Greetings everyone,
My name is Daniel, and I teach an Intermediate level USE class of Langports Sydney. During my time here at Langports, I have seen some pretty amazing success stories of students who came here with very little English and graduated from Langports with a great confidence in their English abilities. I have also seen students who seem to do the bare minimum work and have little to show for their time.
There is an expression that you see a lot on posters in gyms and fitness clubs, and that is, “No Pain, No Gain”. Now, your English learning shouldn’t be painful, but the meaning here is what you put into your studies, you will get out of your studies. Learning a new language requires effort and practice, but it is an achievable goal.
There are some things that you can do to help develop your English language skills.
Speaking
At Langports, you have a great opportunity to make friends with people who don’t speak your language. Eat lunch with them, and spend time with them outside of class. You help each other by communicating in English together. I know when you are in a foreign country that you need friends who speak your language, and who understand your culture; however, you should take advantage of this great opportunity to practice speaking English in a relaxed setting. Another opportunity for you to develop your English speaking skills is to participate in Conversation Club. Langports Sydney offers this 30-minute class once a week to provide you with the opportunity to converse with students from all levels, talking about the issues that are important to you.
Listening
Listening seems to be a skill that many people struggle with, but there are some simple ways for you to improve your skills. One way to listen again to the recordings that you hear in your class, is to use an app like “Easy Voice Recorder”. You can record the listening file, while you are listening to it in class, and then you have a chance to listen to it again outside of class to improve your understanding of it.
There are other very useful apps like the “British Council ESL Podcast” which provide you with short downloadable conversations. As the conversation progresses, the sentences that are being spoken are highlighted. These podcasts explain new vocabulary and ask comprehension questions at the end of the listening file. One student of mine needed to work on his listening skills. He started listening to these podcasts and it wasn’t long before he was showing confidence in his listening skills in class. You can do a search for these podcasts by looking for “ESL Podcasts”. Another helpful podcast is called “6 minute English”. This is made by the BBC and has three English skill levels: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced. These apps give you opportunities for listening practice outside of the classroom and it will give you more confidence in the classroom.
Vocabulary
For those of you who are struggling with vocabulary there are many apps that you can use to help you. For example, “Vocabulary Trainer” is an app that you set up in your own language. It gives you the instructions in your language and it provides you with new English vocabulary words with the translations. These apps can be used on the bus, or on the train, or when you are waiting for the bus or train. Whenever you have some time when you are waiting, you can improve your English.
Reading
All the Langports locations have an English Library, where you can borrow English books at your level. A teacher will be there to help you choose books that would be appropriate for you. Most of all this is a chance for you to read things that you are interested in. There are books, magazines, and DVDs with English subtitles that you can borrow. By reading a book a week, you will be able to see English grammar being used. You can pick up expressions in the books, and check the meanings with your teachers. You will expand your English vocabulary and be able to use these new words in your conversations.
The phrasal verbs
In your reading you may “come across” phrasal verbs which have different meanings to the individual words. For example: “come” means “to move toward” and “across” means “from one side to another” but “come across” means “to find by chance”. An app which can help you to understand and use phrasal verbs is “The Phrasal Verbs Game”. You first study the phrasal verbs and then you are tested on them in a game.
As you can see there are many ways that you can try to improve your English. Your classes are only one part of your learning process, and what you do outside of class can really help you in class. You have these apps that you can help your learning and you have classmates who want to improve their English skills too. Practice speaking English with your classmates, use the apps that you find most helpful and be the English communicating champions that we know you can be.
Thank you
Daniel Wakeford