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Write a short paragraph (150 words) sharing about a time when you had difficulty in communicating in English (formal or informal situation).

What types of speech communication was it? what happened?

What problem(s) you had and how you felt at the time

What purposes of speech communication you would like to focus on to improve your skills.

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There was a time when I had difficulty communicating, especially when trying to tell a story and express my feelings to a new friend. Although I could understand what my friend said, I did not know how to respond naturally. I just listened quietly when they talked about their experiences and life, but when it was my turn to speak, I felt shy and did not know what to say. It was a face-to-face conversation, and I became nervous for fear of saying something awkward or wrong. At that time, I felt embarrassed and a little disappointed in myself. From that experience, I realized that communication is not only about understanding others but also about sharing my own thoughts. I want to focus more on improving my ability to express my emotions and tell my own story more confidently.

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When I was a child, communicating in English has always been incredibly difficult for me, no matter what method I try, because i am a very shy person. , but a memorable event that changed my mind forever. There is a time when I was traveling to Da Nang with my family , and a foreigner come to ask me the way to go to the beach. At that moment, I was really panic. Although I knew what he was asking for, I still couldn't answer his question. It was a face to face conversation but I was too shy and I can’t seem to think of anything to say, as if something is blocking my throat and leaving me completely speechless. From that moment, I thought that communication must definitely include self-confidence and a rich vocabulary, it’s not just about understanding what others say, but also about being able to express my own thoughts clearly. I want to focus more on enhances my confident so that I can share my opinions with people around.

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There was a time when I had difficulty communicating in English. I still remember the moment when I tried to order my meal with a server. It happened during a trip when I traveled to Bali. I went to a famous restaurant , and the server came to me and took my order. Then, I wanted to order a beefsteak but I accidentally said “fish steak” because the words sounded alike. Until the food is brought, it is not what I expected. It was salmon with asparagus and passion fruit sauce, so I immediately called the waiter to explain but my pronunciation made it worse and she seemed confused. I think she and I had problems communicating. I decided to use google translate for lack of misunderstanding. After that, she was nervous and apologized ,but also I felt embarrassed for my mistake. Finally, I want to enhance speaking and listening skills to avoid misunderstanding in the future.

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A year ago, when I was in a restaurant for a dinner with my family. It was a gorgeous restaurant which was opened by a American. When it was the moment of ordering as usual, I told the staff what I wanted to order, but surprisingly, he looked as if he did not understand what I was saying. To be honest, at that moment I felt very embarrassed because it just was a very common conservation. As a result, it took a long time to make a simple order. That experience made me change the way I looked at my speaking ability. I realized that my pronunciation was not really good due to the fact that most of the time i only focused on grammar, listening, writing and forgot about practicing the speaking skills. After that I tried hard to enhance my pronunciation to be more confidence by talking to myself in English and also shadowing through many Youtube videos.

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When I was in grade 7, during a communicative English lesson, my teacher assigned us a task to talk about the thing we liked most when learning English. It was actually a hard task for me because my English skills were very poor at that time. I realized that my speaking was too weak because I could not express my feelings in English. When it was my turn, I had no words in my mind and just kept silent while the whole class was looking at me, which made me feel embarrassed and shy. From that lesson, I tried many methods to improve my English skills, but none of them seemed effective for me. Perhaps I focused too much on learning grammar and forgot to practice speaking and listening every day, so my speaking skills did not improve. Therefore, I really wanted to improve my speaking skills in order to express my thoughts naturally and confidently.

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When I first joined the IELTS Journey course in my freshman year, I struggled a lot with English speaking. Even though I practiced many times, speaking to myself in the mirror, reading stories aloud, or trying to think in English, everything seemed to disappear once I started talking with others. I often stayed quiet in group work, because of afraid of saying something wrong. Then came a course where everyone had to take part in a group discussion. I had no choice but to speak, and that moment truly scared me. When it was my turn, my mind went completely blank, and all I could do was repeat simple words with a shaky voice. I felt embarrassed and disappointed, as if everyone else was better than me. After all of that, a close friend helped me practice expressing ideas naturally. Finally, I became more confident and started enjoying discussions instead of fearing them.

