Learning English in 2025 📈 with Luke_s English Podcast(M4A_128K)

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, Happy New Year. It's twenty twenty five. Can you
believe it? Twenty twenty five? It's crazy, isn't it? Science
fiction stuff? Anyway, in this episode, I'll be talking about
learning English with my podcast. If you're considering listening to
a podcast this year to improve your English, then I
think this is an excellent idea, of course, and I'll
tell you exactly why during the episode and exactly how

(00:23):
you can do it, so loads of advice and motivation
to pump you up for the year ahead learning English. Yes,
you've probably noticed that this episode is quite long compared
to other podcasts, because I just have a habit of
talking a lot, which hopefully is what you wanted anyway
when you press play on this episode. But anyway, I

(00:45):
promise that if you just start listening and you follow
my words, then you will find that the time goes
by very quickly, and before you know it, you will
have listened to the entire thing, which by the way,
is about sixteen thousand words in English, all in sentences,
all with correct grammar and pronunciation. All of that English

(01:06):
will go directly into your brain and will have an
immensely positive and beneficial effect on your ability to use
this language yourself later. Don't feel you need to listen
to the entire thing in one go. You can just
listen to it in stages. If you prefer, just pause
and come back later to continue. There are useful things

(01:26):
to learn all the way through the episode, plus some
special things at the end. There's a PDF for this episode,
by the way, with a full transcript. More or less,
you can use it to check what you've heard and
to note down vocabulary items, check spelling, and do other
types of studying. If you look at the PDF, you'll

(01:46):
see some bits of English highlighted in a lurid orange color.
These are just some bits of vocabulary that you could
notice and perhaps try to pick up from the episode.
They're all multi word phrases rather than just single life
terms of vocabulary, and at the end of the PDF
you'll find all of those highlighted phrases in a list.
There's about eighteen of them, so not too many. They're

(02:09):
all in a list with example sentences and definitions, and
you'll also find a vocabulary quiz and some other exercises
to help you remember those phrases and check that you've
really understood them. You'll also find some discussion questions at
the end of the PDF, which you can use to
practice your speaking with all of this vocabulary. How can
you get the PDF, you might be asking, Well, you'll

(02:30):
just find a link for it in the episode show
notes and also on the page for this episode on
my website. The links are in the description and it's
all free. You're welcome. Also, if you listen until the
end of the entire episode, you can get a special
certificate of achievement with one hundred bonus points and a

(02:52):
shiny gold medal from me to you as a special
reward for being so wonderful. All of that is waiting
for you at the end of the PDF, but you
can only claim it if you listen to the entire thing.
So I hope you enjoy episode nine hundred and sixteen
of my podcast and that it helps you make progress
with your English in twenty twenty five and beyond. So

(03:15):
now let's start as we mean to continue and begin
this episode properly, and I'm now going to start reading
from the PDF. Okay, so you can get it ready
if you want, and we're going to do that right now.
So here we go, pure right, So, hello, Happy New Year.
This is my first episode of twenty twenty five. Let's

(03:35):
hope this is going to be a good year, a
productive year, a positive year, and a generally fantastic year
for you and your English. Let's start twenty twenty five
on a positive note by putting our best foot forward
in this new year period. What I usually do on
my podcast is record an episode like this to welcome
new listeners who might have recently discovered the show Hello,

(03:58):
to welcome back old listener, Hello again, to re establish
the main aims of this podcast, and to talk about
how this podcast can help you with your English. So
I'm going to talk about the importance of listening in
your learning of English, how podcasts can help with that,
and specifically how you can use my podcast to improve

(04:18):
your English in various ways over the next twelve months
and beyond. I will also share some comments and testimonials
from people who listen to this podcast in twenty twenty
four and whose English definitely improved as a result. Lots
of listeners have written to me over the last few
weeks and describe their experiences of improving their English with
this podcast, and I would like to share their experiences

(04:41):
and tips with you. So This is episode nine hundred
and sixteen. Learning English in twenty twenty five with Luke's
English Podcast. I'm Luke Thompson. Hello, and this is my
podcast for learners of English around the world. Just in
case you're new to the show, let me introduce myself
so you know who you're listening to and learning English with. So, yeah,

(05:04):
I'm Luke, and that's Luke, not Luck, not Luck not
Luke's not Luca, not Lucas. Now it's Luke, like Luke
Skywalker from Star Wars. So I'm from England in the UK.
So I speak British English. That's what you're hearing right now.
I come from both West London and the West Midlands,
if that is possible, which it is, so two parts

(05:27):
of England. I spent time in both places growing up
as a child. I lived in Ealing in West London
until the age of nine, and then my family moved
to a small village in the middle of nowhere in
the countryside near Birmingham, in the center of England, not
far from Stratford upon Avon, where Shakespeare was born, and

(05:50):
also not far from Warwick, which has one of the
country's most impressive medieval castles. You might have been there,
So those are the two places. I'm from, West London
and the West Midlands, so I'm both a city boy
and a country boy. In terms of my accent, I
don't have a particularly strong regional British accent. You could

(06:11):
say that I speak with a standard British accent, which
is generally called modern RP. That's received pronunciation, which is
the general name for the accent that you often hear
on the BBC, or which is associated with the phonemic
chart in English as presented in Oxford or Cambridge dictionaries.
I spent half my upbringing in the Midlands, so you

(06:34):
might notice occasional traces of that accent in my voice,
but not much really, and another half of my upbringing
in London, so you might also be able to hear
a bit of London possibly, But basically I speak modern
received pronunciation from the southern half of England. I pronounce
bath grass Path laugh and podcast with an R sound

(06:58):
and not an ah sound, so that would be bath
grass Path laugh podcast, so I say bath grass Path
Laugh podcast. This distinction is a general indication of whether
you're from the north or the South of England. Right,
So in the South. It's podcast, right, I'm going to

(07:21):
have a bath and listen to a podcast. That would
be in the south of England, and generally speaking in
the sort of northern half of England, it would be
I'm going to have a bath and listen to a podcast. Anyway,
So I speak modern Southern British English received pronunciation, that's
my accent. So I've been teaching English for nearly twenty
five years now in classrooms with groups of adults from

(07:45):
all over the world. I started doing that in two
thousand and one and have never left the classroom since,
except to go to the toilet obviously. But what I
mean is that I have never stopped being a teacher.
I first became an English teacher when I did my
selter that's the certificate, the Cambridge Certificate in English Language

(08:06):
Teaching to Adults in two thousand and one, and later
I did the Delta as well, that's the Diploma in
English Language Teaching to Adults. In my time as a teacher,
I've met thousands of learners of English from different countries
and help them to improve their English. I've always made
the same amount of effort with all my students. I
just try to teach English to whoever is in front

(08:28):
of me. But the ones who made the most progress
were the ones who had the right approach and the
right mindset. Because you can lead a horse to water,
but you can't make it drink. I don't know if
you know this saying you can lead a horse to water,
but you can't make it drink. I've always felt as
a teacher that there's only so much I can do

(08:48):
for you. I might be responsible for about fifty percent
of the learning you can do, which is obviously a lot,
isn't it. I mean, it's not everything. It's half, isn't it.
Obviously your response, well for the other fifty percent, maybe more,
in fact, maybe it's more like twenty eighty sort of
twenty percent meter eighty percent you. But basically I can't

(09:09):
learn English for you. I can help, but ultimately only
you can learn English for yourself. So the old saying goes,
you can lead a horse to water, but you can't
make it drink. That's a bit like how it is
for me as an English teacher. Obviously, in this in
this analogy, you're the horse, right, I'm leading you to water,

(09:29):
and water in this case is English. So I can
provide the conditions for your learning, facilitate it as best
I can encourage you, provide you with English input, answer
your questions about the language, give you words you need,
correct your pronunciation and grammar, and also entertain you while
doing it. But ultimately the responsibility to take control of

(09:50):
your learning and make sure it actually happens. That responsibility
lies with you, and it's always worth remembering that. What
you're going to see on the PDF next is a
picture to represent the expression you can lead a horse
to water, but you can't make it drink. And you
can see a picture there of a man who's obviously
led a horse to some water, and he's pointing at

(10:10):
the horse, sing and now drink this. And as I
said before, I'm the man right who's led you to
the water. You're the horse, and the water is English.
And I made this image. You can see it on
the PDF if you're listening to this, and you can
just check it out for yourself. I made this using
generative AI, and it's amazing what you can do with

(10:33):
AI these days, obviously, but sometimes when it does make
these images, they do end up being a bit weird.
If you look carefully, you can see strange details, like,
for example, in this one, the man here has got
three arms, and this is obviously me in the picture, right,
So I don't know why I have three arms in
this picture. That's just one of those weird things that

(10:56):
like chat GPT does when it makes images. So that's
a bit weird. Anyway, Does that help? Would that help
me be a better teacher? I suppose? So I could
kind of point at something with one hand, write something
with another hand, and I don't know, gesticulate with the
with the third hand, I suppose. So this is one
of the reasons why you know I'm considered to be
such a fantastic teacher is because I have three arms.

(11:20):
Most teachers only have two, but I've got three. If
you're watching the video version, my third arm is just
it's just having a little nap at the moment. Anyway,
in my experience, the students who know this, you know
that they have to take responsibility for their learning, and
that they can't shift the responsibility to someone else, like
a teacher that they're paying to do a lot of work.

(11:41):
The students who know this and really apply themselves to
their learning actively and actually love it, These are the
ones who have the most success and who make my
job a genuine pleasure. So feeding your love and enthusiasm
for learning English in any way you can is a
very healthy thing to do. And if you are a
horse and I lead you to some lovely fresh water,

(12:04):
drink it. Or if you're not a horse, and you're
in fact a human who wants to learn English, and
I lead you to where all the nice English is,
then just go ahead and learn it. Over the years,
I've taught countless general English classes, but also business English,
legal English exam courses for i ELTs and other Cambridge tests,
as well as some slightly more specialized and specific English

(12:27):
as you can what happened what happened to his voice?
I don't know, as well as some slightly more specialized
and specific English courses which were really interesting, including deep
Breath English for doctors, English for journalists, English for ministers
and state secretaries in the Norwegian and Swedish governments, bit
random English for waiters, English for the oil and gas industries,

(12:51):
a lot of people from Kazakhstan on that one. English
for airport staff, English for French French train drivers, and
all manner of the people in different walks of life.
So I guess what I'm trying to say is that
I'm a qualified and experienced teacher with a particular set
of skills and three arms. So don't worry, You're in

(13:12):
safe hands with me, three of them, in fact, three
safe hands. I have other things I would love to
bore you with about me and my career and stuff,
but I want to make sure I stick to the
point here, which is all about you and your learning
of English in twenty twenty five. So let me now
move on to talk about making a fresh start with

(13:32):
your English and New Year's resolutions. So at this time
of year, a lot of people choose to turn over
a new leaf, make a fresh start, and brush up
on their English. Maybe that's you, is that you Are
you making a fresh start with your English at this moment?
Maybe not, Maybe maybe just one year kind of just

(13:54):
blends in with another year and it's more of the
same thing, just under a different name. I don't know,
But maybe you've made a new Year's resolution to improve
your English skills and you're determined to stick to it
this year. If that is the case, fantastic, that's great.
The next step, though, is actually to make it happen,
and this is all about building good habits into your

(14:15):
daily life that will make it easier for you to
achieve your goal and then keep going every day long term,
all through the year. It seems to me, of course,
that subscribing to a podcast and listening to new episodes
when they arrive has to be one of the best
ways to help you to do this. Listening to podcasts
in English on a regular basis is a relatively new thing.

