LSI Brisbane is unique in being the only centre in Brisbane to be able to offer both the TOEFL preparation course and the TOEFL test all under one roof. Unlike other language centres in Brisbane, students will be able to study and sit the exam all in the same familiar environment. Great for those of you who get a little nervous when taking tests!

LSI Brisbane is offering the following test dates for the first half of the year: February 11, March 10, April 14, May 12, June 30. More exam dates will be published by the school later in the year.

TOEFL is offered as an elective with General English. At LSI Brisbane the electives are in the second morning session from 11.10am to 12.50pm from Monday to Friday, so all students whether Intensive 30, Intensive 24 or Standard 20 are able to join the class. Students need to have a minimum of Intermediate level in order to take this elective.The timetable gives examples of how the TOEFL elective (as well as TOEIC and Business English) are worked into the General English courses (Intensive 30, Intensive 24 and Standard 20). This timetable affords great flexibility for our LSI students to specialise a subject of their interest independant of the hours they study – something trully appreciated by all of our students!

Version 2.0 of LSI’s language Test App was released in late October and since then has been downloaded well over 2’500 times. In addition to the original multiple-choice grammar test of version 1.0, the updated App also tests reading, writing, listening and speaking skills. It is downloadable to your iPhone, iPod and, for the first time, to your iPad. At the moment, version 2.0 tests English only. French and German tests will be added in 2012. Visit the App Store and type in “LSI” to try it for your-self or email zur@lsi.edu to find out more.

LSI Cambridge staff (male members only of course!) have been growing moustaches for a charity fund raising event. Throughout November they have participated in ‘Movember’, a charity campaign to raise money for Cancer Research.

School director Phil Scherb, and teachers Chris George and Paul Corey have all willingly sacrificed the clean shaven look for this worthy cause. And what a transformation. After an itchy month Phil and Chris are looking forward to the moment when they can shave. Paul however has not been so fortunate. It seems his family like the new look so much they have insisted he keeps his until after Christmas! Well done to all of you and for raising so much money for charity.

Recently New Zealand was fortunate enough to host the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Both LSI students and staff were able to enjoy the  excitement and wonderful party atmosphere that surrounds such a global sporting event. Some were even fortunate enough to have actually watched the games first hand in the stadium.  LSI Auckland assistant registrar Christine went to several games and gives her impression of the games and atmosphere.

“I had the opportunity to attend two world cup rugby matches on the same weekend and had a fantastic time. England played Scotland at Eden Park in Auckland on the Saturday night and the atmosphere there was fantastic. Eden Park was packed and wow, what a world class venue. Although I haven’t been to any ‘football’ matches, apparently this was what it was like. The rivalry between the two sides including fans resounded around the park. The rugby wasn’t the best I have seen and England were very lucky to win as Scotland seemed to dominate throughout the game.”

“On the Sunday afternoon I travelled to Hamilton, 1.5 hours south of Auckland to see the Fiji vs Wales game. I think all of Hamilton must have been there. Again a great atmosphere and it made me very proud of my country that we could host so many tourists and rugby fans. Again the rugby was not outstanding but I don’t think anyone was too worried. There were people dressed up in support of both teams and the Mexican wave went around the stands many times. What a fantastic event to have had in New Zealand!”

To top this amazing experience the New Zealand team, known as the ‘All Blacks’,  actually won the cup in front of their home crowd. It was certainly a day that most Kiwis will never forget!

In spite of her diminutive size Ms. Kubota is a force to be reckoned with! Since her arrival here on March 1^st, 2011, Ms. Kubota has become an integral part of the staff and wears many caps in the office:  at times receptionist, bulletin board art director, master office clerk, LSI NY Facebook page administrator, new student orientation guide and slang-of-the-week curator, Ms. Kubota is not one to shy away from a new challenge.

Currently 22 years old, Ms. Kubota will be a senior when she returns to Tokyo University of Foreign Studies where she is majoring in Spanish and Gender Studies. Upon completion of her studies, Ms. Kubota hopes to work for a NGO in the field of education, specifically in the developing world. Ms. Kubota is fluent in English, having spent six years of her childhood in Los Angeles, USA, where her father was transferred for work. 

Ms. Kubota says she is grateful for the experience of interning here at LSI New York. “So far it’s been wonderful! One good thing about working in a language school is that I can meet students from many countries.”  Ms. Kubota says she is learning valuable skills on the job, such as learning how to answer the phone and respond to students’ questions in English. She also feels much more confident now when it comes to speaking in public: every Monday, Ms. Kubota is in charge of introducing the school’s activities calendar to the new students at orientation.

