Learning English with Mobile Apps

This is in response to numerous requests of people from every walk of

life on how to learn English through self-study. Often, people who work
as servicemen or employees in various institutions have neither books
nor access to readymade resources to work on their English skills. But
what they all invariably have, are smartphones, something they can
use very effectively for this purpose of learning English.

A. Mobile Apps
Mobile applications are aplenty and can be used very effectively for
developing skills in English. The following are some of the useful
mobile applications based on Android system (downloadable from
Google Play):

1. English Level Checker

Test Your English I - For those people who have learned English
but need to polish their skills, Test Your English I is the perfect
app. As the apps name suggests, it contains multiple choice
tests to evaluate how good you really are in speaking and writing
English. The tests are about grammar, idiomatic expressions, and
common errors in using English.

Each type of test contains 10 questions and your score is

evaluated at the end of each test. Its a very enjoyable way of
learning more about English, not to mention that the app
resembles the Who wants to be a Millionaire game show. Check
out this app and know your weak points in using English.

2. ESL Daily English - When you are always on the go, learning
English through podcasts can be really very helpful, and another
app that lets you do that is ESL Daily English. Using the app is
really very easy. All you have to do is download an episode and
listen to it anytime and anywhere you like. You can visit the
 podcasts website to download new episodes every time you
have finished an episode.

It doesnt matter if you are a beginner or an advanced English

learner; there are podcast episodes that you can download
depending on your level. For beginners, the app also translates
descriptions of each episode to your language, allowing you to
easily identify which podcast you should try.

