Any language learner knows that the only thing that they really need to succeed is time. Lots of and lots of free time that they can dedicate to accomplishing their learning goals. Most of us have pretty busy schedules that don’t allow to allocate sufficient time needed to master a foreign language.

But what if you could learn a language without cutting time for your usual daily activities? It’s certainly possible if you apply creativity and planning! The big secret is to embed language learning activities into your daily schedule without interrupting or interfering with them.

There are many ways to do that, and if you want to know what they are, check out the rest of the article. You’ll see that learning a language on a busy schedule isn’t magic, but a matter of time.

1. Listen to Podcasts
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Podcasts, whether designed specifically for language learning or entertainment, are a popular way to learn a language. For example, they provide the much-needed practice of listening skills, help to build vocabulary by introducing new words, and become familiar with different styles of speech. Besides, not everyone has an opportunity to listen to native speakers.
They also have one major advantage for busy language learners: the convenience. One can listen to a podcast anytime, anywhere! For example, you can listen to podcasts:

• While commuting
• While eating
• While cooking
• While running errands that don’t require a lot of attention
• While waiting.

Moreover, podcasts can provide some additional motivation to learn if you listen to those
that include your interests.

2. Hack Your Gadgets to Use a Foreign Language

Many everyday objects that you come into contact with can be great helpers with language learning as well. For example, switch your computer, tablet, smart TV, gaming system, or smartphone to the language you’re learning and you’ll expose your brain to a lot of new words and phrases every day. As the result, you can enrich your vocabulary without doing anything that would take some time off your schedule.

3. Use Smartphone Apps

Apps are another powerful way to embed language learning into your daily routine because you can open them in a couple of clicks and start learning whenever you can. Given the abundance of language learning apps out there, you’ll have to trouble finding one that suits you.
To take advantage of this convenient method, go to an online app store supported by your system (Google Play, App Store etc.), and try searching for keywords like “language learning” or “NAME OF THE LANGUAGE learning.” You’ll discover a plethora of options, so read their descriptions and try some to see what they can give you.

And, of course, try to use them once you have a chance. Language lessons cover grammar, vocabulary, and many other important areas, and are typically short (3-5 minutes), so the only things required are your desire and consistency.

4. Write When You Have Free Time

Writing in a foreign language reinforces your vocabulary and helps to practice your grammar skills, so finding a way to incorporate this activity into your routine is a must. Throughout the day, you have lots of opportunities to practice writing. Commuting is one of them. If you have to commute to get to work/college, use this time to write.

You don’t have to have a prepared topic to practice. You can write about how your day has been like so far, choose some topics from lessons you took on your smartphone, or just write about something that interests you. Then, save that text and analyze it for grammar, punctuation, word selection, idea flow, and other characteristics later. A second look may reveal the mistakes you didn’t notice the first time.

One more thing: you don’t have to have a pen and paper to write! Feel free to use your smartphone’s word processor or a note taking app. They’ll make it easier to check grammar and spelling on your computer, which can be done effectively with Ginger Software.

4. Try to Write Down New Words

It’s a known fact that writing things down improves learning. According to Dr. Helen Macpherson of Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition at Deakin University who recently gave an interview to Huffington Post, when people write by hand, they have to coordinate verbal and fine movement systems.

​"And when we learn new information, for example at school or in a university lecture, we don’t write verbatim, which means we have to create our own summaries and concepts,” explains Dr. Macpherson.

When you’re a student, writing can simply seem like an impossible task. Throughout our school years, we were always taught that the only reason for us to write was to get a grade and we always tried to get it over with as soon as possible. If you’re now a college student, you might be thinking that not many things have changed. 

Depending on what you’re studying, there are many reasons why writing could still be difficult for you. You might feel like it is simply not important or even not that useful in what you do. The reality is that writing as a skill, can help you even make a stable income at some point in your life. Here are some reasons why students tend to think that writing is a hard task to accomplish.

Coming up with creative ideas
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One of the most common difficulties for students is finding what to write about. Even if the topic is set and all they have to do is the writing, this task can still be intimidating for some people. Writing is a task that requires for the person to be a little creative and to be able to express their thoughts on paper with ease. 
For many students, expressing themselves and their thoughts isn’t always the easiest of tasks and that can bring quite a lot of problems in time where they have to write without putting too much thought into it. Even if you are great at arts and crafts, writing can still be tough for you if you are a little introverted or maybe even too much of an extrovert! 
The best way to overcome this is to start reading more. Reading anything from books to short stories can really help you expand your creativity as well as your vocabulary. Learning new words and understanding how to use them in a sentence can help you express yourself better and become more creative. The more you read the easier writing will seem to you. 

Doing research

Another thing that most - if not all students dread when it comes to writing, is doing the research to support what they wrote. If you have to write about a more particular topic, such as a historic or a medical one, you will have to cite all the sources you used and write down things about studies and relevant information. 
When it comes to writing papers, everyone would find writing difficult as it is so much more than just simply being creative and expressing your ideas and opinions. This kind of writing is more demanding as 
it is as you will have to have extra knowledge in order to pull such an essay through correctly. The best thing you can do about this is ask your professors for directions and try following them as closely as possible. The more you do this during your college years, the easier it will become. 

