Ask Expert Teacher: How Can I Improve my Speaking in English?
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Question:
How Can I Improve my Speaking in English?
- Widad , Morocco
Answer:
There are several ways to improve your speaking in English.
I’ve written 5 steps to follow, and you’ll notice that some of the steps involve listening. Listening and speaking are as connected as reading and writing (which I wrote about in a previous blog entry).
In order to improve your English speaking – even to speak like a native speaker – you must train your ear to hear the distinct English pronunciation and intonation patterns. This is called developing an ear for English. If you can’t hear the subtle differences in English pronunciation and intonation, then you won’t be able to say them. It will also help you to develop the confidence necessary to become a great speaker in any language.
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So, here are the 5 Steps to Improving Your Speaking:
- Passive Listening
This means listening to English podcasts, radio shows, TV shows, or any other English listening material, but just leaving it on in the background. This can be done while you are driving, or using an mp3 player and walking, or on the bus, or while cooking, cleaning, or any other daily activities.
The idea is just to get English in your head as much as possible; let it seep into your mind while you are not focused on it. It’s the first step in training your ear to hear the distinct sounds of English.
- Active Listening
With active listening, you sit down and concentrate on what you are listening to. Preferably, you should answer listening comprehension questions at the end of the listening exercise. Plus, it would also be good to have a reading script to review after you listen and answer questions.
Make notes on new vocabulary and phrases learned while listening. Notice how the words and phrases are used in sentences, so you can practice using them when you speak.
Remember, listening and speaking are very closely connected. Improving your listening skills improves your ability to speak English well.
- Repeating After Listening
Find an English language podcast that you really enjoy; it can be on any subject you like. Just make sure that the speaker speaks in a clear way that you enjoy, and there is a reading script available with the podcast.
After you actively listen to the podcast, repeat it yourself by reading from the script. In fact, the best thing to do is record yourself reading from the script. Then, listen to your recording and compare it to the podcast of the English speaker.
I know that many people do not like recording their voices and listening to the recording, but it is one of the most effective ways to improve your speaking. Many of my students who practice this strategy receive compliments on how well they speak. Plus, I do it myself to keep improving my speaking ability, so I know it works.
- Speaking with a Native Speaker
Steps 1 – 3 are self-studying methods. Steps 4 and 5 involve other people.
Speaking with a native speaker will put steps 1 – 3 into practice. You will get a chance to use your improved listening abilities by having a real conversation with a native speaker. You will also get a chance to use your new vocabulary and improved speaking skills in that same conversation.
- Speaking with a Teacher and Getting Corrected
Having conversations with friends and colleagues, who are native speakers, is very helpful. However, to experience the biggest improvements, you need someone with knowledge of the rules of the English language to actually correct your mistakes while you are speaking.
Getting general speaking practice is important, but if no one corrects your mistakes then you will keep making them forever – and you won’t know that you are making mistakes.
So, try and practice these 5 steps and see for yourself how you improve your speaking.
I’d like to stress the importance of Step number 1: Passive Listening is very important as a few examples proove. In Europe, for example, those people who live in countries that do not dub American movies and series have a better pronounciation of English, simply because they watch TV in English and have passive contact with the language all the time. Such countries are Sweden and Norway.
Comment by Klaus Rosmanitz — December 18, 2010 @ 17:41
i think practise makes a man perfect. Try to speak in english in all walks of life then u will see the change in the english language
Comment by Anonymous — May 11, 2011 @ 02:09
HOW TO PRACTISE ENGLISH LISTENING COMPREHENSION AND SPEAKING SKILLS.
In order to have good skills in listening comprehension in English and to speak it fluently, a learner should practise listening to audio and video aids in English (dialogues, thematic texts and narrative stories). It is preferable to have English transcripts of audio and video material. I suggest that learners practise listening comprehension with subsequent speaking in the following sequence:
1. Listen to each sentence several times. At the same time see each sentence in the transcript.
2. Make sure you understand everything clearly in each sentence in terms of pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar.
3. Without looking into the transcript, try to repeat each sentence (say it aloud) exactly as you heard it. Without being able to repeat a sentence, a learner cannot understand it.
