Are you looking for an effective and convenient way to improve your English skills? Look no further than social media learning! By leveraging the power of social media platforms, you can improve your English language skills from the comfort of your own home.
Improving your English is like an exercise; it requires effort, sacrifice, and time. And take note, it will not happen overnight, be patient. You should run at your own pace and acknowledge your excellent improvements, even counting 1-10. Who cares, even if it’s only 1-10? Tomorrow it will be 11-100, and suddenly you can use it to tell time, transact, and communicate. It sounds great, right?
In this article, we’ll explore the benefits of social media learning for English improvement and provide tips for getting started. Let’s dive in!
Social Media Learning for English: Proven Tips and Strategies
Learning the English language is challenging. It is never easy, and it will never will. But, it does not mean it is impossible. Remember, little progress is still progress! The hardest will always be the beginning, but the most important thing is you decided to start.
No one starts at something and can be insanely great instantly. Experts in all fields include failure, consistency, and continuous practice, just like English. To possess advanced English skills, first, you need to be a beginner. Now, (hopefully) we have already convinced you that starting your English language journey will be rough (but do not worry, we are here to guide you), but again, it is tricky, but it is not impossible. After all, the word itself “impossible” says “I’m possible.”
However, there are many things you can do to make your supposed rough journey to learning the English language a smooth one. It is just a matter of having fun while learning. Improving your English language can happen even outside the four sides of the classroom. We just need to keep your interest as much as possible, and you can learn anything.
Nowadays, we tend to use social media most of the time. According to the latest data, internet users’ average daily social media users worldwide is about 145 minutes per day. That is a lot. But, we can also use this time to learn the English language. Do you mean using my social media apps, socializing, and surfing the internet while learning? And yes! You heard it right. Here are some tips for using social media to enhance your English language.
Top Reasons Why Social Media Helps You To Be A Better English Speaker
Recent data suggest that 90 percent of teens use social media.
In a survey conducted last June 2020, approximately more than 46% of teens from Japan aged 17 to 19 spent one to three hours every day, and more than eight percent used social media for more than six hours. These statistics strongly display that social media can be a great platform to learn English since a lot of time is invested.
Choices in social media are limitless. Every day, there are new social media platforms you can use that can trigger your interest. Youtube, Tiktok, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and many more are present to serve you 24/7.
There are recorded 3.96 billion people in 2020 who are active social media users, and there is at least a 10.9% increase in count yearly. With social media, you can quickly connect with them! And most of them are native English speakers or some of them are non-native but can speak fluently in English, which could serve as an inspiration.
In social media, you can explore things easily. You can learn and improve your English language with random videos, poems, or even reading a status. Content is everywhere. Little things matter, indeed.
Social media is an excellent source of timely information and up-to-date news. Blogs, books, and other data are written in English; it will certainly help you practice your skills. In addition, figures, drawings, and images are also present here; this will help you understand what you are reading deeply.
Many learners grew up in the world of social media, which made them drawn to it. These “digital natives” usually enjoy using and learning from social media, which makes the acquisition and retaining of information a lot easier.
Educators and learners can easily share, debate, exchange information, and answer questions at any time of the day. This will lead to more engaging online learning and discussion.
Maximizing Social Media Learning: How to Effectively Use Platforms for English Language Acquisition
1. Join Groups English Learning Groups. There are tons of groups on social media that aim to help anyone interested to learn the English language. Take Facebook, for example; you will be shocked by how many groups and thousands of learners improve their English skills. Join these groups, and you can have free access to content, learn from their Journey, gain tips, and have a learning body. Participating English-learning language group is a great avenue to seek support while in the learning process and keep yourself engaged and on track.
2. Use Facebook to Create Your Own Group. If you do not feel at ease joining existing Facebook groups, it is alright. That is not even a problem! You can use Facebook to create your English language-learning group. In this way, you can invite your friends, classmates, or anyone you want to be part of your Journey. You can control who can join and see the post, but still, an excellent place to learn. You and your members can share great articles, ask questions, and interact, so everyone can take the benefit of joining and improving their English skills.
