When you begin your English learning journey, observing your progress may initially feel effortless. Comparing your understanding, or lack thereof, from the starting point to your knowledge after a few months of studying is relatively simple.
However, as time passes, assessing your advancement can grow more challenging as the differences may not appear as substantial once you reach a higher proficiency level. Are you genuinely advancing? Are you investing your time and efforts in the most effective methods? Are you moving towards your English learning goals?
In this blog post, you will explore ways to effectively monitor your English learning progress with an ENGin team. This will help you determine whether you are on the right path. Moreover, measuring your advancement can be a highly motivating and enjoyable activity! So keep reading!
Set Your Goals
The fundamental principle in monitoring your progress is to track the metrics that align with your overall English learning objectives. For instance, if your main goal is to converse with English-speaking colleagues, it may not be particularly useful to track improvements in slang terminology (unless frequently used) or reading comprehension. Instead, you should concentrate on listening and speaking with a focus on incorporating business English vocabulary.
While many learners aspire to boost their English proficiency across all language components — reading, writing, speaking, and listening — determining more specific goals will help you stay focused and measure your progress in the correct areas.
Take a moment to reflect and answer two essential questions:
"Why do I need to learn English?"
"In which areas should I concentrate to achieve this 'why'?"
Define the Metrics You Will Track in Learning English
After establishing your goals, you can select measurable indicators of progress. These indicators can be objective, such as tracking the number of new words learned, accuracy in grammar exercises, or improvements in standardized English tests. You can also create subjective indicators, such as confidence in speaking, comprehension levels while reading or listening, or a sense of ease in expressing ideas in English. While tracking objective metrics may seem more straightforward, incorporating both objective and subjective measures is beneficial for a thorough evaluation of your progress. Continue reading, and you will learn effective measurement methods!
Decide How Regularly You Will Track Your Progress
Tracking your progress systematically will allow you to evaluate whether your learning methods meet your goals. Seeing your constant progress will also serve as a powerful motivator to keep you going.
Depending on your goals, we may want to review your progress weekly, monthly, quarterly, or at any other convenient time. The key is to establish a regular routine for tracking progress. We suggest scheduling a recurring event/task such as "Check my English progress" in your calendar to help you remember. For example, this could be planned for every Sunday, the last day of each month, the first Monday of every month, etc. Additionally, you may choose to use various measurement methods with different frequencies.
Select Measurement Methods
Here are 5 effective and enjoyable methods to measure your progress:
Take a Test
One of the most effective ways to assess your English proficiency is by taking internationally recognized exams like TOEFL or IELTS once or twice a year. While these exams come at a cost, they provide valuable feedback on your language skills. Alternatively, numerous free online tests are available — simply search "free English level test" on the web to discover various options. Take the test, save the link, and revisit it after a few months to measure your progress.
Use a Self-assessment Form
Depending on your goals, you can find a self-assessment form online or create one tailored to your needs. Start by identifying key areas in which you will regularly evaluate yourself. For example:
I can organize my thoughts and ideas clearly when speaking English.
I feel confident while speaking English.
I can understand native English speakers.
I use a variety of vocabulary instead of repeating the exact words and expressions.
I can write emails/messages/short texts in English.
Assign yourself grades on a scale from 1 to 10 for each area, and retake the self-assessment form every few months to track your progress.
Noteworthy: Self-assessment forms are an integral part of ENGin's progress-tracking system. Students complete three free self-assessment forms during their learning journey with us: at the beginning of their studies, after 3 months, and after 9 months. By completing these forms, ENGin students can observe their advancements in three categories: 1) English Communication Skills, 3) Grammar/Vocab/Writing Skills, and 3) Intercultural Competence.
Record yourself speaking
This is a creative method to assess the progress of your spoken English skills. Select a specific question to answer and record your response in audio format in notes, a private channel, a particular folder, or any preferred platform. For example, at the end of each month, record yourself speaking about the experiences, lessons, events, and more from that month. Alternatively, for business English practice, summarize your weekly tasks, achievements, and obstacles every Friday.
Record yourself regularly and then listen to previous recordings to determine if your fluency has developed over time.
Keep a journal in English
Not only does it serve as an excellent method of learning English, but also as an effective progress-tracking tool. Establish a journaling routine in English, even if it starts with just 1-2 sentences daily. Over time, reread your past entries and analyze your improvement in writing, grammar knowledge, and vocabulary usage.
Re-watch videos, re-read books, re-listen to podcasts
The idea is to immerse yourself in the content you enjoy and revisit it later to assess your improved comprehension. For instance, you might select a favorite movie that initially requires subtitles for understanding. After six months of learning English, you might discover you understand 50% of the movie without subtitles. This method can be applied to different content types such as articles, podcasts, books, you name it.
Organize all your results
We recommend organizing all your test results, self-assessment forms, and other related materials in one place for easy access and review. This could be a Google spreadsheet or document, a folder on your laptop or phone, or a designated notebook. Regularly review your results, acknowledge your accomplishments—no matter how small—and continue enhancing your English skills.
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