Many people are unable to effectively improve their spoken English because they encounter some of the following common challenges and obstacles:
What to do when there is lack of speaking opportunities?
There are many online platforms and social media channels where you can find native English speakers or other English learners. You can help each other if you can find a language partner.
Look for English corners or international events in your area or nearby city. These events often provide opportunities to interact with other English speakers.
Take online English courses, especially those that mainly focus on speaking. Many online education platforms offer real-time interactive lessons with teachers or other learners.
Swap languages with other people, which means you can teach them your native language while they teach you English. This is a mutually beneficial way to increase speaking practice for both parties.
If you enjoy online gaming or social media, try interacting with other players or users in English. Many games and social media platforms have international users, which provides you with the opportunity to interact with others.
Use English as much as possible. You can try thinking in English, talking about your daily activities, keeping diary, and reading aloud English articles. These exercises can help you improve your speaking fluency and self-confidence.
If you have the opportunity to participate in an English club or English study group at school, college, or in your community, this is a good opportunity to practice speaking.
If you have the financial resources, you can hire a professional English teacher or language partner for one-on-one speaking practice. This can be customized depending on your needs.
What to do while being afraid of making mistakes?
Understand that making mistakes is a natural part of learning. There is no doubt that you will make plenty of mistakes as you learn, but every mistake is a learning opportunity. View mistakes as opportunities to improve, not fail.
Develop a positive learning mindset and believe that you can overcome obstacles. Avoid self-doubt and negative self-evaluation.
Break down your learning goals into small, specific tasks and achieve them gradually. This can help you feel more accomplished and less stressed about making mistakes.
Participate in speaking exercises, including conversations with others, speaking lessons, role-playing, and so on. Active participation can help you gain confidence.
Don’t be embarrassed or angry if others point out your mistakes. Accept the correction and thank them for their help.
Keep track of your mistakes and progress, and what you learn from each one. This helps you track your language development.
Build a network with other learners or native speakers who can offer you support and encouragement. Studying with other people can make you feel more motivated.
Try different learning methods, including listening, speaking, reading and writing. Variety can help you improve your language skills more fully.
Talk to your teacher or language partner regularly to get feedback. Also, regularly self-assess your language skills and make plans for improvement.
What to do when there is lack of confidence?
It is important to realize that your native language interferes with your English learning. Recognizing this is the first step in solving the problem.
Pronunciation in your native language may be different from pronunciation in English, so it is important to practice your English speech and pronunciation. Listen to native speakers speak English, imitate their pronunciation, and have some pronunciation courses and use relevant resources to improve your pronunciation.
Grammatical differences between native languages and English are common distractions. Pay special attention to English grammar rules, understand English sentence structure and tense usage, and avoid applying grammatical structures from your native language directly to English.
Listen to more English, including English-language movies, music, news and podcasts in order to improve your understanding of English speech and intonation. Meantime, actively participate in speaking practice and communicate with native speakers to gradually adapt to English speech and intonation.
Avoid direct translation of phrases and idioms from your native language into English. Different languages have different ways of expressing themselves, and trying to translate them directly may result in unnatural expressions.
Instead of feeling upset or embarrassed when someone corrects your language mistakes, thank them for their help. Accepting correction is part of learning.
Read more English texts, including articles, novels and news. This can help you better understand English expressions and idioms.
Regularly review your progress in learning English, paying special attention to native language interference. This helps you to identify and correct problems.
