Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Solving by substitution Online Tutoring - Maths Tutors

Solving by substitution Online Tutoring - Maths Tutors Substitution is a very useful method in mathematics. In the method of substitution one of the variable is substituted to find the other variables and vice versa. It helps reduce the given question or solution to a simpler form. Expressions can consist of one or more than one unknown variables with different coefficients and constant numbers. Example 1: Solve by substitution the set of equations 3x + 2y = 12 and x + y = 6? Solution: The given equations are 3x + 2y = 12 and x + y = 6. Here x, y are the unknown variables. Substitute the variable x. From one equation x = 6 - y, substituting in the other equation. This gives 3(6-y) + 2y = 12; 18 - 3y + 2y = 12; 18 -y = 12; y = 6. Now substitute y = 6 in x + y = 6; x = 0. Hence the solution is x = 0 and y = 6. Example 2: Solve by substitution the set of equations x - y = 0 and 2x + 5y = 7? Solution: The given equations are x - y = 0 and 2x +5 y = 7. Here x, y are the unknown variables. Substitute the variable x. From one equation x = y, substituting in the other equation. This gives 2y + 5y = 7; 7y = 7; y =1. Now substitute y = 1 in x = y; x = 1. Hence the solution is x = 1 and y = 1

Friday, March 6, 2020

Online Vivid Verbs List English Writing Online Tutorpace

Online Vivid Verbs List English Writing Online Tutorpace Verbs are the words which define the action in the sentence such as walking, singing, dancing, talking, eating and may more. Vivid verbs are the word which are more interesting and engaging that the commonly used verbs. Vivid verbs hold the same meaning to their common verbs. Mention here are some examples of vivid verbs in different sentences Abandon (Sentence: The puppy was abandoned on the middle of the street.) Act (Sentence: Serena try to act wise every time she faces some difficulty.) Add (Sentence: What you are saying only adds to their problems.) Admire (Sentence: I admire flowers in a garden.) Admit (Sentence: Lisa admits she likes to play in water.) Amuse (Sentence: Beautiful mountain views amuse me.) Bind (Sentence: Friendship binds two different kinds of people.) Boosts (Sentence: Good makes boosts every students confidence.) Blink (Sentence: The dust in my eye makes me blink.) Burn (Sentence: The paper was burned by the candle flame.) Blend (Sentence: The dishes at the birthday party blend well with the theme.) Chase (Sentence: She was chased by the dog in the park.) Cheer (Sentence: The morning sun cheers me every day I wake up.) Calculate (Sentence: Ben calculates his marks for each test and tries to work harder the next time.) Cross (Sentence: Its difficult to cross a busy road.) Disagree (Sentence: Jane disagrees with her brother about the field trip.) Greet (Sentence: Sam greets her teacher daily before the class starts.) Handle (Sentence: Chef can handle cooking for large crew very well.)

Online Statistics Tutoring Get Everything in a Click

Online Statistics Tutoring Get Everything in a Click Statistics is a subject that has a combination of mathematics, statistics and economics. The branches go hand in hand. It has a wide application in all the works. No matter what stream you choose, stats will be always complimentary! Data, raw figures, constants, the X’s and Y’s, styles of presentation of facts and pinch of economics is all that statistics consist of. Don’t be afraid, it’s not that tough as it seems. With the online statistical tutors  available, statistics becomes an easy to go subject. The online tutors are always present to teach you the basic concept of mathematical statistics. They engross you with various easy going methods and inculcate the base of statistics in the initial practices. The online statistical tutorial  consists of the polished ways to teach you the methods used for the representation of data. The tutor teaches you in an audio-visual mode along with the basic graphs and figures, without which statistics cannot be taught. Your screen will also consist of a portion where you can type your queries which will be resolved by the tutor then and there itself. Statistics tutors covers following topics: The average Variance of a population Standard deviation Mean, mode and median Probability and statistics Sample variance The best part of online tutorial is the two-way communication that is possible between you and your teacher. Plus the experienced tutors teach you in an easy way that can be understood even by a fresher. So don’t wait, register yourself with the online masters and make the best of your time!    

