Should we use subtitles when learning English? Are subtitles good for learning English?

Find the answer here. Check it out!

“Is it good to use subtitles when studying English?”

A lot of students ask me if they should use subtitles when they’re watching videos in English.
And the answer is – it depends.
If you are a beginner and you only understand 10, 20, 30, 40% of what you’re listening to when
you’re watching the videos, then I would suggest that you should use the subtitles if you feel
more comfortable, that’s okay, because you’re not really as an intermediate level yet.

However, after you get to that intermediate or advanced level when you can understand 50, 60,
70% or more, then I strongly suggest you watch videos in English with no subtitles.

That’s because when you’re watching with subtitles, you’re going to be reading the words on
the screen so you’re practicing your reading skills, not your listening skills. The goal when
watching videos is to improve your listening skills.

If you want to improve your reading skills, I would suggest reading an article or a book. So,
when you’re watching the video you need to be focused on listening skills.

So when you remove those subtitles you’re forcing your brain and your ears to get the information by hearing
it, and this will help your listening skills improve dramatically.

Keep in mind that improving your listening skills is a slow process and you will need to have
patience every time you watch a movie in English.

You know, a two hour movie, maybe your listening skills will only improve 1% or half a percent, something very low.

But that’s okay because over time all that practice adds up and eventually your hard work will pay off and you
will see better results.

If you have any questions or comments about using subtitles when you’re learning English feel
free to post them in the comments section below.

Thanks for watching and have a great day.

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