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During a presentation when I was at 10th grade, I faced several major challenges as I had to speak in English while trying to remain calm in front of the whole class. The presentation was about a field trip to a milk production factory, where our teacher asked us to clearly explain each stage of the production process. However, because I was too nervous, I couldn’t express my thoughts effectively, which made my presentation rather disorganized. After it ended, I felt embarrassed and discouraged, and the fear of being judged made me lose confidence in my presentation skills. That experience taught me how easily fear can hold us back from showing our true potential. It also made me realize that making mistakes is a normal part of learning and growth. Since then, I have worked hard to improve my communication and build my confidence so that I won’t feel pressured in future presentations.

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One time I had difficultly communicating in english was during my first presentation in class. It was a formal speech communication for my university course and I had to present my topic in front of my classmates and teacher. I prepared my slides carefully , but when I started speaking, I became very nervous. I forgot many english words and use the wrong gramma, so some people could not understanding my ideas clearly. My teacher asked me to repeat some sentences , which made me even more embarrassed. At that moment, I felt frustrated and disappointed with myself. After that experience, I realized that I needed to improve my speaking fluency and pronunciation. I want to learn how to manage my stage fright and express my thoughts more confidently. In the future, I will focus on practicing public speaking and daily conversation to improve my communication skills in both informal and formal situations.

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I used to study English and was quite confident in my speaking ability. I thought I could communicate easily with foreigners. However, the first time I actually talked to a foreigner, I was shocked. My mind went blank, and I couldn't find the right words to express myself. It was difficult to say even simple sentences, and I felt nervous and embarrassed. The last time I traveled abroad with my mother, I often helped her communicate with foreigners because she did not speak English well. At first, I still found it difficult, but gradually, I became more confident. Helping my mother order food, asking for directions, or talking to local people made me realize how useful English is. Those experiences taught me that real communication requires not only knowledge but also need a real-life practice.

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My family took me to the city zoo for the first time when I was about five years old. It was an exciting, informal speech setting where people could talk to each other. I can still remember the bright sun, the smell of popcorn, and the loud sounds of the animals. I lost track of my parents while we were walking around, so I had to ask some visitors for help in English. It was really hard for me to say what I wanted to say at that time. When I mixed up sentences and said the wrong words, I felt nervous and angry. Luckily, a kind woman helped me identify my parents, and I learned to stay calm when speaking English. I learned how important it is to speak clearly, even in simple situations, from that experience. I want to work on my English by learning how to communicate in a way that is clear and confident so that others can understand me.

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One time I had difficulty communicating in English was during an outing when I accidentally met a foreigner who asked me about a historical site in my hometown. It was an informal situation, and I had to explain to them by using a translation app. When I started speaking, I mispronounced some words and found it hard to make them understand. My pronunciation was not very accurate, so the foreigner looked a bit confused. I also spoke too softly because I was nervous and shy. At that moment, I felt embarrassed and disappointed in myself for not trying harder to improve my English communication skills. After that experience, I realized that I need to focus more on verbal communication skills, especially pronunciation, vocabulary, and speaking confidence. I also want to improve my ability to organize my thoughts before speaking so I can communicate more clearly and effectively in both academic and professional environments

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During my freshman year, I had a memorable experience with communication difficulties. It was the first time I gave a group presentation in English for History in front of such a large class. My core problem was that I was too afraid of public speaking. That pressure made me suddenly forget some important information when I was in front of a large audience, causing my speech to be interrupted and not fluent. Not only that, but many academic words are difficult to pronounce, and because I was so nervous, I mispronounced them a lot. I realized I could not convey knowledge clearly and convince listeners of my point of view, and I could not achieve enhanced confidence, which made me even more self-conscious. From that experience, I was determined to change and focus on improving my verbal communication skills. I wanted to express complex ideas more fluently and coherently so that I could always be confident when speaking in an academic environment.

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I used to be very afraid of English because all my skills were weak, not just speaking. Before obtaining my English certificate, I had to study at many places, even every day, to reach my current level. However, speaking remains my weakest skill because I’m afraid of mispronouncing words and can’t clearly express my ideas. That’s why I often avoided speaking in English. Currently, at university, I have to take a class focused on this skill, so I can no longer avoid it. I am determined to practice regularly and complete all assignments to not only improve my speaking but also pass the class.

