Shadowing: 5 Powerful Reasons to Try it in Your EFL Class

When we think about improving our students’ speaking skills, we often turn to discussions, role plays, presentations, or pair work. For listening, we usually use comprehension questions, gap-fills, or note-taking tasks (I’ve written before about my own struggles with prioritising listening).

But what if there were an activity that could strengthen both listening and speaking at the same time?

A while ago, I suggested shadowing to a student who was preparing for his IELTS exam. He was improving his reading, listening and writing, but his speaking was too weak. It helped, so I started reading more about the technique.

Here is what I’ve found out:

Although the technique has been researched for years—particularly in Japan—it still doesn’t appear very often in many EFL classrooms. I personally believe that it is a good activity for students who want to improve their English. It is simple to set up and requires very little preparation.

If you’ve never tried it before, this post will show you what it is, why it works, and how you can start using the activity with your learners.

What Exactly Is Shadowing?

The technique is often mistaken for a simple “listen and repeat” activity but It isn’t. It isn’t also for comprehension — it’s for fluency.

In a traditional repetition exercise, students listen to a sentence, pause, and then repeat it.

Students repeat almost at the same time as the speaker, staying just a fraction of a second behind the recording. Their goal is to become the speaker’s “shadow,” following the rhythm, stress, connected speech, and intonation as closely as possible. Students have to keep moving with the speaker.

Why Does Shadowing Work?

Several studies have explored the benefits of shadowing for language learners. While they focus on different age groups and contexts, they all point in a similar direction: shadowing helps learners process spoken English more efficiently while improving the quality of their own speech.

Here are a few reasons why.

It trains learners to process speech in real time.

Many students understand English when people speak slowly but struggle when listening to natural speech. Shadowing encourages learners to stay with the speaker instead of understanding or translating each sentence.

Over time, they become better at recognising words and chunks as they hear them.

It develops pronunciation naturally.

Instead of memorising pronunciation rules, learners repeatedly imitate natural speech.

As they shadow, they begin to notice:

• sentence stress
• rhythm
• connected speech
• weak forms
• intonation
• reductions

Rather than learning these features in isolation, they experience them together.

It builds fluency.

Because learners are speaking continuously, there isn’t enough time to stop and think about every word.

The focus shifts from producing individual sentences to maintaining the flow of speech.

This repeated practice gradually builds automaticity, something many learners struggle to develop through conversation practice alone.

It strengthens phonological awareness.

Research also highlights improvements in learners’ awareness of sounds, syllables, stress patterns, and word boundaries.

This is especially valuable for younger learners, but adult learners benefit as well. The more accurately students hear English, the more accurately they can produce it.

Five Reasons to Try Shadowing in Your Classroom

After reading the research, I was struck by how many language skills shadowing touches at once.

Here are five reasons I think it’s worth adding to your teaching toolbox.

1. It connects listening and speaking.

We often teach these skills separately.

Students listen.

Then they answer questions.

Later, they speak.

Shadowing removes that gap. Learners listen and speak almost simultaneously, making the connection between input and output much stronger.

2. It requires very little preparation.

Choose a short recording.

Print the transcript if necessary.

That’s it.

3. It works with almost any authentic material.

Podcasts.

TED Talks.

Interviews.

Songs.

TV clips.

Audiobooks.

If the language is appropriate for your learners, it can become shadowing material.

4. Students can practise independently.

One of the biggest advantages is that learners don’t need the teacher once they understand the technique.

Five minutes a day can make a real difference over time.

5. It encourages active listening.

Students can’t switch off.

If they lose concentration for a few seconds, they lose the speaker.

That sustained attention is one reason shadowing is so engaging.

Bringing Shadowing into the Classroom

Like many activities, shadowing works best when learners are introduced to it gradually.

I wouldn’t start with a fast TED Talk or a challenging podcast.

Instead, I’d scaffold the experience.

Step 1 Choose a short recording (30–60 seconds).

Step 2 Let students listen for the general idea.

Step 3 Give them the transcript. Clarify any unfamiliar vocabulary.

Step 4 Play the recording again. Students shadow while reading.

Step 5 Repeat the activity. This time, encourage them to focus on rhythm and stress rather than individual words.

Step 6 Finally, remove the transcript and let students shadow from listening alone.

As learners become more confident, you can gradually increase the length and difficulty of the recordings.

A Weekly Shadowing Routine

If your students are getting ready for an exam like IELTS, TOEFL or PTE, shadowing is a life saver for them.

