In this brief video interview, full-time student of German and Russian (and budding polyglot) Harry Ness tells us about how he's trying to make the most of his extended period working and studying in Germany. Whether you're a student looking forward to your "year abroad" or already in the world of work and preparing for an extended secondment, Harry's to-the-point tips are for … [Read more...]
Why learn Russian? 10 reasons
Why learn Russian? When I started learning Russian as a young graduate student of history, achieving fluency seemed an unattainable dream. Now I've been functionally fluent for years but I'm working hard to try to up my game at the advanced level. My flawed, stumbling efforts leave me ever more humbled before this immense language. Challenging though the process often is, … [Read more...]
How to prepare for the Goethe Institut C1 German exam: what I did
In a previous post I told you about Project revive my German and my new three-month goal: passing the Goethe Institute C1 German exam. The pass mark is 60%. Here's the good news: I got 85.5%. A result! Now I'm sharing what I did to develop my advanced reading, writing, speaking and reading skills before the exam. I stress the importance of exam technique at the end, … [Read more...]
At Language Show Live: a vlog
Now my intensive German preparation for the C1 Goethe Institut exam is behind me, I've finally been able to sit down and finish editing my vlog from Language Show Live (link at the end). The Show is a huge language teaching and learning fair-meets-educational event held once a year at the Olympia Conference Centre in Kensington, west London. This was the third year in a … [Read more...]
Logging your language learning (and an update on Project revive my German)
As I look back over my latest period of focussed German practice and study - "Project revive my German" - I'm struck by the value of logging my efforts. Here's a brief overview of what I did, how it helped me and how logging could help you too in your own learning. First set your goal and your routine My logging was in the service of progress towards a clear goal: … [Read more...]