Presuming it was enough for her children to learn English at school, Ms Hanh was shocked to realize that despite attending a specialized school with good grades, her son couldn’t really communicate.
As a teacher herself, Ms. Duong My Hanh (35 years old, Hanoi) always pays close attention to her children’s learning, ensuring that they have adequate knowledge compared to their peers and not lacking in any necessary skills. Dinh Tuan, the son of Ms. Hanh, a 12th grader at a specialized school in Hanoi, has quite good academic performance, with an average score of 8.5 or higher in all subjects, in which English is at 9.
During a trip to Da Nang, Hanh’s family was asked by a foreigner for directions. Thinking that her son would respond fluently, Hanh was startled to discover that her son could not actually express himself.
“He did not speak with confidence, even with simple words, he pronounced wrong and caused confusion. I helped my son show that visitor the direction, but I couldn’t help but feeling disappointed and worried, because his English speaking ability was not as good as me and my family thought. Even though from elementary to high school, he always achieved good academic results, especially in English,” said Ms. Hanh.
Tuan, like many other students, despite having good grades in English at school, still cannot speak English fluently with foreigners.
The case of Ms Hanh’s son is also a common problem among many parents whose children are in middle school and high school. Even though they acquire good grades in school, when encountering real life situations, they cannot apply what they have learnt.
In fact, English vocabulary and grammar have a large gap between “formal English”, which is the knowledge presented at school, and “street English”, the common language that native speakers often use. While formal English is often taught in schools or IELTS and Toefl preparation centers, they are often used only in situations that require high standards of language such as solemn meetings or formal workplaces.
But the most common English is the language used on the streets. This is the language in which groups of close friends and acquaintances talk to each other, represented by slang, or shortened sentences like “What is your name?” (What’s your name) can be turned into “Whatcha name?” (Your name?) So many people are not fully prepared when native speakers use a lot of slang words, shortened sentences.
Not to mention, traditional English learning is more about theory than practice, and the tests also revolve around answering vocabulary and grammar questions. At this point, study goals are inclined towards getting high test scores, passing subjects’ standard, instead of effective real-life communication. Moreover, theory versus practice will easily cause boredom in learning and discouragement in English, leading to students discouraged and giving up.
If families with children learning English also have problems like Ms Hanh’s, focusing strongly on examination and written knowledge but neglecting practical application, then GOGA Pronun is a solution for this problem.
The application allows English learners to experience a distinct journey compared to the traditional method, combining Gamification and AI to build a 35-day roadmap that optimizes continuous practice, helping learners speak English clearly, precisely and confidently.
Gamification in GOGA is represented by optimizing video game features into the learning curriculum. The game plot leads learners into a futuristic world where robots and viruses of laziness rule humanity, and our learners, as heroes, must liberate humanity through learning missions. From here, they will be guided to participate in exercises to improve listening, speaking, vocabulary, and then join in an interactive competition on the English arena – called Arena.
Mr. Nguyen Tien Nam, GOGA Project Manager, said: “GOGA’s philosophy is to consider English pronunciation and speaking practice like video game playing. When you play video games, you enjoy that experience itself, you can play for hours whether you win or lose, and most importantly, you’re not afraid of making mistakes or being judged, you only focus on the ultimate goal of winning. For us, it’s the same with practicing English.”
GOGA Pronun, with the philosophy of “Learning pronunciation is like playing a game”, helps increase learning motivation
GOGA Pronun’s 35-day route to mastering English pronunciation is a process of continuous practice, combining playing English games, practicing with an AI tutor and pronunciation competition with other learners. Accordingly, the games in GOGA are designed according to the principle of Spaced Repetition, boosting learners’ engagement, while increasing their reflexes after each round.
AI technology is also applied in supporting learners, including: Voice recognition, error detection, notification and error correction for learners in speaking and pronunciation exercises. Along with that, the sample conversations in GOGA are also built on everyday English instead of academic English, with common topics such as travel, shopping, sports, school, preparing learners for real-life communication situations.
“The outstanding feature of GOGA is the Arena, with more than 3,175 common words, where learners can improve their vocabulary and challenge each other in English skills such as vocabulary, pronunciation, and listening. We want learners to see English as a game, so that they are motivated to speak English more, and are no longer afraid or shy from using it when situations require,” shared Mr. Nguyen Tien Nam.
Also according to the publisher’s representative, learners from 5 years old to 80 years old can also experience learning English with this method. Since February, users have been able to download the app on Android and iOS platforms.
Derived from: https://www.24h.com.vn/tin-tuc-giao-duc/phu-huynh-giup-con-luyen-phat-am-tieng-anh-chuan-xac-voi-goga-pronun-c678a1345503.html
Source: Thanhnien