Staying focused for a while 
A common problem for young people and especially young students is focusing their attention on one thing for a long period of time. The way this generation was raised always included cell phones, video games and other kinds of fun activities, which in many cases seemed much more interesting and entertaining that finishing homework assignments. As a result, most people are now getting easily distracted and that can’t be helpful in tasks like writing. 
The best way to go about this is to keep all distractions away. Find one room to study in where your electronics, including your phone, are not present. Have your necessary notebooks and pens there but keep everything else away. You can even try and study in your local library or college’s library and see if that can help you concentrate a little bit better. 

If you’re having problems concentrating the best thing you can do is keep distractions away. If you procrastinate often and without a reason, you will come to find that even the simplest of writing tasks will seem like difficult and never-ending tasks. Make sure you keep your priorities straight and you manage to stay focused in order to make things easier for yourself. 

Finding the time to write

Writing can usually take quite a bit of time. A student’s life is usually very busy and most will feel exhausted at the end of every day. That is absolutely normal and expectable if you take into consideration how many assignments and classes students have to follow. 
Writing can seem very difficult if you have a million other things to do. You will simply find it impossible to write if your head it tired and if it’s the third assignment you had to do that day. While that is understandable, there is also a solution to it. 
You should leave writing for whenever you know you will have a little bit of extra time and nothing else to do. You will need to be rested and focused in order to better write your thoughts and produce a better outcome. If you leave your writing assignment for the last minute, you will only manage to become nervous and not write up to your expectations.

Writing doesn’t have to be difficult

Even if most students find writing to be quite a difficult task, it can actually be quite enjoyable. If you write about a topic you enjoy, you are bound to find it less difficult and more fun to do. While college and school assignments don’t always have to be fun, they can be less difficult if you pass them up as something you actually like doing. 
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By keeping distractions away and being more focused on what you write, you can finish your writing tasks in less time, That can help you feel more relaxed and allow you to see writing from a different perspective. Lastly, the more time you spend reading and expanding your knowledge on how other people write, the easier it will be for you to write something yourself, even if that is a boring college paper. 


Author’s bio: Jerry is a professional writer and he loves to help students. He has spent the majority of his career in the writing industry, gaining experiences in areas such as editing and writing. Currently, Jerry is a blogger and a Head of CD at WOWGrade.com. Jerry also enjoys reading books and traveling. 

ELS has just opened a new flagship center in Manhattan, New York, New York where students from around the world can come to learn English and immerse themselves in American culture.
 
“It’s inspiring,” Frank Prieto Pinto, an ELS student from Colombia, said of the classrooms in ELS/New York – Manhattan. “When I was living in my county I saw pictures, I saw movies, and now I feel like I’m in the movies,” he said, gesturing to the wall-sized mural of Times Square behind him. Pinto, who is a professor of Strategic Thinking and Management Skills at EAN University in Bogotá, stressed the importance of having a positive learning space. “As a student in this moment, I need a good place to study, and the classrooms are so beautiful.”
 
The new space boasts a lounge and cafe as well as collaborative spaces for students to learn and socialize.
 
“... I am confident that this [space]—together with our great staff and great program—will ensure that all of the students at this center will have a priceless and memorable experience,” said Reiji Terasaka, Chief Operating Officer at ELS.
 
About ELS Educational Services ELS Educational Services, Inc. offers more than 55 years of success in assisting international students—more than 1.2 million to date—achieve their personal and professional goals through English preparation and university study skills. ELS assists international students to identify and gain entry to higher education institutions around the world, including in Australia, Canada, India, Malaysia and the United States.
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​For more information:  ELS Language Centers

Seattle University, founded in 1891, is located on 50 acres in the city of Seattle, Washington. The university celebrates educational excellence achieved through diversity and strives to empower leaders for a just and humane world. Get to know what makes Seattle University special and see if it might be the right choice for you. 
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Commitment to Diversity: With more than 700 international students from more than 70 countries around the world, Seattle University strives to give each student the best possible education and experiences. The International Student Center (ISC) serves as a home for all international students. Here, faculty members can answer any question you may have about your class schedule, visa status or personal matters. The ISC also creates monthly programs and events for international students and serves as a place for international students to watch TV programs from home, work on group projects and make new friends. Check out this video, which features current Seattle University students sharing their international experience. 

Seattle University also offers The English Language and Culture Bridge, a program designed to develop international students’ understanding of the English language, so they can be successful in their coursework and feel comfortable interacting with other students and staff. The primary goal of the program is to provide students with the background in the American academic culture and with the language skills essential for success in their studies. The courses offered in the program are highly advanced, with a specific focus on university-level reading, writing, listening and speaking skills.
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Join a Club: For students looking to get involved on campus, Seattle offers more than 140 clubsand organizations, such as academic organizations, student government, diversity and social justice organizations, faith-based communities, fine arts and media clubs, sustainability and service organizations, and more. These clubs provide communities for students to explore their passions and meet new friends with similar interests. Students who are passionate about a topic that doesn’t have a club are encouraged to connect with the Center of Student Involvement to create a new club. 

