This article was co-authored by Alicia Oglesby. Alicia Oglesby is a Professional School Counselor and the Director of School and College Counseling at Bishop McNamara High School outside of Washington DC. With over ten years of experience in counseling, Alicia specializes in academic advising, social-emotional skills, and career counseling. Alicia holds a BS in Psychology from Howard University and a Master’s in Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology from Chestnut Hill College. She also studied Race and Mental Health at Virginia Tech. Alicia holds Professional School Counseling Certifications in both Washington DC and Pennsylvania. She has created a college counseling program in its entirety and developed five programs focused on application workshops, parent information workshops, essay writing collaborative, peer-reviewed application activities, and financial aid literacy events.
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English is a difficult language to learn and even more so to speak with native fluency. By immersing yourself in the language, using media to practice, and enhancing your appearance as a native speaker, you can perfect your ability to speak English in no time.
Steps
Immersing Yourself
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1Find a native conversation partner in person or online. If your experience with English has largely been in textbooks, it can be helpful to practice your conversation skills with a native English speaker. Conversing regularly with a skilled English speaker will enable you to speak more fluidly and develop a natural speaking cadence. You can seek out a native speaker to partner with for conversation through Meetup.com or a local university.
- If you don't have time to seek out a partner in person, many online services such as Italki.com can connect you with a native speaker over Skype for one-on-one conversation sessions.[1]
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2Take a class. A classroom setting allows you to brush up your language skills in areas of confidence and improve your skills where you lag. You may feel at ease practicing in front of others who fall a little short of fluency as well. ESLdirectory.com provides a great database to browse ESL classes in your area.[2]Advertisement
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3Study abroad. Immersing yourself completely in not just an English-speaking population but also an English-speaking culture can take your fluency to the next level. Seek out university programs in the United States, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, or New Zealand for further study. Many accept international students year-round.[3]
Using Media
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1Take an online course. It used to be that you needed to shell out lots of money for online English classes, but that is changing thanks to MOOECs or Massive Open Online English Courses. These courses are taught online at the college level and often by high-ranking professors. Best of all? Most are free.[4]
- Top MOOECs to seek out are Alison, FutureLearn, and EdX. Many offer specialized classes that focus on improving conversation skills, verb tenses, and more, so you can improve the particular area that you have trouble with to perfect your English.
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2Watch television and movies in English. Listening to English with onscreen action can go a long way towards improving your language skills. Try to watch new shows and movies as well as movies that you know well. Doing this can help you pick up slang and improve your conversation skills.[5]
- If you watch the same movie in English several times, you may be able to understand it without subtitles.
- Keep a list of unfamiliar words you encounter while watching in a notebook. Afterward, try to use the new words in sentences you write yourself. This will help you incorporate the words into your vocabulary.
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3Listen to the radio or podcasts in English. Your commute is a great time to practice your English skills. Whenever you're in the car, flip to an English radio station. Listening to people go back and forth in English can help you pick up on certain words or phrases people employ often in dialog.[6]
- If you're listening to a radio interview, imagine how you would answer the questions. Try to practice and interact as much as possible. No one's looking!
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4Read aloud. Reading provides an opportunity to practice your English while also looking at the words. This will help you with reading comprehension and give you an opportunity to take things slow and review sentence construction. Add unfamiliar words to your vocabulary list.[7]
- If you struggle with reading in English, try simple books, such as children's books. These are usually written in a straightforward way and have pictures to aid with comprehension.
- Try to read books that you are really interested in.[8]
Improving Your Speech
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1Fine-tune your accent. A bad accent is a dead giveaway that you are not a native speaker. To improve your accent, try breaking difficult words down into their component sounds. Note where your lips and teeth are when you make the sounds successfully. Try to replicate the lip and mouth movements that give you the most authentic sound.[9]
- Try recording yourself and listen to the playback to improve your accent. If you switch between American and British accents, it may be distracting for listeners. It can be helpful to impersonate a famous actor or actress who is a native speaker with the accent you prefer to better hone your sound.
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2Practice intonation. Intonation helps listeners better comprehend your message and the emotion behind it. To work on your intonation, spend some time watching soap operas in English. Sure, they are corny, but their intonation is usually exaggerated for effect. Use that as a guide to understand when it is appropriate for your voice to go up in pitch or down based on the content of what you are saying.[10]
- Pick a piece of dialog from a play, for example, and record yourself reading it with the proper intonation. Make recordings over time to see how your intonation has improved or changed with this same piece. By listening to the playback, you can get a better idea of where your voice is off or just right.
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3Observe cultural norms and social gestures closely. Gestures, coupled with language, can send a powerful message about the strength of your English. English speakers who have native fluency don't just have all the right words or intonation, they are culturally attuned to the hand gestures and norms (dressing, facial expressions, etc.) that characterize English speakers.[11]
- Go to a local market and watch people interact; It can be helpful to note people who are your age and gender in particular. What expressions do they use to drive home a point or let someone know they are listening? Make a list of any characteristics you notice and try to incorporate them when you speak English.
Community Q&A
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QuestionI am finding it difficult to have an English movie accent. What can I do?
Community AnswerTalk with those who speak English as their native language. Watch English-language TV shows and movies and listen to English podcasts, but the most important tip is to practice as much as possible. Perfection will come with time. If it's impacting you professionally, you could consider a language coach. -
QuestionI'm 45, am I too old to start learning English?
DonaganTop AnswererThe older you get, the harder it becomes. In other words, if it's important to you, do it now. -
QuestionI have some fear to speak English, because my friends are laughing. What should I do?DonaganTop AnswererSpend less time with those people. Spend more time with those who don't laugh at you while you're learning a new language.
References
- ↑ https://www.italki.com/home?hl=en-us
- ↑ http://www.languagelearningportal.com/articles/en-GB/1062/4-essential-skills-in-language-learning.html
- ↑ https://www.gooverseas.com/blog/how-to-ramp-up-language-fluency-while-studying-abroad
- ↑ http://www.fluentu.com/english/blog/online-english-courses/
- ↑ http://www.fluentu.com/english/blog/how-to-improve-english-listening-comprehension-vocabulary/
- ↑ http://www.fluentu.com/english/blog/learn-english-radio/
- ↑ http://www.mosalingua.com/en/how-reading-helps-you-improve-your-foreign-language-skills/
- ↑ Alicia Oglesby. Professional School Counselor. Expert Interview. 29 October 2020.
- ↑ http://www.smartlanguagelearner.com/improve-english-accent/
About This Article
The best way to perfect your English is to speak to native English speakers as often as possible, since this will help you to become fluent. If you don’t already have friends who speak English as their first language, look for a native speaker willing to practice conversation through Meetup.com or a local university. You can also connect with an English speaker online using a service like Italki.com, which will allow you to talk together using Skype. For a longer-term strategy, look for a course to study English abroad, such as at a university in an English-speaking country like the U.S.A., England or Australia. While you’re there, you might also try looking for work to help you speak English in a natural context. For more tips from our Teacher co-author, including how to improve your accent, keep reading!