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I remembered that one time I accidentally met a foreigner who asked me Vietnamese food around Hoan Kiem Lake while I was there. I wanted to recommend some dishes like “phở,” “bún chả,” and “bún thang,” but at that time I didn’t know how to describe the flavors and ingredients in English. I spoke very slowly, word by word, because I was nervous. Sometimes he still didn’t understand me, and I felt a bit shy and frustrated since I really wanted to make a good impression and have a friendly conversation to promote my country. It made me realize that I need to improve my speaking and listening skills in daily communication and, more importantly expand my vocabulary. After that day, I spended 1-2 hours learning some new vocabulary and practicing with English podcasts which helped my listening and shadowing of speaking. I believe that if I can expand my knowledge and pronounce well, I can communicate confidently.

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The most difficult communication experience I had was during a mandatory team discussion at work about a new project plan. This was a classic example of small group communication where everyone needed to contribute ideas. My problem was that I struggled to find the right moment to interrupt or join the conversation. Everyone was speaking very quickly, taking turns without clear signals, and by the time I prepared my sentence in English, the topic had already moved on. I felt increasingly frustrated and ignored because I had good suggestions, but I kept missing my opportunity to speak. To improve, I need to focus on the "to regulate/control" purpose of speech, specifically the social rules for turn-taking. I must practice simple phrases for politely entering a discussion, like "If I could just jump in here" or "I have a point on that," so I can manage to speak up and contribute my ideas.

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One time I had difficulty communicating in English was during my first IELTS speaking class with Mr. Tot. It was an informal conversation when he tried to get to know me by asking simple questions like “Can you tell me about yourself?” and “Why are you studying IELTS?”. Although I could understand everything he said, I struggled to respond quickly and express my ideas clearly. My mind went blank, and I couldn’t find the right words to say what I wanted. I felt nervous, embarrassed, and a bit frustrated because I knew the answers in Vietnamese but couldn’t put them into English. That experience made me realize that my main problem was not comprehension but fluency and confidence. To improve my communication skills, I want to focus on speaking more naturally, organizing my ideas before answering, and building confidence through regular practice and interaction with others.

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I once struggled with English communication during a class presentation last semester. It was a formal situation where I needed to introduce my group’s topic related to business management. When it was my turn, I became nervous and forgot some key words I had prepared. I also mispronounced several terms, which made my sentences unclear. My classmates looked confused, and I felt anxious and disappointed in myself. That experience made me realize that speaking confidently is not only about grammar or vocabulary but also about calmness and practice. From then on, I decided to improve my speaking skills by practicing pronunciation every day, watching English videos with subtitles, and joining group discussions. The main goal of speech communication that I want to focus on is to become more fluent and confident when expressing ideas in front of people.

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I still remember one time when speaking English was really challenging for me. I had been chosen to be the MC for my school’s English competition - a formal speech communication event. I felt both proud and nervous when I received the mission. The thought of hosting in front of teachers and friends made my heart race. At first, I accidentally stumbled over a few words and felt embarrassed. At that moment, I thought I had failed. But I quickly took a deep breath, smiled, and kept going. The audience’s encouragement helped me regain confidence, and I finished the program successfully. That experience taught me that confidence grows when we dare to face our fears. From then on, I’ve wanted to focus on improving my body language, emotional control, and connection with the audience when communicating in English.

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When I was in grade 2, I was attending in an English class with a foreign teacher at my secondary school. Back then, English was not as popular or mandatory as it is today, so for me at that time, English was like a blank sheet of paper; I knew nothing. So I was called up to answer a question that my foreign teacher asked, and I stood there for a moment and couldn’t answer the question. Some classmates laughed about it, and I felt so embarrassed. They would mock me about it for a long time; it humiliated me, so I decided to ask my father if I could take some extra English classes at Apollo English center, which I did. Over time, my English got better, and I gained a lot of confidence to actually communicate with a foreigner.

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One time I had difficulty communicating in English was when I was walking around Hoan Kiem walking street on a weekend evening. A foreign couple came to me and asked for directions to St. Joseph’s Cathedral. I understood most of what they said, but I suddenly became nervous and couldn’t think of the right words to reply. I tried to explain the way in English, yet I forgot some vocabulary and pronounced some words incorrectly, which made them look a bit confused. Finally, I opened Google Maps on my phone and showed them the route, and they smiled and thanked me warmly. I felt embarrassed but also motivated because I realized that my speaking skills were not strong enough in real-life situations. From this experience, I decided to focus on improving my speaking and listening skills, especially in informal conversations, so that I can communicate more confidently and naturally with foreigners in the future.

