Staff at Embassy

Melbourne teachers share their Smart Express experience at a conference

Embassy teachers Gareth Hughes and Neil McRudden made a presentation about Study Smart, our online study environment, at a recent Moodle conference in Australia, with over 450 people in attendance.

Gareth and Neil teach on Embassy's Smart Express course – an integrated and innovative face-to-face English language course (officially launched this year), where the learning outcomes are supported by the use of Interactive whiteboard, networked student laptops and Study Smart (run on the popular learning management system Moodle).

Their Study Smart course site has evolved over the past eight months from a blank canvas to a popular resource for students. Students use Study Smart both in class on their laptops and netbooks, and for homework activities; and the site includes various games, quizzes, blogs, assignments and web-quests.

They also have used programmes such as Hot Potatoes and Wix to further enhance the functionality and appeal of their site. "Overall, teaching with and developing Study Smart for Smart Express has been an incredibly rewarding learning experience," says Neil.

Find out more about Smart Express or meet Melbourne staff including Neil.

Recent news from our Embassy schools

Here is a round-up of news from our various schools around the world. As you can see, there is a lot going on!

• A major project is currently underway to refurbish the library at Embassy Cambridge, and also revitalise some of the classrooms.
• After a year of testing and development, Smart Express classes started last week in New York, Boston, Brisbane, Melbourne, and Cambridge. Will you be on the next Smart Express course? 
• We have lots of special offers on Embassy courses and accommodation at the moment - you can get a bargain if you can be flexible on dates! 
• At Boston Merrimack, students participated in the College's Global Village - an annual event in which students showcase their country’s culture, traditions, clothing, music, and food. We had 12 countries including: Korea, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, China, Japan, France, Spain, Colombia, Venezuela, Argentina, El Salvador..., & Brazil. Students took great pride in presenting their countries to the campus community.
• Recently, in Seattle, students headed to the trendy Queen Anne Neighborhood for an “Amazing Race” competition. Working in groups of three, students were given a list of tasks to perform and questions to answer in a period of two hours. They had a great time learning and exploring Seattle alongside their classmates!
• 10 new interactive whiteboards have been installed at Embassy Melbourne, meaning every classroom in that school now has access to this fab technology.
• Embassy Brisbane has a new student residence:  it's just seven minutes from school by bus; has inclusive broadband internet and utilities; and best of all there's a great social community.
• Meanwhile, Brisbane students have enjoyed trips to farmers markets, a table tennis tournament, a pizza & board games day & a sausage sizzle. OK, who knows what a sausage sizzle is? ;)
  
• Embassy Perth has a new Director of Studies - Andrew Foster. Andrew joins us after working for over 10 years with GEOS, and more recently as Senior Director of Studies for GEOS Oceania, where he was responsible for the academic management of 11 schools. He has worked as an English Language Teacher, a Teacher Traine...r and as Director of Studies in Australia, Japan, England and New Zealand.
• On Sunday 14 March, 12 teachers and staff from the Auckland campus took part in the annual Round the Bays fun run in aid of the Study Group ‘Plan Haiti Appeal’. Students and staff managed to raise $624.90 for the Plan Haiti Appeal. This amount will be matched by Study Group, so Auckland will be contributing almost $1,250!
• Embassy Sydney now offers 3-day trips for activities such as surfing camps, snowboarding weekends and tours to Melbourne and Canberra.
  

Student wins prize

Paul Pasztaleniec, Regional Manager for Victoria Australia writes:

SON, Young Min (Shown) won second place in an international competition by designing the logo above for Top Creatives, a website company.

Congratulations, Shown!

Australia welcomes students from the UAE

Paul Pasztaleniec, Regional Manager for Victoria Australia writes:

For six weeks in July/August 2007 Embassy CES Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane hosted three study tour groups, each consisting of fifty 16/17-year old male students from the UAE.

The 150 students were all sponsored by the UAE government with the aim of improving their English and giving them experience of studying and living in a different (western) cultural setting. Many of the students had not been out of their hometowns before, let alone on a plane or in a foreign country so it was with much trepidation that many of them approached their arrival and first day on campus!  All students stayed in individual Homestays around Melbourne and learnt to commute! 

The tour program involved integration into the Certificate of English classes at levels appropriate to their proficiency, plus participation in closed classes in IT Skills and Leadership in the afternoons. Several social and cultural events were organised each week with a mix of visits to local and more distant tourist attractions featuring. Presentations on the range of Taylors and Charles Sturt University Study Centre also featured.

The Victorian Government Business Office in the UAE contacted the Department of Education to arrange hosting of  visits by the group to leading Melbourne tertiary institutions with future study interest (and scholarships) in mind. 

By the end of the six weeks students had settled confidently in to their new lives, made considerable gains in their communication skills in English, improved their table tennis skills and learnt a great deal - as had we - about other ways of being!