Why it's so hard to stay focused while learning English
Tu as l'impression que tu n'arrives plus à te concentrer comme avant ?
Tu n'es pas seul·e.
Dans le livre On vous vole votre attention, le journaliste Johann Hari explique que le temps moyen de concentration sur un écran est passé de 2 min 30 en 2004...
À 47 secondes en 2020, selon des chercheurs de l’Université de Californie.
It's now 2025, and I'd wager (I'd bet) [wager, bet = parier] that it may now be even less than 47 seconds.
What do you think that means for our ability to think deeply, and concentrate on cognitively demanding tasks like learning a new language?
« Nous vivons dans un environnement qui fragilise systématiquement notre capacité à nous plonger dans une tâche longue. »
— Johann Hari
Une tâche longue.
Quand on apprend une nouvelle langue, le processus dure des mois, voire des années.
Dans mon cas, environ cinq années se sont écoulées entre mon apprentissage d'un, deux, trois en français, et ma réussite à l'examen DALF C2.
Ce qui m'avait vraiment aidée, c'était d'avoir été dans un cadre où l'on me poussait à me dépasser, à lire des textes et plus tard des livres entiers que je trouvais incroyablement durs ou même hors de ma portée.
Ou d'être dans des situations où j'étais obligée de prendre la parole et de formuler un discours qui communiquait un point de vue, même quand je me sentais absolument perdue.
On m'exigeait de faire des tâches cognitives qui prenaient beaucoup d'effort, qui reposaient sur une base de connaissances acquise sur des horizons temporels assez longs.
And this is not just personal experience.
The research is abundantly clear: you will not make meaningful progress studying language in a haphazard, random way, like spending 10 minutes using a language learning app on your commute.
Consider this, just one of many highly effective instructional techniques mentioned in this article written by Gianfranco Conti, who has PhD in Applied Linguistics:
Interaction + Corrective Feedback... focuses on engaging learners in meaningful communication while providing feedback... Interaction might be peer-to-peer or with the teacher, but it includes real-time negotiation of meaning. Errors are not ignored but are gently addressed within the flow of conversation.
Interaction + Corrective Feedback is one of the primary techniques I use with my English coaching clients, by the way. Its efficacy is additionally supported by research published in journals like Studies in Second Language Acquisition and books published by the Oxford University Press.
Engaging in meaningful communication (like explaining your point of view on a topic that requires nuance), that includes real-time negotiation of meaning (like when you forget a word, and you're trying to find a different way to express the same idea) is a fundamentally different cognitive process than pressing buttons on a screen to match two translations.
You need to devote the appropriate cognitive resources — the focus — and the time to language learning.
This is an unsexy and unpopular thing to say in our age of endless convenience.
We have gotten so accustomed to the gap between wanting something and getting it becoming smaller and smaller....
That we've forgotten the power of long, slow, steady focus; and putting in the work over time.
Plus le temps passe, et les réseaux deviennent de plus en plus bruyants…
Plus je ressens un désir profond de revenir à l'essentiel.
À ce qui est fondamentalement humain : l'échange et la connexion.
Language learning for humans is what I do.
My work helping people get better at English doesn't rely on gamification. There are no push notifications.
But my clients tell me things like, Your methods work better than anything else I’ve ever tried.
And sometimes also, C'est super intense, après nos séances j'ai besoin d'un café.
Ces deux choses, l’efficacité et l’effort exigé, sont fondamentalement reliées.
In 2025, it is harder and harder to sell the “inconvenient” way. The way that demands a lot of time and attention.
But it is also the effective way.
The way that actually gives people results, that gets my clients speaking, feeling more confident, and doing things like giving presentations or networking in English.
If you have the motivation, but you know you're missing the right methods to make meaningful progress in English…
Let's talk and see if it would make sense to work together.
About Confident English
Confident English is the only bilingual FR/EN newsletter for French-speaking entrepreneurs who want to improve their English to grow their business.
It's written by me, Cecile Afable, a native English speaker from the US.
I grew up in small towns, speaking English at home, and I took my very first French class as a university student. I was 18 years old, learning the alphabet, colours, and un deux trois ...
I nearly gave up at one point, but I'm so glad that I didn't.
Learning French changed my life. It gave me the ability to work for several years in France, then move to Canada (where I have lived since 2018), and meet extraordinary people from all over the world.
I know firsthand that language learning can be empowering: it gives you options and choices that you would not have had otherwise. But it can also be embarrassing, confusing, and stressful.
I’m here to help my clients maximize the former and minimize the latter!
From the classrooms of a Lycée in the Ardèche to facilitating bilingual workshops for entrepreneurs in Vancouver, I have worked with hundreds of learners over the course of my career so far.
It's an honour and a privilege to do this work, and I hope English opens many doors for you.
Did you find a mistake in this newsletter?
Ça m’étonnerait pas, car c’est un être humain qui l’a rédigée et non une intelligence artificielle.
For me, it’s a question of respect: Why should you bother reading something that nobody could be bothered to write?
Et comme je l’explique ici, la communication est ce qui compte pour moi.
If I’ve shared something useful or thought-provoking, then I have achieved my goal.
With that being said, you are welcome to edit my French … but only if you write and explain the rationale in English ;) and be nice!
Thanks for reading. À la prochaine !
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