Sharing what I had learned
In 2025, I began posting on social media to recruit students and teach IELTS speaking online. This was an important change in my relationship with English. For years, I had mainly thought about what I could not do. Teaching required me to consider what I had learned and how I could make it understandable to someone else.
Seeing students achieve the results they wanted gave me a strong sense of achievement. I remembered how much an encouraging result could mean after a long period of uncertainty. Their progress showed me that methods developed through my own struggles could be useful to others. English was becoming part of a relationship in which I could contribute.
My teaching post is written mainly in Chinese, although its subject is English speaking. This reflects the learners I wanted to reach. Chinese allows me to explain my approach clearly, while English remains the language we are practising. Moving between the two languages becomes part of teaching, rather than a sign that either language is insufficient.
These messages make the change in my role visible. I am now addressed as a teacher, a position that once felt distant from my identity as a struggling learner. Their progress matters because I remember the uncertainty behind a test result. At the same time, each student’s experience is different. The messages remind me to listen carefully, rather than assume that one method works for everyone.
A different role for technology
Social media also changed its role in my life. Earlier, digital platforms had mainly given me access to learning materials. Now they helped me share ideas and connect with learners. My relationship with technology had moved from receiving information towards creating explanations and supporting communication.
Translating more than words
Teaching and studying have also made me think more carefully about cultural translation. The Chinese term neijuan is a useful example. One possible explanation is intense competition in which people invest more effort without gaining much improvement. This conveys part of the meaning, but it does not fully carry the tiredness or social pressure that the Chinese term can suggest.
For me, explaining this idea in English connects with my earlier study experience. Working longer hours did not always lead to better understanding. Using this connection can make the concept clearer to a reader who does not know the Chinese word. At the same time, it presents the idea through one particular experience, so the explanation remains incomplete.
Something can also be gained through this process. Having to explain a familiar term makes me question what I normally take for granted. I need to separate competition, effort and emotional pressure instead of assuming that one word communicates everything. Cultural translation can therefore deepen my understanding of Chinese as well as expand what I can express in English.
A place for both languages
I no longer see Chinese mainly as something that gets in the way of English. It provides experiences and concepts that I can draw on. English gives me another way to examine and share them. Moving between the two sometimes creates difficulty, but it also gives me more choices about how to explain what matters to me.
Looking ahead, I want technology to support this independence. Recordings can help me reflect, AI can help me explore expressions, and online platforms can connect me with people. I want to keep asking whether each tool helps me understand more and communicate better. Convenience alone is not the same as meaningful progress.
The student who struggled to pass English is still part of my story. I do not need to erase that experience to feel proud of where I am now. It helps me understand learners whose confidence has been damaged by tests. English now gives me ways to participate, teach and speak from my own experience, with Chinese still alongside it.