Shadowing Practice: Luyện Nghe Tiếng Anh Cơ Bản (A1) | Cách Jack Ma Giỏi Tiếng Anh | English Podcast - Learn English Speaking with Video

Creating lesson...
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Hello everyone.
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Welcome back to Fluent Future Vietnam.
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I am Zahra. And I am Robert.
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We are so happy to practice English with you today.
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Yes, Robert.
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Today we have a very special and inspiring topic for all beginners.
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Oh, I am excited.
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What is the topic today, Zahra?
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Today we are talking about a very famous billionaire.
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He is from China.
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His name is Jack Ma.
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Wow!
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Jack Ma, the founder of Alibaba?
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He speaks English beautifully and very confidently.
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Exactly!
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But he never studied abroad.
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He never had expensive English teachers.
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He is a self-taught English learner. That is amazing!
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So today we will discuss his story and his simple methods.
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Yes, this episode will help you learn how to practice every day just like Jack Ma.
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Let's start our conversation.
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Robert, do you know when Jack Ma started learning English?
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Hmm, I think he was a young boy, right?
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Yes, he was only 12 years old.
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12 years old?
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That is very young.
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Did he have English books?
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He had a small radio.
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He listened to the English broadcast every day.
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Ah, listening!
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That is the first step.
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He listened to English every single day.
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Yes.
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But listening was not enough.
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He wanted to speak.
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But 40 years ago in China, there were not many English speakers, right?
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Correct.
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There were no English centers.
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There were no foreign teachers.
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So, what did he do?
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How did he find people to talk to?
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He did something incredible.
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Every morning he woke up early, he rode his bicycle for 40 minutes.
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40 minutes on a bicycle!
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Wow!
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Where did he go?
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He went to a big hotel near the West Lake in Hangzhou.
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Why did he go to a hotel?
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Because many foreign tourists stayed there.
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He wanted to meet them.
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Oh, he went to find foreign tourists.
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That is very smart.
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Yes, he walked up to them and said hello.
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Then, he offered them a free tour.
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A free tour?
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So he became a tour guide for free?
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Exactly.
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He showed them the beautiful lake and the city.
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And in return, what did the tourists do?
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In return, they talked to him in English.
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They practiced together.
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Wow, that is a beautiful story.
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He gave them a free tour and they gave him free English lessons.
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Yes, Robert.
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And he did this every day, rain or shine, for nine years.
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Nine years?
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That is amazing dedication.
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Nine years of daily practice.
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Yes.
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He made many international friends.
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That is how he became fluent.
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That is the best way to learn.
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He created his own environment.
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Exactly.
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He did not wait for a teacher.
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He created his own classroom outside.
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I love that.
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But Zora, Jack Ma also made many mistakes when he started, right? Of course.
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His English was not perfect.
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He did not know all the grammar rules.
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But he was not afraid.
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No, he was never afraid.
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He just wanted to communicate.
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He wanted to understand people.
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That is a big lesson for our friends at Fluent Future Vietnam.
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Don't be afraid of mistakes.
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Yes, mistakes are normal.
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Mistakes are good.
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They help you grow.
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You know, Jack Ma said that English changed his life.
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How did it change his life, Robert?
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He said English helped him understand the world.
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He learned Western culture and Western thinking.
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Ah, so he did not just learn words, he learned a new way to think.
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Yes.
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When he talked to foreigners, he realized the world was very big and full of opportunities.
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That is why he could start Alibaba later.
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English opened his mind.
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Yes.
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Without English, there is no Jack Ma today. That is so powerful.
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But Robert, many students today ask, I cannot go to a hotel, I don't see tourists, what should I do?
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That is a very practical question.
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Times have changed.
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Today we have the internet.
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Right!
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We have YouTube, we have smartphones, we have podcasts.
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Exactly!
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You don't need to ride a bicycle for 40 minutes.
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You can open your phone.
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You can watch videos on fluent future Vietnam.
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Yes, you can listen to us and repeat after us.
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Jack Ma used a bicycle.
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Today we use technology.
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But the secret is the same.
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What is the secret, Zara?
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The secret is action.
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And the secret is consistency.
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Do it every day.
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Yes, don't look for excuses.
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Look for opportunities.
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If you practice for 30 minutes every day, you will see a big change.
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I agree.
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Jacques Ma practiced for 9 years.
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Our students can practice every day too.
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Yes, just speak out loud.
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Don't be shy.
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Let's tell our friends, you can do it.
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Yes, you can.
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Your English will get better and better.
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Now, let's look closer at some simple but important phrases from our conversation.
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Good idea, Robert.
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Let's explain them simply so everyone can use them today.
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The first phrase is rain or shine.
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Zahra, you said Jack Ma practiced every day rain or shine.
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What does that mean?
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Rain or shine means in any weather.
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It means no matter what happens.
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If it rains, he practices.
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If the sun shines, he practices.
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Nothing can stop him.
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I love that phrase.
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I practice English every day, rain or shine.
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It shows strong discipline.
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Yes.
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The next important phrase is, create your own environment.
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Ah, environment means the things and people around you.
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Jacques Ma did not live in America or England, but he made his own English environment at the hotel.
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Yes.
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For our listeners, you can create your environment by changing your phone language to English or listening to English podcasts every morning.
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Excellent advice.
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Another phrase we used is open your mind.
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Open your mind means to learn new ideas and see the world in a new way.
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Learning English opens your mind because you can understand more people and different cultures.
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Beautiful.
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And finally, we talked about consistency.
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What is consistency, Zahra?
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Consistency means doing the same good thing every day.
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Not just one day, not just one week, but every day for a long time.
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That is the true secret of Jack Ma.
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Wow, what a wonderful lesson today.
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Jack Ma's story is a great reminder for all of us.
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Yes, Robert.
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Now it is your turn, dear listeners.
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We highly encourage you to listen to this episode again.
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Please try shadowing.
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Shadowing means you listen to our voices and repeat the words immediately.
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It helps your pronunciation and your confidence.
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Practice every day, rain or shine.
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If you love this lesson, please help us grow our community.
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Yes.
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Please like this video, leave a comment below to tell us your favorite part, and subscribe to Fluent Future Vietnam.
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Don't forget to share this video with your friends who are also learning English.
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Your support helps us create more free and useful lessons for you.
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Thank you so much for learning with us today.
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Keep moving forward and believe in yourself.
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Goodbye everyone!
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See you in the next episode.
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Goodbye!
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Have a wonderful day!

