[LETTERS TO THE EDITOR]Don’t give up on English

I was disappointed to read your article (Feb. 9) about the students from Busan who traveled to China and saw how well students there do in English classes. The message they brought home was that Korea is doing something wrong. English is a lot easier for Chinese to learn than it is for Koreans. Research as well as classroom experience tells us this.
Students, teachers, parents, and administrators have to understand that the job Korean students have in learning English is far more difficult than the job confronting Japanese or Chinese students, with whom they are often compared.
We all have to have realistic expectations of students and not demand that they perform at unreasonable levels. We have to encourage them, not discourage them, by holding up the success of the Chinese. Please pass this message along to the students in Busan. Let them know that they are doing fine. Keep it up.

by Steven A. Stupak