ESL Discussion

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  • Syed Faisal Ali June 24, 2014 7:58

    Believe it or not, I studied English alone. When I came to abroad for work at that time my English was very poor. 

    I bought a book and started to read stories and did my best to understand the pattern of sentences. I used to mark the difficult words to find them in Dictionary. I had no access to the internet at that time. I'm talking about 2007, then i started to speak or pronounce the new words which I learned from the books.

    I was not really sure that if my pronunciation was good or not. But I kept speaking even some people made a fun of me and they corrected me. Then I got access to the internet, I was not really familiar with internet but I use google to help me and google showed me a website "My English Club", I made many friends here and after spending some time in chatroom and reading blogs. My vocabulary became rich and i added many users on Skype.... And this is how I improved my English. 

  • Luci April 30, 2014 15:02
    Since I have been surounded by my kids last four years here at home, sometimes I catch myself talking in English with myself. Hard to say if it is helpful or if I am psycho but I would say it might help little bit. Anywayz, it can't ever be the same as the conversation where you have to react immediately.
  • Michel April 29, 2014 1:36
    Alone, only reading anything.
  • Rody Momen April 28, 2014 23:12
    Talking with yourself in the mirror
  • T Mal April 28, 2014 9:34

    Hi Everyone.

    As an online teacher I have often been asked the same question and my answer is yes you can improve speaking skills alone.  I once met a Tibetan Monk online who had done exactly this he described who he would find websites with audio and text that he could copy.  He did say he had some speaking skills but needed to improve them.

    From his idea I researched websites that a learner with some speaking skills could improve speaking and fluency.  The students I worked with found the BBC The Flatmates serial the most useful.  It allows you to improve listening skills (which help speaking too) check your understanding by reading the text then you can try copying what you hear in the audio.  Finally record what you say and compare it to the recording.  Start with one sentence at a time working up to the whole script. The link below is for episode 1 and there are almost 300 episodes and each has a language point to help with grammar and vocabulary.

    One more thing.  It is important that students are aware of all 44 sounds of English, being able to distinguish them and produce them will help understanding of the speaker and the listener.

    Here are two links I hope you will find useful.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/pron/

    http://http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/flatmates/...

    At a higher level you can use the same website but go to the section 'Words in the News'  try to copy the stress and intonation you hear in the news items.  The topics will also improve your vocabulary.

    Mal

  • Dark Knight March 10, 2014 17:08

    Yes,it's possible....there are many different ways to do this like:-

    1.Reading out loud (from any book, any conversation)

    2.Speaking to yourself (some people actually have this kind of habit)

    3.Speaking with an imaginary friend i.e.thinking possible conversations from both side & thinking about variations that what will he say if i say this or that (most people do this when they have a crush on someone)

    4.Watching some English movie and try to act like characters and speaking out their dialogues in their accent. (this is the quickest & funniest way if you like acting)

    5.Singing English songs (for those who are gifted with good vocal range & like to sing)

    These methods are best for introverts who prefers to talk less & enjoy loneliness.

    but there problem is these methods are boring as compared to talking with some friend in English.

    when you have conversation partner, you don't feeling like you are learning something...and that's why you can talk for hours without being tired. 

    I had tried first 3 methods..it worked well but sometimes i found myself that i am forcefully pushing myself even if i tried for half an hour.

    To conclude...According to me , practicing speaking alone is possible but require a lot of patience & tolerance to overcome boredom & a strong determination & willpower to learn.

  • This reply was deleted.
    • Selvakumar.S May 29, 2013 11:12

      Respected sir... I never upset for anything... I am really very cool person... we are all friends here...

      I know this is only some kind of debate.....

      I Know that through debate we can learn more...  and I think we skipped the original discussion heading....

      finally ... it is up the individual whether if some body can practice alone it is well and good... practice with group will give more experience... this is my suggestion only..

      Anyway thanks sir for your valuable inputs...

  • This reply was deleted.
    • Selvakumar.S May 29, 2013 8:10

      Dear Mani...

      You are absolutely correct.... we can practice alone by using our own mirror and we can save our voice in video/audio...

      but my small question is here... before practicing we need somebody's help to learn properly / correctly...

      that is all

      s.selvakumar

    • Selvakumar.S May 30, 2013 16:40

      I am selva mr.mani please

This reply was deleted.

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