I still Can’t Speak English

Maastricht
University is
the best specialist
university in the
Netherlands
(Elsevier)

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I Still Can’t Speak English
44
Meeting English Speakers &
Building Learning Relationships
I hope that sounds ok and that we can get to talk about some interesting topics in the coming months and 
have some fun.
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Copy and paste this text into a message to your online practice partners who have agreed to help you.
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Helping learners to practise their English
Welcome to English Out There. You will be talking to learners who are new to your first language. These 
instructions will help you to make the most of your conversations with these learners face-to-face, on VoIP 
and inside virtual classrooms. When talking to a learner remember these important tips:
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Be patient and speak slowly enough for the learner to understand you. Help the learner to 
relax.
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Listen carefully. Learners have varying pronunciation skills depending on their first language 
and level. Be forgiving and ask them politely to repeat words and phrases you do not 
understand or ask them to write the word or phrase in the chat box also. Say ‘can you spell it?’ 
or spell what you think they are saying and ask them if that’s what they mean. Repeat what 
they say or what you think they said as this will help them to hear how you pronounce the 
words.
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Encourage them to stick to the topic and vocabulary from the lesson first but don’t worry 
if they ask other questions. Conversations should be as natural as possible. Sometimes as 
the learner’s confidence increases and they become comfortable, they might ask you totally 
unrelated questions.
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Do not stop and correct everything. We want the learner to become more fluent and their 
confidence to build. Make sure you correct key things. Maybe even ask them at the start ‘How 
much correction would you like?’
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If they get stuck and the conversation dries up, ask them if they are okay and then ask them if 
they wish to continue or go back over something. Help them to relax. Ask them if they wish to 
talk about something else.
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Never feel awkward if there is silence
–
 they might be thinking hard and always give them 
audible clues that you are listening, such as saying ‘uh-huh’ or ‘yes’. This will give them 
confidence that you understand what they are saying.

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