(14:38):
Podcasts didn't exist until fairly recently, and we should all
feel lucky about that. We live at a time when
technology makes it easier than ever to learn a language.
Podcasts and other tech are quietly revolutionizing the way people
learn English. Years ago, people never had access to this
kind of lively, fresh audio English content. Now you have

(15:03):
all sorts of interesting things to listen to in English
which are made specifically for you, a learner of English,
to listen to. So do it. Listen to this stuff.
It can make a huge difference to your English long term,
and I'll talk about why and how later in this episode.
So most people give up their New Year's resolutions right now?

(15:25):
Do you make New Year's resolutions? Have you made one?
This year. Most people give up after a few weeks,
don't they. We've all done it, whether it's going on
a diet, stopping smoking, cutting down on your drinking, eating
more healthily, reading a book every evening, trying not to
pick your nose so much, or something else. We all

(15:46):
start with the best of intentions. But then somewhere along
the line, maybe in March, you just lose that sense
of self discipline and let things slide, and eventually you're
back to your old habits. This happens to most of us.
Why well, I expect it's because of one or all
of the following reasons. And I'm now going to go

(16:07):
through some reasons why people give up their New Year's resolutions.
And I think this also applies to learning English and
why some people give up doing that too. So basically,
watch out for these things. So you might give up
your New Year's resolution because a the thing you're trying
to do is actually quite boring and not particularly enjoyable.

(16:27):
So perhaps you just know it's important to do it,
or someone is imposing it on you, but there's no
real motivation from within you to do it, and you
just don't find it personally enjoyable or stimulating. It's like
an external obligation rather than an internal desire or drive.
For example, I know it's important to keep fit, and

(16:51):
I tried signing up to a gym a few years ago,
and I used to go every week, but frankly I
hated it, and as a result, I just quit going.
I didn't like spending time around the people there, I
didn't like the look of the place. I didn't enjoy
any of the exercises, and simply doing it because it
was healthy was not enough of a motivation for me.

(17:13):
Signing up to the gym was not the right way
for me to keep fit, and so that particular New
Year's resolution died after a few months. So when it
comes to doing exercise for me, there needs to be
more fun involved or some other reason for doing it,
and the exercise ends up happening as a consequence. Like

(17:34):
playing football, I know why I'm doing that to win
the game or to score a goal or whatever, or
just to enjoy playing. I like the game, and exercise
happens as a consequence. Going for a long walk is similar.
I know why I'm doing it because I get to
see interesting things and I can clear my head. The
exercise happens as a consequence going to the gym, though

(17:58):
I didn't find it enjoyable in an itself. I just
used to look around and think, this is ridiculous. Everyone
is just crowded into this dark room, running on the
spot and not going anywhere. It doesn't make much sense
to me. Now, maybe the gym works for you, but
it's not for me. So my point is, what you're
trying to do has got to be an enjoyable, entertaining experience,

(18:20):
or at least something that you are happy to do.
I mean, the way you're choosing to do it. You
have to find the way that works for you or
that suits you. It's the same with learning English. It
doesn't have to be a chore. There are various ways
you can do this, so you can explore different ideas
until you find something that clicks. Listening to interesting and

(18:40):
entertaining podcasts is one of those things, and I get
quite a lot of messages from people who say they've
become addicted to the show, largely because it's a pleasant, stimulating,
cozy experience. And this is actually a surprise, because previously
learning English was something that felt like homework. Now Self

(19:01):
discipline is also important. It's not all a walk in
the park, though I know that self discipline is important too.
It's not all about just being passive and making no
effort and learning English the easy way. Self discipline and
making deliberate, conscious actions do come into it, just like
with anything else that requires some effort, but you have

(19:23):
to search around for the way that works for you.
Some people seem to thrive on the disciplined, hard working,
no pain, no gain approach. They seem to get a
big buzz from having some kind of punishing exercise routine
or study routine, like those people who get up at
five am to hit the gym or to memorize word

(19:44):
lists while everyone else is sleeping. But those people they're
not really normal humans, are they. I don't think so
that now they're not. And I'm assuming that you are
a normal human who would much rather just be in
bed sleeping at five am, thanks very much. However, self
discipline is part of this. A little bit of self
discipline goes a long way, And maybe that's the point.

(20:07):
You don't have to have a mad, full on study
routine that takes over your life, because frankly, who can
keep that up, but you might need to push yourself
just a little bit more than normal. It's like that
comment from Arnold Schwarzenegger in a recent episode, And no,
I didn't interview him, unfortunately, but I did read some
quotes from him. So the episode was number nine hundred

(20:30):
and four Bits and Bobs number one. He was talking
about finding motivation to hit the gym, and I paraphrase,
sometimes you just don't feel like doing it, but it's
important to drag yourself out of bed and just do
one thing, even one little thing, is better than doing nothing. Also,
doing just one thing, even if it doesn't feel like enough,

(20:50):
is much much better than doing nothing and then criticizing
yourself and feeling bad about it. So basically, a little
bit of self discipline important, especially in those moments when
you feel you don't have the energy to do anything, like,
for example, on a miserable, gray and cold Tuesday morning
in February, when you'd rather crawl into a hole in

(21:11):
the ground and stay there if you could actually be
bothered to do that, because obviously, in order to crawl
into that hole in the ground, you'd need to get
out of bed and probably get dressed first, and then
leave the house. But anyway, just force yourself to do
a little bit, because even a little bit is better
than nothing. And when I say a little bit, I
mean more than just listening to the podcast. There are

(21:32):
some other little things you can do, and beating yourself
up about not studying or practicing English is one of
the worst things you can do. The end result of
that is that you can get into a negative spiral,
which can be very damaging to your self esteem, your confidence,
and the time you spend practicing English. So avoid avoid
avoid negative spirals. Right, positive spirals. They're wonderful, oh so

(21:58):
much fun spinning around of positive sens viral. But negative
ones no bad, bad, bad, avoid them. So my specific
instructions to you are this, take it easy on yourself. Relax, chill,
have a cup of tea, maybe a biscuit, just one,
and listen to my podcast. You don't have to climb
a mountain for this. Just relax and listen to an episode.

(22:19):
You can even do that in bed if you like.
No need to get up and crawl into a hole
or anything. See but consider doing one or two other
things which will be outlined later in the episode. We'll
get there, We'll get there pretty soon. It helps if

(22:40):
you subscribe to the podcast in a podcast app on
your phone, so you can listen to the audio while
you do something else. Okay, so you can kind of
stack your habits. You can be listening to the podcast
while you're doing something else. That helps. Another reason why
people might give up their New Year's resolutions is that this,
even with the best will in the world, your New
Year's resolution just doesn't become a habit or part of

(23:02):
the routine. It just doesn't stick because there's too much
effort involved, as I said, or it's too inconvenient. It's
basically the oh, I can't be bothered factor. Podcasts seem
to solve this because they're extremely convenient, and if you're
subscribed to a podcast, each new episode just being arrives
in your phone, right there in the palm of your hand.

(23:24):
You don't need to travel anywhere, you don't need to
devote specific time to it. You get a notification and
all you have to do is press play and then
listen and enjoy, even while doing other things like that
other New Year's resolution, which was to go running or something.
Of course, you could do more than just listen, but
you'd be surprised at what can happen if you take

(23:46):
the pressure off yourself and choose to do just a
little bit, and over time that ends up being quite
a lot. Another reason people quit their New Year's resolution
is that the goal you've set is unrealistic or badly defined,
and as soon as the challenge sets in, it becomes
demotivating and in fact just makes you feel bad about
yourself because you're not sticking to your own self imposed standards. Also,

(24:10):
you didn't actually define how you are going to do it.
The problem here is about setting unrealistic, massive goals for
yourself and not defining the specific actions you will take
to do them. So just chill out, keep it simple
and achievable. Try to set a resolution that is an action,
not the result of an action. Does that make sense?
Try to set a resolution that is an actual action,

(24:33):
not the result of one. For example, instead of saying
I will improve my accent, you could say I will
do ten minutes of shadowing every day. Or instead of
just saying I will improve my vocabulary, you could say
I'll read these graphic novels and keep some notes of
words and phrases. Or instead of saying I will improve

(24:53):
my pronunciation. You could say, I'll learn to transcribe words
in the phonemic script and then do five sentences a day.
Or I'll listen to two episodes of Luke's English podcast
a week, the latest one and another one from the archive.
Or I'll complete a page in my learning diary every
time I listen to an episode. Those sorts of actionable

(25:16):
resolutions are probably more effective and more more achievable. So
my most basic advice to you is obviously just listen
to this podcast and I'll explain all my good reasons
for that later, and that's it. Just press play and
get carried away, like you're relaxing on a boat on
a river on a summer's day in Oxfordshire or something,

(25:39):
nothing else to worry about. And I've generated another AI
image of you lying on a boat on a summer's
day in Oxfordshire, relaxing and listening to a podcast, and
you can see in the image you're lying there in
the boat, your hands behind your head as you lie
down in the boat. But weirdly, again there's a third

(26:02):
There appears to be a third hand in this picture,
because you're lying there with both hands behind your head relaxing,
and then somehow your phone is being held and I'm
assuming this is your hand that's holding the phone, unless
it's another part of your body, but that's probably best
not to think about that right now. Anyway, So you
can do plenty of other things to improve your English,

(26:24):
as you will hear later, but at the very least,
just relax, give yourself a break and listen to a podcast,
which one well mine, of course, what else other podcasts
are available though, as I'm sure you are aware. Another
reason is this you haven't actually planned how to achieve
what you want to achieve. Maybe you just said lose weight,
but the hard part is knowing exactly how to do it.
Feels like I've already said this, doesn't it. By the way,

(26:47):
for some specific advice on specific things you could do
to improve your English, keep listening and also check out
some other episodes from my archive. Two which come to
mind will be number six six' nine called how To
Learn english and number seven two three Called baha From
iran who was a runner up in my COMPETITION i
did a few years, ago and she described her seven

