How to Master English

Here are a few tips to master English subject:

There are some subjects you are uncomfortable with, and other that subjects you find tough. But check any student Web site or online group and you will probably find that one of the most loathed subjects is -- surprise -- English! Yes, the compulsory language subjects needed in the Higher Secondary Certificate examinations are hated by many students.

"Apart from those who want to make a career in languages, there are very few who study enthusiastically for these subjects," says Kaveri Shah, a 12th standard science student of Wadia College, Pune. "Over the past year I went through my English lessons may be once or twice."

Hence, any help that students can get on the language subjects is generally welcome.Every one can master English.

Says Mary Sequeira, an English teacher with St Joseph's High School, Mumbai, "All that the students have to do is go through their language chapters regularly throughout the year. They won't need much revision before the exams. Most students make the mistake of looking at it as something that is not important in their career. They are wrong. English is very relevant to our profession these days." Every one can master English.

How to master English remians a very big question.

Increase your writing speed:

Languages involve a lot of writing. It is important to enhance your writing speed. You can do this by going through a chapter and then writing down excerpts or a summary of the chapter. That will also help you memorise critical elements.

Theory is important:

One major mistake most students make is to think the just content of the chapters is critical, says Sequeira. "It's not the content but the principal or the theory behind the chapters that is critical," she explains. Hence, don't just memorise the poems -- you also need to memorise the style, the poet's specialty, the key essence and the contribution to language.

Brush up on your grammar:

There are two broad aspects in most language papers -- prose and poetry. In each of these, your grammar will be put to the test. Each language has multiple choice questions or descriptive parts that focus only on grammar. The best way is to practice from as many past question papers as you can.

Improve your vocabulary:

The lexical aspects dealing with the vocabulary, largely related to prose, have the highest weightage. To enhance your vocabulary fast, you can create a book club with three or four of your classmates. Each one of you needs to divide the text book equally amongst yourselves. Scour the book for all difficult and important words and keep a target for the number of words per day. Spend at least two hours doing this to cover each section. That way you can cover the entire syllabus in a short time. The critical aspect here is to identify someone whom you trust sufficiently and value as a peer.

Keep it relevant:

Some students end up writing just to fill up the pages. Experts say this may irritate some paper checkers. "If you remember four out of five points in a particular answer, write just that," says Sequeira. "Do not try to increase the answer by writing something completely irrelevant."

Stop gap:

Some students use language subjects as fillers in their study routine. A filler subject is a subject that you study between your other critical subjects. For example, if you are scheduled to complete three chemistry chapters today, you can take a break after two chapters for an hour and study an English poem. There are some students, though, who feel that this might break the tempo of the original subject. Try it once and see if it works out for you.

Question and answer sessions:

Many students struggle in language subjects because there is very little in terms of expert guidance available once lectures stop. If you have not attended language lectures regularly and are struggling with understanding key concepts, gather about 15-20 like minded students, and request your language teacher to conduct a brief session where he or she can answer all your queries. Remember to go prepared with questions.

Consult past papers:

The pattern for language papers does not change very often. Remember to go through as many past questions papers as you can.

Follow these tips to master English and score very high marks in English.

Don’t be afraid to speak

Most people are afraid of making mistakes. They worry that they won’t say things correctly so they don’t talk at all. Don’t be afraid. There’s no harm in trying.

Be resourceful.

There are many different ways you can improve your English, so use different sources and methods. The internet is the perfect source. Use it creatively; studying at a language school doesn’t mean you’ll get enough, help yourself and you’ll learn faster.

Read, Watch and Listen something in English.

Buy English books and print out English articles. Put them in your room, you may find yourself not reading them, but at least when you need them, English is just a reach away. Watch English news, listen to English music- both improve your listening and comprehension.

Talk to someone.

Getting your English into shape will always be hard, but it can be fun when it is shared with someone. Hire a skilled tutor- you need someone to correct your mistakes, make friends with people whose native tongue is English- you will not only be able to imitate their intonation and fluency you will also be able to learn their culture which in the first place is interesting. Talk and talk and talk and have fun