如何提高英语交流水平?

I always get a high score in English exams, but my English communication is poor. Can you give me some advice?

我经常可以在英语考试中获得高分，但我的英语交流水平却不行。您能否给我提一些建议?

This is a common phenomenon. Passing English exams is not the same thing as being proficient in English. Why should this be? Because passing exams means mastering exam techniques (accurately interpreting and answering the questions, finishing on time, etc.) and getting plenty of practice in all the tasks normally set in exams (multiple choice questions, usage questions, etc.). You can be good at all these ‘accomplishments’ and still have a rotten command of English when you need to use it in real life. The objectives of an examination and the techniques for achieving them rarely coincide with communicative skills. When do we need multiple choice in real life? Never! This problem will only be resolved when the skills required by examination boards coincide more or less precisely with the skills required for communication. Progress in this direction is extremely slow. So what can you do about it? Once you’ve got the exam qualification behind you, you have to concentrate on improving your receptive skills (listening and reading) and developing your productive skills (speaking and writing) in a way that will really help you to communicate.

这是个常见现象。顺利通过英语考试与熟练地使用英语是两码事儿。为什么呢?这是因为通过考试意味着掌握了应试技巧(准确的翻译及回答问题、按时完成测试内容，等等)和做了许多针对性的训练(如多项选择题、有关惯用法的问题，等等)。所以你可能陶醉于这些“成就中，可一旦把它付诸实际运用，你就会发现你的交流水平捉襟见肘了。其实，考试的目的和应试的技巧并不总与我们提高交流技能的需要相吻合。在现实生活中，我们什么时候需要多项选择?从来不需要!这个问题只能这样解决：考试委员会要求学生们掌握的技巧或多或少地与交流所要求掌握的技巧相吻合。但目前朝这一方向的进展却相当缓慢。

那么你该怎么办呢?一旦你考试通过，你必须集中精力提高和培养自己的感受技巧(听和读)与创造技巧(说和写)，以此来帮助你进行交流。

-----------英国著名的英语教学专家路易亚历山大（L.G. Alexander）先生(《新概念英语》的作者）