A Look Back at Modern Languages Conference 2011

Recently we sat down with Vicens Colomer, Assistant Director of the Modern Language Department at IH London, to talk about the fifth annual Modern Languages Conference (MoLaCo) on 12 November 2011. 

With separate workshops for Arabic, French, Italian and Spanish teachers, this year turned out to MoLaCo's busiest yet. There were nearly 150 delegates, with several from abroad, at IH London's school in Covent Garden for the conference.
 

Can you tell us about the different workshops this year?

This year we had four workshops running simultaneously - one for each language - with the whole programme in the target language. 

The conference programme for each language included both presentations from expert speakers and a chance for discussion. We had some fantastic guests!
 

Are you interested in the Spanish cinema and language?

It’s that time of year again; the annual London Spanish Film Festival is back for its sixth edition. The festival is a unique opportunity to see the most talked about Spanish cinema here in London, with the chance to meet award-winning directors.

The festival takes place from 24 September to 7 October at ciné lumière in South Kensington. The packed programme features 30 films and documentaries from all over Spain – including Catalunia and the Basque country. For more information, please visit the festival’s website www.londonspanishfilmfestival.com/

If you have a passion for the Spanish language, the festival is a good opportunity to practise your language skills! You might also want to consider one of IH London’s evening Spanish courses starting from 4 October www.ihlondon.com/learn-spanish-17/

As one of the festival’s sponsors, IH London is delighted to be screening three of the festival’s film for FREE at our school.

Here is the programme of our free viewings:

Mónica del Raval, by Frances Betriu
Monday 27 September, 7pm

Shorts Selection
Wednesday 29 September, 7pm

La mujer sin piano, by Javier Rebollo
Monday 4 October, 7pm

Book your FREE ticket in advance to avoid disappointment via our website www.ihlondon.com/learn-a-language/london-spanish-film-festival,216,ART.html#Book

Doors open at 6pm and films start at 7pm. You are welcome to look around the school or have a drink in our café beforehand.

We look forward to seeing you all here!

Recipe of the Month - an easy one!

Hi there - I'm Mat and I work in the Sales and Marketing Department at IH London. I've been here for quite some time, 11 years! and in that time I have clocked up quite a few air miles visiting countries and promoting the school.

There is far more to learning about a culture than studying its language. As I enjoy cooking and get to travel regularly to all sorts of places, I often like to entertain my friends and have themed events where I cook a particular country's food.

I had the opportunity to interview one of our Arabic teachers some years ago and this led me to looking into the food that is eaten in some Arabic speaking countries. The other weekend I entertained 9 friends to a Moroccan Day. Apart from turning my dining room into a tent and filling it with north African lamps and cushions, I had to prepare an array of meals from Hummus and breads, to Lamb and Apricot Tagines.

The great thing about studying in a large city like London, is that you can buy almost any ingredients in the capital. A great time was had by all, but more importantly, this is an excellent way to explore the language and culture of other nationalities and have fun whilst doing it.

My next event is going to be Japanese as I travel there in April – but you could easily do any nationality – even English!

If you fancy "having a bash" (having a go) at making Hummus – its really easy and delicious

(recipe for 4 people)

• 200g/7oz canned chickpeas
• 2 tbsp lemon juice or more
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp tahini
• 3 tbsp water
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp paprika or Cayenne pepper

Put all ingredients (except paprika or Cayenne) into a food processor and blend until smooth. Put into a bowl and sprinkle with cayenne or paprika and a little olive oil – grab a pita bread and enjoy!

Cultural events in London this March

March has started in style with two beautiful sunny days that feel like the beginning of Spring. With the evenings becoming lighter and longer, it's the perfect time to get involved with the huge variety of cultural and foreign language events happening every day in London.

If you're not sure where to begin, have a look at IH London's cultural events guide. Every month, our dedicated Modern Languages Social Programme Co-ordinator puts together this useful guide to help you get the most out of learning a language or experiencing another culture.

Highlights this month include Moliere’s The Misanthrope starring Keira Knightly; Europe's largest Taiwanese film festival; wine tasting evenings at the Institute Français; a photography exhibition by Iraqi, Syrian and Palestinian teenagers (ends tomorrow!); and the sensational Cuban dance show Havana Rakatan at Sadler's Wells' theatre.

Meanwhile, we will be welcoming the Year of the Tiger in school with a talk and demonstration on the Art of Chinese Calligraphy at 6.30pm on Friday 5 February. Over a glass of wine, Mr Kam-sang Law - a master of Chinese Calligraphy - will introduce us to the 3,000 year old art form, with an opportunity for us to have a go at the end! Please email paula.fitzgerald@ihlondon.com if you would like to come.

If you hear of any more exciting cultural events in London, please let us know and share with other blog readers!

Hello from Modern Languages

Hi bloggers!

I'm Claire the UK Sales and Marketing Manager at International House London. I've just started blogging so thought I'd write a 'hello' message.

There are lots of languages being spoken around the school and not just from our overseas students. You can learn 7 languages at International House London, which includes Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish, as well as train to become a teacher of French, German, Italian or Spanish.

I currently study Spanish in the evening and have proudly progressed my way through the levels for the last year (from Elementary Continuation to Intermediate Continuation). I enjoy learning Spanish as it's such a useful language and the classes are really fun and dynamic. There is also the Modern Languages Social Programme to take advantage of, keeping you up to date on the latest foreign and cultural events in and around London.

London is a great place to speak another language and there are always opportunities to practise. Did you know that there are 312 languages spoken in London? This makes it easy to pick up a language exchange partner. International House London has its very own Language Exchange Programme which is where I found my partner to practice espanol with.

We are coming to the end of term now for the current evening programmes, but I'm looking forward to taking the next course in April.

Introducing IH London

Hi everyone,

Welcome to International House London's first foray into the unfamiliar world of blogging. I'm Sarah, the Online Marketing Manager at IH London. We're a teacher training and language school in central London, a few minutes' walk from Covent Garden.

International House London has been around for about 50 years, so we're pretty well established. We teach English to students from around the world; train English language teachers and modern European language teachers; run evening classes in French, German, Spanish, Italian, Chinese, Japanese and Arabic; run cultural training programmes; teach professional English to business people; and run foundation courses for overseas students wanting to go to a British university.

I'll be using this blog to talk more about International House London - what sort of courses we offer, what it's like to be a student here, our teaching methods, and of course the social scene!

I'll end with a reminder about our modern languages evening classes. The next and final intake for 2009 is next week. You can take a 'survival' course over 5 weeks - where we teach complete beginners the basics of a language. Or you can take an 'academic' course over 11 weeks, which covers vocab and grammar in more detail. Academic courses start at beginner level, and go up to advanced speakers. Classes are small - generally 5 or 6 in a group, so you get lots of personal attention.

At the moment we have 10% off any of our language courses starting next week. You just need to use the code MLAP4 when booking online through our website.

The nights are drawing in and it's becoming a bit too chilly to spend evenings in the park after work. The perfect time to start learning a new language, or to brush up on a language you learnt at school or university. I for one will be starting an elementary German course next week. Hope to see you there!