Here's why I care about practice

Thank you for watching my second video! It felt a little easier to make because I wasn't as nervous : ) However, I feel there is still a lot of practice ahead of me.

As you heard in the video, the reason why I chose to leave teaching at language schools to pursue my own ambitions with Phil's Conversation was because of the frustration I felt not being able to provide my students with the practice they needed.

Any good teacher will have the interest of their students at heart.

For this reason, my frustration grew stronger when I began to realize how important practice was in my student's English and knowing that I wasn't able to offer them enough of the one thing I felt would dramatically improve their English communication skills - getting practice.

When you're sitting in front of students who themselves are sitting in front of giant textbooks, the expectation is that our lessons will focus primarily on vocabulary, grammar, reading, and writing.

However, what I felt my students need more was actually using their English and not be pressured to learn and memorize what was in the textbook.

Like with any skill, it takes practice to get better and I began to question whether the classroom was really where I could offer the best practice I could.

This is why the first fifteen minutes began to be my favorite part of a class.

For almost all classes, the first fifteen minutes became a ritual where everyone forgot the pressure of learning and just enjoyed the freedom of putting their English to practice.

It was in these first fifteen minutes that I started to feel like I was really helping my students feel more confident about their ability to actually USE their English.

It quickly became clear to me that my days as a traditional language teacher were coming to an end. And I was right!

In 2017, I created English Conversation with Phil and began offering English conversation to anyone who wanted my help to improve their English communication skills.

The journey has been an interesting one and I've had the privilege of helping people from all walks of life and professional backgrounds.

In January 2020, I gave myself a new name, Phil's Conversation, and quit all my English teaching jobs so that I could continue to develop myself as an English communication coach full-time.

I absolutely love my job and I could never imagine going back to the classroom. Every day I get to talk to such interesting people while at the same time allowing them to practice their English in a relevant and meaningful way.

For that, I am ever grateful.

If you're unfamiliar with my services, make sure to have a look here. I am certain that if you feel uncomfortable about English, practice will make the biggest impact.