3. LearnEnglishGrammar - Developed by the British Council, this is

an interactive app thats designed to help improve your
grammar, especially your grammar accuracy. Both the UK and US
English editions offer four levels of questions, starting at the
Beginner level and going all the way up to Advanced level. Each
difficulty covers 12 grammar topics, with 20 activities per topic.
Both editions also have easy-to-access in-app help so that youll
never get stuck trying to solve any of the interactive tasks.
4. Busuu - This language-learning app features more than 3,000
words and expressions and covers a wide range of topics through
comprehensive vocabulary sections and interactive tests. Levels
include beginner to advanced, and the first 20 units are free.
5. Duolingo - One of the biggest attractions of Duolingo is its
gamified learning system: instead of the usual progression
through lessons, Duolingo structures your lessons as a skill tree,
with "skill points" being awarded for completing lessons,
achievements for tracking your progress as well as a lives
system that encourages you to answer each question correctly.
You can then use your knowledge to translate real-world content,
which is then rated by other users.
6. Memrise - Memrise offers a large variety of courses for a lot of
different languages, including English, all for free. These courses
are actually constructed by other members of the Memrise
community, making Memrise something of a crowd-sourced
learning platform. The app integrates with the main Memrise.com
account, but also offers an offline mode so that the learner can
continue learning even when (s)hes without an Internet
connection. Memrise, also has some elements of gamified
learning, including a points system.
7. Lingua.ly Lingua.ly is a language learning and vocabulary
tool that tries to turn web content into language-learning
opportunities. Lingua.ly uses a language-processing method that
makes it able to recommend real texts to the learner, based on
vocabulary tests and his/ her interests. This means that the
learner is not limited to texts written specifically for the language
learning per se, and can read real text in whichever language
he/she is learning.
8. SpeakingPal English Tutor - A very entertaining and highly-
interactive app, it features a series of mini-lessons of
approximately 5 minutes, so students have no excuses when it
comes to making the most of idle time. The student interacts with
the app through speech recognition software that recreates a real
video call.
9. MyWordBook2 - This app was developed by the British Council in
conjunction with Cambridge University Press and offers a
wonderful, engaging way to learn new words through sets of
interactive flashcards. Additional vocabulary packs may be
downloaded from Cambridge dictionaries.
10. Phrasalstein - Unlike the other apps on this
list, Phrasalstein is targeted at improving one specific
element of English grammar, namely phrasal verbs. As the use of
phrasal verbs can be tricky, so its quite a useful app for
mastering this skill. The app is designed like a classic horror
movie, and has 100 phrasal verbs that it will teach
through humorous animations. The app will provide meanings
and example sentences, as well as translations in Spanish,
German, Italian, Russian and French.
11. 50 Languages - This app is available in over 40 languages
with 1600 languages combinations. The app includes over 100
lessons to learn different languages with audio and text support
to enhance learning experience. The learner can also download
the audio from50languages.com and listen offline anywhere.
12. Conversation English - This app features 20 lessons, each
with a video dialogue. The app gives learners the option to read
the conversation and then answer questions and complete a
variety of exercises. Its a great app for those who wish to
 practice more conversational English. Its available for download
on iTunes.
13. Babbel - The app allows learners to learn 13 languages with
the variety of courses offered within the app. The app supports
listening, writing and speaking exercises and vocabulary builder
to build command over the language. The app also has grammar
exercises, pronunciation trainer and review manager to review
progress, synchronization and paid monthly and yearly
subscription.
14. iLingQ Language Learning - This app allows learners to
study different language lessons in offline mode. The app
comes integrated with reader that can read lessons for the
learner. The learner can highlight terms and phrases in the
lesson. The app is linked with the iLingQ account and
synchronizes any offline activity.
15. Courses123 Language Learning - This app can teach the
learner 5 different languages: German, English, Spanish, French
and Italian. The app includes films, photolessons, flash cards,
dialogues, vocabulary and quizzes that can help the learner learn
effectively with ease.
16. Tourist Language learn and speak - This app is useful
to translate phrases or sentences from one language to another.
There are plenty of translations and it needs the eSpeak engine
or Pico TTS engine installed for the app to work. The app includes
translation in native language and accent for travel and
transportation, food, emergency situations, spoken interactions
and basic small talks.
17. Open Language - The app supports learning material
for English, Spanish, French, Italian, Arabic & Russian. All the
learning lessons are based on dialogues with teachers presenting
lessons. The app also features personal vocabulary and powerful
sentence breakdown feature to develop overall learning skills.
18. Mango languages for libraries - The app gives access to
over 30 foreign languages courses in users native language. The
app focuses on vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar and culture
for effective communication.
19. Phrasebook Learn languages - This app helps to learn 8
different languages with different pronunciation, manage favorite
 phrases, search for phrases and vocabulary and offline mode
that doesnt need any internet connection to work. The app also
features different multi language translation options.
20. Linqapp Languages Assistance - This app solves the
language problems of users instantly and for free. Rather than
automated translators, this app asks the real human beings for
translation and language related problems. One can contact
people for language related issues, capture a photo or record the
audio and ask any question or even get direct help from expert
speakers.
21. The Phrasal Verbs Machine: As the name suggests, this app
deals with phrasal verbs and provides multiple meanings with
examples of each of the verbs.
22. Learn Languages: Rosetta Stone: Using immersion-based
methodology, this app offers lessons on a handful of languages
including English.
23. Phonemic Chart: This app helps the learners to hear and say
the sounds of the English language properly, using IPA symbols.
24. Vocabulary Builder: Learners can play this game from
Magoosh to learn 1200 words in an entertaining way.
25. Learn English Podcasts: Particularly helpful for development
of listening skills, this app from British Council offers lessons
based on everyday conversations.

B. Dictionaries
Dictionaries are part and parcel of any language learning. The following
dictionary apps can serve as helpful references: Merriam-Webster,
Wordnet, QuickDic, Urban Dictionary, The Free Dictionary, Dictionary
Wordweb, Advanced English & Thesaurus

C. YouTube Channels
There are hundreds of YouTube channels that teach English language to
learners. Some of the most popular ones include: bbclearningenglish,
VOA LearningEnglish, Real English, Business English Pod, Jennifer ESL,
EF podEnglish, Learn American English, EnglishClass101, The Daily
English Show, Speak English With Misterduncan, Learn English with
Steve Ford, EF podEnglish
The abovementioned resources, if utilized regularly and diligently,
would invariably help in improving English skills. Hopefully, they will be
of use to the general public who are enthusiastic to develop and
sharpen their capabilities to use English more effectively.

All rights reserved by Rajib Ahmed (ahmed.rajib@gmail.com; Twitter:

@kajolvomora)