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I still remember when I was a freshman at university and had to study entirely in English. The biggest challenge for me was doing assignments and understanding lectures in English because I had spent 12 years studying only in my native language. At first, I felt so overwhelmed that I wanted to give up. However, with encouragement from my parents and friends, I decided to keep trying. I faced many difficulties in speaking and listening, especially during class discussions, where I struggled to express my ideas clearly. To overcome this, I started practicing English every day through online courses and watching English-speaking programs. Gradually, I gained more confidence and improved my communication skills. Although I am not perfect yet, I am proud of my progress and aim to focus more on improving my speaking fluency to communicate naturally and effectively in the future.

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A time I struggled with speaking English was during my daily life when I met a tourist who was asking for directions. It was a normal encounter. The tourist asked me how to get to a local coffee shop, but I wasn't able to communicate it clearly in English. I understood what he was trying to ask, but I could not get the words out, and I mixed up "turn right" and "turn left". The tourist was confused, and I felt embarrassed and somewhat anxious because I wanted to assist him, but when it came time to explain things I could not get the phrasing correct. After that experience, I realized speaking English in real-life situations is actually very different from learning English in the classroom. What I would like most is to develop my spoken English in conversation and in certain situations so that I can communicate more naturally and with confidence with English speaking foreigners in everyday situations like asking for and giving directions.

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When I was in high school, I had a very hard time communicating in English, especially during IELTS speaking practice sessions. This type of speech communication was a conversation and discussion with my teacher and classmates. I often made many grammar mistakes and mispronounced common words. Sometimes, I wanted to express my ideas clearly but couldn’t find the right words, which made me feel embarrassed and shy and I responded very slowly. Because of that, I started to avoid speaking in class and lost confidence in my English ability. However, later I realized that communication is more about expressing ideas than being perfect. To improve, I would like to focus on conversation and presentation skills. I learn how to speak naturally, use correct pronunciation, and structure sentences better. I believe that by practicing regularly and listening more, I can overcome my fear and speak English with more confidence.

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I still remember a time when I had trouble communicating in English during a sudden presentation in my first English class in high school. The teacher randomly asked some students to introduce themselves and share their summer vacation. When it was my turn, I felt so nervous that my hands were shaking. The self-introduction went quite well, but when I started telling my story, I hesitated and couldn’t find the right words to express myself. I repeated some sentences and made several grammar mistakes. My classmates were looking at me, which made me even more embarrassed. Although my teacher kindly said she liked my voice, I knew that my speaking skills were still weak. After that day, I decided to practice English more regularly to improve my vocabulary, pronunciation, and confidence when speaking in front of others. It was a lesson I’ll never forget.

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I would like to share an experience when i had an communication barrier in English during a formal situation (my first presentation when i was 10). At this time, i had to compare the differences between a zoo and a national park. Of course, I know very well about their definitions as well as their differences, but my problem is i have to express my opinions in English - a language that i very rarely use in everyday communication. At that moment, i felt extremely uncomfortable, the thoughts and arguments in my head seemed to be blocked by an invisible barrier. But i was standing in front of the whole class giving a presentation, i had to use my limited English vocabulary to be able to present. And as a result, my presentation confused the whole class because they couldn't fully understand what i was trying to say, i got six out of ten points. That incident was a great motivation for me to improve my language communication skills. To prevent this to happen again, i would like to improve my influence and clarity. I aim to speak smoothly, learn more vocabulary to give my brain enough reflexes in both formal and informal situations. With these improves, i can easily express my feeling with anybody in English.

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There was a time I had a difficulty communicating with other people. I remember the first time I tried to speak english when I joined an IELTS class. In the first lesson, the teacher required us to introduce ourselves and tell a short story about us. At that time, when I sat and heard stories of my classmate , I could understand all of them and thought about my vocabulary and grammar, which could help me speak fluently but when it was my turn, I did not know where I should start or how to express my feelings for us naturally. I felt shy and somewhat dissapointed about myself, especially when I had a face-to-face conversation. I was so nervous and worried about what I was saying. I always thought in my head during communication ,so it made the conversation so bad and lost the fluency and nature. After a long time trying to communicate naturally, I realized that communication was not only about high-level vocabulary or grammar, but it also expressed my feelings and emotions. Finally, I decided to learn about expressing the feelings and adjust the ideas I want to say, which help enhance my speaking skill.

