Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Many People Have Discovered Ways To Learn To Speak English Online

By Katrina Wheeler


For decades English has been a popular language to learn but nowadays instead of attending a language center or finding a private teacher, people are turning to the Web to learn to speak English online. All over the world people of all ages, from school children to retirees, are learning in increasing numbers. Amazingly it is estimated that at any one time there are over a billion people enrolled in programs of one kind or another.

The main reason for this growth is global business. English is the language of international trade and finance and most companies either require employees to be proficient, or expect it to be in place when they are recruited. Language skills also mean that employees can move easily around the world and acquire knowledge or information by attending courses or conferences, which can in turn be passed on to other employees. Other reasons for learning the language are for travel or to attend university in another country. Students and children often take courses to boost their grades.

When a person decides to acquire a new language, they have a much greater range of courses and methods than in the past and an increasingly popular alternative is to turn to the web. However, once they start to explore, there is a confusing array of choices. Then it becomes necessary to think about factors such as whether the course offers certification, course costs, time available and their preferred learning style.

Some of the original well-known language courses for travelers have been redeveloped as programs on the internet. They usually have levels from beginner onwards and use speech recognition technology. One of their advantages of this type of course is that they give instant feedback and correction of both reading and speech. There are different types of courses available including business or academic English.

For the student who prefers to work at their own pace and set their own goals there are worksheets available online. The major the advantage of these is that they can also be downloaded to be completed at a convenient time and place. Some courses are structured around modules which can be downloaded, with assignments that are submitted to a tutor for grading and feedback.

Videos clips of English lessons are also offered as a tool for the learner and some courses go as far as to make an online teacher available through video conferencing. Further opportunities for acquiring the language are to be had through social networking sites. These provide not only opportunities for study but also for practicing conversation and exchanging ideas with lots of different people around the world.

Some people prefer to keep their learning lighthearted. For these people there are lots of games, quizzes and interactive fun websites to choose from. Often parents and teachers encourage children to learn in this way, but many sites are for adults too.

These innovations are encouraging even more people to learn to speak English online. Not only that, but the range and choice increase every day. This means that people can explore and experiment with different types of programs before choosing the method of learning to best suit themselves and their lifestyle.




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