Why do beginners sometimes feel like experts?

Answer each question with 2–3 sentences.

1. What skill are you learning at the moment?
2. Do you ever feel more confident than you should?
3. How do you check your own progress?
4. What was harder than you expected?
5. Do you like getting feedback?
6. What do you tend to overestimate or underestimate?

Read each word and the example. Then say a sentence about a skill you have.

Choose the word that fits.

1. Beginners are often and think the task is easy.
2. Many people their own abilities.
3. It is a mistake to a difficult task.
4. An knows a subject very well.
5. She asked for to see how she could improve.
6. We are often not of our own mistakes.
7. The test was used to their skills.
8. A person accepts that they don't know everything.

Choose the right answer, then press Check answers.

1. overconfident =
   too sure of yourselfvery friendlynot sure at all
2. to overestimate = to think something is
   the same as beforebetter than it isworse than it is
3. a beginner is someone who is
   new to a subjectvery famousan expert
4. to assess = to
   forget aboutjudge the quality oftranslate
5. humble =
   not proud of yourselfvery loudvery rich
6. feedback is
   a kind of testinformation about how well you dida type of food

Use these phrases to compare and contrast.

• The more I learn, the more I realise...Чим більше я вчуся, тим більше розумію...The more I learn, the more I realise I don't know.
• The more confident you are, the less...Чим впевненіший ти, тим менше...The more confident you are, the less you listen.
• Beginners..., whereas experts...Початківці..., тоді як експерти...Beginners are confident, whereas experts are often careful.
• Although it seems...,Хоча здається,...Although it seems easy, it takes years to learn.
• Despite my experience,...Попри мій досвід,...Despite my experience, I still make mistakes.
• However,...Проте,...However, critics say the results are not so simple.
• On the other hand,...З іншого боку,...On the other hand, confidence helps us start.
• I tend to overestimate...Я схильний переоцінювати...I tend to overestimate how much I can do in a day.

Read the text. Hover over the dotted words for help.

1. The study was published in 1999.
   TrueFalse
2. People with the lowest scores tended to underestimate their performance.
   TrueFalse
3. The authors worked at Cornell University.
   TrueFalse
4. All researchers agree that the effect is purely psychological.
   TrueFalse
5. The text suggests asking for feedback.
   TrueFalse

1. When did you feel sure about something and then realise you were wrong?
2. Why do beginners sometimes feel like experts?
3. How can we judge our own skills more honestly?
4. Is confidence always a good thing?

Common mistakes: although + clause, despite + noun / -ing, and the more… the more. ✗ Despite it was hard → Although it was hard. ✗ The more you read, more you know → the more you know.

1. The
   moremost
   I practise, the better I become.
2. MoreThe more
   confident you are, the less you listen.
3. DespiteAlthough
   it seems easy, it takes years.
4. DespiteAlthough
   my experience, I still make mistakes.
5. Beginners are confident,
   despitewhereas
   experts are careful.
6. It looked easy.
   AlthoughHowever
   , it was very hard.
7. The test was hard,
   butdespite
   most people passed.
8. The
   harderhardest
   you work, the faster you improve.

Each sentence has one mistake. Type the correct words.

1. The more I practise, I get better. →
2. Despite it was hard, we finished. →
3. Although my experience, I make mistakes. →
4. The more you read, more you know. →
5. She is calm, however he is nervous. →
6. However it looks easy, it isn't. →

Answer in detail. Use the more… the more, although, despite and whereas.

1. Tell me about a time when you were overconfident.
2. What skill did you think was easy but found difficult?
3. Do you tend to overestimate or underestimate yourself?
4. How do you ask for feedback?
5. What do you know now that you did not know a year ago?
6. What advice would you give to a beginner?

Three people have different levels of confidence. Compare them. Who is the most overconfident? Who is the most humble? What would you advise each one?

Your teacher will time you.

1. Plan for one minute, then speak for one or two minutes.
2. Part 1: a skill you are learning and how confident you are.
3. Part 2: a time you overestimated or underestimated yourself (use although, despite, whereas).
4. Part 3: advice to a beginner (use the more… the more).

1. What skill are you learning now?
2. Do you ever feel more confident than you should?
3. How do you check your own progress?
4. What was harder than you expected?
5. Do you like to get feedback?
6. What do you tend to overestimate?
7. Who is an expert in your life?
8. How do you feel when you make a mistake?

1. Who do you know that is always sure they are right?
2. Who gives you honest feedback?
3. Who is the most humble person you know?
4. Who taught you something difficult?
5. Who in your family is an expert in something?
6. Who do you ask for advice?

1. Is confidence more important than skill?
2. Should schools teach students to evaluate themselves?
3. Do experts always know more than beginners?
4. Is it a good idea to try without fear?
5. Can social media make people overconfident?