(27:07):
step method for improving Her. English another reason is that
you get frustrated because you don't see immediate. Results often
it takes a long time to get measurable, results and
so a lot of people just give. Up but long
term practice pays off in the, end especially With. English
so keep going even when you're unaware of any difference

(27:28):
in Your, english and then one, day after you've done
hours of listening in this, case you'll suddenly be aware
of the difference it's. Made just listen to some of
the stories of my listeners in the next episode and
you will. See so sometimes progress is being made under the.
Surface you don't notice it at, first but it's a
long term. Thing another reason is that your life just

(27:49):
gets in the. Way so the new year period is
often quite, quiet and so you have time to introduce
new habits into your. Life we often try to start
new and abitious projects at this, time but you forget
how busy life can get during the rest of the,
year which is when you end up stopping the new
habit when things kick off again In march or. Something

(28:10):
so this happened to me a few years ago WHEN
i decided to launch a daily Frasal verb podcast In.
January the plan was to do a mini Frasal verb
episode every day for a, year AND i called it
a frasal verb a. DAY i managed to do a
frasal verb a day for about three, months but then
normal life really kicked in Around march with new work

(28:33):
commitments and just loads of other life related, things Including easter,
holidays AND i couldn't keep up the. Routine it was
over ambitious AND i forgot how life has a habit
of getting busy after the relative quietness Of january And.
February so you can still listen to my Phrasal verb podcast,
though despite the fact THAT i didn't get to three
hundred and sixty five, episodes there are about one hundred

(28:56):
and fifty episodes available, free with a different phraseal verb
in each, one and each episode is only a few minutes,
long just to prove THAT i can make short episodes
WHEN i really want. To so just search your podcast
app for a phraseal verb a day or click the
link in the, description and that's how you can find
my phrase Or verb. Podcast so we're still talking about

(29:18):
why people don't stick to Their New year's. Resolutions by the,
way another reason is, perfectionism so people quit because they
expect to be perfect and anything less than that is
considered a, failure which is. Unrealistic so learning a language
is hard and it requires humility because you, know because

(29:38):
you're constantly reminded how imperfect you. Are but you have
to carry on, Anyway so you can never feel too
pleased with, yourself and you're often humiliated by errors or
moments when you can't do. It but you also have
to be stubborn in that you keep going anyway despite the.

(29:59):
Setback often the thing that helps you carry on is
that you simply enjoy the. Process and it is a.
Process it's about the, journey not the. Destination because Your
english will never be. Perfect Your english will never be,
perfect and neither will mine, either so get over. It
never mind, perfection it doesn't. Exist focus instead on using

(30:21):
language to make effective connections with, people and to enjoy
it when it happens. Successfully, oh and listen To Luke's english.
Podcast DID i mention that? Before another reason is. Overwhelm
overwhelm the whole thing becomes. Overwhelming so this is when
you try to do too much and it gets impossible
and you feel. Exhausted but it's. Okay just relax and

(30:45):
listen To Luke's english. Podcast of, course. Yes so, anyway
that was a list of reasons why most ordinary people
don't stick to Their New year's. Resolutions, obviously the solutions
to all these, problems AS i have firmly established, now
is just to subscribe to my podcast and listen to
new episodes when they, arrive and brew yourself a lovely
cup of tea and just enjoy the time you have On,

(31:06):
earth which, is as far as we, know the most
wonderful planet in the. Universe AND i Know earth can
sometimes be absolutely bloody, awful BUT i still think it
is by far the best planet in the universe because
right as far as we, know none of the other
planets have a breathable, atmosphere water and An internet. Connection

(31:29):
so consider yourself lucky that you live. Here, anyway most
people On earth give up Their New year's resolutions within
a few weeks of setting. Them but of course you
will not be one of those. People you won't have
to worry about not sticking to your New year's, resolution
because my advice to you is quite. Simple, really just
don't make A New year's. Resolution there it's, easy oh,

(31:50):
that and just listen to my. Podcast Right but, anyway
if you've already made a resolution and it is to
improve Your. English THEN i am sure that you won't give,
up and in, fact you will develop some very beneficial
habits that will see Your english improve, steadily step by,
step bit by bit as the year. Progresses, now at this,

(32:11):
POINT i want to briefly mention some of the things
my audience said about this about how to how they
improve Their english with this podcast last. Year SO i
want to mention some of the things my audience said
about this so that you can take some inspiration and
encouragement from. It so at the beginning of episode nine
hundred and was it nine hundred and? Twelve, yes published

(32:34):
at the end of the, year was it nine hundred and?
Twelve i'm confused by. NUMBERS i might have got all
the episode numbers wrong in this. One which episode is?
This this is? Episode? What all? Right? Okay, okay, YEAH
i did get. Confused at the beginning of episode nine
hundred and, fourteen which was published at the end of the,

(32:57):
YEAR i asked my audience for their responses to two.
Questions first question was how has Your english improved with this?
Podcast meaning in what ways has Your english improved by
listening to this? Podcast And, secondly can you give any
recommendations for how to improve Your english with this? Podcast
AND i was looking for tips that you could share

(33:19):
with other listeners who want to find new ways to
improve Their english with this. Podcast. RIGHT i got loads
of responses to these, questions and it was great to read,
them despite the fact that about fifty percent of people
completely misunderstood the second question and ASSUMED i was looking
for recommendations for HOW i could improve this. Podcast and

(33:40):
then they sent me loads of advice for HOW i
should make my episodes shorter and yet always include vocabulary
explanations of vocabulary quiz at the, end a short, story pronunciation,
practice a conversation with my, dad and clips Of native
speakers talking in different, accents but make the episode shorter
and keep them the same. Length too. Long episodes are,

(34:00):
awesome but not too, long but definitely not too short,
either so somewhere in the, middle which is more or
less exactly as they are, now but different but still the. Same,
anyway despite that, misunderstanding the responses from listeners were very
enthusiastic and, useful so thank you for taking the time
to write to me if you. Did in, FACT i

(34:22):
was overwhelmed by. Responses to be, honest for some, REASON
i THOUGHT i wouldn't get that, Many but every day
SINCE i uploaded that, EPISODE i got more and more
comments and emails from listeners who were gladly writing about
How Luke's english podcast has helped them improve Their, english
and also quite a lot of specific tips for how
they actually did. It the responses are still, arriving in,

(34:45):
fact so thank you very much for your. COMMENTS i
will give an overview of the main points in a
second and will respond with my comments. Too, ALSO i
will read out some specific messages from listeners in the
next episode of this, podcast which will be dedicated to
listener success stories episode nine to one. Eight the one

(35:05):
after will be A Sherlock holmes. Story by the, Way
so here's a brief digest of some of the COMMENTS i,
received And i'll get more specific about all of this
later in the episode and certainly in the next. Episode
so here's the comments digest from episode nine hundred and. Fourteen,
so in terms of general, feedback listeners praised the podcast's, quality,

(35:29):
diversity and educational. VALUE a lot of people commented on
my clear, pronunciation the sound of my, voice my good,
vibes And My. Humor the most popular episodes are the
short story, episodes especially on, YouTube the spontaneous rambling, episodes
and guest, appearances particularly family members and the pod Pals

(35:52):
amber And. Paul in terms of impact on Your english,
skills improved listening comprehension was a common, benefit, unsurprisingly with
listeners better understanding all Spoken, english including native. Speakers plenty
of people described how they struggled to understand the podcast at,
first but then. Persevered the result was that gradually their

(36:15):
listening skills improved and they were able to understand almost
everything in my, episodes and this opened up a whole
new world Of english for, Them so that was a
very common. Story many people reported enhanced speaking skills, too
citing improvements in their, pronunciation, accent, vocabulary, fluency and overall

(36:36):
confidence because improved listening skills transfer to your speaking. Skills
some people achieved exam, success for Example ieltstock and Other cambridge,
exams attributing a lot of their progress to the, podcast
which is. Amazing, thirdly some tips for using the podcast

(36:56):
from listeners who actually understood the question so suggested methods
included listening to episodes more than once and lots of
people said that checking transcripts to confirm and reinforce, understanding
actively taking vocabulary, notes using, PDFs and shadowing for pronunciation.

(37:16):
Practice listeners recommended focused vocabulary, exercises engaging in discussions based
on podcast, episodes and Using Luke's english podcast premium episodes
for faster. Progress And i'll give more specifics on this stuff.
Later so that was a brief overview of some of

(37:37):
the RESPONSES i, got but there is a lot more
for me to, share SO i will be coming back
to that in some detail. Later in, fact there was
so much to, share including quite a few personal stories,
that As i've, said the next episode will be completely
based on those, messages and that will arrive next. Week
so you might have to wait a bit longer for
That Sherlock holmes story WHICH i promised would come in

(37:59):
episode nine ndred and. SEVENTEEN i think that story will
end up being episode nine hundred and eighteen. Instead sorry about,
that but you know you, understand don't, You, yes you,
do of course you. Do, Good so let me now
get back to talking about this podcast and what this
is all about, again just re establishing my intentions and
showing that there is method to my. Madness so what
AM i trying to do with this? Podcast what are

(38:20):
the aims of the? Podcast, basically my main aim has
always been the, same and that is to help people
do More english listening on a regular basis for longer
periods of, time long, term BECAUSE i really believe that
doing plenty of listening to authentic Spoken english is a
vital part of the process of learning to be a

(38:41):
better user Of, english especially in terms of your direct listening,
skills but also across the board in all other areas
of Your english. Too so let's talk about learning through, listening,
right because first and foremost this is all about Learning
english through. Listening, NOW i think there are many ways
you can and should improve Your. English there are various

(39:05):
factors to think. About. Right you've got the four skills, listening, speaking, reading,
writing and different language systems, grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and you
should find ways to work on all of those. Things
english is quite a complex. Machine it's a sort of
process which involves all of these different skills and systems
all working, together so you have to pay attention to

(39:27):
all of. Them there's also the issue of, memory of
forming the right habits and the hugely important issue of.
Mindset so how do you get into it? All where
do you actually? Start how do you actually Learn? English
this is obviously a huge, question actually three questions if you,
noticed which people talk about all the time and never

(39:49):
really work out a single answer. TO i think there
are lots of ways to approach Learning. English the main
thing is that you actively engage With english in a
meaningful way on a regular. Basis so this means using
the language rather than just studying it like it's a
set of. Rules you need to. Learn english is something
you can, do not just something you, know so use it.

