Improving Your English Language Proficiency

English has become a universal language.  It has become the language for some trade transactions, educational and cultural relations.  English is being frequently called the “language of communication.”  

But not everybody is proficient in speaking English, even the most professional speaker would still have some space for improvement. But how could you increase your aptitude in the English language? Here are some tips that you could easily do and at the same time give you significant results. 

• Reading

To increase any knowledge, regardless whatever field it is, the first thing you do is hit the books.  It is the same when increasing your language knowledge.  Spending time in reading would help you improve your vocabulary and comprehension.  You could use books, magazines and newspapers.  

If you want to learn more about grammar, then get a decent grammar book.  Libraries would have good collection of grammar books that you can check. These books will help you get back to the basics, like sentence construction.  These books should be your guide especially during occasions when you are having difficulties and confusions about grammar.  As your English improves, then you could start move to more difficult materials.  

• Watching and Listening

If you get tired of reading, then try watching and listening to different English programs. News programs like CNN or BBC are great channels to watch.  Although, it you watch something you are interested in, there are bigger chances that you will listen and pay attention.  You can watch movies with English subtitles, since it would help you even more. 

Try listening to English songs.  Start looking for the lyrics and compare how they were pronounced.  Listen carefully to what they say.  If you cannot understand a word, write it down and look for its meaning later on.   Try using or practice saying these words until you are able to use them effortlessly. 

• Writing

If you want to improve you English writing, then start practicing!  You can start by writing short essays, stories and paragraphs.  Make this a daily exercise. Three to five minute of writing, then get somebody to check it for you, whether it is for grammatical or other technical corrections.  Having somebody to give you a feedback will help you improve your work. 

• Talking

Practice talking or speaking in English.  You can talk to yourself in English if you are afraid to talk to other people. If you have friends who are good English speakers, then you can talk to them in English from time to time to improve on your own verbal communication.  Aside from building you speaking skills it would also help you boost your confidence. 

• Way of Thinking

Most of those who want to learn how to speak fluently in English make a common mistake, that is they think in their native language.  It would take a while for them to respond to a question or react using English, because they think the answer first in their native tongue before translating it into English.  To speak English fluently, then thinking in English is necessary. 

If it is difficult for you to learn on your own, then get a tutor.  You can even ask for friends to help you out. There are even some websites that offer English exercises to improve you language skills.  But we have to understand that whatever we are learning, it may be English or other languages, grammar and accent is not enough.  What matters is that people can understand you clearly. 