4. Listen to that particular conversation or text (story) in short paragraphs or chunks, say each paragraph aloud, and compare to the transcript.
5. Listen to the whole conversation or story without interruption several times, and try to tell the content of the whole conversation or text (story) you heard. You can write key words and phrases, or main ideas as a plan, or questions on that particular dialogue or text to make easier for you to convey the content in English. It is important to compare what you said to the transcript.
Comment by Michael Shelby — September 6, 2011 @ 11:42
METHODS FOR MASTERING ENGLISH CONVERSATION AND VOCABULARY.
To eventually be able to speak English fluently, first of all learners of English must have materials with important content on all everyday topics (audios, videos, printed texts/study books, etc.) for beginning, intermediate and advanced levels of study. The materials must include dialogues, monologues (thematic texts), questions – answers with important content, thematic lists of difficult word meanings and phrases (expressions) with usage sentences, and comprehensive vocabulary on all everyday topics. I believe that learners can master English conversation and vocabulary with the following methods:
1. It is important for learners of English to listen to each sentence in conversations (thematic dialogues) in audio materials several times and to see their transcript at the same time, and to understand everything in those sentences clearly.
2. It is helpful for learners of English to read (pronounce) each sentence aloud and to compare their pronunciation to the narrator’s pronunciation.
3. Speaking activity with self-control. It is a good idea for learners to check if they can orally convey the content of those dialogues closely to the original dialogues as much as possible.
It is expedient for them to try to be an actor for both speakers in the dialogues. The most important thing for them is to speak English, and to check in the transcript of conversations (dialogues) whether they have made any mistakes in speaking.
Learners can also make their own written questions on the dialogues that require long answers contained in the dialogues to facilitate (make easier) imitation of the dialogues. Alternatively, learners can write key words and phrases, or main ideas as a plan to make easier for them to imitate those dialogues.
4. It is useful for learners to prepare potential questions and answers with helpful content on all everyday topics, and to practise speaking. To show different ways of expressing a particular thought they can make several potential questions and answers on one point in this speaking activity. There are a few websites that contain a lot of ready-made questions in English on a wide variety of topics: http://iteslj.org; http://www.esldiscussions.com; http://www.teacherjoe.us/learn to speak English; http://www.eslpartyland.com/teachers/
conversation questions;
http://www.btinternet.com/~ted.power/discuss.html
5. Students of English can learn a lot of vocabulary on every topic from general thematic English dictionaries. Good thematic English dictionaries provide clear word usage explanations and also a few usage sentences for each word meaning, which is especially useful. It is also helpful for students of English to make their own sentences with difficult vocabulary. It is reasonable for them to think about the real life situations where and when that vocabulary can be used.
6. It would be very useful for learners of English to make from general thematic English dictionaries lists of difficult word meanings and of phrases (expressions) on every topic with usage sentences. Reading those ready-made vocabulary usage sentences many times would help learners remember difficult word meanings. Longman Language Activator Dictionary (unique English Idea Production Dictionary) covers this issue thoroughly. It would also be very practical for learners to make their own sentences with that vocabulary for personal potential use, taking into consideration real life situations.
7. Learners can also master new English vocabulary by reading thematic texts (materials), first of all on everyday topics with important content, for example: Practical Tips and Advice to Make Everyday Life Easier and Better (practical solutions for everyday problems). Such self-help books on settling everyday matters are available at book stores and on the Internet.
It is better for learners to write down unknown vocabulary in whole sentences to easier remember it. It would be effective for developing English speaking skills by learners to practise telling the content of the texts that they have read. As people say, practice makes perfect.
8. Constant review of material ensures solid knowledge and success in learning.
9. It is essential that learners also make use of other important aids on a variety of topics to improve their English conversation and vocabulary skills: audios, videos (English learning videos, travel videos, etc.), Internet resources, English learning magazines, newspapers, newsletters, radio programmes (especially the BBC English learning programmes/materials), TV programmes (educational programmes, documentary films, movies, news), books and e-books on a variety of subjects, online communication with native English speakers (chat, email, Skype).
Good libraries and the Internet have a wide selection of English learning aids.
Comment by Michael Shelby — September 6, 2011 @ 11:59