3. Connect and Make Friends. There are millions of native and fluent non-native English speakers on social media. Regardless of where they came from, culture, background, or ethnicity, you can always learn from them. Message them, comment on their posts, read their status, and do anything that will give you exposure to the English language. These minor interactions will help you to improve a lot. And along the way, you might gain friends, which is a pretty great bonus for you. Just practice courtesy at all times, and connecting with people and making them your friends will be easy.
Social media can provide a wealth of language resources to help you enhance your English-speaking abilities. You just need to have strong motivation, a correct mindset, and great platforms. Below, you will know the best social media apps that can help you to improve your English language.
Best Social Media Learning Apps to Improve Your English Language
If you’re looking for ways to enhance your online English learning experience, social media platforms can be a great resource. With countless apps available, it can be overwhelming to choose which ones to try. To help you narrow down your options and save time, we’ve compiled a list of our top picks for social media applications that can aid in your English language growth.
1. Facebook
With nearly 2.89 billion active users in the second quarter of 2021, one thing is for sure; you can gain a lot from using Facebook. It is considered the largest social media network in the world. By using Facebook, you can connect with people, join English-Language events, follow English accounts, practice your reading and comprehension skills, and many more. You just need to engage yourself with these activities, and you will improve a lot.
Also, you can read good articles on Facebook by following pages like BuzzFeed, Medium, and CNN News; these Facebook pages published engaging and valuable articles. By reading and following these kinds of pages, you are practicing your English skills already.
Moreover, Facebook is also a place for great videos to learn the English language. You can check BBC Learning English, Simple English Videos, and English is Easy to Start with. They create videos and other content to help learners in enhancing their English skills.
2. Instagram
Some people need visuals to absorb what they are learning. With that, Instagram can also be an avenue to learn the English Language.
An estimated 1 billion monthly users can convince you to use Instagram. Bloggers, writers, businesses, and your friends are all here. What is good about Instagram, articles, and content can be presented aesthetically. Users can publish poems, and post statuses embedded with incredible photos; this makes your learning extra fun and engaging.
Since this is a social media app, you can also message anyone here and practice your conversation. While scrolling, you can see photos with great captions, poems, places, and other random stuff that can trigger your interest.
Instagram is also a home for great writers and content creators; by following them, you are taking a part of yourself in the world of great English speakers.
3. YouTube
Securing the second spot of most search engines, you could probably find what you are looking for here. This is perfect if you love to learn through videos. Suppose you belong to the type of learners who can quickly absorb information when someone is speaking, with visuals and sounds.
Youtube is still considered a social media app since it allows users to share, store, and upload content. It is different from other social media applications since it is not commonly used to send private messages to someone. Still, it offers interactive content and gives a way to socialize through comment sections, which are a few reasons that make it a social media platform.
You can follow content creators here like Shaw English Online and Learn English with EnglishClass101.com to start your English Journey on Youtube. Here, you can practice your reading, writing, and pronunciation skills – all on Youtube. You can also make your videos to make your English Journey extra exciting if you want.
4. Twitter.
A microblogging platform with approximately 192 million daily users is an excellent platform for exploring and honing your English skills. Twitter users can write up to 140 characters in each post, which is called “tweets’. It is a perfect place for beginners to create short statuses, updates, or anything to practice their English skills.
It is a great place to learn trendy words and vocabulary. Twitter users tweet a lot about news, trends, feelings, random thoughts, or anything in between. It simply implies that your supply of information never ends.
This social media app can serve you as your English online journal. You can tweet anything you want, the cute dog in the park, the amusing music you heard while walking, the kindness of people you witnessed, or including your cute random thoughts. It will serve you as an excellent English language exercise.
5. Tiktok
An app that allows anyone to be a content creator aims to bring entertainment rather than showcase one’s lifestyle. Maybe these are some of the few significant reasons why this app continues to gain love from people. It will not surprise you when I say Tik Tok is now the fastest-growing social media app in the world.
