Learn English Effectively With These 6 Proven Strategies
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I know, learning to speak English confidently can feel daunting, but believe me, it is possible with the right approach.
As someone who’s spent over 20 years learning various languages, let me share with you some practical tips to help you with this.
Stay focused
In English, we sometimes say “put the blinkers on.” This means you need to focus on your goal and stick to it.
Don’t get distracted by other things.
Easily said, but how do you do that?
The first step has to be making English your priority.
For the next year, make learning English your priority. You could even let your family and friends know about your goal so they can support you.
I learned this lesson the hard way with Italian.
Did you know I lived in Italy for a summer teaching English to the Italian police?
I fell in love with Italian, and so learnt a few phrases. When I got home, I tried to study some more, but felt like “I didn’t have time’’, and eventually I gave up.
Of course, that was nonsense, there is always time, I chose not to find time.
That is when I realised that when you prioritise, there is always time, and doing or not doing something is always a choice!
Be persistent
Learning a language takes time and effort, and contrary to what social media might suggest, it doesn’t happen overnight.
In reality, it might take a year to progress through each level of proficiency. Cambridge English say it takes around 200 hours of guided learning to go up one level.
Many schools and courses dedicate around 9 months (or one academic year) to one level (e.g. IELTS band 5 to 6).
Of course, it can take longer depending on
- your level of motivation
- your age
- if your mother tongue has a different script
And many other factors.
So, stay motivated, especially if your native language is very different from English, and keep pushing forward, be persistent, even when it feels challenging.
Find your mojo (motivation!)
Motivation is key – if you are not motivated, you will give up!
One way to harness motivation is to make specific, realistic and measurable goals.
Instead of saying, “I want to be fluent,” try “I want to communicate my ideas on 10 common topics in 3 months time.”
Having motivation is not enough, you need to feed it – the way you feed your pet.
You can do that by,
- remembering the why (why you are learning English)
- connecting with others
- rewarding yourself for reaching milestones
Set big goals, but take small steps
Break your big goals into smaller, manageable tasks.
When I learned Chinese, I thought I wanted to be fluent. I was a big, beautiful dreamer in those days.
But I knew to do that, I had to set smaller, yearly goals, to work on. It looked something like this.
Year 1: Able to communicate with my family
Year 2: Able to understand daily conversations
Year 3: Able to work in Chinese.
After several years, I got a promotion at work, had a new baby, and found it hard to dedicate enough time to learning Chinese.
So I chose, (remember!) to study less and I changed my goal of fluency to being confident.
That said, without a doubt, planning in small steps helped me stay focused and avoid feeling overwhelmed.
Practice, practice, practice
Don’t just study English – practice it!
The mistake most of us make at school is too much passive studying. I mean reading, listening and learning rules.
It’s not our fault, it just happens like that.
But I believe we need to practice speaking as much as studying.
You can do that by practicing speaking with
- your course book (and audio)
- the Speaking Success System
- classmates
- people in the real world (including online)
This balance between studying and practising will significantly improve your speaking skills.ta
Review regularly
We know from research that we forget a large amount of things we study within 24 hours, if we don’t review them.
We also know that spaced repetition is effective in reinforcing the things we learn.
So after you have studied and practiced, take time to review.
Ideally, within 24 hours and again within a few days. This could involve listening to English podcasts, watching films, or reading novels.
Vocabulary flashcard apps like Duo Cards are good for this.
Regularly revisiting these materials will help solidify your understanding and keep your memory fresh.
Conclusion
These strategies have not only helped me become confident in speaking several languages but are also the foundation of my GOLD online course designed to help students ace the IELTS Speaking test.
Implement these tips, combine them with your unique learning style, and watch your confidence grow. Happy learning!
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