(40:12):
Regularly this could mean listening to, it reading, it speaking,
it and writing. It of, course there's more to it than,
that because you might need Your english to be. Corrected
you might need to make shortcuts in your learning by
explicitly studying the grammar, rules or get vocabulary, input or
work on specific aspects of. Pronunciation but you definitely need

(40:34):
to be connecting With english in a meaningful way on
a regular. Basis let me talk about passive and active.
Practice there is also the important distinction between passive and active,
practice and you should try to be active in your
learning rather than just, Passive so passive learning is important

(40:55):
in order to absorb. Language, naturally you have to do
a lot of, it but you can accelerate everything by
being more active applying yourself to the learning. Process it's
also worth making a distinction between receptive and productive, skills
so try to practice those productive, skills the writing and,

(41:17):
speaking as well as the receptive, skills the reading and.
Listening so there's a lot to deal with and quite
a lot of ways to approach. It i've never thought
that this podcast was the only thing you need to Learn.
English i've always said that this podcast works best when
it's part of a balanced approach to Learning, English so
that means that you should also do other things like speaking,

(41:37):
practice some study and practice of, grammar memorizing, vocabulary working on, pronunciation, reading,
writing and so. On but having said, that we need
to see that podcasts can be a surprisingly powerful resource
for Your english. Learning podcasts essentially are a delivery system
which allows you to Get english listening directly into your

(41:58):
life in a way that's never before been possible in
the history of human. Civilization listening To english in such
a convenient way on a regular basis for slightly longer
periods can be immensely impactful on Your, english and you
should not underestimate its. Importance so just in case you're not,
convinced here are some reasons why it's important to do

(42:20):
plenty of listening In. English and by the, way this
is all backed up by the comments that were made
by my, listeners a lot of research and academic commentary
about listenings That i've read over the, years and also
just the Things i've observed about Learning english during my
very long, career a career in Which i've developed a
very particular set of. Skills so the impact of listening

(42:42):
practice on Your, english first of, all improved listening. Comprehension
this seems, obvious but it's probably worth. Saying listening to
plenty Of english on a regular basis helps you understand natural,
speech including variations in, accents, intonation and. Rhythm i'm still
often amazed at how my students THAT i meet in

(43:02):
classrooms just never listen To english outside of, class and
as a, result they are often completely confused by natural Spoken.
English they can't deal with different accents or even connected,
speech and have no real grasp of what Spoken english
actually sounds. Like everything has to be written down for.
Them listening To english regularly also allows you to become

(43:26):
familiar with Spoken. English and how can you expect to
speak this language properly if you don't know how it even.
Sounds now you might think you know What english sounds,
like but do you really. Know the only way to
be sure is to listen to it regularly a lot
and really become familiar with the, sound the rhythm of Spoken,
english and the way all the words can be. Connected

(43:48):
listening practice develops your ability to grasp meaning from context
even when unfamiliar words or expressions are, Used and as
far As i'm, concerned this is a vital skill for
being able to effectively communicate In. English when you first
begin listening To, english it's confusing and a lot of
it is invisible to. You right when you. Listen you

(44:09):
don't know or can't identify a lot of the words
being used, right and so they are invisible to. You
it's not like writing or reading right where you can
see words that you don't. Know you can actually see
all the, words and the ones you don't know really
stick out to. You it's not like that when you're,
listening because when you're listening those words are just sort

(44:31):
of formless, noises and your first instinct is to ignore.
Them but with, practice you learn to fill in the,
gaps and the world Of english Oral english opens up
to you as you understand more and, more and this
helps you to gain the ability to work out what
you are. Hearing, secondly you've got exposure to real life.

(44:53):
Language listening a lot introduces you to authentic language as
it's used by native speakers or fluent. SPEAKERS i should add,
Right so learn how learn How english is actually, spoken
not how you expect it to be spoken based on
the rules you've learned or what you see when you

(45:14):
read Written. English everyone has an idea of What english
sounds like based on what they, expect and that expectation
is probably built up by the way the language. Looks
and the Way english looks and the way it sounds
are two different. Things, also listening helps you with understanding idiomatic,

(45:35):
expressions phrasal, verbs and. Slang Spoken english is a different
beast to Written. English it's often more, informal it breaks grammar,
rules and it involves certain phrases which you might not
get in more formal Written english or even in. Textbooks
but this is the real living, language and obviously listening
to a lot of it means that you will come across,

(45:57):
idioms phrasal verbs and loads of others and. Vocabulary you
will just meet them on a regular. Basis, thirdly vocabulary.
Acquisition listening reinforces vocabulary you have already, learned and you
learn new. Stuff, okay, so but in terms of reinforcing

(46:17):
what you've already, learned this is very important because you
get a sense of the frequency of certain. Vocabulary you
know that certain vocab becomes more important because you hear
it more and more. Regularly doing this also introduces new
words in, context making them easier to. Remember you learn
words when you understand, them and you naturally understand them

(46:40):
when they are presented in. Context the context provides you
with a lot of the, time a lot of the
information you need to know in order to kind of
work out what new words. Mean listening shows you how
words are used in different situations and in, collocations so
you don't just learn words on their own, right but

(47:01):
you start to notice how they're used in combination with other,
words and also how different situations involve different. Phrases as
you notice the way that tone shifts and how the
situation or tone can change the wording of. Something for,
example in episode number eight hundred and thirty, seven in
WHICH i showed How english changes depending on the, situation

(47:23):
that one was called what was it describing a car
accident in fifteen styles Of? English and it was all
about how different situations or different purposes affect the wording
and grammar Of english. Completely AND i looked at describing
the same events but in different. Modes for, example there
was just someone describing an accident in the form of an,

(47:46):
anecdote a police, report a formal, letter an informal, letter
even like a stand up comedy, routine a news, report
a movie, script all those different, things all describing the same.
Events but we noticed how The english changed depending on
the mode of. Communication the fourth point is improved. Pronunciation

(48:08):
listening enables you to hear and then to copy natural
pronunciation and intonation. Patterns so this is the same POINT
i made. Before to learn to Speak, english you need
to know what Spoken english actually sounds. Like And i've
met countless learners Of english who were speaking a form
Of english that was completely influenced by a combination of Written.
English how they Expected english to sound based on its

(48:30):
spelling and how their first language. Works listening to plenty
of Spoken english just shows you what you should be aiming.
For listening increases your familiarity with sound, patterns which helps
with speaking and. Understanding so this includes things like connected,
speech how words blend, together and also the subtle art

(48:51):
of sentence, stress how meaning is interpreted by emphasizing different
parts of a. Sentence that's really hard to learn on,
paper it has to be done in. Practice fifth is
better grammar. Awareness listening to hours of meaningful Spoken english
provides you with exposure to correct grammatical structures in, context

(49:16):
helping you internalize grammar. Naturally there are entire approaches to
language learning which state that exposure is all you need
to gain a natural insight into the structure of a.
Language just listen to What Stephen krashen has to stay
on the. Subject, now some people disagree with this, approach
BUT i think there has to be a lot of

(49:36):
truth to. It studying grammar is, important and obviously it
helps if you enjoy, it because it can give you
a shortcut to understanding how a language, operates but actually
noticing how grammar is Applied when a language is used
in a meaningful way is absolutely. VITAL i think it's
important to develop a certain instinct for grammar based on

(49:58):
what you have already, heard because when you, speak you
don't have time to process. Grammar it has to happen,
spontaneously and listening To, english exposing yourself to a lot Of,
english really helps to develop that sense of. Instinct as a,
result listening reduces your reliance on explicit grammar rules by

(50:19):
offering you real life, examples so you can kind of
liberate yourself from the grammar, focused book, oriented rule obsessed
mindset of learning a language and instead listen to How
english is used again and again and. Again imagine learning
to play tennis by studying the rules of physics as
they apply to the way a ball bounces and how

(50:41):
the position of your, legs, arms and body influence the
way the ball hits the. Racket just play tennis every
day and watch other people play, it, right that would be.
Better so that's just an, analogy of, course because tennis
And english are not the, same but you get my.
Point listening a lot is a way of learning grammar
by as deserving how it actually applies To english in.

(51:02):
Action sixth point is cultural. Understanding so listening to my
episodes gives you insights into cultural, nuances, humor and social,
norms and these things are super important when you're Using english. Socially,
Again english is not just the words and, structures but
how they are applied. Socially, again listening To english being

(51:25):
used helps you understand how language use varies in different,
contexts such as formal versus informal. Settings seventh point increased.
Fluency listening can definitely help you think In english by
immersing you in the. LANGUAGE i think listening To english
leaves an imprint of Spoken english on, you which then

(51:45):
comes out when you speak. It, Right listening a lot
leaves a sort of imprint on. You, NOW i listen
to Some french podcasts, sometimes AND i find that the
first things the host says at the beginning of his
episodes stick with me And i'm able to replicate them more. Easily,
okay so listening leaves an imprint on you which comes

(52:07):
out when you. Speak this seems obvious to, me, really
So i'll make the point. Again how can someone expect
to produce fluent Spoken english when they don't really know
how it sounds or what the rhythms, are. Etc they
will just end up producing a form Of english which
is basically just the same as their first, language but
With english, words and that never sounds. Right so Speak

(52:30):
english as it is, spoken and do it according to
the conventions Of english as a. System you become familiar
with that system by hearing it a. Lot hopefully this
all happens, easily by the, way when you just listen
for the pleasure of doing. It it's a bit like
me going to the, gym which is, unpleasant but IF
i go out and play, FOOTBALL i end up doing
a lot of exercise just as a consequence of doing

(52:52):
something THAT i. Enjoy, similarly if you find something you
enjoy listening, to just enjoy listening to, it and a
lot of this stuff will happen as a kind of natural,
consequence and you'll end up doing a lot more of
it than you would do if you were kind of
Seeing english as a homework. Task So i'm. Sure i'm
certain that listening a lot improves the speed and confidence

(53:13):
with which you can Process english in your mind and Produce.
English And i've noticed this plenty of times in my.
Students in my, experience the ones who do plenty of,
listening just tend to be able to Process english more
quickly and with more of an instinct for it than
the ones who. Don't so as a, teacher, right imagine

(53:36):
being a. Teacher so as a, teacher you look at
your class of. Students let's say there's twelve. PEOPLE i
look at my class of, students and there are some
students who are just switched on and, reactive and then
there are other students in front of you who appear
to be sort of behind some kind of invisible, wall

(53:56):
and you have to break down that every time you
interact with. Them for, example at the start of, CLASS
i often just engage each person in a mini conversation, Like,
hi how was your journey to school? Today or did
you sleep well last? Night or do you feel ready
for class? Today and some of them need to have
the question given to them several, times or perhaps they

(54:19):
need it to be written, down and they don't really
have the skills to negotiate the situation where that when
they don't, understand for, example simply by saying, sorry what
did you? Say or something, similar they just kind of
sit like a rabbit in the. Headlights and bear in
mind that all the students in the class are at
the same, level, Right they've all been placed into this,