Of course, on Tiktok, you can learn the English language; there are thousands or even millions of users here teaching grammar, and words using the English language. For only 30 seconds to 1 minute of video, you can probably learn a thing or two. Not bad, for a short time of watching. Imagine watching videos for at least 30 minutes per day; how much information can you get from it? Now, I will let you do the math.
Social media learning to improve your English is one great step to achieving your English language goals. You can explore other applications over the internet and find the best one for you. But, you can always try one or two (the best would be all, one at a time) top picks of social media applications we recommended for you and experienced their benefits in learning the English language. They might help you because they helped us too.
10 Golden Tips to Enhance Your English Skills
We all need some tips and strategies to improve whatever we do, and it is natural to find ways to make things lighter. Learning English, especially if you are a non-native speaker, would be difficult. At first, when you ask yourself the question, how can I learn English through social media, you might laugh because you don’t believe you can. But yes, it is possible. However, it will require you to exert extra effort, invest more time, and will let you experience a series of unmotivated days.
Being an eloquent speaker and an impressive English writer does not come easy. However, it is the main reason we are writing these tips to make things easier for you. Not everything listed here will help you, but you can probably pick some and integrate those ideas into the daily process of learning the English language. Sooner or later, you will notice significant improvements.
Tip No. 1 Watch English films and videos.
If you spend hours on Netflix and love to watch films, this tip might work for you. Try watching films in English movies. It is not the best way to know simple words and write, but it will help you glimpse how English is used in different settings. It will also help you understand the language more and use it in conversational forms. Hearing it for more than an hour will make a significant impact on your English Journey.
Tip No. 2 Follow English Content Creators.
In almost all social media applications, English content creators are always there. Starting with Facebook, Youtube, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter, they are all present. You just need to find them and choose from the millions of creators you want to follow.
Following them will allow you to be more engaged in English; those random videos, statuses, posted conversations, and comments are all helpful for you.
You can learn anytime, even by just scrolling up and down.
Tip No. 3 Change Your Settings.
When you are using a social media application or application in general, most of the time, users can change the language used in the settings. If possible, change it to the English language, like turning on the English caption while watching on YouTube or changing the language of your smart device to English. This simple change will help you be more familiar with and better understand the English language.
It might sound effortless, but it is a very challenging activity. Indeed, change is not always bad.
Tip No. 4 Try to Make Conversations in English.
Aside from writing, it is crucial to use the English language interactively. Having conversations using the English language will help you a lot. You can make conversations online by commenting or when messaging your friends. If you are lucky enough, you can find native or fluent non-native English speakers to talk with, or you can speak to your English buddy. If this sounds a little bit intimidating, you can always talk with yourself in the mirror as long as you want. Another thing is, you can opt to record yourself while talking. Sounds awkward? Yes, it is. At first, no one wants to hear them speaking. But definitely, you can pass that stage; by recording yourself, you can determine your mistakes and avoid them next time. That sounds great, I guess.
Tip No. 5 Create Your English Journal.
Studies show that writing important words or information helps with someone’s memory retention. Get your good notebook and pen, and start writing the things you learned in the English language. The grammar rules, your favorite phrases, the unusual word you hear and its meaning, everything. Writing what you have learned will help you remember it quickly, and you can review it anytime you want.
Tip No. 6 Keep Reading.
Reading English articles, blogs (like this), news, and books are instrumental in improving your English skills. Reading trains your brain; it is said to be a good brain exercise. It is okay if you cannot understand everything that you are reading. You can note those unfamiliar words, search it later on, or while reading, and you will be able to understand what it is.
Reading is vital. It develops your mind and improves your English skills. So, keep reading!
Tip No. 7 Accept that Mistakes are Natural and that It Is Inevitable.
Even the best writers and speakers in the world commit mistakes, as well as you. Do not be affected and allow these mistakes to hinder you from achieving your English goals. Take mistakes as inspiration to do well and strive more.
