Your learners need to take more risks and embrace failure

As English coaches, one of our goals is to help our learners build confidence and improve their ability to speak English confidently. However, it’s natural for learners to feel anxious or intimidated when it comes to speaking in a new language. This can sometimes lead to a reluctance to take risks and try out new language, as learners may be afraid of making mistakes or feeling embarrassed.

It’s important to remember that taking risks and embracing failure are crucial parts of the learning process. In fact, research has shown that making mistakes and experiencing failure can actually lead to greater learning and growth. So as coaches, it’s our job to encourage our learners to take risks and embrace failure as an opportunity to learn and improve.

One way to do this is to create a low-stakes environment where learners feel comfortable trying out new language and making mistakes. This might involve activities such as role-playing, discussions, or presenting on a topic. It’s also important to provide plenty of positive reinforcement and encouragement to help learners feel confident in their abilities and motivated to keep practicing.

Another way to encourage learners to take risks is to model risk-taking behavior ourselves. This might involve trying out new language or making mistakes in front of our learners, and then showing them how to recover from those mistakes and learn from them. By doing this, we can help our learners see that it’s okay to make mistakes and that they can learn from them.

In conclusion, encouraging our learners to take risks and embrace failure is an important part of helping them build confidence and improve their ability to speak English confidently. By creating a supportive learning environment, providing plenty of encouragement and positive reinforcement, and modeling risk-taking behavior ourselves, we can help our learners feel comfortable and motivated to keep practicing and improving.