Improving your English language skills
While the English Practical Language Programme offers courses that target specific language issues, these courses are only the minimum amount of the time that you should invest to improve your language skills. Key to your success during your studies and in your career will be the time you spend developing your skills outside of class, for example by reading (e.g. British and U.S. newspapers and magazines available online), listening (e.g. English-language TV and radio programmes or podcasts, writing (e.g. blogs, correspondence, essays, short stories), speaking (e.g. at English Club events or with a tandem partner), and practicing grammar and vocabulary online or with other self-study materials. Below is a list of suggested reference materials and resources.
Reference materials
The following tabs with reference materials will help you build a good personal library or bookmarked list of resources.
Dictionaries
Both monolingual and bilingual dictionaries will support your language studies. Please keep in mind that bilingual dictionaries are generally not allowed in tests and exams. We recommend:
Monolingual Dictionaries
For students in all semesters
- Cambridge Learner’s Dictionary – BE; ideal for anyone preparing for advanced-level Cambridge Exams or IELTS
- Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary – BE
- Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English – BE
- Macmillan English Dictionary – BE
- Merriam-Webster – AE
- Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary – BE and AE
For higher semester students in particular
- The American Heritage College Dictionary of the English Language
- Fowler's Concise Dictionary of Modern English Usage
Bilingual Dictionaries**
- Oxford German Dictionary
- PONS Großwörterbuch Englisch
** Please note that it's important to buy the full version; the smaller school or pocket editions are not sufficient for our purposes.
Supplementary Dictionaries
- Longman Language Activator – a dictionary combining word explanations with information on collocations and synonyms, including information on register and context-dependent usage
- Oxford Collocations Dictionary for Students of English – provides information on how a word is used in context, i.e. how words can be combined to use English naturally
Grammar Reference Books
Please note that the most recent editions are listed here, but earlier editions are also sufficient.
- Carter, R., & McCarthy, M. (2006). Cambridge Grammar of English. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [ISBN: 9780521674393]
- Huddleston, R., & Pullum, G. K. (2005). A Student’s Introduction to English Grammar. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [ISBN: 9780521612883]
- Biber, D., Conrad, S., & Leech, G. (2002). Longman Student Grammar of Spoken and Written English Harlow: Longman. [ISBN: 9780582237261]
- Sinclair, J. (2017). Collins Cobuild English Grammar. (4th ed.). London: Collins. [ISBN: 9780008135812]
- Swan, M. (2016). Practical English Usage (4th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. [ISBN: 9780194202437]
Grammar Practice Books
Please note that the most recent editions are listed here, but earlier editions are also sufficient.
- Azar, B. S., & Hagen, S. A. (2009). Understanding and Using English Grammar (4th ed.). New York: Longman. [ISBN: 9780132464505]
- Hewings, M. (2013). Advanced Grammar in Use (3rd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [ISBN: 9781107539303]
Online resources for learning English
Try out the following free internet applications to improve your English:
Monolingual Dictionaries and Thesauri Online
- American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language
- Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary (both British and American English – with BE and AE audio pronunciation and grammar reference)
- Merriam-Webster (American English – with thesaurus)
- Oxford (both British and American English – with audio pronunciation, thesaurus and grammar reference)
Bilingual Dictionaries Online
- Linguee (English-German Dictionary, also offers billions of online translations)
Corpora
The following corpora might be useful as reference works, because they allow you to quickly and easily see how other (native) speakers use the language:
- International Corpus of English (ICE)
- Corpus of Contemporary American English (access via BYU)
- British National Corpus (access via BYU)
All-skills Practice Websites
Listening
- Al Jazeera
- BBC World Service
- Deutsche Welle
- International Internet Radio Stations – search engine
- National Public Radio
- Randall’s ESL Listening Lab (with listening exercises)
Pronunciation
Speaking
- The English Club meets every Tuesday night at 8 p.m. in the Klub der Kulturen (see below)
- TU Chemnitz Sprachcafe
- TU Chemnitz Tandem Partner Programme
Grammar Reference and Practice Websites
- Chemnitz Internet Grammar (website currently down)
- English Grammar Guide
- English Grammar Online
- Grammar Girl
Writing Support
- Jobline LMU (mainly for job-related purposes)
- Purdue University Online Writing Lab (mainly for academic purposes)
- Writefull (Writefull provides feedback on your academic English during writing)
English Student Journal
The English Department is issuing a Student Journal featuring articles and other contributions by and for students. For this journal we are looking for students interested in submitting articles as well as students interested in working as editors. For more information, contact the coordinator.
The English Club
Join us every Tuesday night at 8 p.m. for exciting events and the opportunity to practice your English in a relaxed atmosphere! You’ll find us at Klub der Kulturen, Thüringer Weg 3 (opposite Mensa Reichenhainer Straße) in 09126 Chemnitz.