Staff at Embassy

Oxford student scales Kendo heights

Not long ago, we mentioned that Embassy Boston Downtown had a Judo champion, Fernanda Pimentel de Araujo among its students.

Well, Boston Downtown is not the only Embassy school to host a martial arts supremo: Embassy Oxford is now school to a formidable Kendo practitioner, Akari Sugiyama.

Akari explains: "I have been practising Kendo for 13 years. Kendo is a martial art. We use a bamboo swords and wear fighting gear ( mask, gloves, etc..). Although it looks like Japanese fencing, we have original “Rei” spirit that shows your respect for your teachers, friends, parents and your sword.

"I have won two ladies' individual tournaments. One was in London, the other was in Belgium. Both competitions were similar in size; about 60 women attended. I fought five times to get first place.

"In the final, I had a long match, I kept my concentration so that I managed to win."

 

We are impressed! Now we hope that Akari can apply the same levels of concentration and discipline to her English studies.

 

A whistle-stop trip to Scotland

 
Embassy Oxford student Madeleine took a weekend trip... all the way to Soctland. Was the long journey worth it? Read on.

Apart from studying English at Embassy, which is rewarding in itself, you also get the opportunity to explore the U.K. and the rest of Europe during your weekends.

Ever since I saw the film "Braveheart" I´ve always wanted to visit Scotland and through Embassy I got the opportunity. So on a late Friday evening in September I, together with my newly found friends, went by coach on a tour to Scotland,"Edinburgh and the Highlands in two days".

The next morning after having a heavy breakfast in the Scottish countryside we arrived in Edinburgh about 10 o`clock a.m.

A local guide met up and we made a citytour which ended up in front of Edinburgh castle. Once there we were shown around in the castle and were told anecdotes about famous Scottish kings and queens.

After the visit to the castle we were free to explore the city and shopping districts ourselves. We chose to go shopping on the famous Prince's Street. From everywhere I heard the bagpipes playing Scottish marches which really enhanced the feeling of being in Scotland...

Late in the afternoon it was time to go back to our Youth Hostel where we spent the whole evening learning and dancing Scottish dances which was real fun actually. Later on you could visit a pub and mingle with the Scots.

The next day we were heading for the Highlands. This trip wasn`t compulsory but I strongly recommend it. Scotland is not all about the Highlands but you haven`t seen Scotland if you haven`t seen both the Lowlands and the Highlands.

I must admit that without our local guide the trip wouldn't have been half as interesting. He normally worked as a university teacher and had a great knowledge about both the Geography and the History of Scotland as well as a special kind of Scottish humour that I liked.

After being driven around in the mountains we went to a whisky distillery where we learnt how barley was turned into whisky. We also a visited Weaving Mill  and had the opprtunity to buy the famous Scottish wool and cashmere goods (mainly clothes such as sweaters, cardigans and scarves).

Late on the Sunday afternoon we climbed the William Wallace (read Braveheart) monument and this was absolutely the peak experience for me on this tour. Just standing on the hill and overlooking the town of Stirling, and Stirling castle where he won his famous battle, was thrilling. The guide told us some facts about William Wallace (he was not actually as in the film).

On Monday morning it was time for leaving Edinburgh and going back to our hometown Oxford. After a short guided tour by coach around the Scottish Parliament, the cafe where J.K. Rowling wrote her novels about Harry Potter etc,  we  were going south back home.

On our way home we stopped at another Weaving Mill where we had a final possibilty to buy some Scottish souvenirs.

So what is my overall experience of the tour? If you want to go to Scotland it`s really worth the price. I`ve never experienced so much in so little time, and what I think Scotland was like - it`s magic in real life!

Find out more about Embassy Oxford.

 

Meet some students from Embassy Oxford

Students from Embassy Oxford have been writing about their experiences learning English! Read on to find out how they are getting on.

Javier Gonzalez

 
Hello, I’m going to tell you quickly about me. My name is Javier Gonzalez, I’m an 18 years old foreign student from Mexico, learning English in Oxford, specifically at Embassy.

I’m learning this language because nowadays it is absolutely necessary whether you want to be a successful man, or even if you just want to travel around the world you will need English in every new country because it is the global language. Now I’m going to tell you why I chose this city and why I’m so happy for having done it.

If you are looking for a place where you can find the perfect balance between having a great time and learning real English you should chose Oxford, which is the place you are looking for. But, why Oxford?

