ESL Blogs

Do you still have difficulty understanding what other people say in English on the radio or TV or in a movie?  Do you think that you're still unable to express yourself effectively in an English conversation? If your answer is yes, you're not alone, and you sure need more listening or speaking skills.

You may argue that you've spent so much time reading and writing blogs here on MyEC instead of watching English TV programs or movies. Then, my question is, can your English reading or writing improve your listening or speaking skills? My answer is yes. Here's my two cents:

You need to get familiar with English (vocabulary, grammar, etc)

To be good at any of the four skills (reading, writing, listening, and speaking) requires you to be familiar with English. If you're good at reading or writing, chances are you'll be good at listening or speaking. When you're watching and trying to understand an English movie, you may want to read the subtitles at the same time. What if you even have trouble understanding the subtitles?

Writing dialogues may do the trick

We can write a dialogue to mimic a real conversation – imagining yourself talking with somebody else. With more such writing practice, your speaking skills will improve, too. Check out my blog "Write a dialogue to Improve Your Speaking", or Bob’s "Dialogue Challenge". 

When reading, make sure you know how to pronounce the words 

If you’re not sure how to pronounce a word, you should look the word up in a dictionary. It’s impossible for you to understand what other poeple are saying unless you’re familiar with the pronunciation of the words.

So, your English reading or writing can improve your listening or speaking skills. Being good at one of the skills will enhance the other three ones. It sure takes a lot of time and effort to be good at the four skills, though - unfortunately, there are no shortcuts in English learning. It may be a good idea to spend more time reading and writing blogs or comments here on MyEC.  Do you agree?