Improving English language is imperative for success in CSS. Not only that the very initial couple of papers – English Essay and Précis & Composition – filter out most of the candidates not well versed with English writing skills, the candidates are also required to attempt all papers in English language. Having a good English grammatical foundation is indispensable in this regard.
The best way to improve understanding of English grammar is to study and acquaint oneself with rules of English grammar. A very useful book to learn basic rules of English grammar is ‘English Grammar in Use’ by Raymond Murphy. It contains grammar rules with exercises to help you find out and correct your mistakes.
Read any popular book on CSS English. It helps candidates prepare for examination by focusing specifically on English Précis & Composition paper. Following guidelines would help you improve your writing skills:
Reading:
Read, read, and read is the rule for improving your writing skills. Give at least a couple of hours daily to reading books.
Quality Books:
Try to read books written by foreign authors who are native English speakers.
Articles:
Regularly read articles on topics of your interest.
Newspaper:
Reading newspapers regularly is a must.
News:
Try to follow English news bulletins. It would enrich your current affairs vocabulary.
English-only:
Make a habit and read English, write English, converse in English. It would automatically enable you to start thinking in English.
Notes-making:
Take notes while reading articles or listening to current affairs programmes.
Dictionary:
Maintain a personalized dictionary. Note down words that you find interesting and write their synonyms as well. This habit would give you a useful collection of words and phrases to be used in your scripts.
Chat Rooms & Blogs:
Try to engage in chat forums. In such forums, you have to respond quickly which sharpens your thought process. Moreover, you learn from others’ argumentation.
Public Speaking:
Always look for chances to speak in a group or in front of class. It helps you as you prepare yourself for such occasions and rectify your mistakes through internal feedback.
Revising your write-ups:
Make a habit of editing your scripts. Take help of dictionary and thesaurus and do not hesitate to substitute your phrases and words with more suitable ones. Even if you have to re-write the whole script, do it.
Guidance:
It is important to get your work checked by someone well versed with basic rules of English grammar.
Constructive Criticism:
Always be open to positive criticism for there is always a room for improvement.
