Absolutely do not learn the English listening and dictation series (audio tapes)

Author: [Korean] Jeong Janyong, [Korean] Lee Jeongjo translated
Publisher: Beijing World Publishing & Trading Corporation
Publishing Date: 2000-01-01
Features: About the Author: Dr. Jeong Janyong was born in Seoul in 1957. He graduated from Seoul National University's Landscape Architecture Department in 1980. In September 1984, he went to Germany for studies. After arriving in Germany, he initially thought his German foundation was quite good, but he suffered greatly due to his poor listening and speaking skills. Later, he used his unique method to study German and successfully passed the German proficiency exam within six months. He then obtained a Master's degree in Spatial Planning from Dortmund University in 1989 and a Ph.D. in Landscape Architecture and Environmental Development from Hannover University in 1993. Currently, he is a professor at the Department of Environmental Information Landscape Architecture at Hanyang University in Korea and is also dedicated to English teaching and research. Based on his personal experience of learning foreign languages, he wrote the book "Don't Learn English" using his unique method of learning foreign languages. From July 1999 to January 1, 2001, the book remained a bestseller in Korea for a year and a half, a record unprecedented and unparalleled in the history of Korean book publishing. To answer the questions raised by readers using the "Five Secrets" he introduced for learning English, he published "Are You Still Learning English?" in June 2000, which also immediately became a bestseller.
Author's Self-Introduction: First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the readers who showed special interest in the book "Don't Learn English," published in July of this year. Occasionally, I spend 10,000 Korean Won (about 140 RMB, according to the translator's note) on fortune-telling for fun, and a Taoist priest once told me, "You are destined to make a living from writing books." I believed this and was thrilled by this statement for quite some time. Soon after the publication of "Don't Learn English," it became a top-selling book, and when a publishing house approached me, they called me a "top-selling author." How could I not be in a state of extreme excitement! Anyway, I am deeply relieved that the questions I raised resonated with so many people. I sincerely hope that the publication of this book will serve as a catalyst to elevate the English proficiency of the Korean people. At the strong request of the readers, tapes for the and the second-stage methods introduced in "Don't Learn English" have been released. Here, I would like to apologize to the readers who have been eagerly waiting for this. When "Don't Learn English" was first published, I had no intention of producing tapes because I only wanted to raise questions about English learning methods in Korea through the book. I thought that with people becoming aware of these issues, they could easily find suitable tapes for learning. However, due to the continuous requests from readers, I specifically examined tapes on the market and found that it was indeed difficult to find ones that were just right. The market was flooded with tapes mixing Korean and English, making them confusing, and many seemed to be intentionally recorded to make English learning for Koreans a mess. Since I decided to produce new tapes, I wanted to create ones that could genuinely help people learn English well, so I put a lot of thought into it, which caused the tapes to be delayed by a month compared to the original plan. I am truly sorry to those who called frequently and those who visited bookstores multiple times without success during this period. Both the publisher and I were restless, eager to release the tapes, but the work always progressed slowly. This "Enhanced" focuses on the daily life of a working professional and a university student from a typical American middle-class family. I chose this content because I believe that if you can understand and comprehend their daily life expressions, you have laid the foundation for learning English well. A day may seem short, but in reality, countless events occur: waking up, eating, going to work, discussing politics, economics, and sports during the day; attending classes like history and literature at school; and participating in business meetings at the company. The purpose of setting up TOEIC and TOEFL exams in Korea is to test whether candidates have the ability to live and communicate normally in English-speaking countries. Therefore, if you can fully absorb the content of this tape, no matter what your purpose in learning English is, you will find it tailored for you. Your TOEIC and TOEFL scores will definitely improve significantly. Whether you are preparing for college entrance exams or studying literature, whether you want to listen to AFKN (a TV channel specifically for U.S. military personnel in Korea, as noted by the translator) or watch movies, this tape will provide you with practical and effective help. I originally had no intention of publishing the English original of the tape. As mentioned in "Don't Learn English," you must absolutely not look at the original text during practice. If you can't help but peek at it, your English learning will be wasted. I will remind you again: Do not look at the original text until you can no longer listen to it. Only after finishing the dictation practice should you open it. If you ignore my advice and listen to the tape while looking at the original text, and your English level still hasn't improved after a few months, please do not protest to me. That is not my responsibility; it is your own if you choose not to follow my advice. In recent days, I have received countless phone calls and emails. As an office worker myself, I cannot sit in the office all day to answer the phone, so I deeply apologize to everyone. But to answer your questions, I have even gone to the office on weekends to reply to emails. While answering the readers' questions, I had an idea: perhaps I should write another book as a supplement to "Don't Learn English." However, I want to remind everyone again: "Don't learn English," don't doubt this method. What you need is patience and perseverance. You will start to see real results in just a few months. Just like if you tie a button incorrectly, you can't wear the clothes properly—if the method of learning English is not right, you will never succeed in learning it. Considering that learners of English vary greatly in their proficiency, many may find this tape too difficult or too easy and feel it is not suitable for them. Therefore, when producing this tape, we carefully selected content that is neither too basic nor too advanced, suitable for intermediate learners. If readers have specific needs, we may produce a new set of tapes according to your requests or level. I have been to the office on weekends to answer phone calls or emails from readers who asked questions. As long as possible, I will continue to do my best to answer various questions from my readers. As long as my book or tape can help the people of the Great Han Empire reach a higher level of English proficiency, that will be my greatest satisfaction. Jeong Janyong, October 10, 1999