Californians are known as being outdoor and sports-loving people, so while you are studying at CISL San Diego or San Francisco, you can expect to have plenty of opportunities to break a sweat! The love of sports continues long after the game, however: English is full of sports idioms! Do you know some of these...
CISL students preparing for the Cambridge FCE Exam are aware that the Reading and Use of English Module begins with Part 1, which is a paragraph with missing words and multiple choice options for the correct answer. What is the best way to prepare for this section of the test? Familiarize yourself with as many collocations, expressions,...
Do you love California as much as we do? It’s hard not to love this incredible state, and apparently, musicians feel the same: there are countless songs about the state of California! We are celebrating California with one of the most famous songs about The Golden State: “Hotel California” by The Eagles. Many have heard the...
The verbs WIN, EARN, and GAIN are often confused by English learners, and for good reason: they have very similar meanings! They are also incredibly important words for Business English, and CISL teachers are often asked to clarify the words and their meanings. To test your knowledge of the differences between these words, take a look...
The most basic of English verbs: BE, MAKE, DO, GIVE, etc. are all irregular, which means that they have a different form: they do not follow the “-ED” ending when we use the Simple Past or Past Participle. This can be confusing for English learners, even those at higher levels of English! How can you improve...
In a previous article, we looked at the types of questions that students can encounter in the TOEFL Reading Section 1. Today we are applying this information to a practice test on an article about the history of one of the most famous California icons: The Hollywood Sign. This practice test contains all of the...
Section 1 of the TOEFL Reading test is designed to rate your comprehension of academic-style writing. Students are expected to quickly read a large portion of text and then answer questions regarding the content. Students are not expected to understand everything that they read, as they are not given enough time to thoroughly read the...
An interview is the first impression you make on a company, so it is understandably very important to enter the interview with confidence. With these interview tips for English learners, you will learn how to prepare for an interview so that you can navigate the questions (in English!) with ease. Interview Tips for ESL Students...
Are you taking the CAE Exam soon? If so, then you know how difficult Part 2 of the Listening Module can be. In Part 2, students listen to a monologue and complete a gap-fill exercise. The best way to improve your score in this section is to practice as much as possible. For an entertaining way to...
As an English language student, you probably already know that the English language is FULL of phrasal verbs! Some are very casual, while others are appropriate (and necessary) in Business English. Do you know these useful Business English phrasal verbs? Most are used nearly every day by English speakers. Phrasal Verbs for Business English Call...