Ms. Kubota also shared her insights about some of the differences between the workplace here in the USA and in Japan. “At my last job in Japan–a “cram” school where high school students are prepared for high school exams—the staff did everything together. There weren’t specific tasks for each worker, whereas here in the US, everyone has a clearly defined position. Because of this, in Japan people may take less responsibly for their work since everyone shares in each other’s mistakes.”

Ms. Kubota says she enjoys living in New York City but misses Tokyo. She misses her family the most but also the clean and quiet underground service. Overall, Ms. Kubota is very satisfied with her experience here so far and will miss the camaraderie in the office of LSI NY. “I’m having so much fun here and I recommend this experience for any intern from abroad.”

We wish Ms. Kubota the best of luck and hope she will not forget her family here at LSI New York when she returns to Japan in early December!  Genkidene,Mai!

Each NHL  (National Ice Hockey League) season, LSI Vancouver students get to take part in the excitement and the energy inside Rogers Arena (formally GM Place) in one of our 20 seasons’ tickets seats, while the Vancouver Canucks battle it out against each visiting opposing team. Last season was an amazing time to be an LSI student in Vancouver because of the run for the Stanley Cup. The enthusiasm for the game grew as we fought hard throughout each round!

Even during the regular season, it is such a thrilling experience to watch Canada’s National Sport: Ice Hockey! The arena is packed with a sea of blue, green, and white, pulsating to the music, cheering on the home team. The sound of the blades tearing across the ice, bodies checking into the boards and the sticks striking the puck make up for an electrifying ambiance, and an unforgettable evening for local Canucks fans and International students alike!

We here at LSI Vancouver are creating International Canucks fans and sending them back to their home countries around the world! Students from abroad are becoming devoted Vancouver fans, purchasing hockey memorabilia (in addition to the maple syrup souvenirs and Canadian flags) and are spreading the hockey love throughout Asia, South America, Europe and the Middle East!  It doesn’t matter where you are from. In Vancouver, we are all Canucks.

Since March, 31 Saudi Arabian firefighters have been studying English at LSI Toronto before going on to a year of fire training with the Toronto Fire and Emergency Services Training Institute, starting in September. Earlier this year, their teachers accompanied them on a site visit for a preview of their upcoming fire training. This was certainly a unique experience for the teachers. The firefighters graduated from LSI on August 26, and we wish them the very best in the year ahead!

LSI Berkeley had a successful summer with four new groups attending the school, two of which came from China. These two Chinese groups had about 33 students per group. Each group had a great time while in Berkeley and gave the school great reviews for homestay, activities, and the academic program.

 One student said, “I think my class is very active and I enjoyed my class. My teacher helped me a lot.”

 Many students also felt that the homestay program was enriching, “This is really a dreamful experience. The host treated us well and I had a good time.”

Our activity coordinator, Aiden, also showed the students the wonderful sights of Berkeley. Students toured UC Berkeley campus, roamed the Botanical Gardens, played sports in the park, and ended their final day with a pizza party celebration! We are so happy that these Chinese students could come to our school and hope that many more will come in the future.

Have you checked out our website recently? If you have , you’ll have noticed the many changes, small and large that have been taking place on the site  with yet more in the pipeline. Not only has the website been translated into two new languages, Arabic and Turkish, but the way information is displayed has changed with simplified navigation menus and bright new graphics. We have added a new section to the website to allow students, who are interested in LSI’s university preparation programmes, to select universities and courses of interest (USA and Canada only). There are now far more student testimonials on the site and LSI TV allows visitors to view student interviews and brand new school tours. With the future addition of online study resources (planned for autumn 2011) to compliment our courses, www.lsi.edu has yet more to offer our site visitors than ever.

LSI Cambridge was delighted to hold its first Computer Based FCE and CAE exams this weekend, and the examinees will only have to wait two weeks for the results! The exams took place in the new exam suite which has recently been completed in the renovated roof of the building. It can now comfortably sit sixteen exam candidates and is also used as a state of the art classroom. Before this, nobody had been in the room for over 100 years!

With genuine qualifications becoming more and more important, LSI Cambridge is delighted that we can now offer clients the chance to take the full range of Cambridge ESOL exams in the school, with dates available almost every month. We can now tailor courses and exams to suit groups as small as four, offering both more flexibility and a genuine internationally recognised qualification and certificate. For more information on the Cambridge Exams we offer and the growing list of Universities and Businesses which recognise them, please visit Cambridge ESOL