As English teachers we are familiar with VOA. This program is divided into two sections, standard English section and special English section. Through the years, Special English has become a very popular tool for teaching English, although it was not designed as a teaching program. The short, simple sentences (contain only one idea, use active voice), limited vocabulary (1,500 words) and slow pace of speaking (about two-thirds the speed of standard English) make it easy to understand.
This website covers the latest news from around the world, and listeners can get a different short feature (15-minute in-depth) every day about development, American history, agriculture, science, health, education, economics, news events and American idioms.
Students can listen to the news stories through several modes: MP3, Windows media, and Real audio. They can find stories according to subject or program, and find the transcripts in the transcript archive.
In China, VOA Special English is often used for students to practise dictation. Students listen to the material one time to get the main idea, and then write down what they hear sentence by sentence. This is a traditional means, but it is very effective.
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