(54:42):
class so they all technically have the same, level but
perhaps not across all the. Skills so you might have
some students who have a really good level on, paper
but when it comes to the actual act of processing
and producing language in the, moment they. Struggle, so, Right,

(55:03):
so these students might be good at writing or a grammar,
test they might have a decent level of, vocabulary but
they can't handle this kind of instant spoken. Interaction then
there are others in the class who are switched. On
they're on the ball And english comes to them more.
Quickly they can follow what you're doing when you talk to,

(55:23):
them or they're able to process and produce language more.
Quickly in my, experience these are often the ones who
have certain, habits including listening to things In, english and,
yes that includes my. PODCAST i do have students in
my classes who listen to my. Podcasts and every TIME

(55:44):
i have a student in my class who listens to my,
podcast they are always in that second. Category in my,
experience they're more reactive and just able to process and
Produce english more. Quickly, now maybe it's a, coincidence, Right
maybe it's. Not maybe they're like that, already and in,

(56:04):
fact that's why they listen to the, podcast because they
are that kind of person who engages With english on
a personal. Level so it might not be that my
podcast is causing them to be like. That in, fact
it might be the other way. AROUND i don't, Know
so maybe it's a, coincidence or maybe these people listen
to podcasts because they have a natural inclination towards Spoken,

(56:25):
english or maybe Their english has been improved by the.
Podcast i'm not sure what the relationship, is but it's
interesting that there is a definite correlation between people who
listen to my podcast or other similar things and people
who can deal with spontaneous conversation In. English it's, interesting
don't you think that those two things are in the same.
Category another Thing i've noticed is my student's ability to

(56:49):
deal with a certain task in, class and that is
a simple listen and repeat, exercise WHICH i think probably
demonstrates that ability to process and produce. Language so a
simple listen and repeat. EXERCISE i think the ones who
do listening practice outside class are better at this than.
Others the exercise is, simple but it involves quite a

(57:13):
lot of complex language processing all at the same, time
And i'm sure that regularly listening To english helps to develop.
This so at, first this is a basic listening repeat
exercise WHERE i say a sentence and the learner has
to repeat it without. Pausing for, EXAMPLE i will, say
do you know if there's a news agent's around here?
Somewhere or do you know if there's a news agent

(57:35):
somewhere around? Here? Right do you do you know if
there's a news agent's somewhere around? Here do you know
if there's a news agent somewhere around? Here SAY i say,
that they have to repeat it and it's not written
down now that you can see already that that poses

(57:58):
a lot of challenges because it's you've got to understand
all the. Words you've got to you, know you've got
to identify every part of the, sentence and then you've
got to be able to remember it and reproduce. It
it's actually a really difficult. Task do you know if
there's a news agent somewhere around? Here like a, newsagent's
what's a news agent's that's just a shop where you

(58:19):
can buy newspaper's, milk you, know bits and pieces do
you know if there's a news agents around here? Somewhere,
NOW i might extend it. TOO i might extend the
sentence after they've done it. ONCE i might add things to.
IT i might, say excuse, me do you know if
there's a news agent somewhere around? Here i'm trying to
top up my travel. Card, Okay and so they've got,

(58:43):
to you, know AS i extend, it they've got to
repeat all of it with the. Extensions, now this is
quite difficult because the student has to understand what is,
said remember, it hold it in their, mind reproduce it, accurate,
accurately pronounce the whole thing like, me and not pause at.
All and that involves a lot of language. Systems. Right there's,

(59:08):
listening there's, vocabulary there's. Pronunciation there's probably a bit of grammar,
maybe as they have to try and crunch the sentence
in their. Minds it helps if they know all the
words they're. Hearing it all involves a certain amount of
processing and production Of, english and it has to be. Instant,
again the ones who listen to podcasts are usually the

(59:29):
ones who deal with this. Better it's no surprise, really
because listening to podcasts you are constantly processing information delivered
in Spoken, english in, words, phrases and. Sentences your mind
becomes far more capable of understanding and holding entire sentences
in your short term memory at a, time because this

(59:51):
is what we naturally do when we listen to language being.
Spoken another point engagement and. Motive so listening to content
that interests, you such as, podcasts, songs or, films keeps you.
Motivated this is again quite. Obvious, really if you enjoy
what you listen, to you're much more likely to listen

(01:00:12):
to it, more and the benefits are. Clear listening provides
a sense of achievement because you notice gradual improvement over.
Time this is one of the most common COMMENTS i
got from my audience who responded to my questions in
episode nine to one, four the sense of gradual improvement
from not really understanding, everything then persevering and feeling fantastic

(01:00:36):
because they understand so much more after a few months
of regular. Listening, surely feeding Your english through listening like
this ends up feeding all the other aspects of Your
english because they're all, connected especially listening and. Speaking so
that's the oral side of. Things and number. Nine number

(01:00:58):
nine proved speaking skills listening to Spoken english serves as
a model for you to replicate in your own. Speaking
As i've, mentioned it also teaches very important conversational norms
such as turn taking and responding. Appropriately so these are
the social dynamics of Using english with other, people and

(01:01:19):
you don't really get it from a grammar. Book the
best way to learn how to converse with people is
to observe it happening and to practice doing it. Yourself of,
course and point number, ten WHICH i think is probably
the last, one is it maybe not enhanced listening. Strategies
so listening trains you to listen for key, information main,
ideas and. Details these are basic listening. Skills when you

(01:01:44):
take An english, course these basic listening skills are taught
to you explicitly through certain tasks which focus on those,
skills for, example listening to an audio recording and doing
tasks like answering questions that require you to get the
main idea of what was, said or to get specific
details or to understand ideas that were not explicitly. Stated,

(01:02:08):
Right so these are specific, skills and these skills are
defined in test criteria for eye ELTs and. Stuff you,
know those listening exercises you have to. Do they test
these specific listening. Skills but in my, experience unless you
make it explicitly. Obvious, right, so If i'm doing this in,

(01:02:31):
class If i'm teaching these skills by doing these exercises in,
class unless you make it explicitly, obvious the learners don't
even realize this is what is being worked. On it
all seems a bit forced to teach these otherwise intuitive
listening skills by focusing on them so. Explicitly perhaps it

(01:02:53):
makes more sense to develop these different listening skills by
just listening to plenty Of english and focusing on just
enjoying it gaining information from. It you, know when you
do An english, course the amount of actual listening practice
you do in class is pretty minimal. Really of, course
you listen to the teacher at, times but you, know
in classrooms the teachers generally are trying not to speak too,

(01:03:16):
much and so you do listening practice by, playing you,
know recordings and listening to the. Recordings but it's rare
that those recordings are anything more than just a few
minutes at a, time and you're always focusing on certain
specific tasks which are supposed to support your development of
these listening. Skills but it all seems a bit kind of,
LIKE i don't, know just seems a bit sort of.

(01:03:41):
Contrived you, know as you follow the flow of a
conversation or a, monologue you naturally start to practice and
develop these different skills as a consequence of getting into
a kind of flow. State, again you, do you, know
you get fit playing football as a. Consequence, similarly you

(01:04:02):
learn listening skills by listening to a, podcast just as
a consequence of trying to understand what what Is luke
trying to, say or what is this person actually getting,
at what is the funny side of this story that's being,
told what's really being explained? Here how does the person?
Feel you, know all these things are kind of. Intuitive
to an. Extent listening a lot helps you develop the

(01:04:26):
ability to cope with incomplete understanding and still follow the. Conversation,
now this is actually a massive, thing being able to
being able to cope with a listening situation when you
don't understand. Everything when you listen To english a lot
of the, time there are things which you simply don't.
Understand what do you do in that? Situation, now some

(01:04:47):
people can't handle. It they need to understand one hundred
percent all the, time and anything less is a, Failure
and so they don't listen because they don't. Understand but
if you persevere and keep listening even when you don't
really understand one hundred, percent you slowly develop the ability
to fill the gaps in what you are. Hearing you
do start to understand more and. More but that only

(01:05:11):
happens if you tolerate that sense of confusion or of
getting a bit. Lost listening a lot and continuing is
a great way of training yourself to deal with the
bits you don't, understand rather than just. Stopping remember you
have to be like a. Shark just keep moving forwards
all the, time keep The english flowing through. You always

(01:05:33):
sounds a bit Like Star wars as, well of course
you have to be A Star wars shark and number
eleven preparation for real life. Situations listening to Real english
builds confidence for interacting In english in real. Life it's
just slightly less daunting when your brain is already filled
with Spoken. ENGLISH i, mean it's less daunting to have that,

(01:05:53):
conversation to do that job interview when you're already doing
half of the work all the time. Anyway by, listening
it simulates real world listening scenarios such as understanding, announcements, conversations,
lectures or one half of a. Conversation this is a no,
brainer isn't it. Really accessibility and, flexibility so listening can

(01:06:17):
be done, anytime anywhere with minimal resources thanks to. Technology,
yes you can add listening practice into any part of your.
Day just stick in the headphones and switch on a
podcast while you're walking on the train doing the washing.
Up this is why podcasts are so, great AND i
would say even better than YouTube in my, opinion because

(01:06:40):
you can Squeeze english into every part of your day
and you can listen while you do something, else whereas
on YouTube you end up just kind of looking at the,
screen although apparently seeing me talking has its benefits as.
Well listening to podcasts for learners Of english makes the
listening experience more adaptable to different proficiency levels because the

(01:07:01):
episodes are usually more graded for learners Of. English so
my episodes are supposed to be. NATURAL i try to
speak more or less the same as in my normal,
life BUT i do provide certain kinds of support to
you as you, listen AND i should say That this
is what makes a distinction between podcasts like mine and

(01:07:21):
just like listening to any other podcasts or watching movies
Or netflix or things like. That SO i do provide
certain kinds of support to you As i'm talking to.
You i'm a, teacher right AND i never stop, teaching
even in little. Ways and this includes repeating certain, things
explaining certain things very, slightly adapting my pronunciation sometimes to

(01:07:44):
avoid connected speech in certain, things basically just speaking more clearly.
Sometimes BUT i mix this up a. Lot, okay most
of the TIME i speak at a totally normal, speed
but WHEN i think it's, necessary when my inbuilt teacher
set starts, tingling WHEN i feel, like, oh they're going
to find this bit, difficult THEN i make things. Clearer,

(01:08:06):
now this might be why you can understand me easily
but still find it hard to understand other native. Speakers
this is another question for another, time by the, way
but basically my show is supposed to be a bit
of a stepping stone to understanding other things like content
for native, speakers which might still be too. Difficult The

(01:08:28):
english in my episodes is graded in very subtle, ways
BUT i THINK i managed to do this without it
being patronizing and without it being annoyingly slow or. Simple
it is just slightly adapted for learners Of, english and
this is done on purpose and in order to Make english,
comprehensible which in turn ensures that you are always learning from.