It is also an excellent habit for independent learners.

Here’s a simple routine students can follow.

• Monday: Listen for meaning.
• Tuesday: Shadow with the transcript.
• Wednesday: Shadow again without looking.
• Thursday: Record yourself and compare it with the original.
• Friday: Repeat the same recording, aiming for smoother delivery.

One important point that several researchers make is that learners don’t need new material every day. Repeating the same short recording over several days often leads to greater improvement than constantly moving on to something new.

Free Resources for Shadowing

Finding suitable recordings is easier than ever.

Here are a few places to start.

• TED Talks (short, engaging presentations)
• BBC Learning English
• VOA Learning English
• British Council LearnEnglish
• ESL podcasts (I’ve written a separate guide on using podcasts in the classroom if you’d like some ready-made suggestions)
• Audiobooks
• Interview clips on YouTube
• YouGlish (great for hearing words and expressions in authentic contexts)

Common Shadowing Mistakes Teachers Make

Like any technique, this one can lose its effectiveness if we make it too difficult too soon.

Here are a few things to avoid.

• Choosing recordings that are too fast.
• Using texts that contain too much unfamiliar vocabulary.
• Expecting perfect pronunciation from the first attempt.
• Correcting every mistake while students are shadowing.
• Treating shadowing as nothing more than repetition.

The goal isn’t perfection.

The goal is gradually becoming more comfortable processing and producing natural spoken English.

The Shadowing Ladder

If you’re new to the technique—or you’re introducing it to your students—you don’t have to jump straight into authentic fast speech.

Think of it as a ladder. Demonstrate the ladder to your students.

Level 1 – Echo Shadowing Listen to one short sentence at a time and repeat immediately after the speaker.

Level 2 – Supported Shadowing Shadow while reading the transcript.

Level 3 – Guided Shadowing Shadow the recording without looking at the transcript.

Level 4 – Natural Shadowing Shadow authentic audio, focusing on rhythm, stress, and connected speech rather than individual words.

Level 5 – Performance Shadowing Record yourself, compare your version with the original, notice the differences, and repeat over several days.

Each level builds confidence before learners move to the next one.

There’s no rush. The goal isn’t to sound like a native speaker. The goal is to become a more confident, fluent, and attentive listener and speaker.

Further Reading

If you’d like to explore the research behind it or learn more about teaching listening and pronunciation, these books and articles are excellent places to start.

Research & Books

Field, J. (2008). Listening in the language classroom. Cambridge University Press.

Gilbert, J. B. (2008). Teaching pronunciation: Using the prosody pyramid. Cambridge University Press.

Kadota, S. (2019). Shadowing as a practice in second language acquisition. Routledge.

Nation, I. S. P., & Newton, J. (2009). Teaching ESL/EFL listening and speaking. Routledge.

Rost, M. (2011). Teaching and researching listening (2nd ed.). Routledge.

Tamai, K. (2005). Research on the effectiveness of shadowing in English education. Cosmos Library. (Originally published in Japanese.)

Underhill, A. (2005). Sound foundations: Learning and teaching pronunciation (2nd ed.). Macmillan Education.

Articles & Practical Guides

Barkov, M. (2022). The use of shadowing techniques in teaching English pronunciation. In Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Education and Education of Social Sciences (INTCESS 2022). https://www.ocerints.org/intcess22_e-publication/papers/Maxim%20Barkov.pdf

ELT Training. (n.d.). Shadow reading: A simple but powerful fluency activity. https://www.elt-training.com/blog/shadow-reading

Hamada, Y. (2018). Shadowing: What is it? How to use it. Contact Magazine, 44(2). https://contact.teslontario.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Hamada-Shadowing.pdf

Nguyen, A. T. (2020). Applying shadowing technique and authentic materials to promote phonological awareness among young learners of English. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Andy-Tri-Nguyen/publication/338170064_APPLYING_SHADOWING_TECHNIQUE_AND_AUTHENTIC_MATERIALS_TO_PROMOTE_PHONOLOGICAL_AWARENESS_AMONG_YOUNG_LEARNERS_OF_ENGLISH

Renandya, W. A. (2023, August 12). The shadowing technique. https://willyrenandya.com/shadowing-technique/

TeachingEnglish. (2023). Pronunciation matters. British Council. https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/sites/teacheng/files/Pwint%20Yee%20Win_DOI_v3.pdf