This week is exam week for our FCE and CAE folks! We wish you all the very best with your exams. You have all really worked hard and made an amazing improvement! Well done and best of luck.

Hi Guys,

As the Cambridge exams are nearing now is the time to really sit down and learn as much vocabulary as you possibly can. I thought I’d share one good technique to help you.

The keyword method can be used in a wide variety of situations and has a range of helpful applications. One very useful application for using the keyword technique is to use it for learning vocabulary.

This technique can be seen as a four part process.

The keyword technique can help you to remember vocabulary you might otherwise forget. For example, if you need to remember that  barrister is another word for lawyer, first create a keyword for the unfamiliar word, barrister. Remember, a keyword is a word that sounds like the new word and is easily pictured. A good keyword for barrister could be a bar (as in where people drink together)

Create a picture of the keyword and the definition doing something together.  Make the most interesting picture you can think of where the two words interact. For example, a picture of a lawyer sitting having a few drinks in a bar in his white wig could be an easy way to remember these two words! Any image that is fun and that you can remember is fine!

Give it a go! There has been lots of research into vocabulary acquisition and for higher level learners this has been proven to be very successful!  If you need any help with this come in and talk to Justin any time.

Hi  Everyone,

This morning as I was driving to work and trying to improve my Mandarin (Chinese). I was listening to some of my favourite Taiwanese Pop songs (really!). I love music and find this to be an excellent way to help me practise the language.

As we all know vocabulary needs to be revised again and again. One fun, relaxed and enjoyable way of doing this it is to listen to your favourite songs.

Start by reading the lyrics first to try and understand them. A good way of finding out what the lyrics are is to go to http://www.songlyrics.com/. Remember, the first few times you listen to the song you don’t have to translate the lyrics word by word, just try to work out the general gist (what  the song is about.) Think about the type of songs you like and at the start pick a song which is reasonably easy to understand. Hardcore rap music may not be the best first choice as there tends to be a lot of slang in them.

Once  you’ve listened to the song a few time choose some words or phrases from the song that you would like to learn. If the song has a chorus (the part of the song that is repeated you could choose that part to learn as you will get lots of practise in the one song.) If necessary, look up the meaning in  your dictionary and note them down in your learning diary.

Now, to the fun part!  To learn the vocabulary, all you have to do is listen to the song again and again (that shouldn’t be a problem if it’s one of your favourite songs).

Good luck everyone… and if you see me singing away in my car, you’ll know that i’m not crazy, but am studying hard!

Hey Everyone,

This is just to let you know that we will be running our IELTS class in the middle of March. What is IELTS some of you may well ask?

IELTS test tips.

IELTS, the International English Language Testing System, is an upper-intermediate test of English communication. It can be used for University entry and emigration/ immigration around the English-speaking world and beyond. It measures your ability to communicate across the four language skills – reading, writing, listening and speaking through authentic and challenging tasks. With over 700,000 people taking this test annually, it is one of the fastest growing English tests in the world, trusted and accepted by over 4,000 organisations and faculties worldwide.

If you are interested in doing this course, of would like further information about it please drop in and talk to Justin.

Thanks Guys.

Students are always asking me which exam course they should take. IELTS or one of the Cambridge Mainsuite exams; ( FCE, CAE).

In fact both are Cambridge developed exams although IELTS was developed jointly with the British Council and IDP.

The IELTS exam awards a grade according to your level, whereas Cambridge Mainsuite have exams at each level and awards a certificate if you pass.

The IELTS grade is only valid for two years whereas the Mainsuite exams have no expiry date.

IELTS is used as for immigration purposes and for entrance to higher education such as TAFE colleges and Universities in Australia and overseas. Mainsuite exams are widely used for employment overseas and also for some college and university entrance.

The IELTS exam consists of 4 papers; listening, speaking, reading and writing. For immigration the reading and writing has a general English focus. For higher education students take an academic focused reading and writing exam

Mainsuite exams have 5 papers; listening, speaking, reading, writing and use of English. (PET only has four papers as Listening, speaking and reading/writing.

At GV Byron Bay, we run IELTS continually in 12 week blocks. Students may join at any week, although it is advisable not to join in the last four week block. There is a pre test for entry and students are expected to be at a minimum 4.5 IELTS equivalent level. Exams are held every month in all the major cities.The Gold Coast is the nearest centre for GV Byron Students.

We also offer Cambridge FCE, CAE, BEC exams.  These are run three times a year in line with the exams which are held simultaneously around the world in March, June and December.  We also offer the FCE in August.   Entry is by pre test.

FCE CLASS

Which exam is best for you? If you want to enter a TAFE college course in Australia, then IELTS is the best option. If you wish to enter an undergraduate course at university, you can consider IELTS or CAE

If you have any questions about these exams or the courses that we offer, come and see Justin