(01:08:49):
It sometimes my episodes are easier to, follow and sometimes
they're more, complicated like WHEN i have guests and things
move more. Quickly hopefully the end result when you listen
to all the episodes is the right. Balance and point
thirteen cognitive. Benefits cognitive means relating to thinking. Processes listening

(01:09:12):
regularly enhances your memory and concentration as you naturally focus
on understanding what you are. Hearing it's good for your. Brain,
basically this is an argument for longer episodes. Too in my,
opinion my episodes are, long BUT i think that is
actually very good training for. You sometimes my episodes are
over two hours, long and that is a, LOT i.

(01:09:34):
Know but Then i'll publish a one hour, episode and
when that, happens it will suddenly seem like listening to
one hour Of english is totally fine and. Easy Right
If i've published like really long episodes and THEN i
do one that's about fifty five minutes or. Something i'm
sure that you will listen to that and, think, wow

(01:09:54):
that went really. Quickly it's really easy to focus on
an hour Of english after having dealt with these longer.
Episodes this is Because i've trained. You you, see there's
method to the. Madness i've trained you to focus on
listening for longer periods of. Time it's good for Your
english and it's good for your. Brain, eventually focusing on

(01:10:15):
YOUR ielts test for two and a half hours is
not so. Bad when you've been in training With Luke's english.
Podcasts listening to the audio podcast can really develop your
multitasking skills when combining listening with other, activities for, example
with commuting or. Exercising remember listening to audio exercises In english.

(01:10:36):
Lessons remember. That remember it being in a classroom and
listening to audio exercises In. English sometimes you had to
close your eyes and focus only on what you were.
Hearing you just focusing so hard with all your. Attention
it was. Horrible so this sort of thing becomes a
thing of the past when listening becomes more commonplace and,

(01:10:59):
casual and you will find that you can do other
things while you listen To English so that was a
list of the importance of listening in Learning, english AND
i want to move on immediately now to talk about
how to Learn english With Luke's English. Podcast So i've
said countless times already in the episode that you have
to just, listen, right that's the first. Thing just. Listen that's.

(01:11:21):
It that's all you have to. Do just listen and
try to follow what you're. Hearing hopefully this just happens
smoothly as you listen to my. EPISODES i do it
like that on. Purpose the idea is that you press
play and off we. Go you drift along a little
river with. Me let the current pull you along and
enjoy the. Ride just listen and follow my thoughts as

(01:11:42):
we go from one thing to, another and try to
listen to the entire. Episode i'm always teaching you, language
even when it's not. Obvious AND i do this with
my choice of, words the WAY i might repeat something
with a few, synonyms the WAY i define certain things
AS i, go or explain some DETAILS i think you
might have. Missed but it's all supposed to be a

(01:12:02):
fairly easy going. Experience you don't have to listen to
episodes in one, go HAVE i made this point a
million times, BEFORE i THINK i. Have you can stop
anytime you like and continue. Later if you're listening in
a podcast app Like Apple, podcasts Pocket, Casts, spotify. Etc
then your app will remember where you stopped and you
can just carry on. LATER i probably don't need to

(01:12:24):
say this to you if you've got this far into the,
Episode even if you switch off your, phone when you
come back to the, episode it will exactly it will
be exactly where you. Stopped, actually with Pocket casts it
skips back a few, seconds which really. Helps on, YouTube
the same thing. Happens if you're signed in with Your google.
Account you can watch an episode for a while and

(01:12:44):
then stop whenever it's. Convenient, then when you return to the,
episode you can continue from where you stopped. Before if
you can't find the, episode consider adding it to a.
Playlist on, YouTube you can just create. Playlists you can
create a playlist CALLED lp and add episodes there so
you can find them. Easily, alternatively just go to my,
channel select videos and you can find all my, episodes

(01:13:08):
including the one you're looking. For, also most podcast apps
allow you to create playlists or maybe to save or favorite,
episodes so you can easily find them, Later so try
to listen to an entire episode until the, end even
if it takes you a while to do. It so
that's the main. Thing just listen to the, podcast AND
i could stop, here BUT i won't because beyond, listening

(01:13:31):
there are also plenty of other things that you could
do in order to enhance or emphasize the learning experience
with my. Podcast and this is Where i'm talking about active.
Learning so here are some other things you can do
beyond just. Listening so first of, all focus on. Understanding
most of the time you'll be listening to the entire
episode and trying to follow, it but you could choose

(01:13:53):
to listen to a certain short segment and focus on
it more. Directly zero in on. It it could be
a bit that you've found particularly, interesting or perhaps a
bit that you didn't understand but were curious. About so
if you found a segment of an, episode you could
listen to it several, times use the skip back. Button

(01:14:13):
you could take notes on the things you. Heard you
could consider transcribing, it and if there is a transcript
for it, already you could compare your transcript to the.
Original you could USE ai to transcribe that, section because
SOME ai transcribes audio automatically and it might be free
if it's a short. Section transcribing whole episodes is more

(01:14:37):
costly and, complicated but if you take a little, SECTION
ai could probably transcribe that free of. Charge, also you
could find the automatic subtitles on. YouTube if you're watching on,
YouTube you can see that you can switch the subtitles
on and, off and they are surprisingly, accurate especially When
i'm on my own it's like ninety eight percent. ACCURATE i.

(01:14:58):
Think you can also actually find the transcript on, YouTube
which is essentially all of the subtitles in a. Text
look in the episode description and it says show. Transcript
you can get. It you can look at, it you
can read, it you can click on. It it takes you
to that part of the. Episode you can highlight all
of the words in the transcript and copy paste them

(01:15:18):
into a document or into SOME ai or something and
play around with it. There check my website to see
if there's a transcription for an. Episode you could then
work with the specific words and phrases or other. Details
check them in dictionaries or A gpt like CHAT, gpt take,

(01:15:38):
notes write down new words or expressions and look them up.
Later i'll refer you back to that EPISODE i did last,
year which was called how to Learn vocabulary and not
just stare at word. Lists there's loads of stuff in,
there loads of advice about exactly how to record, words remember,
them and so. On. Shadowing so this means that you

(01:15:59):
should after each sentence and try to repeat it out,
loud imitating the speaker's pronunciation and. Intonation i'll go into
more details about shadowing later, on maybe not in this,
episode probably in the next. One dictation practice you could
write down what you, hear then compare it to a
transcript if it's. Available try to shift receptive practice to productive,

(01:16:23):
practice so convert listening and reading to speaking and. Writing
OFTEN i provide you with discussion, questions or at least
you could just write down your, thoughts write down your,
responses or say them out. Loud you could record yourself
doing that if you, want or just do it without
recording yourself on your own or with someone. Else you,
know even if you can't speak out loud because there's

(01:16:46):
people around, you you could even just sort of like
pretend in your. Head even that is better than, nothing,
right that's a way of shifting things into a more,
productive active form of. Practice summarize after, Listening summarize the
episode in your own, words either written or. Spoken USE, ai,

(01:17:07):
okay use artificial. Intelligence it is incredible WHAT ai can
do for, us and it's not cheating if you use
it in the clever. Way you can chat to CHAT
gpt and ask it to correct your. Errors if you're
using the mobile phone version of CHAT, gpt you can
just talk to it and it will talk back to,
you ask it to correct your, errors or just respond

(01:17:31):
to you in. Conversation it's got a lot better over
the last twelve months or. So you could share your
thoughts on the subject of the, episode or just try
to use certain bits Of english in a successful and meaningful.
WAY i chat to CHAT gpt In french, sometimes and
one of the THINGS i like about it is there
is no stress involved Because i'm not being judged by.

(01:17:53):
Someone it's just a. Chatbot SO i have some confidence
issues with My, french to be, honest AND i feel
quite easily ashamed when My french isn't as good as
it should, be which makes talking to people kind of
a bit stressful and unpleasant for, me and it's hard

(01:18:13):
for me to find exactly the right person to talk
to because EVERYONE i know is like not quite the
right person to be talking to BECAUSE i don't want to.
Anyway you, KNOW i could pay someone to have one
to one conversations with, me but CHAT gpt is obviously
free if you're using the free version and it's not judging,

(01:18:35):
you which does remove a lot of the. Stress you
could use transcripts or other peripheral. Materials many podcasts like
mine provide, transcripts quizzes or vocabulary. Lists use these to
reinforce your. Learning so my episodes often have A, pdf
check it and use. It there are often vocabulary lists

(01:18:58):
and quizzes you can. Use premium episodes always have PDFs
with memory, exercises vocabulary, exercises, quizzes and discussion. QUESTIONS i
haven't talked about nep, premium but you can find out
more information at Teacher luke dot co dot, uk slash premium.
Info discuss with, others so you could join online communities

(01:19:20):
or forums to discuss podcast. Episodes, ACTUALLY i was going
to recommend an online community that there's a there's a
discord server THAT i know of that is run By
Zenk lucas from Zdenex english podcast and The footglish. Podcast
he's been running it for some. Time it's a nice

(01:19:42):
community of language Learn english learners and Some english teachers
from all over the world and they get. Together it's
a place where you can chat to, people share. Ideas
it's just a nice. Community being part of a community
of other learners Of english can be a really, good,
healthy useful thing to. Do so his discord server is

(01:20:05):
called The Achiever's. Chamber let me just get the details of, that,
Okay so you can get the details On sten's, website
which is teachers dnk dot COM's denk zd e n
E K The Achievers. Chamber you can find the details
the ultimate solution To english mastery without living in An

(01:20:26):
english speaking, country without working With english speaking, people without
having lots Of english speaking. Friends it's an international community
for high level learners Of english who are ready to
take Their english to the next level who can. Join
so there's all the information, Here but basically it's FOR
b two level and above and at least eighteen years,

(01:20:46):
old and they want people who are friendly and willing to, participate,
Okay so you can find out all the information On zen's.
Website there's a link on the pdf. Here just go
to Teacher zdenek dot com and that's where you would

(01:21:10):
find the details The Achievers. Chamber, basically you have to
read everything to understand what it is and to fill
out a form on the. Website, okay all. Right other
things you can. Do you can ask. Questions if the
podcast creator me in this, case OFFERS q AND a,

(01:21:32):
episodes submit your. Questions ask questions in. COMMENTS i might
reply or one of the other listeners. Will you, know
try to make your questions specific SO i don't have
to write an essay in. RESPONSE i haven't done A
q AND a episode for a long. Time maybe that's
SOMETHING i need to do at some. Point, also some
listeners asked IF i could do some sort of interactive

(01:21:55):
thing WHERE i talk to my. Listeners that's very. COMPLICATED
i Think i'm going to talk about it. Later we
need to get. MOVING i didn't want this episode to
become incredibly. Long in, FACT i never want my episodes
to become ridiculously. Long it just kind of happens Because
i've got loads of THINGS i want to, say And
i'm trying to even trying to speak quickly and fly

(01:22:17):
through this in this. One other things you can Do
you can dedicate a specific time to listening daily or.
Weekly for, example you could listen during your, commute while,
exercising or before. Bed make sure you're subscribed to the
podcast in a podcast app and that notifications are turned.
On it could be great for your listening habits if

(01:22:42):
you listen on a weekly basis and getting a push.
Notification make sure this. Happens, basically WHEN i publish an,
episode your podcast app will go Being luke's published a new,
episode and then you Will you'll never miss an. Episode
this is great for making listening part of your, routine
which is so. Important keep a journal to note new
vocabulary expressions and improvements in. Comprehension so to get my

(01:23:05):
specific advice about, this listen to my episode eight nine to,
eight which was my workshop about how to learn. Vocabulary
AS i mentioned, earlier it's full of specific advice about
learning vocabulary and keeping a vocabulary. Notebook so that was
how to learn vocabulary and not just stare at word.
Lists the main, thing, Right the main thing is that

(01:23:28):
you should record vocabulary with plenty of examples and test.
Yourself so that you practice recalling vocabulary. Regularly personalized examples also.
Help use flash. Cards spaced repetition is, effective, Right so
with flash cards and flashcard, apps you put vocab on one,
side some sort of memory prompt or something on the other.

