and you really want an English English accent.
3) You can understand most of what you read and can chat in English for hours with your (nonnative speaker) friends but when a native speaker asks you something, you dont
understand/become completely tongue-tied/feel like a total idiot and want to sink into the
ground.
4) On a bad day, you actually feel that your English is going backwards. You blame your teacher.
5) You can't imagine that youll ever master prepositions/articles/tenses.
6) You wonder why youre bothering!
Does this sound like you?
First of all, rest assured that all of this is a completely normal stage of language learning and
nothing to worry about. Your English is definitely not going backwards, it just feels that way
because youre learning more, and so you're noticing what you dont know and what you get
wrong.
Dont worry about finding a native-speaker partner! Theyre very unlikely to want to correct your
mistakes or explain why something is right or wrong. They probably dont know themselves.
Finally, some areas of English are harder for non-native speakers than others. The vast majority of
learners struggle with prepositions, articles and tenses. You're not alone!
How can I climb higher?
Here are my top tips for escaping from the intermediate plateau. They're not rocket science, just
basic advice gleaned from my teaching experience.
1) Don't give up!
2) Keep expanding your vocabulary.
This means reading a lot and learning how words collocate (go together in semi-fixed
expressions). Doing this also helps with your grammar.
3) Excavate your 'fossilised errors'!
You know those little mistakes that you make over and over again? If you've studied with us you
probably have a collection of 'You said... You should have said...' error correction slips. Make sure
you understand why your errors are wrong and make a concerted effort to change!
4) Immerse yourself in the language. Do something in English every day.
5) Pursue your interests in English! If you're into philosophy read philosophical works in English.
This will keep you motivated.
That's all for now, I'd love to hear your tales of clambering off the intermediate plateau. I'm off to
read about design, in French of course!

Glossary
lookswise (adv.) - when speaking of appearance
tongue-tied (adj.) - unable to speak fluently because you are nervous or embarrassed
to want to sink into the ground (exp.) - to be so embarrassed that you feel as if you want to
disappear into the ground
to rest assured (exp.) - to not worry
to glean (v.) - to gather/collect
to excavate (v.) - to dig something out from the ground
to clamber (v.) -to climb with effort
Comprehension questions:
1. What is an intermediate plateau?
2. What does the author suggests happens when you speak with native-English speakers?
3. What do you blame your teacher for?
4. Why should you not worry about finding a native-speaking partner?
5. What should you do everyday?

Clambering off the intermediate plateau:

Many elements will assist you to clamber off the intermediate plateau. One element which cannot
be underestimated is the importance of setting clear goals and developing healthy habits to fulfil
those goals.
Here are three quick questions for you:
1. Have you set goals regarding your language learning?
2. Have you written them down?
3. Do you have a plan to accomplish them?
If youve answered no to two or more of these questions, you need to grab a pen and a paper
and get to work, now. According to the research of psychologists, neurologists, and other
scientists, setting a goal invests ourselves into the target as if wed already accomplished it. Having
goals helps you to track your progress and gives you a sense of direction, which in turns help to
increase motivation and reduces your chances of giving up. Research recently conducted by
Psychology professor Dr. Gail Matthews shows that people who wrote down their goals, shared
this information with a friend, and sent weekly updates to that friend were on average 33% more
successful in accomplishing their stated goals than those who merely formulated goals.
Another important part of climbing off the intermediate plateau is understanding that as you
progress in your language studies, it will become harder to make large, noticeable gains in fluency
and skill development. Thats a normal process that you have to be prepared for.
Finally, it is extremely important to get outside your comfort zone, to embrace difficulty, and to rise
up to the challenge of learning a language to a high level. Are you finding something difficult?
Great! It means you are challenging yourself and will learn from it. Do you feel uncomfortable?
Fantastic! You will grow from that experience and learn from it.
Improving is in your hands. Not your teacher's, not your friend's, not your family's. You may be
tired, you may be poor, you may have problems and you may be unmotivated, however the only
one who can change your circumstances and improve your English level is you. Own it.