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I'm learning English in my 8th year now and want to take the CAE exam (Cambridge, level C1) in one year. I am already taking an extra course at school; in normal lessons we are between level B1 and B2.

I'm going to Dublin for one week next year (school language trip) and I think I am going to a language school there. I don't have any other chances to go to an English-speaking country (financial reasons, time reasons, ...).

How can I improve my English, whilst being at home and going to school? I also want to learn more vocabulary that's important for daily life, because I'm planning to move to Ireland one day or study abroad.

If it is important, I am from Austria, so my mother tongue is German.

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  • A question about improving your English generally is a very broad one. I suggest that you focus this question on one specific aspect (pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, oral skills, listening skills, writing skills, reading skills or something else) and post other questions for other aspects. Otherwise, your question is at risk of getting closed because it's too broad.
    – Tsundoku ♦
    Commented Dec 10, 2017 at 21:10
  • @ChristopheStrobbe Ok, is there a way I can ask for all of these? I don't have a specific aspect which I want to improve.
    – Féileacán
    Commented Dec 10, 2017 at 22:28
  • Improving your proficiency in a language always assumes that you want to improve one or more aspects, e.g. conversational skills, grammar, vocabulary, moving up from your current level in general, etc. Combining all of these things in a single question makes the question too broad.
    – Tsundoku ♦
    Commented Dec 11, 2017 at 14:43
  • If you have free internet access, go for internet radio; Irish English. That at least prevents some of the embarassement on understanding less than 90% of what is said. And then dive in the local library for English reading material. Two three words of Gaelic (like thank you) would at least turn a smile on your opposites.
    – Joop Eggen
    Commented Dec 13, 2017 at 15:35

3 Answers 3

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I had to pass a TOEIC test and obtain more than 780/990 in order to graduate from my engineering school in France. The first time I took the test, I got 480. Fair to say, not quite enough!

For the next year, having 2 hours of English classes a week, I started watching American TV series. From 24, to How I Met your Mother through Big Bang Theory, Dexter and honestly, so many more! A year later, I got 820 and passed. The vocabulary looked at in class started to stick into my head as I would hear uses of it in the shows!

I went from struggling to understand the teacher in class to sometimes starting episodes without subtitles and not noticing. If you don't like TV series, consider it an investment on your English: it's fun, you learn, and you are doing something towards your end goal.

To take it to the next level, I started reading articles written in English online. I am not talking about Facebook stuff, I'm talking about scientific reviews or anything that could interest you. It being about DIYing, photography or raising kids. Remember, you do not need to know everything, even the British people don't know everything... Because they are not interested in everything. I now live in Scotland and so many times has it happened to me that, I would meet someone, talk about the process for buying flat, and they don't know half the words. I knew these words because I was trying to buy one myself.

Having said all of that, there is nothing better than even a short 2 weeks trip above, by yourself. Trust yourself, you already speak better than you think!

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You can become Couchsurfing host and let English speakers come to you (to spend few nights for free on your spare couch for free), and you can even guide them around your city and practice the vocabulary of the daily life.

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To improve the English skills, you must need a tool to learn and practice more to be a pro in it. You should focus on basic to advance vocabularies and use them in your daily lives. I would like to share my experience with vocab solutions which is a great way to learn new words in just limited hours, and I would recommend you the same, it also has online download videos which are quite helpful for beginners as well as the experts. You must try them at once, it has the good reviews too. To check them- https://www.mouthshut.com/review/Vocab-Solution-New-Delhi-review-tlstrqmqsln

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    Welcome to Language Learning Stack Exchange and thank you for your answer. Could you please rewrite your answer a bit so it reads less like an advertisement and more of a description of a method?
    – Tsundoku ♦
    Commented Apr 17, 2018 at 9:46
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    Further, please disclose whether you are affiliated with the website, and if so, how.
    – Tommi
    Commented Apr 19, 2018 at 11:01
  • "You must try them at once" has all the warning signs of a scam. I would avoid even clicking on the link!
    – Peter M. - stands for Monica
    Commented Jul 2, 2018 at 16:36

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