Last week I asked my Facebook followers, “What do you need in order to improve your speaking skills in English?”

A few people said, “I need to live in an English-speaking country.”

Going to live in an English-speaking country isn’t necessarily the answer.

First, I know that a lot of you won’t get the opportunity.

Second, just living abroad is not enough. It's too easy to just learn the basic conversations you need to survive but never get any further. 

I know this from personal experience. I lived in Poland for a couple of years but didn’t get to a very high level of Polish. I was great at ordering in a restaurant and buying things in a shop but not good at having real conversations with friends. This is because I spoke English most of the time!

I’ve met students who came to England to learn English but spent all their free time with friends from their own country. This is not a criticism. It’s a natural thing to do. And it’s not easy to come here and make English friends.

I once had a student who came here with her husband. He had a job in the UK and she was at home alone a lot of the time. She said hello to other parents when she picked her daughter up from school but didn’t have any really good friends here.

It’s sadly too easy to live in another country and not find opportunities to learn and practise the language.

Now, if you can get a job in an English-speaking country and make friends, then yes, that would really help you with your speaking. A lot! But it’s not as easy to do as some people think.

But here’s the good news!   

It's so easy to surround yourself with English at home these days! With the internet and social media, you can get the same benefits you get from living abroad! You have YouTube, Netflix, podcasts, online news websites, Facebook, learning apps, AI, Zoom and more! And most of it is free!

(I know some people have limited phone data and an unreliable internet connection. It’s harder for you and I’m sorry.)

Or maybe you can get a job in an international country in your own country.

If you can’t live and work in an English-speaking country, don’t worry! This does not have to be a barrier.