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If youâre anything like me, you talk to yourself in the shower.Â
I imagine Iâm winning imaginary arguments or that Iâm answering interview questions for jobs I havenât applied for. Every once in a while, Iâm telling Oprah about the fantastic book I never wrote.
I like to think itâs not weird... itâs just my mind wandering.Â
Right?
Occasionally, I have these conversations in Portugueseâthe language Iâm learning. In that case, I like to believe that itâs not only not weird but that the inner dialogue is actually helpful. That Iâm practising Portuguese and getting better at it.Â
In this article, Iâll explain whether thatâs true: can you really learn English by talking to yourself?Â
Iâll present some research on the role of talking to yourself in language learning and show that it really can be beneficial. Then Iâll give some advice for different ways that independent English learners can do it effectively.
Why learn English by talking to yourself?
But first, why think about self-talk anyways? Why not just be a normal person and keep conversations to social situations with other people?
There are a few reasons that talking to yourself is a potentially useful exercise:
- Itâs convenient. You can speak to yourself anywhereâin the shower, while youâre doing the dishes, on the bus (if you donât mind strange looks)⊠basically anywhere you have a minute to yourself.Â
- Itâs flexible. You can talk about anything you want with anyone you want. You can even tell Oprah about a book you never wrote.Â
- It's free. You can do it without the cost of expensive schools or teachers.Â
- You can do it without feeling embarrassed. Well, as long as youâre not talking out loud in a public place close to other people.Â
- Thereâs no fear. Lots of people have a fear of speaking English. But you wonât be afraid to speak to yourself in your head.Â
Does self-talk work?
The other major reason to speak to yourself is that it could actually improve your English ability.
I was surprised to find that there is actually quite a bit of academic research on talking to yourself for learning a language.Â
Inner speech vs. private speech
Researchers have distinguished between âinner speechâ and âprivate speechâ.
Inner speech is the kind I usually use in the shower when Iâm winning imaginary arguments. Itâs mental self-talk. Itâs thinking in words without saying them. Itâs silent speech that is directed at oneself.
Private speech is the kind that we associate with crazy people: itâs talking out loud but not to another person. Itâs audible speech but itâs directed at oneself.Â
The history of the study of both inner speech and private speech in language development is quite fascinating. If youâre interested, I recommend this article, which provides an in-depth review.Â
The role of inner speech and private speech in language acquisition
It turns out that both inner speech and private speech play a role in language acquisition.Â
- Research in both children and adults finds that private speech helps internalise new language learning.
- Inner speech is commonly used among adult language learners as a strategy to help them develop their language ability.
- Both private and inner speech seem to be an effective way to rehearse and remember new words and vocabulary.Â
- Language learners use inner speech and private speech even when weâre learning in a classroom setting with others around them.
Researchers suggest that private and inner speech are so important to language learners that teachers should intentionally make space to use them in language learning classrooms.
For example, linguistic researchers have suggested that teachers:
- Integrate repetition and rehearsal into learning activities.Â
- Encourage their students to shadow and imitate the language they hear.
- Ask students to summarise what they hear to themselves.
Together, the research seems to suggest that both inner speech and private speech are extremely important in the process of learning a new language. And it further suggests that most of us already do it.Â
The conclusion for language teachers is to create opportunities for their students to use inner speech and private speech in class.Â
And for independent English learners, the clear conclusion is that talking to yourselfâout loud or just in your headâcan be really helpful.Â
Inner speech vs. private speechâis one better?
I couldnât find any research that suggested that you should prefer one over the other. Both seem to be good for general speaking practice.Â
However, I would say that you probably do need to speak out loud if you want to practice your pronunciation.Â
Pronunciation requires a particular set of muscle movements and coordination between the mouth, throat, and vocal chords. Those are physical movements that you can practice and get better at. Youâre likely not going to improve those physical aspects of fluency as much if youâre not speaking out loud.Â
Besides that, though, the indication I got from the literature is that speaking to yourselfâregardless of whether itâs out loud or in your headâcan be an effective way to practice English.Â
Ways to use self-talk to learn English
So how can you incorporate talking to yourself into your own English learning programme? Here are a few ideas.
1. Just talk to yourself
Whether youâre in the shower or doing the dishes, have a little conversation with yourself in English. You can use inner speech or private speech. Just try to spontaneously use the language.
