Vocabulary: ‘Post-truth’ – word of the year
Intermediate to advanced level (B2-A2)
Oxford Dictionaries word of the year is ‘post-truth’. You can see it used in the phrases ‘post-truth politics’ and ‘post-truth world’. It refers to situations where public opinion is shaped less by ‘objective truth’ than by beliefs and opinions. Continue reading
Reading: Who goes to Oxford University?
Intermediate to advanced level (B1-C2)
This year just over 40% of undergraduate places at Oxford University went to UK students who attended independent schools. In 2005, the figure was 48% and in 1995 it was almost 52%, and if you go back to 1961, it was a little over 65%. Continue reading
Reading: After the EU referendum. Brexit?
Intermediate to lower advanced level (B1-C1)
Well, it actually happened. The majority of people in the UK voted to leave the EU. But what now? Continue reading
Reading: the EU referendum
Intermediate to lower advanced level (B1-C1)
On 23 June this year, a referendum will take place in the UK. The question to be voted on is: “Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?” Continue reading
IELTS: Life Skills by Skype exam preparation
New English test at A1 and B1 level
Since April 2015 there have been two new IELTS tests. The A1 IELTS Life Skills test is designed for people who need a ‘Family of a Settled Person’ visa. The B1 test is suitable for people applying for ‘indefinite leave to remain (to settle) or citizenship’. You can prepare for IELTS Life Skills by Skype. Continue reading
New English requirements for working in the UK
Foreign doctors working in the UK already need to have English at IELTS level 7.5. Today, a Government minister has just announced that people who work with the public in the state sector will need to have fluent English. This includes NHS and state school staff. Continue reading
Reading: the General Election
Intermediate Level (B1/B2)
On Thursday May 7th there will be a General (national) Election in the UK. Nowadays this takes place every five years. The electorate can vote for one candidate in their constituency (local parliamentary area). The winner in each constituency will become the local MP (Member of Parliament). Continue reading
Reading: the British pub
Intermediate to advanced level (B1-C1)
Going to the pub should be on your list of things to experience. The tradition probably goes back to pre-Roman times. Continue reading
Reading: Today is the Scottish referendum
Intermediate level (B1-B2)
People normally living in Scotland (including people from EU countries!) are voting whether or not to be completely independent of the Westminster parliament. Continue reading
Vocabulary and culture: 10 useful expressions from Shakespeare
Advanced level (C1-C2)
This week we celebrate Shakespeare’s 450th birthday (historians disagree about the exact day) with 10 Shakespearean sayings or sayings that Shakespeare made better known. Continue reading
Vocabulary: education
Intermediate to advanced level (B1-C1)
A good exercise (especially for Cambridge FCE) is to think about your own education and how you could describe it. Here is someone’s story:
Reading
Very advanced level (C2)
Yesterday Margaret Thatcher died. Some people were sad but others celebrated her death by opening bottles of Champagne and dancing in the street. However most would probably agree that she was one of the most formidable politicians of the 20th century who changed the economic and political face of Britain. Continue reading
Outside the Sheldonian theatre
Reading: Oxford
Intermediate level (B1-B2)
Visitors to the city often ask, ‘Where is Oxford University?’ The answer is: ‘It’s all around you!’
The University is actually made up of 38 independent colleges.
Continue reading
Reading: scones
Intermediate to higher level (B1-C2)
Scones are a fun tea-time British treat.
You can make them in about 30 minutes
and eat with jam and cream.
My recipe (personally tested!) will make about 6 scones.
Reading: London visit
Lower to intermediate level (A2-B2)
Recently I met some old friends in London. We spent the day looking at the sights as we walked around the city. Continue reading
Reading
Elementary to Intermediate (A2-B2)
Britain doesn’t have the best reputation for weather. In some ways this is unfair because people sometimes think London is frequently foggy when in fact London is very rarely like this. Of course 70 years ago people burned a lot of coal to keep themselves warm and this produced some terrible smogs in the big cities. Continue reading
Reading and video: exercising double-decker bus
Intermediate level (B1-B2)
A Czech artist has taken a classic British double-decker bus and made it do press-ups (you can also say ‘push-ups’) in time for the Olympics! Using hydraulics, huge red arms can lift up the bus. Continue reading
Reading: London Olympics
Advanced level (C1-C2)
If you were one of the hundreds of millions watching the opening ceremony of the Olympics, I wonder what you made of it. Most British people I spoke to found something that impressed them but of course if you watched it on TV you could only see what was broadcast and imagine the atmosphere. Continue reading
Intermediate to higher level (B1-C1)
There has been an interesting range of England managers over the years. Now, during the Euros we have Roy Hodgson. He wasn’t everyone’s first choice and he certainly doesn’t have the media-friendly personality of say a Mourinho but he is regarded as reliable, genuine and all-round nice bloke. We shall see in the coming days if his qualities are enough to get the England team through to the final stages of the competition. Continue reading
It takes about 20 minutes to drive from Oxford to a village called Little Wittenham. It’s a popular place for walking because you get great views from the top of the nearby hills (Round Hill and Castle Hill). The hills, which are usually known as the Clumps, have wild flowers on their slopes and beech trees at their tops. You can see birds such as skylarks, buzzards and red kites.
