Academic English skills for international students
I had a student in my office the other day who was asking me about feedback she had been given by her lecturer. The main comment the lecturer had made was ‘not enough critical analysis’. Then my student said ‘Everyone always talks about critical analysis, but nobody has told me what that means!‘ So I … Read more
Back to work after the Christmas holidays – it must be time for thinking about presentations! There are so many things to say about doing a presentation that it is hard to know where to start. I remember this time last year making a few comments about choosing an interesting topic, or a topic with … Read more
I have noticed how quiet international students are, especially when there are native speakers of English in the same class! When I ask students outside class why they don’t speak more they tell me two things: that they are not confident in their English, and that they don’t think anyone wants to hear what they … Read more
This week of course the British were celebrating ‘Guy Fawkes Night’ when we set off fireworks and light bonfires to remind ourselves of the ‘Gunpowder Plot’ of 1605. A group of rebels tried to assassinate King James but were found (just in time!) with a lot of gunpowder under the Houses of Parliament getting ready … Read more