Using Podcasts to Learn English (Part 3)

Click here for Part 1 and Part 2 of this post.

Hello again. In my last couple of posts I told you about podcasts and how you can listen to them. In this post I’m going to recommend some good podcasts which you can use every day.

First, I would like to say something about how you can use podcasts to improve your English. As a learner of English, you need to expose yourself to English as much as possible. One way to do this is to live in an English speaking country for a while, so you can be around people who are using the language, hear it in the streets, on the bus, in the pub, on TV, on the radio, from friends, teachers and classmates. Being surrounded by English is really important for developing your instinct for the language. If you don’t have the time or money to come to the UK, you can still surround yourself with English. The internet is a great way to do this.

• Download podcasts, put them on your iPod and then listen to them regularly.
• You should listen to them more than once so that the English really goes into your head!
• You don’t have to understand everything – just listening to the rhythm, vocabulary and sentence structure regularly will help you become familiar with the language, and to speak English well it has to be familiar to you!

Anyway, here are some good podcasts which I recommend. Click on the links provided to find each podcast. I’ve divided them into two groups: Ones for learners of English, and ones for native speakers of English.

Podcasts for learners of English:

The BBC

In my opinion, the BBC do everything well, and this includes their learning English podcasts.

Talk about English (Learn English). This is a 20 minute chat show which includes features and interviews to help you develop your English. They talk about useful expressions, grammar and other advice. You can listen to native speakers talking, then the presenter explains what they said. Level: intermediate and above. It is updated weekly.

6 Minute English. As the name suggests, this is a 6 minute show which focuses on the use of English in different common situations. Level: Intermediate and above. Updated weekly.

Grammar Challenge. Each week, the BBC challenges a learner of English to do a grammar task. You can use this podcast to help you understand grammar. It’s also about 6 minutes long and is updated weekly. Level: Intermediate and above.

The British Council have lots of podcasts available. Click here to visit their podcast page. There are lots of different podcasts available there, on different topics. Each podcast has a script, and they are clear and easy to understand. Some of the conversations are scripted though, and can sound a little unnatural.

If American English is your cup of tea, then check out the English as a Second Language Podcast. It’s a very popular one. Click here to visit their page, where you can find podcasts on lots of different topics. I think their business English podcasts are useful, but they sound a little bit slow and patronising sometimes. They should be easy to understand though.

Of course the freshest, funniest and most useful podcast on the internet must be my one! That’s it – it’s Luke’s English Podcast! You probably know about it by now because I’ve been plugging it in each of my blog posts! I do it myself, at home on my computer. You can use it to pick up lots of natural expressions, learn about vocabulary, grammar and culture. Get some good advice on speaking and improving your English, and practise your pronunciation. Hopefully, you’ll have a good laugh when listening to it too! Click here to find it - do it now!

Podcasts for native speakers of English:

Of course, the BBC is a great source of podcasts on a massive range of topics. Click here to visit their podcast homepage. There are podcasts on many different topics, so just find something you’re interested in and check it out. Try searching for podcast by genre. I recommend that you listen to a podcast on a subject that you are personally interested in. This will make it more than just a learning English experience.

If you’re interested in business English – listen to BBC Business Daily. It is updated every day, and it focuses on global business issues. This is a great way to keep your business English fresh, but also to be up-to-date on what is going on in the business world.

The Today Programme (BBC) is what millions of British people listen to every morning while eating breakfast. It is an entertaining show with interviews and news. The interviews with politicians are particularly interesting, especially when they have to answer difficult questions!

My favourite BBC radio programme is The Adam & Joe Show. You can find their podcast, which is updated once a week, here. It’s a funny, entertaining and ironic show. Listen to it regularly and you’ll become a very special person!

If you’re interested in movies, and you’re interested in listening to fast speech, check out Mark Kermode & Simon Mayo’s Film Reviews (BBC). It’s entertaining, funny and a great way to find out about all the latest film releases.

So, to sum up – podcasts are a great way to bring English into your life. Find one that you enjoy listening to, and then listen to it all the time! Play it while you are walking around, doing the housework, going to sleep, driving your car or when you are sitting at your desk ready to study something!

Have fun,

Luke.