Most people think textbooks are boring. They can be. Generally, textbooks are only used in classrooms but why not use them for self-study?

The best way to use textbooks on your own:

• For new vocabulary

Make a note of new vocabulary words and do the exercises for them. Try to use one or two of the words in your next conversation or email.

• For reading

Textbooks provide great reading samples that incorporate the vocabulary and give you practice reading in English that is geared for both business and your level.

• For writing

Do the writing exercises. It’s okay that you don’t have anyone there to correct it. You know the saying: practice makes perfect.

• For listening

Your textbook should have the audio script in the back of the book for you to follow along and check your answers. Try listening once with no script, again with the script, and again without to get the most benefit from each track.

• For speaking

Speaking is the hardest to self-study from a textbook because you often need a partner. One alternative is to record your part into your phone and play it back to yourself.

Textbooks are full of material and make for an excellent learning tool and resource. Consider investing in the purchase. There are many different books, but some good ones are Market Leader and InCompany. Order a level lower than what you are because they are so content dense. For example, if you consider yourself to be advanced, order the upper intermediate. All in all, there’s no reason why textbooks only can be used with a teacher!

Looking for more learning tips? Visit our Language Learning Tips blog. Or for something different, check out Shane English School on YouTube.

About the Author

Yvette Smith is an English teacher currently in Vietnam. She has taught in China and Mexico as well. She enjoys writing about the ESL field and thinks everyone should take the chance to travel abroad at least once in their lives.