Thursday, March 5, 2020

Top Tips for Budding Pianists

Top Tips for Budding Pianists How Do You Become a Pianist? Chapters When Should I Practice Playing the Piano? How Can I Improve My Dexterity? How Can You Learn to Play the Piano and Sing at the Same Time? How Can You Simplify a Piano Piece? How Do You Compose a Piano Piece?It's not easy when you learn piano. Even before you start, you have to be motivated and ready to put your heart and soul into it. Even with the help of a piano teacher, learning how to play piano is a long and hard process.You need to study regularly in order to become a piano player and even then you need to keep practicing to make sure you never forget it. Don’t get discouraged or skip any of the steps. Learning music is unforgiving.You need to learn how to read music and then study music theory. After that you need to work on your dexterity and using your hands independently of one another. Reading sheet music like a book, improvising, and playing and singing at the same time are all things that come after years of practicing.Here’s some advice your becoming a piani st and playing the piano well. LouisPiano Teacher £40/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors AlisonPiano Teacher £32/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors ErenPiano Teacher 5.00 (6) £40/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors BarbaraPiano Teacher £50/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors Chi yuenPiano Teacher 5.00 (5) £30/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors TomPiano Teacher £25/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors ValtiePiano Teacher £35/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors DanielPiano Teacher 5.00 (5) £37/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors When Should I Practice Playing the Piano?In order to progress with your learning, there’s a few things you’ll need:free timemotivationwillingnessdisciplinea good earYou should practice at least 30 minutes each day. (Source: Crazy Banana)A tutor will provide their student with a method to help them progress during a lesson. However, they can't constantly look over their student’s shoulder outside of cla ss. This means that the student needs to practice on their own.How often should a student work individually on their piano exercises?It takes regular practice to learn how to play the piano: playing for three hours once in a while or just before your lessons isn’t enough to improve and will probably render your lessons ineffective. You need to focus and memorize things.You could say that you should practice the piano whenever you want. This might sound a bit like a cliché but you should play whenever you feel like playing. Just make sure when you do that it’s effective practice and not just messing around.Doing two hours of practice before your tutorials is a quick way to slow down your progress. It’s essential to put aside some time every day to practice playing the piano. At least half an hour a day should be enough. Making sure that you practice a certain piece means that you’ll have to stop doing whatever you were doing instead.What if you can’t read the piece from yo ur last piano lesson? Have a look on-line for tutorials. There are plenty of free piano lessons on-line and video tutorials that could help. A quick on-line search should get you the results you're looking for.However, if you’re genuinely motivated and want to learn, you won’t feel like you’re giving up any time at all.  We recommend thirty minutes of practice after dinner before you turn on the TV. This is when you tend to be at your most creative.However, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. Everyone learns differently. You need to find the routine that works for you. Some people learn more quickly than others.  Some people may learn something in an hour while others may need four hours. It completely depends on your motivation.However, there are some things than anyone wanting to become a pianist should know:Practice should always be enjoyable.You need to focus and activate your memory in order for any learning to be effective.The more you practice, the more your finger s will separate and the easier you’ll find playing across several octaves. You’ll gain more and more dexterity. How Can I Improve My Dexterity?Improving their dexterity really annoys a number pianists. However, your private tutor can help you work on this.When we say dexterity, we're talking about your ability to quickly and accurately navigate the keyboard with your hands, especially when the notes are fairly far apart.Dexterity can improve how well you hit your piano targets. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)When you first start, your hands will probably be fairly stiff. The quickest way to improve your dexterity is to practice:do exercises going up and down octaves.learn to go from one chord to another quickly and fluidly.do exercises to improve your finger span: flex your fingers.play scales on the piano: start slowly and then get faster and fasterwork on common chord progressionsget used to not looking at your fingers when you’re playing.You’ll soon start to make more and mor e progress. These exercises will be hugely beneficial in the long-term, especially if you’d like to one day be able to sing and play at the same time, compose your own music, and become a skilled and well-rounded pianist in the process.Once you feel comfortable playing your scales at relatively quick speed, start working on your coordination by playing sections with your left hand, then your right, and finally combing the two together. First slowly, then more quickly.You should always practice your scales just before your lessons. First C major, then D major, etc. It’s good for warming up your fingers and mentally preparing your ear for music. Having a good knowledge of your scales is also great for improvising with other musicians.A budding musician should master their scales in order to learn as quickly and as effectively as possible. Use piano methods:  Hanon and Czerny exercises are great for warming up your fingers and getting better and putting chords together.In order to improve your dexterity, you should regularly do these exercises. This will help you to play with