How can English Teachers Improve their Own English?

We’re reading more and more on how to teach English, we’re attending webinars, conferences or take courses to learn more about the new approaches to English teachers, but don’t we need to continue learning English, not only teaching it? Here are some ways to help us, English teachers, make sure that our English is constantly improving instead of deteriorating:

1. Exposure is everything. As obvious as it sounds, but we need to keep reading in English, even if sometimes we don’t feel like it. As we read books or articles (from some reliable sources) in English, it’s crucial to take note of new expressions and to look them up to know how to use them and in what context. 

2. Listening to English is also highly important as we need to be able to understand different accents and be more familiar with spoken genres as well. Some expressions which you’ll hear in TV series, documentaries or films are hard to find in some books. So if you have some free time or if you need to do some household chores, why not put something interesting on.

3. Imagine that learning a foreign language is like going to the gym, as you do need to do exercises. There’s so much about even our own language that we don’t know, so there’s definitely more to discover about the English grammar and use as well. So, it’s always a good idea to go back to some grammar books and revise some things in there. Not to mention the fact, that the language is changing and we as teachers need to keep up to date with the new grammar rules.

4. Make an effort to speak and write more in English. There’s no harm in texting your colleagues in English and speaking English to them whenever you get the chance. Those opportunities to use English won’t create themselves, if you live in a country where it’s not the main language of communication.

5. Why not get one more certificate and take an international exam? If you’ve already taken IELTS, then you can take TOEFL or Cambridge Advanced C1 or even Proficiency C2? Preparing for a proficiency exam will be a great opportunity to take classes with a teacher who’ll be giving you feedback on your language use and it’s a great opportunity to work on the skills which could be underdeveloped for whatever reason.

6. Keep working on building up more educated vocabulary. There are plenty of apps available on phones, some audio programs or podcasts to help you take your vocabulary to a different level. That, however, will require time and effort, and you need to revise the newly learnt words on a regular basis.

7. Of course, going on an exchange program or finding a summer job in an English speaking country is always a great idea. It’s worth mentioning though that going to an English speaking country with students of your own, will not necessarily help you to improve your English, but communicating with students and teachers from elsewhere is more likely to help you reach your goal.

Remember, that learning English it’s not only an investment in yourself, but it’s your lifestyle:)