Earn Your Degree: Offering 65 undergraduate majors for students to choose from, Seattle University has programs that prepare every student for success after graduation. Students who aren’t sure what they want to study can enroll in the Premajor Studies Program, where students can spend up to two years building a foundation in the liberal arts and exploring their academic interests. Participating in the Premajor Studies Program allows students to explore different majors to find out what will be the right focus for their degree. 

Cheer on the Redhawks: Seattle University Redhawks are consistent performers on the field and in the classroom. With eight men’s and 10 women’s teams, including lacrosse, soccer, and track and field, there is always a sporting event for students to attend and show their Redhawk pride. For students who want to get in the game, but are just in it for some fun, University Recreation offers intramural sports, club sports, outdoor activities, aquatics, as well as fitness facilities and group exercise classes.

​If you are looking for a small campus committed to creating a welcoming and warm experience for all international students, Seattle could be the right university for you. Take a deeper look at Seattle University’s website to learn more about their academic programs and offerings. 

For more information: Click here!

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What’s the most challenging part of your studies? Is it the studying itself? Is it the busy schedule that leaves no personal space? If you think about it, it’s both these things, but there’s something that makes it even more difficult for you to cope with the time constraints: coursework.

Every course you take comes with assignments, presentations, essays, case studies, term papers, article critiques, and whatnot. 

What Difficulties Do Students Face with Coursework?These projects are challenging from multiple aspects:

• Lack of time is the greatest problem. When there are multiple classes to take throughout the day and studying material to cover in the afternoon, the student doesn’t have time and energy to work on an essay.   
• The professors don't give precise instructions on how to complete a case study. Yes; the student can search for online guidelines, but that means investing more time in the project.
• Some students can’t write. They just need more practice. But the coursework is not practice. It’s being graded and it causes a lot of stress. 

So how do you overcome these difficulties? We’ll give you 7 practical solutions. 

7 Tips for Coursework Writing

1. Understand the Type of Project
Before you start working on a particular project, you have to ask yourself: what kind of coursework is this? Your professor gave you basic instructions. Take them as your foundation and find online tips to clarify the challenge. Find out what structure the paper should have. A 5-paragraph essay, for example, is consisted of an introduction with a thesis statement, three paragraphs of the body, and a conclusion. 

2.   Do Preliminary Research
You have a theme, but you have to narrow it down. If, for example, you’re supposed to write a term paper about Africa for your geography course, you can’t just name it The Geography of Africa. It’s too general. You’ll choose a specific aspect of that theme and you’ll work on it. 
To choose that aspect, you need to do preliminary research. The Internet gives you all sorts of information. Find an angle that really gets your attention. Make sure there are enough resources to deal with. This step will help you choose the coursework title, form the thesis statement, and start the process.

3. Don’t Forget the Outline
It’s easy to skip this step, since you think it’s not visible in the end result. But it is! The outline gives you the focus you need. It will prevent you from making digressions. It keeps you on track, so you’ll prove your thesis statement. 
The outline should identify the structure of the coursework. What are you going to write about in each part?

4. Manage Your Time
You have to start planning the completion of your coursework as soon as your professor assigns it. Do the preliminary research and craft the outline the very same day. 
Then, map the process in your calendar. Mark the deadline in red. You have several days by then. Plan to complete small parts of the project every single day, so you’ll cover the process step by step. This is the recipe for overcoming stress. You complete small sections of work that don’t seem overwhelming. 

5.   Always Edit!
You may believe you didn’t make mistakes since you were careful. But as you read through the text, you’ll notice grammar and spelling issues. 
Moreover, you’ll also notice inconsistencies in style and form. Maybe there are gaps in the logical flow, so you’ll have to add more info to fill them in. 

6.   Check for Plagiarism
You have to reference all sources you use according to the citation style you follow. But even when you do that, it’s still important to run your content through a plagiarism detection engine, so you’ll make sure it’s unique.

7.   Ask for Help When You Need It
You started on time, did the research, and crafted the outline. Somewhere along the writing process, you got stuck and you have no idea how to carry on with the project. 
It’s okay. There’s still a solution. When you can’t complete your coursework, you can get help from an assignment writing service. The professional writer will take your guidelines. They will write unique content, but they will also offer valuable writing tips that will boost your self-confidence regarding coursework. 
 
Remember: whatever difficulties you’re facing with coursework, it’s possible to overcome them. You just need to approach this with the right mindset. Believe in yourself. You’ve got this!
 
 
Author Bio: Barbara Mitchell is a freelance writer and a tutor. Her students take most of the time, but she still finds time for blogging. Teaching and blogging - those are the things that matter.