Learning a new language isn’t easy. Some of us adapt to it well, picking up words and phrases easily, whilst others find it difficult to memorise the simplest of words.

Do you feel stupid, or do you take the advice they give you with maturity and use it to your advantage?

None of us particularly like being corrected. When learning a new language there are many mistakes that can be made, from expression and pronunciation to written and lexical errors.

Don’t be offended if someone corrects you, whether it is your tutor, a native speaker or a friend – they are trying to help you. Take their advice and use it to make sure you don’t make the same mistakes twice.

Making mistakes can be acceptable, as long as you are aware you are doing it and don’t repeat the error.

However, there is a difference between a student making an error that can be easily corrected, and a professional making an error that can cost money and have serious consequences. For this reason, if you are learning your new language for career or legal reasons be extremely wary of unacceptable inaccuracies.

A tutor that corrects sensitively and in the right manner will earn respect from their students. When criticising it should be done in a positive way.

As a language learner you should realise that your tutor is there to guide you through the learning process, and you should remember that their corrections are intended to be constructive. They are likely to be fluent in the language you are learning, so use their experience and take advice well.

Correcting young children should be approached differently. A young child may not understand why they are being corrected and up until the age of approximately 8 years may still be making mistakes in their native language. Therefore correcting this age group needs to be done carefully to ensure the children do not continue to make the same errors.

Written correction should always be accurate. With oral correction for young children the teacher could be slightly lenient, as a young child may find constant correction tedious and refuse to learn.

If the teacher feels the child is not making progress due to their inability to concentrate for a length of time they should revisit the point at a later stage. Children, especially the very young, will often ‘just get’ something as part of their overall language learning and development process.

Motivation is also an important factor to this group and praise should be given as often as possible to boost the child’s confidence.