Hi, as a university student while I have long periods of holidays where I can dedicate a lot of time to improving my English, I also have long periods of semester time where I have very limited time to study it. I would like to know how I can maintain my English during this time. That is, I don't mind if I don't learn anything new , but I don't want to forget what I already know... What would you suggest? Normally I read books when I study hard, yet that is quite taxing and it is difficult to find energy or motivation to do that when you're already studying hard for university... So it would be best if it were a relatively relaxed method. Also, how much do you think it is necessary to spend on it daily in order to not forget it. And is 3-4 months even enough time to forget a lot? Thanks.
maintaining a language
Get an ipod or mp3 player and get audiobooks. You can listen to them on the train, at the gym, walking to school, doing your laundry, cleaning your room, etc, etc. You can also get free podcasts - some excellent ones I recommend are This American Life, the Moth and the New Yorker fiction podcast (available from iTunes and probably elsewhere as well. There can be issues with itunes if you don't live in the States, but there are other sources.).
The best part is, you can do it for fun. When you're listening to a good book, you'll be looking forward to the next time you get to put on your earphones. If you like fantasy or sci-fi, the audiobook series for Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" is excellent, as are the recordings for George R. R. Martin's "Song of Ice and Fire", Richard K. Morgan's "Altered Carbon" and many others.
And yes, 4 months is enough time to forget plenty. The best way to learn is to find something you enjoy that exposes you to English and to do it every day.
The best part is, you can do it for fun. When you're listening to a good book, you'll be looking forward to the next time you get to put on your earphones. If you like fantasy or sci-fi, the audiobook series for Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" is excellent, as are the recordings for George R. R. Martin's "Song of Ice and Fire", Richard K. Morgan's "Altered Carbon" and many others.
And yes, 4 months is enough time to forget plenty. The best way to learn is to find something you enjoy that exposes you to English and to do it every day.
I'd also suggest finding websites in English about things that interest you. The advantage compared to books is that oftentimes there are short articles that you can read quickly instead of having to read twenty or thirty pages at a time. Wikipedia, news sites, or blog sites can be a good place to start. If you like comics, try webcomics.
Internet radio is another option if you tend to spend a lot of time in front of the computer. There's a lot out there, so try to find something you really enjoy. I like 'News from Lake Wobegone' (pronounced woebegone), part of 'Prairie Home Companion'. There's a podcast of it and online archives of the full show. It's a humorous segment of 'news' from the fictional Lake Wobegone, Minnesota, where the women are strong, the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average.
Internet radio is another option if you tend to spend a lot of time in front of the computer. There's a lot out there, so try to find something you really enjoy. I like 'News from Lake Wobegone' (pronounced woebegone), part of 'Prairie Home Companion'. There's a podcast of it and online archives of the full show. It's a humorous segment of 'news' from the fictional Lake Wobegone, Minnesota, where the women are strong, the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average.
"Hi guys! This Conference sounds to be great! They have very interesting panels on identity and a featured panel on Barak Obama and you can also make a real African Safari...."
The Institute of Identity Research (IDmap) announces an international conference
on Identity Politics on the Internet to be held in Kenya on the 27th to 29th of
August 2009. The aim of the Conference is to create discourse in the area of
Identity politics on the Internet and other related topics.
The Conference will be graced by several leading scholars who have written and
researched extensively on issues of Identity. We hope that this conference will
result in solutions and better understanding of the problems facing issues of
identity in the contemporary context.
AN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
IDENTITY POLITICS ON THE INTERNET
August 27-29, 2009
Organized by Institute of Identity Research (IDmap)
www.idmap-conferences.net
Will be held in Amboseli Wildlife National Park, Kenya
Featured panel: Barack Obama' Election and Kenyan politics of Identity:
Will he identify himself with the World or with his People?
• The Dead line for submission of the Abstracts is 01.05.2009 (200-500 words)
in Word or PDF formats
• The Dead line for submission of full-text papers is 01.07.2009
Preliminary program of the Conference includes the following panels:
• Kenyan 2007 Presidential elections and the Internet
• Traditions and Identity in Kenyan politics: Barak Obama as a Luo
representative of Kenyan identity politics
• Facebook and Identity: do old ethnicity definitions still matter?
• World Identity politics: Case-studies and Comparative Analysis
• Parties and recruitment in the digital world
• Gender, ethnicity and empowerment: what is better to be a white man or a
black woman?
• When religion comes to the Internet: the new ways to build and reinforce
religious identity
• Government on the Internet: new ways to preserve Nation-state and its
identity on the Net
• New English and E-Linguistic: jargon and vocabulary of Internet campaigns
Participants are welcomed to join the following working groups:
• Computers and identity
• Culture and identity
• Mathematical expressions of identity
• Internet and Politics
• Internet Vocabulary
Best Identity MA/PhD Thesis work award:
During the conference the Institute will award the best MA/PhD work submitted
for the evaluation. The work should reveal an original and innovative approach
in the field of Identity with its expression on the Internet. Information
regarding submission procedure can be found on our site or through direct
contact of the Administrators.
The Institute of Identity Research (IDmap) announces an international conference
on Identity Politics on the Internet to be held in Kenya on the 27th to 29th of
August 2009. The aim of the Conference is to create discourse in the area of
Identity politics on the Internet and other related topics.
The Conference will be graced by several leading scholars who have written and
researched extensively on issues of Identity. We hope that this conference will
result in solutions and better understanding of the problems facing issues of
identity in the contemporary context.
AN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
IDENTITY POLITICS ON THE INTERNET
August 27-29, 2009
Organized by Institute of Identity Research (IDmap)
www.idmap-conferences.net
Will be held in Amboseli Wildlife National Park, Kenya
Featured panel: Barack Obama' Election and Kenyan politics of Identity:
Will he identify himself with the World or with his People?
• The Dead line for submission of the Abstracts is 01.05.2009 (200-500 words)
in Word or PDF formats
• The Dead line for submission of full-text papers is 01.07.2009
Preliminary program of the Conference includes the following panels:
• Kenyan 2007 Presidential elections and the Internet
• Traditions and Identity in Kenyan politics: Barak Obama as a Luo
representative of Kenyan identity politics
• Facebook and Identity: do old ethnicity definitions still matter?
• World Identity politics: Case-studies and Comparative Analysis
• Parties and recruitment in the digital world
• Gender, ethnicity and empowerment: what is better to be a white man or a
black woman?
• When religion comes to the Internet: the new ways to build and reinforce
religious identity
• Government on the Internet: new ways to preserve Nation-state and its
identity on the Net
• New English and E-Linguistic: jargon and vocabulary of Internet campaigns
Participants are welcomed to join the following working groups:
• Computers and identity
• Culture and identity
• Mathematical expressions of identity
• Internet and Politics
• Internet Vocabulary
Best Identity MA/PhD Thesis work award:
During the conference the Institute will award the best MA/PhD work submitted
for the evaluation. The work should reveal an original and innovative approach
in the field of Identity with its expression on the Internet. Information
regarding submission procedure can be found on our site or through direct
contact of the Administrators.