In today's digital age, learning English has become more accessible and engaging than ever. Our Advanced class students at UKCE have explored various tech-driven methods, from apps to podcasts, to enhance their language skills. Here, they share their top recommendations to help you make the most of these innovative tools on your English learning journey.
Angie:
In my quest to master English, technology has been my trusted sidekick! Games like Kahoot turned learning into a thrilling game, while e-books made every spare moment an opportunity for growth. Together, they have supercharged my progress in the most fun way! Let me share how these two tools have made a real difference.
Kahoot!
Picture this: your English class becomes a high energy quiz game where every right answer feels like hitting a jackpot! With Kahoot! Learning English became a thrilling experience for me. Seeing my score and either climbing or staying on top of the podium gave me such a rush, and to be honest competing with my classmates turned studying into something I actually looked forward to. I love getting instant feedback on my answers, so I know right away what I have nailed and what needs more work. Plus it helps me remember vocabulary and grammar better. It is an amazing way to learn and have fun at the same time.
E-books
Feeling bored on the Tube? E-books come to the rescue! Now, my commute is far from wasted time; it’s an opportunity to dive into a fascinating book or polish my English skills. What makes ebooks so special is their ability to make the most of every spare moment thanks to the convenience of having so many books available at my fingertips.
Andy:
Podcasts
I have come across some very interesting, helpful, and entertaining podcasts from BBC Learning English. If you have an iPhone, you can find them in the podcast app. There are a variety of categories, such as grammar, conversations, vocabulary, and stories. My personal favorite is "6 Minute English," which features brief conversations between two native British speakers. It's a great way to practice listening and expand your vocabulary. The topics of the episodes are diverse, yet always engaging and informative. Examples of episode titles include "How names can tell painful stories" and "The school that puts the kids in charge," which gives you an idea of how interesting the stories are. A useful feature is that you can listen to them anywhere, whether you're at the gym, at home, or during your commute. If this sounds appealing to you, I highly recommend giving it a try!
Grammarly
This is a very useful app that helps you write correctly. Additionally, it teaches punctuation and how to sound professional, empathetic, or assertive. The app provides different types of assistance, helping with grammar and vocabulary. However, I consider the most valuable aspect to be the ability to adjust the tone of your messages or emails based on who you are writing to or the purpose of the message.
Nevertheless, I must caution you against overusing it, as it can have the opposite effect by limiting your learning process. Keep this in mind.
Andrés:
In these days of technology we have a lot of tools to hone our skills in every aspect of learning a language different from our own. There are some platforms, apps or technological devices that in my opinion and experience would be helpful for anyone who wants to improve their English / second language skills.
First of all streaming platforms like YouTube, Netflix, Prime Video could be a good beginning to becoming immersed in a language because if you watch some series, movies, cartoons, etc in the original language ( English, etc ) with the original subtitles you will start to associate the language with the actions that you see in every episode, season, or scene, and you will become more aware of the language in different contexts, slangs, idioms, accents, words, etc., so the language will be familiar to you when you start learning in a classroom with a teacher, just believe me it is gonna work and you gonna be more curious about the language in time .
Additionally, I would like to recommend you Falou, an interesting App that helps people with important skills, such as speaking and writing. This app is challenging because it gives you more than a lot of information, yeah, it is an app that lets you practice listening and writing, and allows you to repeat and complete conversations that you would use on a regular basis every day. The most important thing for me is that this app lets you repeat until you decide you’re done. Then you can hear your own mistakes and hear your pronunciation to improve your speaking. It really is helpful, give it a try! You will hone your skills and will speak properly pronouncing words like a native speaker..
Annapaola
This article is about technological tools we use to learn or improve our English!
I would like to present which tools I use every day to achieve my aims to improve my rusty English. If you want to discover new tools or new ways to learn, you have to search for them in the right article!
My favourite tools are, among others, podcasts like Duolingo, YouTube, Cambridge Dictionary, phrasal verbs and watching movies.
Every evening I use Duolingo to keep my streak and to refresh my knowledge of some words or grammar. This tool is good but it is not enough to learn grammar. You can use it when you are on a bus or around the city because it is easy and fast.
I also find podcasts very helpful to learn new things about the English language; I use them every morning while I’m getting ready to leave the house and go to school. I love this way of learning, because you can use it while doing other things. I usually listen to a story on podcasts or tips about the right pronunciation of words and I repeat them (yes, sometimes I speak to myself in my bathroom :P)
In the same way we use Podcasts we can use YouTube too, it is my first favourite tool. You can find a lot of content about English and learn a lot of things. However, this one requires more attention, more focus. I mainly use it in the afternoon to improve my pronunciation.
When I have doubts about the meaning or pronunciation of words, I like to look up the words in the Cambridge Dictionary app because it is the best dictionary for me, very clear and user-friendly.