This is a small city with many things to do.If you are interested in culture and history, there is no better place in the world to learn about it as the university’s campus or the museums (most of them are free, everybody loves free things). The buildings are really amazing, most of them have got gorgeous gardens and you can go to spend an evening with your friends, or your partner if you are lucky.

On the other hand, if you like nightlife, in Oxford you can find busy nightclubs with good music for everyone and very good DJ’s from the typical European danceclub to the most latin “disco”. We can not forget the pubs, which are the perfect place to go with friends and have a chat or drink some beer, even eat traditional food. In a pub you won’t feel  time passing; it is really magical.

Believe it or not, people here are warm and nice, the ambience is student orientated, and you will find and be in touch with people from all over the entire globe, different cultures from yours which will teach you a lot of things and knowledge, and as I said you will find plenty of young people to talk with.

Another of Oxford’s advantages is the easy going way of life, you won’t get lost easily. The bus service is perfect. Oxford is really close to London and you can spend a weekend  there easily and cheaply.
It’s up to you, but trust me, if you choose Oxford you will have the best time in your life as I am doing now.

Eiko Kono

 

In September, 2010, I went to Belgium with my friends. The reason we went there was visiting my friend, Philippe. He was my classmate of afternoon class. We were lucky because he invited us to Belgium and provided his grandmother's house as an accommodation. It was... my first time to travel in Europe except the UK so everything was new. Getting on the Eurostar, speaking to people who speak French, eating Belgian traditional food etc. It was full of exciting experiences. Furthermore, he was as a local guide in Brussels, Brugge and Antwerp so I could know lots of things about Belgium, such as culture, traditional food and behaviour so on.

I think the scenery was totally different between Brussels and Tokyo but I could find a lots of similar things. For example, both senior citizen are vigorous. I saw some of the senior citizen were dancing in the Sunday market. I also met other senior citizen in front of a church. They were very friendly and cheerful. In addition, there were a lot of attractive shops, such as chocolate shops, tea shops and local markets. I enjoyed all of them during the trip. I had a great time with my friends, Philippe and his grandmother. I want to visit to Belgium again.

 

 

Student-centered lessons

Staff and students at Embassy Oxford enjoyed a training session on lessons with a student-centred approach, using the technology of interactive whiteboards (which are now found in all Embassy schools). Andrea Paschoal, Head of Teaching writes:

The workshop was very hands-on and using the laptops was a great idea. Thankfully, everything worked well without any technical hiccups and teachers were engaged and motivated.

Interactive whiteboards are a big part of most teachers' lessons nowadays and it's not often we get an opportunity to reflect on how efficient they actually are as a tool, and how to use them in order to make our lessons more student-centred.

Not sure what an interactive whiteboard is? This video should make everything clear.

Aga's last cake sale

Peter Madams, ICT teacher at Embassy Oxford, writes:

A special mention must go to our departing Accomodation Manager, Aga Kaleka, who has been our most active fundraiser in her time at Embassy Oxford - her speciality has been fantastic cake sales.

Aga is leaving us to study to become a teacher, and so this was her last cake sale. She is pictured here, in the middle, flanked by summer student activity leaders Ruth Otiotio and Romas Sostakas.

£60.80 was raised, which will be doubled by the company, and this goes towards the charity Building Futures via Plan International.

We'll miss Aga, her cakes and her good spirit. Good luck.

Beat Oxford traffic on your bike

Peter Madams, ICT teacher at Embassy Oxford, writes:

 

Oxford's traffic can get pretty congested, as you can see here on one of the main entry roads to the city. Despite having a very good public transport system (lots of buses), as yet there is no charging system for cars to enter the centre of town and so every morning there is a crawl to get through.

What does this mean for visiting students? Get on your bike to get to Embassy for your classes! You'll save money, get some exercise and be able to get to school on time.

Bikes are quite cheap here as lots of people come and go, buying and selling as they do. Make sure you get a helmet and a lock and lights, and a map to find the cycle routes around and through the city. There are some really pretty cycle routes, free of cars, which are a joy to use. 

Oxford prides itself on being bike-friendly - so come and join in.

Peter also provides a link to a really excellent photo blog post, showing some of the many people around Oxford who use bikes in their day-to-day life; it also gives a very good impression of what Oxford is like. Take a look - it might inspire you!

