How he came to speak English after 1 month of study on Cebu Island | Ryuya tells us about his “first experience abroad”

The destination chosen by an English learner who wanted to “learn to speak”: Cebu Island and 3D ACADEMY

Surely many people have thought at some point, “someday I’d like to go abroad.” However, turning that wish into real action is not so simple.

This time we present the story of one month of experience of Ryuya, a second-year university student, on his first challenge of studying abroad. His major is English and American literature. Although at university he develops his ability to read and write in English, he had an unresolved problem: “I don’t have the confidence to speak English.” To solve it, he chose the language school 3D ACADEMY on Cebu Island.

His first life abroad, classes entirely in English and speaking English every day. Can you improve your English level in such a short period? Can you enjoy it even on your first trip abroad? Here we share his real testimony about local life, classes, meeting classmates and the changes he experienced after studying abroad.

For those who are hesitating about studying abroad, or worried about whether a short period really has an effect, this testimony will surely be a push to take the leap.

“I want to get to the point of speaking English,” “I want to come into direct contact with foreign cultures” — Ryuya had these wishes, but he never quite took the step. At university he belonged to the department of English and American literature, and he led a life devoted to studying the foundations of English and the literature of the United States and England. In addition, in his seminar he worked in a field related to linguistics, and he had many chances to discover how interesting the structure of a language is, such as intonation and word order in English sentences.

However, no matter how much knowledge he gained in class, Ryuya felt a barrier: “I actually don’t have the ability to speak English.” “Reading and writing can be learned at university. But I thought the ability to speak can only be gained by changing your environment,” he says.

That was when studying abroad came up as an option. English-speaking countries such as the United States or England were also candidates, but the financial burden was large, and as a first experience abroad it was a high hurdle. So, while researching, he found the option of studying languages on Cebu Island in the Philippines.

“There are many one-on-one classes and the cost can also be kept down. Above all, I felt it was something accessible even for someone going abroad for the first time.” The final deciding factor was the recommendation of an older schoolmate who is a friend of his. That person, who had already attended the school, recommended it by telling him “at 3D ACADEMY you can study with peace of mind,” and that gave him the final push to decide. So, taking advantage of the spring vacation of his second year of university, a one-month short study abroad began.

The reason Ryuya decided to study in the Philippines was, without a doubt, the low cost of the program and its excellent value for money. Compared with studying in the United States or England, living expenses are much lower, and the one-on-one classes also gave him many chances to speak English, which was decisive. He learned about 3D ACADEMY through an older schoolmate who is a friend of his, and so he decided to study at this school.

The course Ryuya took was the ESL course, with a duration of 4 weeks. Below is the interview with Ryuya.

— This time it was a short one-month program. What did you think of it?

When it ended, I felt it had gone by very quickly. Since it was my first time abroad, I think it was just the right length. If it had been longer, I might have lost my rhythm halfway through.

For Ryuya, this study trip to Cebu Island was his first experience abroad in his whole life. Before leaving he felt both excitement and many worries, and in particular he was concerned about safety and food.

“I was worried that, unlike in Japan, using your phone on the street might be dangerous. At first, I tried as much as possible not to take my phone out on the street.”

However, once he actually arrived, he says reality was a little different from what he had imagined. Of course, a minimum of caution is necessary, but he did not feel so unsafe that he had to be on excessive alert. “Around the school there were many very kind Filipino people, and before I realized it I started chatting with them naturally. In the end, there were even people who treated me like a friend, so the impression was rather a warm one.”

The other worry was the food. Before traveling, Ryuya had read comments that “the food at language schools in the Philippines isn’t very tasty,” so just in case, he brought an industrial-size pack of furikake from Japan. However…

“The food at 3D ACADEMY was really delicious (laughs). In the end I never used the furikake.” What impressed him most was a comment from a friend who was already on his third time studying in the Philippines: “The food at this school is the best I’ve had so far.” That comment made him feel the special care 3D puts into its food.

Even so, he did have one piece of advice.

“It would have been good to bring Japanese salad dressing. They sell it there too, but it’s expensive.”

Although at the start of the trip he had some worries, once he actually lived it he felt that, even as his first time abroad, it was “more comfortable than I imagined.” Perhaps this is what gave him the peace of mind he needed to concentrate on English.

Ryuya chose the ESL course (general English), the most popular and classic course at 3D ACADEMY. Classes consist of 7 periods a day, of which 4 are one-on-one and 3 are group classes. “For someone like me, who above all wanted to practice ‘speaking’ English, this style centered on one-on-one classes was really great.”

Group classes: friendly even for beginners, with resources for learning while having fun

In the group classes there were many activities with songs and games designed for beginner-level students. “At first I was a little nervous, but by singing and using gestures I started to smile naturally, and little by little my resistance to English faded away.”

In addition, in the “tourist English” classes, designed to teach English useful in real life, there were also role plays in which some played the hotel receptionist and others the guests. By repeating practical conversations, such as the check-in process or how to respond to a problem, he says he naturally picked up expressions he can really use.

One-on-one classes: the space to overcome weaknesses and deepen understanding

In the one-on-one classes he studied grammar, reading, speaking and pronunciation in a balanced way. What he remembers most is the class on the correct use of verb tenses.

“I realized that expressions I had been using until then thinking ‘I think it’s like this’ were actually wrong. The teacher explained it to me in detail, and being able to understand it through ‘meaning and rules,’ and not just by intuition, was very important to me.”

When speaking English, there are moments when you can’t express yourself well or the words you want to say won’t come out. However, he says the teachers at 3D are very attentive and there was an atmosphere in which you could ask as many times as necessary, which let him move forward with peace of mind.