precision and train your fingers to play the piano better. Every good pianist should be able to play chords and arpeggios precisely.What’s the next step? Learning to play and sing at the same time. LouisPiano Teacher £40/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors AlisonPiano Teacher £32/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors ErenPiano Teacher 5.00 (6) £40/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors BarbaraPiano Teacher £50/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors Chi yuenPiano Teacher 5.00 (5) £30/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors TomPiano Teacher £25/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors ValtiePiano Teacher £35/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors DanielPiano Teacher 5.00 (5) £37/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors How Can You Learn to Play the Piano and Sing at the Same Time?Singing while playing piano is tricky. It’s basically playing two instruments at the same time and it's not easy.Singing and playing at the same time may be difficult but it's not impossible. (Source: PeakPX)Even a privately taught pianist can forget everything when they have to start singing.To sing and play at the same time, you have to first master the piano part, then the singing part, then bring the two parts together.  When bringing the two parts together, you need to both coordinate your two hands then synchronize them with your voice.In the same way you coordinate your two hands when learning to play the piano, you’ll have to repeat the same process in order to sing while you play. It’s recommended that you start with a fairly simple song with a simple chord progression and no vocal gymnastics.  Choose a song in common time (4/4) in C-major, for example.You should also try playing the song while humming before you try singing along. This allows you to focus on the vocal melody and the piano part. This means you won’t get distracted by trying to rem ember the lyrics.If you really want to learn to sing and play piano at the same time, you need to learn your source material inside out. You need to know every vocal nuance by heart.To summarize, here are the key points for singing and playing piano at the same time:Be patient, determined, and persevering.Adopt a good posture for playing and singing.Play the piano part and practice the singing part separately.Choose a simple song.Play the song while speaking (to see if you know it well enough).Listen to the original song a lot.Break down the lyrics into syllables.Use a metronome or tap your foot to keep time.More complex songs require more work. Perhaps you need to simplify the music itself.Your private tutor should be able to help you with simplifying the piece.Has your search for piano lessons London yielded satisfactory results? Why not check out Superprof's piano teachers, now! How Can You Simplify a Piano Piece?It might be beneficial to simplify the piece in order to make it mo re playable on the piano.Being able to simplify piano music is one of your most important tools. (Source: Tanner Randall)Some songs are incredibly complex, unreadable, or contain substitutions (which are very common in jazz).Simplifying a song by making it more playable on the piano is sometimes necessary if the person playing the piece doesn’t have the necessary level to play the song in all its complexity. This is much better than discouraging the pianist.It’s also a good idea to listen to the song plenty of times before trying to simplify it.  Make a note of the chords as you listen and play them on the piano. This practice will help you get to know the song much better than just listening to it.Identify the chords, then practice the chord progression, starting off slowly and getting faster and faster until you’re playing at the same tempo as the song. You have to work out the main chords in order to pick apart a song.Finding the root note of each chord is essential when it comes to analyzing a song.  The pianist can then work out the chord’s harmonies and whether the chord is a major chord, minor chord, a fifth, seventh, etc.  You need to be familiar with music theory in order to do this.If you’ve been working on your dexterity, you should be able to put these chord progressions together yourself. How Do You Compose a Piano Piece?Here’s some advice for composing a piece for piano: Know your music theory and think creatively.To become a composer, you need to be inspired. (Source: pxhere)Have a good technical ability: you can’t compose as a beginner.  You need to know how to put chords together, their inversions, common rhythms, etc.You also need to have a good knowledge of music, different genres and styles, etc.  Be familiar with reading sheet music: reading sheet music like you would a book.  You need to encourage imagination and creativity in order to compose a piece on piano. It’s difficult but also very rewarding.Use a metronome to impr ove your rhythm. It might be annoying to listen to but it’ll ensure that you’re always in time. Make sure you know your time signatures. Is this going to be a waltz or a march?Choose the right chords to work with the feel of your piece. Remember that minor chords tend to give a piece a melancholic feel. On the other hand, major chords feel optimistic and happy. You also need to think about the lyrics. Make sure the chords go well together: certain progression evoke certain feelings.Once you’ve considered all this, you need to work out how you’re going to play it.You can use the chords to focus on the the song’s rhythmic qualities. What about deconstructing the chords and playing them as arpeggios to give the song a more melodic quality.Don’t forget to record your creations!  Sometimes you’ll come up with nothing. However, sometimes you’ll stumble upon something amazing. You’d hate to forget what it was, right?  With a microphone and a music program, you can start p utting your ideas together and working on them.  It’s always a good idea to record yourself when you’re improvising.  Then you can listen back to it and write down what you did. Make sure your theory’s good.Becoming a pianist is basically and long and difficult journey. However, this is what’s so beautiful about the piano. It’ll be worth it in the end!

