It’s easy to do language exchanges and fun! In our last post we went over the six great reasons why language exchanges can help you improve your English.

First things first, in case you missed our last post- what is a language exchange? Quite simply, you meet up with a native English speaker and have a chat, half in your native language, and half in English. It’s different from a normal conversation with a native speaker for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the purpose is to learn the language, so you can feel free to make mistakes and explore vocabulary without annoying the listener. And secondly, since you both benefit from the exchange you are happy to correct each others mistakes.

You can meet up anywhere- a coffee shop, a pub, your school, and the amount of time you spend talking is flexible. I know someone who has several language exchange partners and he fits them in around his schedule- during lunch, between meetings, on the way home, etc.

When I mention language exchanges people usually say it’s a great idea, ‘but how?’ Actually, it’s really easy to find language exchange partners. You can meet people in real life, or you can do a language exchange over the Internet. Internet exchanges are best done using a camera and microphone, but you can also type. As one of the advantages of studying abroad is that you get to meet native speakers in person, we’re going to focus on that. Basically, there are three ways: firstly, you can go to language related meetings and groups. Secondly, you can contact partners through language exchange websites and directories. And there is also a third way which I’ll explain later. Let’s go through them one by one.

In every city there are conversation clubs or groups with a particular language interest that meet up regularly. They might focus on one language or several. One of the reasons they meet is to help members find language partners. Even if they don’t do this specifically by going along to a group based around your native language you will find native English speakers who want to learn. You can find these groups on www.meetup.com and www.facebook.com. Search for ‘language exchange’, ‘conversation exchange’ or ‘conversation club’ and try putting ‘English’, your native language, and your city on the end. On meetup.com try searching for ‘Italian language’, if you’re an Italian native speaker, for example.

The second way, as mentioned, is to search for language partners online. The largest sites are www.mylanguageexchange.com and www.livemocha.com but some other good ones include www.languageexchange.org, www.conversationexchange.com and www.italki.com. You can find several more by searching Google. These sites allow you to search based on gender, age and interests and you can start off by emailing, chatting online or with Skype before you decide to meet each other. You will certainly find a language partner through these sites, and you may even find a few in your home country, particularly in large cities.

I’m confident you’ll find language partners through the first two methods, but in case your Internet is down, there’s yet another way! Simply go to the places where people are learning a language, just like you. Go to the departments of Universities teaching your native language and ask about language exchanges with their students, and put notes up on the notice boards. Do the same with language schools that teach your native language! And lastly, use your contacts and ask your language school and teacher if they know anyone who is learning your native language.

As you can see it’s easy to find language partners. I hope these two articles have motivated you to try it in addition to your normal conversation practice. As mentioned, it’s not just a good way to learn the language, but it’s also a perfect way to enter into the culture and make new English speaking friends.