The English teachers voice

A cloze is a practice exercise where learners have to replace words missing from a text. These are removed at regular intervals, for example, every five words. In the Cambridge exams, this paper tests your knowledge of reading, vocabulary, and grammar. Below are some of the best tips for how to overcome the difficulties associated with completing the OPEN CLOZE section of the FCE/CAE & CPE exams. 1.      Read the instructions carefully before you start each section 2.      Read all the text before you answer any questions 3.      Correct spelling is necessary. Get into the habit of checking the spelling of words. 4.      When building your vocabulary power for the paper, note the collocation, the differentiating sets of similar words, and complementation (e.g. whether words are followed by a certain preposition, by a gerund or an infinitive etc.) 5.      Look closely at each of the options before choosing an answer. Some of the options may seem correct, but only one choice will b

  Preparation Tips For Cambridge University Exams. (FCE; CAE; CPE) Grammar and reading  tips 1. Make use of grammar apps Correct spelling is very important for the "Use of English" part of the exam. The best way to prepare for this part is to make use of grammar and English language apps or any of the various websites that are available. Identify your specific weaknesses well before you take the test, therefore, allowing you the necessary time to improve through the use of these apps and websites. 2. Avoid hidden distractors One of the most important things to keep in mind when tackling any of the reading papers is that the texts will contain distractors. These are words or phrases that you will find in the text that can also appear in the questions which might lead you to choose the wrong answer. To overcome this problem, read, read, read in order to improve your understanding of context, and then make sure you highlight the important words or phrases during the reading that

  Achieving and maintaining an advanced, or proficient level of English (C1/C2) is something that only a certain percentage of language learners will ever achieve. It is a journey, which for most people, is long and requires hard work and dedication to their studies. But once you get to an advanced level it can be tempting to just sit back and relax, sure in the knowledge that you have achieved your goal and often believing that you have nothing else to learn or do. This is so far from the truth for the fact that whilst you may have achieved your goal, that does not necessarily mean that you will automatically maintain that advanced level of English. Like the muscles of our body, our second languages require constant use and exercise in order to maintain their ultimate strength and level otherwise they will slowly weaken, and ultimately be lost. For example, many teachers learn English to an advanced level and then proceed to teach basic English to children in schools. This is a si

As a teacher, I have specialized in international exam preparation classes for over 20 years, and below is a list of 120 phrasal verbs which I have generally taught as they are the ones most often seen used in international English exams.  To an exam, you need to have a broad/wide knowledge of English vocabulary, the majority of the below phrasal verbs are advanced (you wouldn't be expected to know what they mean or be taught them when studying lower levels of English. However, in addition to using advanced phrasal verbs in exams, you will also find many phrasal verbs used which are less advanced.  So what you need to do is to learn what the main two to three meanings of a phrasal verb are and in what situations they are used in. In order to help you learn these meanings and uses, for some of the phrasal verbs in the below list, I have written down what the meaning or meanings are. For the other phrasal verbs, I would recommend that you learn their meanings through an online dictio