A Birds Eye View English Listening Exercise

A Birds Eye View English Listening Exercise When speaking English, as in most languages, we typically use directions like up, down, left and right to describe directions. But imagine if you spoke a language that didnt use these directions. Imagine telling someone to raise their northwest hand, or go north down the hallway, and enter the first door on the east. Pigeons know their way around.There are several languages that do rely on a strong sense of direction to speak the language. In this English listening exercise, youll hear a podcast about how pigeons and humans can have an amazing sense of direction, when they pay attention and use their birds eye view. You can find and download the podcast here, or play it below. Contact us if youd like to take a class using this listening exercise. /* */ What was unusual about the war hero that Mindy talked about?Why pigeons?A.B.What was the problem for the British?What was so amazing about what GI Joe did?If you go ___ ___ __ ____ to the center of the earth, theres ___ ____ metal __ __ _____, churning.You long to grab one by the ____ ___ ___ ____ and ask them how they do this.What dont some languages have?How do you say hello in the Australian aboriginal language?How do they always know their direction, even indoors, according to the scientist?What did she see in her mind after a week in Austrailia?What is a birds-eye view?What interesting thing did Karen Jacobsen do?

Choosing the Right SAT Subject Tests

Choosing the Right SAT Subject Tests During the test preparation process, the sheer number of tests and test dates can be overwhelming. Here at AJ, we have an expert knowledge of college entrance exams and can help you navigate the journey. Here’s a brief guide to one test (the SAT Subject Test, or SAT II) and how students can choose the right ones for them.OverviewUnlike the SAT, which is broad and covers many skills and content areas, the SAT Subject Tests focus on specific subjects taught in school. Because students are already preparing for finals at the end of the junior year, May and June are ideal months to take the SAT Subject tests. Acing the SAT Subject tests is a great way to show what you’ve learned throughout the year.There are 20 SAT Subject Tests, each of which is an hour in length, scored from 200-800, and comprised entirely of multiple choice questions. You can take up to 3 tests per test date, but we often find that 1-2 is ideal due to potential test day exhaustion.Factors to Consider in Choosing a TestYou can see a complete list of SAT Subject Test offerings here. The best way to see which SAT Subject tests are right for you is to take practice tests and score them. Here are a couple of key guidelines that can help along the way.1. College GoalsAdmission requirements around SAT Subject Tests vary widely among colleges. Many elites schools require or recommend 2-3 SAT Subject Tests. Examples include Brown University, Georgetown University, Caltech, Rice University, and Tufts University. You can find specific requirements on every school’s website, so it’s a valuable exercise to sit down and make a list of what your student will need to include in the application. If even a couple of your student’s top choices require or recommend SAT Subject Tests, it will be wise to have him or her pick exams and schedule a test date.2. The Student’s Strengths and CourseworkAP courses often translate well to the SAT Subject Tests, so if, for example, a student is excelling in AP Biol ogy and AP English Language Literature during her junior year, the SAT Biology and SAT Literature should be strong contenders for a May or June test date. Keep in mind that, while the AP’s and SAT’s often have much content overlap, there are certainly differences, and the formats are quite different. AP Exams rely more on essays and long-form responses as opposed to the strict multiple-choice format of the SAT’s. Thus, it’s important to be strategic and plan on preparing for both the AP and SAT separately towards the end of the course.3. CoachabilityIn addition to any solid AP coursework or obvious subject test affinities, we find that the Math II and Literature exams are great choices for many students. A junior who has taken or is taking pre-calculus will have completed all necessary coursework for both exams. Furthermore, these exams are especially coachable and strategic in nature, and our students have historically seen a great deal of success and improvement on these exams. For example: while we have an excellent record of success with all of the subjects, our biggest score increases come from the Math Level 2 SAT Subject Test, with many students improving over 100 points.How to Prepare for the TestsAJ Tutoring knows the SAT Subject Tests with a degree of expertise bordering on obsession. Luckily for students, a minimalistic approach focusing on a few key test-taking strategies, a series of full-length practice exams, and a targeted content review can work wonders in maximizing performance on test day.Our SAT Subject Test Students typically complete 3-4 sessions of 1.5 hours each. They start with an hour-long practice exam which serves as a jumping off point for a highly customized preparation beginning with session #1. In a 1-on-1 format, the tutor will observe the student’s strengths and weaknesses and tailor the instruction to fit his or her needs, assigning practice, reviewing gaps, and coaching on question evaluation as they go.You can le arn more about our preparation process here.Please reach out to us today to make a test prep plan for your student!