About This Lesson

Welcome to today's lesson where we will focus on enhancing your English listening and speaking skills through the story of Jack Ma, a self-taught English speaker. In this session, you will practice essential listening techniques and discover how to develop natural speaking abilities just like Jack Ma did. By immersing yourself in his journey, you’ll gain valuable insights into effective learning methods that can facilitate your English speaking practice.

Key Vocabulary & Phrases

  • Billionaire: A person whose net worth is at least one billion units of currency.
  • Self-taught: Someone who learns a skill on their own without formal education.
  • Broadcast: A program that is transmitted via radio or television.
  • Tourist: A person who travels for pleasure in a place away from home.
  • Confidently: To act in a way that shows certainty in oneself and one's abilities.
  • Practice everyday: The importance of consistent and regular practice in language learning.
  • East Lake: A scenic area in Hangzhou, where Jack Ma practiced speaking English with tourists.

Practice Tips

To effectively use the shadowing technique for English speaking practice, listen carefully to the transcript from the video. With a steady pace and clear pronunciation, Zahra and Robert exemplify excellent shadow speech that is perfect for beginners. Here are some tailored tips to enhance your practice:

  • Start Slow: Initially, listen to short segments of the dialogue and repeat after them, mimicking their tone and intonation. This helps in building confidence.
  • Focus on Listening: Use the shadowspeak approach by listening to Jack Ma's story multiple times to familiarize yourself with the vocabulary and phrases.
  • Repeat Daily: Set aside dedicated time each day to practice, just like Jack Ma did. Consistency will significantly improve your English over time.
  • Record Yourself: After shadowing, record your voice and listen back. This allows you to track your progress and refine your pronunciation.
  • Engage with Others: Find a language partner or join a community to practice conversation, mirroring the real-life interactions Jack Ma sought with tourists.

By integrating these tips into your learning routine, you'll be on your way to mastering English using effective shadowing techniques that not only improve your listening but also your speaking abilities, paving the way towards achieving your IELTS speaking practice goals.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.