<doc.id=0221.a1>
My relationship to English has generally been about talking and listening. It was when I first came to read at KOMVUX I actually first started to do the writhing and reading.
At compulsory school it was just boring, hard work and dull teachers, who actually made the lessons quit boring. Although we had stand-in teachers from time to time, they made the lessons more interesting. It was quite fun at school at those occasions. When I left the Compulsory school I guess I knew that much English I could make me understood if ever necessary. I didn't go to Upper secondary school after Compulsory school; I started to work instead. My English was in a deep sleep through the years until I decided to start working in the Swedish merchant navy. It was the first time I actually had the opportunity to practice my school English. I improved my English during the years at sea, but only when it comes to talking and listening. I can't say that my vocabulary very big. I guess I stick to the words I'm familiar with. But don't we all 
Do that from time to time. Hopefully we don't make to many mistakes then. 
All through the years at sea I did never reflected about that I could read an English book to improve my English. I don't think we even had any English books on board. Well if we did I didn't look for them.
After spending seven years at sea I decided to change career and went to a Folk high school to get an Upper secondary school competence.
During my year at the Folk high school I had English at the schedule. As I can remember it we didn't do much reading or writing. It was more off talking and listening comprehension. 
This year I learned one thing, as I never reflected over before, the different between British English and American English. It was mainly because we first had an American teacher who taught us the American way of speaking. The next semester we got a Swedish teacher who preferred the B.E. He had a hard time to teach us the British pronunciation. At this very day I'm rather convinced that I still have a mix of both B.E and A.E. 
After my year at the Folk high school the life went on ashore. One day I felt it was time to do something about my situation as an unemployed and I went to KOMVUX to, ones again, get an Upper secondary school competence. The other one from the Folk high school was too old. At KOMVUX, for the first time, I got in touch with the written word in book form. Well that's not really true, I have had tried to read a novel before but I gave it up before finishing it. This time I had to finish it and review it to the class. From the beginning it was hard work but I learned to enjoy it, and I still do. But I don't read that much English literature I must admit.
During the English course at KOMVUX we had to hand in essays as well. From a start I had no bigger problems with that but at the B-level I had a teacher who wanted us to hand in essay after essay about different subjects and so I did. My essays was always marked whit red all over, but I never got any explanation about all the mistakes I did, so I could chance them It went from enjoy writing to something I disliked.
After KOMVUX I haven't been writing one word until this very moment. And I still have the problem when it comes to writing English as you obvious can see
And I'm still unsecured when it comes to writing, thanks to my teacher at B-level at KOMVUX
Now when I look back at my evaluation about my English all through the years I realise I could have improved my English by reading and writing more than I have done, but I didn't. I actually didn't know I was going to become a teacher one year ago, but now I'm here and I haven't got cold feet yet.
</doc>