italki 2016 Olympic Language Challenge Public Pledge videos !

italki 2016 Olympic Language Challenge Public Pledge videos ! So a few language challengers have created Public Video Pledges to help them finish the language challenge. Dont forget to sign up for yourself, this time is FREE! Get the Olympic Language Challenge  of to make you speak fearlessly! Life Hacks research  has shown that if you put yourself up to something by making a public commitment, are likely to reach your goals because  others are watching.  Use peer-pressure to your advantage! Help out your fellow language learners participating in the challenge!  Leave words of encouragement on their notebook entries! Koray  from Canada is learning Turkish! Koray is learning Turkish because his father is from Turkey and  plans to visit his dads family in there. We have no doubt he will be chatting with his family like a pro after our challenge! Joan from Wisconsin, USA is learning Chinese, Shanghainese and Japanese. Joan has high ambitions after moving to China.  After settling in Shanghai and speaking Mandarin, shes not taking the easy road with one language but trying to learn 3!   Shanghainese, Japanese and Chinese are her target languages for this challenge!  .  Good luck Joan!  Your hard work is going to pay off! Nathaniel  from Indonesia  is learning Chinese and Spanish! Nathaniel is from Jakarta and already has a lot of confidence while speaking!  Best of luck to Nathaniel  as he continues to improve both Chinese and Spanish at the same time. Angel  from France  is learning Spanish and Portuguese! Angel a  professional teacher polyglot with 12 years of experience. She has a  a masters in didactics of french as a foreign language. I speak a total of six languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Esperanto. Shes  deeply passionate about bringing the beauty of languages to everyone both through personal lessons and free content, such as exercises based on real-life material and runs a language learning blog   www.frenchlover.org  to help anyone master a language.  She even wrote that shes taking the challenge here. italki 2016 Olympic Language Challenge Public Pledge videos ! So a few language challengers have created Public Video Pledges to help them finish the language challenge. Dont forget to sign up for yourself, this time is FREE! Get the Olympic Language Challenge  of to make you speak fearlessly! Life Hacks research  has shown that if you put yourself up to something by making a public commitment, are likely to reach your goals because  others are watching.  Use peer-pressure to your advantage! Help out your fellow language learners participating in the challenge!  Leave words of encouragement on their notebook entries! Koray  from Canada is learning Turkish! Koray is learning Turkish because his father is from Turkey and  plans to visit his dads family in there. We have no doubt he will be chatting with his family like a pro after our challenge! Joan from Wisconsin, USA is learning Chinese, Shanghainese and Japanese. Joan has high ambitions after moving to China.  After settling in Shanghai and speaking Mandarin, shes not taking the easy road with one language but trying to learn 3!   Shanghainese, Japanese and Chinese are her target languages for this challenge!  .  Good luck Joan!  Your hard work is going to pay off! Nathaniel  from Indonesia  is learning Chinese and Spanish! Nathaniel is from Jakarta and already has a lot of confidence while speaking!  Best of luck to Nathaniel  as he continues to improve both Chinese and Spanish at the same time. Angel  from France  is learning Spanish and Portuguese! Angel a  professional teacher polyglot with 12 years of experience. She has a  a masters in didactics of french as a foreign language. I speak a total of six languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Esperanto. Shes  deeply passionate about bringing the beauty of languages to everyone both through personal lessons and free content, such as exercises based on real-life material and runs a language learning blog   www.frenchlover.org  to help anyone master a language.  She even wrote that shes taking the challenge here.

