oh my English!!

Assalamu'alaikum =)

i just read Aiman Azlan's new entry (which actually regarding his vlog from a veryyyyyyyyyyy long time ago) about how to improve English. according to him, there are two ways on how improve English which are exposure and practice.

my English is not at good level. even i haven't fulfill my requirement to graduate by passing MUET with band 4 (because i am a dental student). but i am thankful that i need to repeat the examination because it gives me room for improvement and i know my level of ability. so, i am really happy and i couldn't wait any longer to do the examination again because on the other side, i don't want to postpone the examination until my clinical years where at that time, i might not be able to resit in the middle of the busy times.

when i was in secondary school, my English is not too bad but not good. my sentences was full with grammatical errors and the sentences are simple, no bombastic word and it is totally different feeling when you read my essay in same topic but different language, which is Malay and English. i love writing and i always think that my poor English skill has made my ability is restricted. but i am thankful because i am able to express my idea through the simple sentences and also able to improve myself bit by bit although until now, i still do mistakes. 

when i was in foundation year, i started to gain confidence to speak and write English without feeling embarrassed whenever i do mistake. however, i once being laughed by a friend that i think i should not call her 'friend' at all because of my mistake. i admitted mistake that i done but it was the very first time my mistake was being laughed, which lowered my confidence in using English for a while. even my parents, my siblings never laughed at me and they support me when we tried to speak English in our daily conversation. since that day, i learned to have a stronger heart and never let that kind of person to hurt my feeling anymore. i also learned the mistake and never repeat it anymore.

however, the moment i participated in English debate competition representing my faculty, i regained my confidence and my desire to love and learn English increased. i stopped feeling embarrassed whenever i make mistake. instead, i would ask my friend whether my choice of word or my grammar is correct or not and if i used it in wrong way or in wrong grammar,i will laugh at myself and repeat the new thing that i learned. being a first speaker in debate has forced myself to have confidence in speaking English and ignore grammatical errors as long as i am able to deliver my point clearly and defeat the opponents. alhamdulillah, we managed to break until semi-final and the thing that made me lost to the opponents in semi-final was because i lose my confidence facing the same team that we had lost in the preliminary round. but i am satisfied with myself because i never thought that i can participate debate. i never imagine myself speaking English for seven minutes with confidence. i never imagine i am able to stand up and speaking English without any feeling embarrassment in front of people that are far more good in English compared to me.

so, to people out there, never feel embarrass to improve your English. it's not that we are going to replace our mother tongue with English but it is because English has become an important language for all people to be good at it nowadays. meanwhile for those who love to make fun of people that are making mistake while practicing English, i think you should stop your habit now because it seems that you are living inside a closed container where you cannot think more than boundaries that you draw yourself. practicing good English do not make you like 'kacang lupakan kulit' unless you yourself chose that. it is actually gives you opportunity to increase your value. 

"Allâh will exalt in degree those of you who believe, and those who have been granted knowledge. And Allâh is Well-Acquainted with what you do" (Al-Mujadilah, 11)

This is the video =)