From the top of Round Hill you can see the river Thames as it meanders by the pretty village of Dorchester (you can see Dorchester Abbey in the photo). If you have time, it’s a good place to have a picnic before walking down the hills and exploring the woods below.
In Little Wittenham there is an organisation called Earth Trust which seeks to encourage sustainable living. At the moment Earth Trust has 1,200 acres of woodland, research plantation, meadow, wetland and farmland.
Reading: Politics
Upper intermediate to advanced (B2-C2)
She is certainly well-known, or at least her image is. Her face is on stamps and the UK currency but most of the time she is only seen at royal visits or ceremonies. At the opening of Parliament the Queen reads a speech but this is written by the government. At Christmas she reads a message to the country but this is very formal and usually just a summary of some of the things that have happened in the year. Continue reading
There are lots of cyclists in Oxford and usually they have to battle with the buses and cars that also use the streets. However today some of the country’s top cyclists came to Oxford to race.
St Giles in the city centre was closed to normal traffic and converted into a race track as you can see in the photograph.
Pronunciation: syllable stress
Pre-intermediate to advanced level (A2-C2)
The highest mountain in Britain is Ben Nevis in Scotland. However I think the real mountains are in the language! Some students speak English with a flat accent but this makes their pronunciation very difficult to understand. Continue reading
Pronunciation and listening: Word linking
Intermediate and higher level (B1-C2)
In normal conversation it is common for many words to be linked together. This can make listening to English a little difficult at the beginning. You can learn how to link words together. Practising linking English words will improve your listening and speaking. Continue reading
In May each year there are about 500 exhibitions of artists’ work in Oxfordshire. Most of the exhibitions are in the artists’ homes or studios. The kind of artwork ranges from painting and ceramics to furniture and jewellery. Continue reading
Yesterday I went to an air show near the town of Abingdon (8 miles south of Oxford). It’s a fun thing to do in the summer months.
There were aircraft on the ground and flying displays in the air. As well as the planes there were vintage cars, crafts and dancing. Near the end of the show we saw the Breitling Wingwalkers. Two biplanes gave us a 15-minute show with a woman doing acrobatics on the wings of each 
plane. Very impressive! You can see them in the first photograph.
Each year the Abingdon Air and Country Show raises money for charity. This year they are raising money for the local air ambulance (a helicopter).
Listen Air show
April 23rd is St George’s Day. It is thought to be Shakespeare’s birthday too, as well as the date of his death. St George is believed to have been born in what is now Turkey. Continue reading
Reading and listening: London marathon and F1
Intermediate level (B1-B2)
Today it’s the London Marathon. Thousands of ordinary people will run past the famous sights of the capital such as the Cutty Sark, St Katharine Docks, St Paul’s Cathedral and the Houses of Parliament. Many will be raising money for their chosen charity in a carnival atmosphere. Also today is the Bahrain Grand Prix: exclusive, expensive and controversial. Quite a contrast!
Listen Two races
In east London 30 cash machines are giving customers the choice of having instructions in Cockney, a working class dialect of English. Continue reading
Listening and reading: passenger ships
Intermediate level (B1/B2)
It’s a 100 years since the Titanic disaster. At the time people said it couldn’t be sunk. In January this year 32 people died when the Costa Concordia hit rocks off the Italian coast. When I see the size of the latest cruise ships, I wonder if an even worse disaster is just around the corner.
Listen Titanic arrogance
About the Titanic:
Here is a link to a website for all things Titanic
http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/
I’m starting to hear more and more hype about the Olympics, most of it on TV and the radio. However when I read newspaper blogs most of the comments are negative, usually complaining about the cost. In July the Olympic torch will pass through Oxfordshire so I guess we’ll see how many people are really interested.
Listen Olympic test
Reading and listening
Intermediate level (B1-B2)
The annual Oxford and Cambridge boat race had to be stopped after an Australian protester swam in front of the boats. The race was restarted and Cambridge went on to win. What I don’t understand is why he needed to get so close to the boats and risk his life.
Listen Boat race
This famous university boat race started in 1829 after a challenge between 2 school friends. It takes place on the River Thames in West London every year. The course is 4.2 miles long – about 6.8 km. So far Cambridge have won 81 races and Oxford have only won 77. In 1877 it was a draw!
In its history there have been striking crew members and boats sinking so this years incident is just one of many.
This time of year (early Spring in southern England) is one of my favourite times. All the plants are coming to life with colour breaking out everywhere you look!