The Easy Way to Learn Spoken English

Learning to read and write English can be limited to the four walls of a classroom and textbooks. But learning to speak English needs good practical exposure. You can hardly speak a correct sentence if you count on the teaching methods and materials provided by the commercial spoken English centres in the city.

Unfortunately, many of the students in Hyderabad city do not know this. You might have seen many students taking coaching from these spoken English institutes and still struggling to speak English fluently, even with their friends. Speaking staggered English, they assure themselves that they are still in the process of learning to speak good English. But, the fact is, they continue to speak the same broken English in future too, unless they realize and rectify the fault.

Here, in this article, we have tried to put forward the right approach/process of learning spoken English, the easy way.

Speaking English should come naturally
Spoken English is the final step of English learning process – it can be learned only after you get a proper hold on listening, reading and writing. All these four aspects are interconnected. As you are polishing the other three aspects (listening, reading and writing) you can simultaneously speak English. This is because the listening, reading and writing aspects will help you learn English with great accuracy that ultimately translates to good and spontaneous verbal skills. For more information on importance of English writing skills, click here(has internal link).

Learn to speak English slowly, but properly
Though mastering these three skills is time taking, it is very important. Learn slowly, but sincerely learn every aspect of English – this helps to speak English effortlessly. Moreover, this also helps in accurate reproduction of your ideas.

Learning to speak English is a continuous process. It can’t be learned in a matter of days or months as promised by our spoken English institutes. No matter how sharp you are, it takes certain time for you to comfortably speak English. Hence, never rush to these institutes and fall prey to their unproductive and cheap tactics. For more information on why people in Hyderabad are struggling with spoken English, click here(has internal link).

Take help of ‘REAL’ English resources
Expose yourself to real English and not textbook English. Text books can only quote the grammatical rules and explain the rules with a maximum of 3 examples – which are of no use for putting English in to practical usage. English learned through text books can in no way help you speak English in your day-to-day life; it can only make you familiar with the language. Hence, take help of those English learning resources, that will help you first introduce to the language in a right way, secondly, lets you easily understand the right usage of the language and thirdly, will help you apply the learned knowledge effortlessly, in a right way and without any hesitation. For more information on the right English learning resources, click here(has internal link).

Don’t learn English only to pass exams
Students studying English as a second language are perfect with grammar. But this kind of learners have difficulty in speaking right English, as they learn these concepts only to pass exams and not to apply the knowledge in real life situations. Whereas, a native English speaker can easily go through the definition and apply it instantly. This is because, he is not interested in learning English for the sake of learning, but he learns it for the need of using.

Spend most of your time in English speaking environment
So as to speak English fluently one has to be around the language all the time. You should be in an environment where you are around English speaking people constantly. It is like being in touch with your native language (mother tongue) all around the time, constantly. Read and listen constantly to get clear, correct and right flow. Constant application of English concepts and skills too is as important as learning.

Good spoken English institutes make sure that the students, not only study English, but apply it. They encourage them to be in constant touch with English in various ways, and stop them from adopting switching on and off approach of learning English (learning English only when they attend classes). For more information on good spoken English learning centres, click here(has internal link).

Don’t concentrate on accent
Don’t focus on accent. It makes it difficult to speak English. Good English is not about having good accent; it is about how clearly you can put your view across through Standard English. Many of our friends in Hyderabad focus on accent instead of focusing on learning English. For more information on tyranny of accent in English, click here(has internal link).

Have confidence
Dump your fear. Have confidence. Be prepared to be laughed at. Don’t panic on making mistakes. Have a positive attitude, it is through mistakes that you interact more with the language. Seeing mistakes as hurdles can limit your learning abilities, whereas, seeing them as a chance to research more on the language concepts, can take you to the next level of learning in less time.

Few quick tips to speak right English
While all the above tips, help you get into the right mind-set for learning English. Below are few functional tips that help you learn spoken English quickly.

• Don’t think and form grammatical sentences in your mind before you speak. Also, don’t think in your native language, translate it and then speak – these ways will only prevent you from speaking English fluently.
• Having said this, you are still expected to be ‘sound’ with English grammar, before you start speaking. But, the word ‘sound’ DOES NOT mean that you should blindly memorize the grammar concepts, instead it is the ability to understand the grammatical concept and apply it then and there.
• Learn phrases, not words. While learning to speak English, learning mere words is of no use, unless you know how to use them. Learning words in phrases, such as, will you, I forgot, she needs it, they want, you speak, etc., will help you know where, when and how to use a word – key to speak accurate English.
• Don’t ever listen and repeat English sentences, rather listen and answer. Ask your friends and tutors to pose questions and let you answer. This is the best way to strengthen spoken English skills.
• Use real English lessons and materials (not text books) – Take help of English comics to learn English fast and easily. Also, English TV shows, radio talk shows, movies, audio CDs, etc., help you in getting to know the common usage of English. Also, watch English movies with subtitles. Carry your iPod and constantly listen to English audios, songs, etc. For more information on the role of entertainment in learning English, click here(has internal link).

The best way to learn spoken English is to – talk, talk, talk and talk. The fact is that, you learn to speak English, as you are speaking. Though speaking English has to come naturally, it needs a conscious effort from the learner. A true learner is conscious and observes the good way of using and speaking English in various people and then inculcates those habits.