“I didn’t let what I didn’t understand slide, but could really ask. Thanks to that environment, I think that even in a short time I managed to gain ‘English that I can actually use.’”

Through these exchanges in class, a feeling gradually grew in him that “I can speak too,” and by the second week his resistance to speaking English had practically disappeared.

Life at 3D ACADEMY stayed “immersed in English” even after classes ended. For Ryuya, the time after class was “an important moment to consolidate what he had learned.”

“At night I would reorganize in a notebook the words and expressions that had come up in class, and try to use them in my own way. I also wrote compositions using the new vocabulary and reviewed grammar. I always tried to do the homework the teachers assigned.”

Instead of simply memorizing words, Ryuya had in mind being able to “use them as his own.” That attitude seems to have been the key to achieving results in such a short period of study.

Meeting classmates becomes a space for learning

Not only studying, but also interacting with classmates was a very important experience for Ryuya. In particular, with his “batchmates” (classmates who started the same week) he quickly became good friends, and he spent a lot of time with them after class and on weekends.

“I became really good friends with my batchmates. When classes ended, every day it was like ‘where shall we go?’” Besides with Japanese students, he had many chances to talk in English with students from other countries such as Taiwan or Korea, and he remembers that he could truly feel what it means to “use English to understand each other.”

Weekends, an opportunity for sightseeing and English practice

On weekends he actively went out to explore Cebu Island. He visited places with a strong resort atmosphere, such as Oslob (whale sharks), Sumilon Island and Mactan Island. “Even when traveling, you end up using English naturally: asking for directions, ordering at shops, calling a taxi…”

Dealing with local people requires practical English, a bit different from conversations in the classroom. Precisely for that reason, he was able to use it as “an opportunity to test the English he had learned.”

“Conversations with the teachers were like English learning, and conversations with local people were ‘real practice.’ Both taught me different things.”

From “learning English” to “living in English.” Weekend trips also became a very important learning space for Ryuya.

When Ryuya was asked, after finishing his month of study on Cebu Island, “Could you give some advice to people thinking about studying abroad?”, his answer was very simple and, at the same time, very practical.

“Whatever you don’t understand, always ask on the spot. There’s no need to be embarrassed!”

During English classes, especially one-on-one ones, there are moments when you feel “I think I understand what the teacher is saying… or maybe not quite…” However, if you hesitate to ask again, that “ambiguity” piles up, and you can reach a point where you lose sight of the whole content of the class.

“All the teachers at 3D are really very kind, and no matter how many questions you ask, they never make a face. So as soon as you feel you don’t understand something, ask right away. Just by keeping that habit, everything goes well.”

He also mentioned, as advice on daily life: “it’s better to bring dressing (laughs).”

“The food at 3D was delicious. But if you’re used to Japanese flavors, just the salad dressing may feel a little lacking. You can buy Japanese dressing there too, but it’s expensive, so I think it’s a good idea to bring a small bottle from Japan.”

English doesn’t stay only “inside the classroom.” Go outside and put it into practice!

Another point Ryuya emphasized was the importance of “going outside to use English.” “I don’t mean you have to go out partying all the time. But when you use English in the outside world, you realize very clearly what your real level is.”

In fact, there are opportunities all over the city to test the expressions learned in class: ordering at restaurants, asking for directions, chatting at the market, and so on. “It makes you nervous, but once you try, you see that you can actually do it. I think it’s important to keep accumulating those ‘small successes in communicating in English.’”

Finally, Ryuya states: “studying abroad is not something reserved for special people.” “Even if you’re not good at English, even if you’ve never been abroad, if you try, somehow it works out, and it’s much more fun than you imagine. That’s why I’d like to encourage everyone to take that first step.”

Although it was a limited period of one month, Ryuya clearly felt the change in his English level. “From the middle of the first week I started to get used to English, and in the second week there were moments when I thought: ‘ah, I think I’m starting to be able to speak.’” Of course, he didn’t get to speak perfectly, but he says the biggest achievement was that “my resistance to speaking disappeared.”

The moment studying abroad went from being “study” to being “experience”

He received English expressions during classes, put them into practice in the homework after class, and then actually used them when going out on weekends. By repeating this cycle for a month, English, which until then had been simply “study,” became for Ryuya “a tool he can use.”

“I truly felt that English is not just a school subject, but a language. I’m happy when I manage to get understood, and when I understand what the other person says, it feels as if my world has expanded.”

Through this experience abroad, his motivation for English kept growing, and now he actively looks for opportunities to use English even within his university life. “What I’d like to do next is go abroad again, perhaps through a volunteer organization at the university. Even if it isn’t in the form of ‘studying abroad,’ I’d like to keep creating opportunities to challenge myself using English.”

In the future, the goal of “working using English”

Although he says that “I’m still looking for what my dream for the future is,” in Ryuya a vision, still vague, of “working using English” already seems to have emerged.

“With this experience, something very important was being able to think ‘if I make an effort, I can do it too.’ I think it would be interesting to be able to work using English and interact with people from different countries.”

Surely this idea was born precisely thanks to “the joy of making yourself understood” and “the real feeling of communicating” that he gained during this study trip.

Ryuya’s one-month study abroad experience not only improved his English level, but was also an opportunity to expand his own possibilities. His first time abroad, his first time studying outside the country, his first time with one-on-one classes. Perhaps precisely because everything was “for the first time,” there was a lot to take in, and the days became very full.

The experience on Cebu Island will surely be a great help both for his university life and for his future career decisions. For everyone who wants to “get to the point of speaking English,” Ryuya’s testimony is a story that gives the courage to think: “maybe I can do it too.”