(01:23:51):
Side the idea is that you have to try to
re you, know you have to try and, recall meaning
actually produce say the word on the other side of the.
Card it helps even more if you put that word
into a little, Sentence so use flash. Cards spaced repetition is.
Effective spaced repetition basically means reviewing vocabulary at different intervals of.

(01:24:14):
Time so you review vocab after a day or, two
then at increasingly longer, intervals so you revise it after a,
day revise it after three, days revise it after a,
week revise it after two. Weeks this is spaced. Repetition
it's a known method for helping you remember. Things Flash
cards with self generated, answers as well as flash card

(01:24:37):
apps Like anki can really help you to do. This
you can create your own flash cards based on my vocabulary.
Notes you could periodically revisit older episodes to measure how
much your understanding has, improved and you will find when
you listen to an episode again and, again you'll find
that you understand more details and nuances with each, listening

(01:24:58):
with each, listen and The english will stick in your head.
MORE i promise this is one of the most frequently
recommended things from my. Listeners listen to episodes more than once.
Again try to flip your learning from passive to, active
applying yourself to actively, remembering, recalling and reproducing The english

(01:25:18):
that you're. Hearing this speeds up the process massively Looks
english Podcast premium can help because it is designed specifically
to help you do all of those. Things remember That
english is about what you can, do not just about
what you, Know so focus on testing yourself by trying
to Use english to express. Yourself always measure your success

(01:25:39):
by whether you can use The english to do, something
not just whether you know, it whether you recognize, it
but can you actually use. It consider keeping a. Diary
this isn't just a vocab, journal but this is just
where you write your thoughts and. Things you can reflect
on things you've, learned but also just describe your, day
including how you felt about. Things try to use language

(01:26:01):
you've picked up from the, podcast or use different online
tools to help you find the words you. Need you
could keep A Luke's english podcast diary where you write
things after listening to each. Episode, right it could be
your thoughts and, feelings could be you, retelling redescribing Things i've.
Said even writing just a few lines each time is.

(01:26:22):
Great after a year of writing just a couple of
lines each, time you will have plenty of stuff written
down and you can go back and read it. Again
and let me tell, you that will be. Great it'll
be a great. Experience we build things bit by, bit
little bit by little. Bit, remember learning happens best when
you feel relaxed and positive about, it AND i hope

(01:26:44):
my podcast helps with. This be good to yourself when
you're Learning. English celebrate the small. Victories don't worry too
much about those failures which happen. Constantly it's all part
of the. Process don't beat yourself. Up just enjoy it
all if you. Can don't criticize yourself it doesn't actually. Help,
instead just ignore that critical editor in your head and

(01:27:07):
free yourself from self. Judgment if you learn to do,
this it is incredibly liberating and. Wonderful language learning should be,
fun but it does require active engagement and consistent. Effort
listening to my podcast every week can definitely send you
on the right, track but try to activate your learning
in other. Ways celebrate your. Progress don't be. Encouraged don't be. Encouraged,

(01:27:31):
no don't be discouraged by setbacks or things you don't,
understand and enjoy being part of my wonderful community of
listeners from around the. World give Your english a chance
this year and listen to my. Podcast HAVE i said
that before in this? Episode. NO i usually publish a
minimum of fifty free episodes a year and more premium.

(01:27:53):
Ones so if you only listen to, them even if
you don't do any extra, studying just think how much
better Your english can be twelve months from. Now SO
i wanted to revisit some of those, comments, testimonials and
bits of advice from my, listeners the ONES i summarized
briefly earlier ON i just want to revisit some of those.

(01:28:14):
Things so here's here's that comments digest from episode nine
hundred and fourteen after four. Days this Is these are
the comments that came in four days after the episode was.
Published so here's a slightly more detailed digest of the.
COMMENTS i received under episode nine hundred and fourteen in
the first four days after it was. Published so WHAT

(01:28:36):
i did with this WAS i actually gathered all the,
COMMENTS i copied. PASTED i copied all of the comments from,
YouTube and THEN i USED ai to generate a summary
of the main points that were. Made, now since, then
loads of other comments have been, made but they broadly
made the same points as, Here so these are more

(01:28:56):
or less the same POINTS i summarized earlier in the.
Episode But i'm going to include some of my own
responses and comments here. Too AS i said, BEFORE i
got so many great messages from listeners and some of
them definitely need to be read out on the, podcast
SO i will do an entire episode dedicated to, that
which will probably be the next, episode so that nine
one seven will be listeners. STORIES i also need to

(01:29:19):
do A q and a episode in WHICH i respond
to some questions that people keep asking, me SO i
will do that too somewhere down the. Line it's only
the first week Of january and ALREADY i have three
or four episodes lined up plus all the other ones
in the, pipeline so expect some listener comments in the next.
Episode at also A q AND a at some, point

(01:29:42):
and also The Sherlock holmes, story WHICH i PROMISED i
would do as. Well, Anyway so going back to listener
my digest of listener, feedback so general thoughts and feedback
about the, podcast plus my. Comments so many listeners again
expressed appreciation for the podcast and my teaching. Style some
described my voice as, attractive peaceful and, quiet, quiet turn

(01:30:08):
up the, volume or like a beautiful. Song that's, nice isn't?
It others commented On others. Commended in, fact they commended
the meaning they said it was. Good they're praised my clear,
pronunciation good, vibes and sense of. Humor many listeners also
praise the high quality of the, content noting its diversity

(01:30:29):
and educational. Value so my comment on that is, great that's.
NICE i want to make this process pleasant and enjoyable
to listen. To i'm glad if my voice. HELPS a
good microphone also makes a. DIFFERENCE i use a very
very well known microphone that lots of people doing podcasts.
Use it's a kind of industry standard. MICROPHONE i use

(01:30:51):
The SURE sm SEVEN b plugged into various other bits and,
pieces but basically the microphone is a it's a good.
One it creates a, nice, warm kind of satisfying. SOUND
i think so the good microphone makes a. Difference but
ALSO i just enjoy WHAT i, do AND i think
my enthusiasm must come. Through surely everything is better when

(01:31:14):
you can put some of your soul into, it, right
whatever you, do put some enthusiasm in. It, really it
really makes a big. Difference several listeners specifically mentioned The
rambling episodes WHERE i speak spontaneously about various. Topics they
appreciated the natural flow and unscripted nature of these episodes

(01:31:36):
and how they were engaging to listen to while also
Presenting english in a natural. Way others enjoyed episodes with,
guests particularly my, father my, brother and pod Pals amber And.
Paul so my comment here is THAT i will keep
doing episodes like. That i'm also lining up guests to
appear on the podcast over the next few, weeks including

(01:31:56):
some returning favorites as well as some new. Ones here
are some comments describing how the podcast has helped listeners
with Their. English the most common benefit mentioned was improved listening. Comprehension, surprise,
surprise many listeners reported being able to understand better to
Understand english better after listening to the, podcast including native

(01:32:17):
speakers from different. Regions listeners also mentioned improvements in their speaking.
Skills some attributed this to the podcast's influence on their
pronunciation an, accent or to the expanded vocabulary and expressions
they had. Learned others found that the podcast helped them
develop fluency and confidence in. Speaking some listeners mentioned that

(01:32:37):
other people had made positive comments about their, accent saying
it Sounded, british and even in some cases asking if
they were born in THE. Uk imagine that some listeners
specifically referred to exam, successes thanking me for the positive
influence the podcast had had on their, skills allowing them
to get a better score IN ielts or one of

(01:32:59):
the Other cambridge. Exams so at this POINT i would
like to go this makes me very proud and gives
me no end of. Encouragement imagine this actually. Works sometimes
as a, teacher it's. Frustrating as a teacher in, classrooms
it can be frustrating because you only spend a relatively

(01:33:20):
short time with your. Learners it might just be a few,
weeks and you try your best to help them with Their.
English in that. Time you can, help for, sure but
you don't get to see the long term progression of
Their english skills as they take what they've learned and
apply it over. Time but with this, podcast it is
a more long term, thing AND i do get these

(01:33:43):
testimonials from listeners who describe the long journey they've gone
on from a relatively low level to something much more.
Fluent how. Satisfying third advice on how other listeners can
use the podcast to improve Their, english repetition and active.
Listener repetition and active listening were common. Suggestions some listeners

(01:34:07):
recommended listening to episodes multiple, times using transcripts to aid,
comprehension and noting down unfamiliar words and. Phrases shadowing repeating
after me was also recommended as a way to improve
pronunciation and. Fluency other suggestions include in using the podcast
for focused vocabulary, practice printing out PDFs when, available and

(01:34:29):
engaging in speaking practice by pausing the video to answer
questions or discussing the content with. Others some listeners MENTIONED Lep,
premium specifically saying that following the premium episodes and doing
all THE pdf exercises had given Their english a very
noticeable boost and That if listeners have enough time to

(01:34:50):
devote to, this it can be a way to make
much more rapid. Progress Teacher luke dot co dot uk
slash premium info and suggestions for HOW i can improve the.
Show ALTHOUGH i didn't actually ask for these, suggestions here
is a digest of what some listeners, said with a

