If you are a professional and English is not your native language, you will find that strong verbal and written English communication skills are important in today's global economy.
Like many, you might be wondering: What kind of English should I study and improve?
Well...where you begin depends on your personal goals, and for now, I recommend choosing the path below which is a priority for you. Eventually, you should be proficient in all three areas of business, conversational, and academic English if you hope to be a proficient speaker.
Let's look at each kind of English you can choose to study at ESL Virtual in more detail:
1) Business English
Business English is for professionals who need to develop language skills for work. If succeeding in your career or getting a promotion is your goal, I recommend you start your training in this area first.
Some examples of work-related English skills are:
A) Speaking: participating in a job interview, interacting effectively with customers, talking clearly on the phone, speaking for an audience or giving speeches, attending and hosting meetings, expressing opinions, agreeing and disagreeing, making requests politely, negotiating, talking about statistics, etc.
B) Writing: composing formal email messages, writing memos or letters, sending text messages, completing reports, doing research, etc.
C) Content and Vocabulary: work-related vocabulary and procedures such as recruitment, retainment, and management of employees, human resources processes such as job interviews and performance reviews, and other business terminology.
2) Conversational English
Even though learning business English will provide you with necessary work-related language skills, you must still become proficient in conversational English as not all relationships are formal at work all the time. Conversational English is a casual daily style of language people use to communicate with one another, and it is essential to understand others in daily contexts.
Conversational English includes: slang, idioms, phrasal verbs, certain expressions, knowledge regarding pop (popular) culture, and even obscene language such as "bad" words you should know to better understand what people mean when they use them!
3) Academic English
Academic English is a formal style of language which is used in school settings such as universities and colleges. You should study this kind of English if you are a student, but it is also helpful for working professionals because writing to clients, employees, or employers often requires formal use of language.
Academic English includes: writing academic essays, giving speeches, critical thinking, using formal vocabulary, doing research, including citations and references (APA or MLA styles), providing support for claims or opinions, maintaining an objective versus subjective tone, avoiding cliches, using proper grammar, outlining, using a clear structure in writing, preparing for the TOEFL/IELTS, etc.
Overall, to be a successful and proficient English speaker, I recommend receiving training in all three areas above; however, to start, you should begin with the one that is more important to you now. Feel free to let your coach know what kind of English you'd like to focus on to receive customized lessons which will help you focus on your specific needs and improve your skills.
Author: Nairi I., English Coach (English as a Second Language, MA)
Click to learn more About Nairi!
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