In English, there are a lot of phrasal verbs and I find it helpful to study new phrasal verbs with an app whose name is just “Phrasal Verbs” whichI use almost everyday when I'm on a bus. We can then practise all the above by watching movies in English listening to new idioms and phrasal verbs.
In conclusion, I think learning a new language is a challenging thing and it requires time and effort, however, nowadays we are facilitated with technology and devices which make the process of learning a lot less challenging.
Thiago
Netflix:
In my opinion, film streaming apps provide us with technology, like Netflix, which helps us to learn English by practising listening. You can also put on subtitles to practice your reading and it will help you with that tricky spelling of words in English.
Instagram is another option where you can find quick videos of people teaching English. Some of them will teach you very important rules or words. It is helpful and practical. It will teach you grammar, new words, pronunciation and slang language. Maybe funny and short videos can catch your attention more than long class videos.
Kahoot for me is a fantastic way to learn, memorise and practise English. It helps me learn by having fun, it facilitates remembering what you have learnt in the last days in just a few seconds. It’s a competitive game in which you will probably have a lot of fun and really reinforce what you have learned. At the end the game will shows you a podium and whether you will or will not be 🥇 a winner.
Betül
The Impact of Technology and Apps We Use on Learning English
In today’s digital age, technology plays a significant role in all areas, including education. Access to English learning materials has never been easier, thanks to technology. You can find online courses like Preply or Cambly, as well as interactive exercises and video lessons. You just need to search on Google. With Cambly, you can speak with native speakers.
Language learning apps make learning English easier, fun, and motivating. For example, if you are starting to learn English and use Mondly, you can learn how to ask something in real-life situations. It has various sections like "in hospital," "in a restaurant," etc. You can learn relevant vocabulary and practice how to say things correctly, improving your pronunciation.
Another useful app is Busuu. Busuu is a language-learning app that provides comprehensive courses in various languages, focusing on practical communication skills. Unlike some other language apps, Busuu combines self-paced lessons with opportunities to practice with native speakers. The app offers interactive exercises covering vocabulary, grammar, reading, writing, speaking, and listening. One of Busuu's unique features is its community aspect, where users can submit written and spoken exercises for feedback from native speakers of the language they’re learning. This peer review system helps learners improve their language skills through real-world practice.
The British Council app is similar to Busuu. The British Council English app is another tool designed to help users improve their English skills. It offers a range of resources, including interactive lessons, practice exercises, quizzes, and videos, covering different aspects of the English language such as grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and listening skills.
Meetup is an app which makes socialising easier, it offers many events for socializing, helps you find people who have similar interests and allows you to practice English with them.
Another option is YouTube, specifically the channel "English with Lucy." She is an English teacher with many videos on popular English topics. If you follow her videos, you can notice your own improvement.
For learning new vocabulary, Ewa is an excellent choice. Ewa includes many books which you can read learning vocabulary in context. At the same time, you can also select words to translate. It's amazing for pronunciation too.
Many people know Duolingo which is a language-learning app that offers courses in various languages through interactive lessons. It is designed to make learning a new language fun and accessible by using gamification techniques, such as points, levels, and daily streaks, to keep users motivated. Duolingo covers different aspects of language learning, including vocabulary, grammar, speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills.
Podcasts (BBC Learning English, 5-Minute English, English Stories, etc.) are very useful for learning new vocabulary and understanding how to use English in real life but most of all practising listening. If you want to learn British English, they will be very beneficial for you.
Spotify is another tool that should be mentioned. If you want to learn by listening, you should listen to something, and with Spotify, you can listen to English songs and see the lyrics at the same time. It will be useful for understanding new words. You can use it anytime, like on the train, while walking, or when cooking.
To improve your writing skills you should use Grammarly. It corrects your mistakes and suggests better options, helping you write like a native English speaker.
ChatGPT can be like a friend that you can talk to about anything, or if you have a question, it can act as a teacher and explain things to you easily. You just need to say, "I am a B1 student, can you explain this subject to me?" and then listen.
In conclusion, technology and language learning applications make the English learning process more accessible, enjoyable, and effective. Vast resources offered by the internet, gamification techniques, real-life communication opportunities, and personalized learning experiences greatly contribute to the success of language learning. By using these technological opportunities correctly and efficiently, it is possible to achieve our English learning goals.
Emir
I use a lot of apps to learn English, but the most useful ones are GoodNotes, a dictionary, ChatGPT, and Netflix.
Goodnotes is a very useful app for taking notes and I also avoid carrying heavy books by downloading them onto this app.
I use a dictionary to check the meanings of words, phrases, and proverbs I don't know. It’s very necessary for learning English.
We cannot forget ChatGPT which is a very useful application for learning English. You can use it like a teacher. If there's no one around to ask when you don't understand a topic, sentence, or word, you can ask ChatGPT.
Netflix is a perfect app for learning pronunciation, spelling, and usage of words. You can turn on subtitles while watching a movie or series to learn these things.
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