What techniques do you find most effective for helping students improve their speaking and listening skills in a virtual learning environment?

Improving students' speaking and listening skills in a virtual learning environment requires a combination of interactive, practical, and technology-supported techniques.

I especially like to encourage students to make notes during the class, write down words and phrases that stand out to them or that they struggled to pronounce or remember.

This allows them to practice using the word out of class. It also helps their mind remember this word, research has proven that writing things thing down helps us remember it a little better than not writing it down.

The other method I employ in my classes is media and visualization, I try to use stories, pictures and short clips to explain concepts that would otherwise be difficult to explain using just words.

This also makes the lessons a little dynamic than the typical one on one lessons where teachers just talk throughout.

Lastly, I stress the importance of consistency, no matter how small, there is progress in showing up. 5-10 minutes a day of using apps like Busuu or Duolingo can move you one step closer to your goal of mastering English.

My best advice would be to listen to something they like and repeat it as close as possible. They can also record themselves and listen to the differences with the original audio.
Practice everyday for at least 10 minutes is the KEY.
 

There are some other effective techniques for helping students improve their speaking and listening skills in a virtual learning environment:

Role-Playing Activities: Use role-play scenarios to simulate real-life conversations, allowing students to practice speaking in context.

Listening Exercises: Incorporate audio and video materials followed by comprehension questions to enhance listening skills.