For example, you might:
- Imagine youâre in a restaurant and youâre ordering food. You can play both parts: the guest and the server.Â
- Imagine youâre giving a presentation at work on your most recent project. This may be especially helpful if you really have a presentation to give.Â
- Describe in detail what youâre doing at the moment. âNow Iâm watering my herb garden. Hereâs the rosemary, here are the chives, and here is the basil.â
- Summarise the latest podcast episode of English Learning for Curious Minds and what you learned from it.Â
Each of these can be a great way to fit in some speaking practice as youâre doing other things. Iâm sure you can think of many more to add to this list.Â
2. Shadow native English speakers
We have a whole article on shadowing for learning English. Itâs a really effective exercise and for some Leonardo English members (like Steven) itâs actually a favourite activity.Â
To do it, just listen to someone speaking Englishâpreferably a native English speaker. Then repeat what they are saying as theyâre speaking so you sound almost like an echo.Â
Part of the reason itâs so great is that it helps you with the physical aspects of fluency by training your mouth and vocal organs to make English sounds. You also wonât make any vocabulary or grammar mistakes because youâre mimicking exactly what you hear.Â
Itâs also a great way to practice connected speech.Â
3. Read out loud
Reading is one of the best ways to get lots of English input. You can turn it into a speaking activity by simply reading out loud.
You may be used to looking up words in a dictionary when you donât know what it means. When youâre reading out loud, you can also look words up when you donât know how to pronounce them.
Google Translate is a great tool for this.Â
4. Sing to yourself
Music can be a great way to learn English. Most of us love music and there are so many artists that sing in English that you could explore forever.Â
Singing out loud is a great way to enjoy music at the same time as practising English.Â
For an extra bonus practice, sing while reading the songâs lyrics. Then, try to explain what the song is saying in your own words.Â
5. Record yourself speaking
My last piece of advice is to record yourself when you speak out loud. You donât have to record yourself all the time, but make an effort to record yourself at least once in a while.Â
Recording yourself is great for a few reasons.Â
The first reason is that it helps you identify the mistakes that you make in your English. Itâs much easier to hear them when youâre listening back on yourself compared to when youâre speaking in the moment.Â
The second reason is that itâs a great way to measure your progress in English. After a few months, youâll listen back on yourself and youâll see how much youâve improved.Â
Disadvantages of self-talk
There are a couple of disadvantages of self-talk that you should be aware of.Â
Self-talk may compound errors
The first is that itâs not easy to know if youâre making a mistake in your self-talk.Â
When you speak with a conversation partner and you make a mistake, they may tell you or they may not understand you. So itâs easier to know when something is wrong.
But thereâs no feedback like that when youâre just talking to yourself.Â
For that reason, itâs good to find other ways to recognise the mistakes that you make most often and learn from them.Â
Self-talk is not sufficient on its own
Self-talk can absolutely help you become a better English speaker. But you canât just talk to yourself and get fluent in English.Â
English is for communication. Make sure you are chatting with a real-life English conversation partner, too.
Self-talk is a great tool for the independent English learner
Like me, you may already engage in some forms of self-talk.Â
Itâs a useful tool for us whether weâre preparing to give an important presentation, getting ready for a difficult conversation with our partner, or just daydreaming about our first talk show experience.Â
And it turns out that most language learners already use it when weâre practising a language. Itâs part of the learning process.Â
So here, all Iâm really suggesting is that you use it intentionally. Language teachers build self-talk activities into their lessons. If youâre learning English on your own, you can do the same thing: create opportunities for yourself to use self-talk to practise English.Â
Itâs another powerful tool to add to your English learning toolbox.Â
References
Broner, M. A., & Tarone, E. E. (2001). Is it fun? Language play in a fifthâgrade Spanish immersion classroom. The Modern Language Journal, 85(3), 363-379.Â
Centeno-Cortes, B. (2003). Private speech in the second language classroom: Its role in internalization and its link to social production. The Pennsylvania State University.Â
De Guerrero, M. C. (2004). Early stages of L2 inner speech development: What verbal reports suggest. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 14(1), 90-112.
De Guerrero, M. C. (2012). Private speech in second language acquisition. In Chapelle, C. (ed.), The encyclopedia of applied linguistics. Wiley-Blackwell.
Lantolf, J. P., & Yåñez, M. D. C. (2003). Talking yourself into Spanish: Intrapersonal communication and second language learning. Hispania, 97-109.