One thing you can do is to remember these mistakes and note them in your journal. In your free time, try to review and remember them. I’m pretty sure you will never commit the same mistakes.
You are always prone to commit (different) mistakes, and it is entirely natural. Ask someone if you need help, your English teacher, your American friend, your English buddy, research social media (e.g., Google, YouTube), and try to learn more.
Tip No. 8 Have Fun While Learning.
You cannot learn or stay on something if you are not happy. Learning English is difficult, but it is not synonymous with “boring” or “uninteresting.” If you feel like learning English is a heavy load to lift, you probably cannot carry out this Journey. It is essential to stay focused on your goal and to have fun. Have fun!
You can do a lot of things to make your extra learning fun. Go outside with your friends and engage them with learning. You can also create fun games like ‘Translate this Word to English” or go to PlayStore or AppStore and download games focusing on English. We believe you can do it! You just need to change your perspective and keep your interest as high as possible.
Tip No. 9 Make it a Hobby, Practice every day.
Learn by doing. Studies suggest that practice helps with fluency and grammar in the English language. It allows learners to integrate the knowledge they have and assess what they have learned.
Practicing it every day sounds tedious; that is why you need to make it your hobby. An activity that gives you enjoyment. A thing that you love to do, you may be tired, but it gives you self-satisfaction at the end of the day.
Practice is vital; it trains your mind to retain, process, and understand information. Be consistent.
Tip No. 10. Celebrate your Small Wins.
In your English learning journey, you must be the first one who will acknowledge your little success. No matter how big or small it is. You got a B on your English test – that is great. You learned the English translation of your favorite word; that is awesome. You invested 1 hour and twenty minutes today learning English; that is a lot. Regardless of how apparent your progress is, it all matters. You must be proud. Those little steps will soon create big wins.
Do not be discouraged if someone is doing better than you; you compete with anyone except yourself. Do you know what is essential? You are better than yesterday. That counts, and you won!
Tips and strategies are just guides to make things lighter, these are not sure ways to help you, but there is a great chance they will. It may or may not work for you. But, as you go through your English journey, you will discover several ways that suit you; you just need to continue and explore. Stay focused and motivated; you will achieve your success!
Why is Learning English Language Important?
Learning the English language has countless benefits. It allows you to connect to millions of people, giving you a broader perspective of life. At the same time, being aware of the English language builds relationships with people, helps you to understand one’s culture, and teaches you to embrace diversity. So, why learn the English Language? Hear this out.
1. The English Language is the “Universal Language.”
Around 400 million people in the world speak the English Language. It is the second world’s native language and is considered the official language in 70 countries globally. Without a doubt, it is the universal language.
One out of five people in the world can at least understand the English language. Knowing how to speak, write, and understand English will be a great help wherever you are; with this language, you would communicate with millions of people.
2. The English Language Will Help You in Your Career.
Businesses now go international. They try to reach more target markets by building connections with people all around the world. One way to do it is to speak and communicate in the English language.
Companies are now looking for employees who can speak and converse in English; it is now considered essential. If you want to get a good job, learning English might be one of your greatest assets.
3. The English Language Makes Travelling Easier.
Most (All) of us want to travel. Traveling is challenging and exciting. Explore different places, experience one’s culture, taste the world’s best delicacies, and a lot more. Take this as an example: most of the instructions present in public places, on the streets, on airplanes, and other helpful information when traveling are translated into English, and if you are well aware of the English language, it makes your life easier when you are in a different country.
Expanding your English vocabulary is essential. Having a command of the English language ensures that you have someone to communicate with whenever needed. After all, who can learn 6,500 languages in the world?
Things to Remember
Social media learning can be an effective way to improve your English skills. If you’re wondering how to learn English through social media, this post may have already answered your questions. However, here’s a valuable tip. Whether your agenda for learning the English language is for traveling, future employment or you want to impress your long-time crush, know that they are all valid. The most important thing is, you are up for it! You need to be determined, stick to your goals, put in time and effort, and of course, incorporate discipline in your learning journey.