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Last semester, I had a presentation in my English Speaking class. It was a formal situation, and I felt extremely nervous. I had practiced many times at home, but when I stood in front of my classmates, I suddenly forgot some words and couldn’t pronounce others correctly. My voice was shaking, and my mind went completely blank. I tried to smile, but my hands were sweating and my heart was beating so fast. Some friends smiled to cheer me up, which helped me finish the presentation somehow. After class, my teacher told me that everyone makes mistakes and that confidence is the key to improvement. That really encouraged me. I realized my biggest problem is a lack of fluency and confidence when speaking. From now on, I want to focus more on daily conversation practice and pronunciation to express my thoughts more naturally and clearly.

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When I was in high school, I had some trouble communicating in English while studying for the IELTS test. My homeroom teacher helped me prepare to get a 6.0 score so I could apply to university. It was a formal learning situation, and we practiced speaking every day. I found that it is very difficult for me to express my ideas in English. I was very shy and afraid of speaking in front of people. Sometimes, I didn’t understand my teacher’s pronunciation or feedback, which made me feel confused and nervous. My teacher helped me a lot at that time, she encourage me to speak even it wrong and she said that i could ask her whenever i needed. After that, I tried to speak more and listen to English songs and videos to improve. From this experience, I learned that practicing speech communication is very important. In the end, i want to focus more on speaking and listening skills so I can communicate in English more easily and confidently.

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A memorable time when I had difficulty communicating in English was during my IELTS Speaking test. Everything went smoothly until Part 3, when the questions became more complex and required deeper opinions. I understood the topic clearly and already had ideas in my mind, but my limited vocabulary and slow reaction made it hard to express them within one minute. I tried to explain my thoughts, but I kept repeating simple words and pausing to find the right expressions. The examiner looked patient, but I knew I was not performing well. As a result, I received a lower score than I expected, and it made me feel disappointed and less confident about my speaking ability. After that experience, I realized that I need to focus more on improving my vocabulary and thinking speed in English so I can express my ideas more fluently and confidently in future presentations or exams.

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There was a time when I was an English teaching assistant, but my main job was just observing students and grading papers, so I didn't have to communicate much in English. However, one day, the foreign teacher suddenly asked me about a particular student. I was quite shocked because I hadn't prepared anything. Although I had a lot of observations and things to share about that student, I couldn't express myself clearly. I had difficulty finding the right words due to my limited English speaking ability and lack of experience in natural English communication. It was just an informal conversation, but I couldn't get my point across.

The problem I encountered was the sudden transition from passive to active communication, which made me feel embarrassed. To improve my skills, I realized that I had to focus on the Communication purpose. Specifically, I wanted to practice quick responses and common question-answer patterns in daily conversations. This will help me be more natural and confident, ensuring I can clearly communicate my professional views even in unexpected situations.

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I remember when I was in grade 6, I had a really hard time communicating in English during an English speaking contest at school. It was a formal speech communication because I had to stand on stage and talk about “My Family.” I was so scared that I forgot some phrases and mispronounced others, saying "faverite" instead of "favorite" and "brooter" instead of "brother."Some classmates laughed quietly, and I felt my face burning with embarrassment. My hands were shaking, and I just wanted to leave the stage. But I took a big breath and tried to continue my speech despite my shaking voice. After that, my teacher told me she was proud of me for not giving up learned from that experience that making mistakes is normal and an essential component of learning.I want to focus more on pronunciation and confidence so I can speak more naturally next time.

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I remember a time when I tried to speak English with a foreigner in a casual setting, and it was much harder than I expected. I had practiced speaking with my teachers before, so I felt comfortable in class, but this was different. It was an informal conversation, and I wanted to talk naturally, like I would with a friend. However, I struggled to keep the conversation going because I couldn’t find the right words quickly, and I was worried about making mistakes. I felt anxious and self-conscious, especially when I couldn’t respond as smoothly as I wanted. The main problem I had was fluency and the ability to speak spontaneously in everyday situations. I want to focus on practicing more informal conversations I can speak more naturally and feel less anxious in social situations.