“About 20,000 cycle commuters steam into Oxford city centre each day, negotiating more than 36,000 cars, lorries and kamikaze buses, potholes, cobble stones and disoriented tourists en route.”

Staff report from Embassy Oxford's Venice Ball

Staff and students at Embassy Oxford recently joined with Bellerbys Oxford students to enjoy a fantastic Venice Ball at the Halkwell House Hotel.

Fabio da Silva Moore, the Social Programme and Extra Curricular Activities Organiser for Embassy and Bellerbys in Oxford was one of the main organisers of the event and writes: ‘Finally, after a lot of hard work and effort from myself and the members of the committee we managed to organize a fantastic event. There were beautiful decorations, posters of Venice, mask decorating activities and even a gondola!

The Venice Ball was a successful event and all the students and staff members enjoyed a great night dancing and singing. This event gives us more incentive to make next year’s Ball even better!’

Visit the Embassy Oxford Facebook gallery to see more photos of this fabulous event, or go to the Embassy Oxford activities and excursions page to find out more about the other activities available to our students after class.

 

Embassy staff's favourite things to do in Oxford

Oxford is a beautiful historic English town with many great sights and attractions to see. Our staff all love living and working here, and two of our staff members have told us about their favourite places to go in Oxford...

Julia Southby, Principal of Embassy Oxford writes:

Want to see some live music? One of the places I go regularly is the O2 Academy on the Cowley Road: it's only a 20 minute walk from school!

This is a fantastic venue to see a range of live music: some unsigned local musicians get their start here, and big names also feature - Goldfrapp and We Are Scientists are coming to town in June! The venue has two stages and both offer a good safe environment to see some excellent music.

They will be showing the World Cup football matches too - with FREE entry! They also offer varied dance nights with regular features and visiting DJs. The O2 Academy is always a great venue to try if you fancy getting out of the town centre for a dance one weekend! So, whether you like hard rock, folk, pop or dance, check it out.

Andrea Paschoal, English Language Co-ordinator at Embassy Oxford writes:

Iffley lock walk is very near where I live, which is only 20 minutes from the city centre. Iffley village is a lovely little place, with an ancient church and thatched cottages. The lock itself is very well kept with a beautiful lock keeper’s cottage and a popular pub. You can walk down a narrow fenced path to the lock where you’ll see a couple of little bridges and some ducks to feed. When the river is high, the water rushing through the weir (a dam used to regulate the water flow) is a nice sight.

After this, you can go on a short walk through some meadows and over a bridge to the famous boat  houses of Oxford University. This is a delightful spot to sit by the river and watch the boats go past.
I don’t always have time to stop and have a cup of coffee, but whenever I can I stop at Prêt a Manger. It is probably the best place to head for coffee here in the city centre. They sell sandwiches, sushi, cakes and juices. Their food is of very good quality, everything is freshly made on the day and is also free of nasty GM ingredients.

To find out more about Oxford you can read our local information page or take a look at the Oxford   photos on the Embassy website.

Oxford English schools go head to head

Peter Madams, ICT teacher at Embassy Oxford, writes:

Embassy Oxford recently joined together with sister school Bellerbys to form a cracking team and played a football match against another local school in Oxford - EF, English First. We are pleased to announce a convincing 6-2 victory, and members of both teams are pictured after the match.

A rematch will soon be announced to see if it was just a 'one-off' or whether EF can get their revenge.

News from Embassy Oxford

Peter Madams, ICT teacher at Embassy Oxford, provides a few updates of recent school activities:

Traffic lights!

Accomodation Officer at Oxford, Agnieska Kaleka, (perhaps our most active fund-raiser, pictured in yellow) would like to say a big 'thank you' to all of you who took part in the last Traffic Light Day at Embassy Oxford. The idea is simple - wear red, green or orange/yellow clothes for a day around college, and try to collect donations for the charity.

As usual we took some funny pictures and raised £42.83 which will be doubled by Study Group so the final amount is: £85.66. Congratulations everyone!!! This money will go our chosen charity 'Building Futures'.

Games Night

Embassy Oxford is now open late on Tuesdays for a games night in the common room. Fabio, our social activities organiser, will be running the evening. Students can stay in the building until 8.30pm and play chess, Texas Poker, dominoes, or other board games.

The first night was a great success - lots of people came. It's a great way to relax, meet new people, and learn new games after a hard days studying.