(01:35:11):
few responses from. Me so the most frequent suggestion was
to read more short stories on the. Podcast some listeners
specified a preference for NON ai generated stories or more modern.
Stories other suggestions included inviting more, guests especially my, Dad
featuring more content on specific topics such as vocabulary and,

(01:35:32):
grammar or academic subjects like, science, medical and. Engineering including
written formats like short stories or articles which can be
read from and then analyzed for, language reading and analyzing,
Books creating episodes About english, tenses playing music from my
repertoire on the, guitar discussing Contemporary english, proverbs, etiquette and,

(01:35:53):
behavior playing short clips of people speaking in various, Accents
providing longer explanations with collocations and examples for vocabulary in premium,
EPISODES i always do adding, vocabulary, phrasal verbs and idioms
during the. Podcast yep always do that, too setting goals
For english language students of different, levels having a live

(01:36:16):
online chat with, listeners and giving a room. Tour so
lots of different. Suggestions, actually in episode nine one, Seven
i'm going to respond directly to a lot of those.
Things but let me. Continue some people suggested THAT i
could offer, shorter more frequent episodes to cater to listeners
with different. Preferences, however actually more listeners express their enjoyment

(01:36:41):
of the longer, episodes urging me to continue with the current.
Format so there was a bit of a debate about
shorter episodes versus longer. Episodes here are the main arguments
in favor of shorter, episodes with some responses by. Me
so long. Episodes this is what some people. Think long
episodes are in, intimidating and SOMETIMES i choose not to

(01:37:02):
listen to them because of the. Length so my response
to that, is, ACTUALLY i totally understand, this ALTHOUGH i
think the platform you're using makes a. Difference When i'm
looking at podcast episodes in audio format in a podcast
app on my, phone right When i'm a, LISTENER i
like long episodes in audio. Format when my favorite podcasts

(01:37:23):
publish long, Episodes i'm very happy to consume that over
a few, days but When i'm casually browsing on YouTube
in the evening instead of WATCHING, TV i tend to
prefer shorter episodes BECAUSE i feel that long episodes are
too much of a. Commitment SO i think it depends
on the. Platform and since this show is first and
foremost an audio podcast it always has, been THEN i

(01:37:46):
tend to make my content decisions based on. That BUT
i do understand how long episodes can seem a bit,
Overwhelming BUT i also believe that when you actually listen
to the, episodes the time flies and it's not a. Problem,
also you can listen in, sections As i've already. Explained
so another comment is, This my commute to work is thirty,

(01:38:07):
minutes so longer episodes are less, convenient AND i lose
focus after a certain amount of. Time over one hour
is too much for most learners to be able to.
Focus so my answer to these two comments is that
you don't have to listen to the episodes in one single.
Go you can listen to them in. Sections i've already
said all. That another, thing, also my episodes often have

(01:38:30):
chapter markers to help you navigate the episodes on. YouTube,
right so don't feel you have to listen to it
in one. Go it's not. Live you can pause, it
come back to finish the episode. LATER i generally don't
set out to make long. EPISODES i don't, think right,
Today i'm going to make a two hour. Episode, INSTEAD

(01:38:53):
i just try to say all the THINGS i want
to say and cover all the POINTS i want to.
COVER i don't plan for a specific episode. Length, ideally
all my episodes would be about one hour. Long that's
usually What i'm going, for but sometimes it just takes
longer than that for me to achieve. Everything this is
particularly true When i'm doing vocabulary. Explanations for, example short

(01:39:17):
story episodes often end up being, long mainly Because i'm
going into so much detail in the vocabulary explanations. Afterwards
so the story might just be twenty minutes, long and
the vocabulary explanations end up being over an hour, long
which extends the. Episode and then people write learning this
with a short, story but it's two hours. Long, yeah

(01:39:39):
it's a short, story but a long episode. ANYWAY i
don't consider it to be a problem because so many
people tell me they love the longer. Episodes it gives
them something to sync their teeth INTO i feel LIKE
i can achieve a lot more in a longer. EPISODE
i feel like people can listen to them in sections
if they need. To, also not many Other english teachers

(01:40:00):
make episodes as long as. MINE i don't think there
are any are, there and SO i think this makes
me distinctive in the world of you, know content creation
for learners Of. ENGLISH i think it's a mistake to
try to copy the standards which are set by other.
People LIKE i did read a comment a while ago,
saying all the other, podcasters all the other YouTube channels

(01:40:25):
do episodes that are no longer than thirty. Minutes but you,
KNOW i want to do things my, way and this
is the way that works for, me So i'm sticking with. It,
also to be, HONEST i think making much shorter episodes
might fundamentally change the WAY i do. This for, example
IF i did a short story, EPISODE i wouldn't really

(01:40:46):
have time to do the language review or analysis of the.
Story it would just be the. Story one idea is
to do the language analysis part in a premium, episode
SO i would essentially cut the episode off about halfway
through and, say if you want to listen to the
rest of this you need to sign up TO lp,
premium BUT i, think to be, honest people would be

(01:41:09):
even more unhappy about, that except maybe the premium. Subscribers so,
basically it is impossible to do anything and put your
heart into, it which means doing it in a slightly
original or different. Way it's impossible to do that without
some people disliking what you. Do you can't please all
the people all the, time and you shouldn't try. SO

(01:41:29):
i will do things my, way understanding that WHATEVER i
do there will always be room for. IMPROVEMENT i don't
aim to make very long, episodes but the episodes will
be long if they have to. BE i might experiment
with different formats and. IDEAS i keep all my options
open when it comes to making this. Content another, thought
and this is the final thought on. This english lessons

(01:41:52):
in class are almost never less than an hour and a,
half AND i kind of think my podcast. EPISODES i
think of my podcast episodes a bit Like english. Lessons
it seems odd to do just thirty. Minutes what can
you achieve in thirty? MINUTES i Think i'm naturally tuned
to teaching for a certain amount of. Time either ninety

(01:42:12):
minutes or three hours. Classes and this is the influence
of teaching in classrooms where lessons are usually ninety minutes
or three hours. Long my episodes just end up being
about the same length as My english. LESSONS i THINK
i have some kind of internal clock for this after
teaching in classrooms for about twenty five. YEARS a lot

(01:42:33):
of WHAT i do on the podcast is informed by
a sort of intuitive sense of, teaching SO i think
it's wise to follow that. Sense if anything guides me
in the WAY i make my, episodes it is an
intuitive sense of what is working based on the years
of teaching EXPERIENCE i have under my. Belt so this
is the, way this is the WAY i do. Things

(01:42:54):
so to sum, Up, okay this episode has explored why
listening To english is important for your learning and, development
and how this podcast can help you achieve that all
important regular listening. Practice listening To english improved your, comprehension
exposes you to real Life english and, vocabulary helps your
pronunciation of, grammar provides cultural, insights increase its, fluency and

(01:43:17):
boosts your. Confidence in this, episode, ALSO i also shared
feedback from listeners who have seen significant improvements in Their
english thanks to this. Podcast so the conclusion is, clear isn't?
It make this podcast a regular part of Your english
learning routine AND i think you'll be amazed at the
progress you make over the coming. Year thank you for
listening to this. EPISODE i hope you didn't become a

(01:43:39):
skeleton while. Listening so to prove that you made it
to the end of the, episode why not write a
comment with some of your own thoughts that you had while.
Listening AND i hope you had, thoughts or you can
somehow mention the word in your. COMMENT i haven't decided
what this word will be. Yet which word SHOULD i

(01:44:01):
ask you to use the end of This maybe let's
use the word. Brain, okay try to use the word
brain in your, comment because we've been using our brains
all the way through. This so let's see if you
can somehow use the word brain in your. Comment, okay
just to prove you've got to the end of the.

(01:44:21):
Episode there are there are there's more things on THE,
pdf Which i'm going to skip. Past there was more
stuff about my, podcast and like my podcast, logo the
FACT i live In, France i've got A french wife to,
KIDS i struggle With, french SO i know what it's

(01:44:44):
like to try to speak another. Language my kids are.
Bilingual my daughter is seven, now she's been on the
show a few. Times my son is now eighteen months.
Old he started speaking a bit in both. Languages he
mainly F. English he mainly shouts his sister's name as
loud as, possible and he also says pooh pooh quite

(01:45:06):
a lot, actually so His english is a work in,
progress to be. Honest so there was some other stuff
about things like that as, well WHICH i am not
going to read out because there isn't enough, time But
i'll leave it in THE. PDF i talked about monetizing
the podcast and some other things that people ask me.

(01:45:26):
ABOUT i talked about free episodes and premium. Episodes SO
i didn't talk about. IT i wrote about, it But
i'm not going to talk about that. Now but you
can find all the stuff on THE. Pdf, okay so
this really is the end of the episode, Now but
on THE pdf you will find some more, things including
a vocabulary list with. Definitions that's all of those highlighted,

(01:45:48):
phrases the ones that were in that lurid orange. Color
so you'll find a full vocabulary list of those. Things
there's a vocabulary quiz with answers so you can check
your understand and some discussion questions to help you practice
using the vocabulary in that. List and that's all there
on THE. Pdf you just have to go through. It

(01:46:11):
you'll see all of the vocab in the list to
help you remember. It all of it is, there and
there's a vocab quiz to help you remember and test. Yourself,
okay all of those different expressions are all dealt. With
there's an answer key for the, quiz discussions for speaking
practice for all eighteen items of. Vocab, right for, example

(01:46:34):
what's been a stepping stone in your life that helped
you achieve something? Bigger what decision in your life was
a no? Brainer why was it so? Obvious and so?
On and then finally when you get to the, end
you will find your certificate of achievement as, promised your
certificate of achievement with one hundred points and your medal

(01:46:54):
for listening all the way to the end of the.
Episode this certifies THAT i have listened to this entire
episode Of Luke's english podcast AND i have the right
to claim my one hundred, Points Signed Luke Thompson Podcast man.
Congratulations you made it all the way until the, end
and that is the end of this. Episode thank you

(01:47:15):
so much for listening all the way. Through, wow that
was a bit of a roller, Coaster wasn't it quite
a roller coaster of an. EPISODE i tried to go
through it as quickly AS i. COULD i hope you're
all right out there in podcast land and you're not
a skeleton that your brain has been filled up With.
English leave a comment in the comments section to prove

(01:47:37):
that you've made it all the way until this, point
And i'll speak to you in the next, episode which
will be all about listeners stories of success in their
learning Of. English, OKAY i can't wait to do more
episodes of this podcast in twenty twenty. Five i've got
loads of other. IDEAS i love doing this. Podcast that's
hopefully you love listening to it. Too thank you so

(01:47:58):
much for, listening And i'll speak to you in the next.
Part but for, now it's time to say, goodbye bye
bye Bo boo. Boo

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