Certified! Your Guide to Language Certificate Success

Certified! Your Guide to Language Certificate Success Certified! Your Guide to Language Certificate Success Picture it. A large, shining (yet tasteful) trophy.The plaque reads Worlds Best Language Learner.And underneath? Your name.A language certificate is a lot like a sports trophy.You can have a wonderful time playing sportsâ€"or learning languagesâ€"without ever needing something external as proof of your effort.Which is great for learners going it alone, because self-directed learning has a lot of great advantages.But theres a reason why courses, exams, certificatesâ€"and trophiesâ€"exist.Theyre a way of proving not only to others but also to yourself that youve put in the long hours and seen the results.If that sounds like your cup of tea, read on to find out what a language certificate can do for you, and how to go about obtaining one. Certified! Your Guide to Language Certificate SuccessWhy Go for a Language Certificate?Have Your Skills Honestly Assessed by a Third PartyIt can be hard to really know where youre at, especially if youre a self-learner. Nobody likes trying to figure out how big their vocabulary is, or going over the grammar charts for the dozenth time.But assessment can be an important reality check.If you self-assess at a high level but then cant pass even an intermediate-level exam, it means there were some gaps in your knowledge that went undetected for too long.Fixing those gaps is crucial if you want to really use that language in your life, and doing so will make you a better language learner overall.For example, knowing what your real level is can help you better use language resources like FluentU.FluentU makes it possible to learn languages from music videos, commercials, news, inspiring talks and more.With FluentU, you hear languages in real-world contextsâ€"the way that native speakers actually use them.Just a quick look will give you an idea of the variety of FluentU videos on offer:FluentU really takes the grunt work out of learning languages, leaving you with nothing but engaging, effective and efficient learning. It’s already h and-picked the best videos for you and organized them by level and topic. All you have to do is choose any video that strikes your fancy to get started!Each word in the interactive captions comes with a definition, audio, image, example sentences and more.Access a complete interactive transcript of every video under the Dialogue tab, and easily review words and phrases from the video under Vocab.You can use FluentU’s unique adaptive quizzes to learn the vocabulary and phrases from the video through fun questions and exercises. Just swipe left or right to see more examples of the word youre studying.The program even keeps track of what you’re learning and tells you exactly when it’s time for review, giving you a 100% personalized experience.Start using FluentU on the website with your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes store or Google Play store.Have a Quick Answer Ready for Questions About Your Language AbilityHow good is your Portugues e?Well, I can read it without much trouble, but its kind of hard for me to follow the newsâ€"oh, and I did a homestay in Brazil three years agoWhats your Japanese level?I passed the JLPT N2 exam last year.Which of the above scenarios do you like more? If youre sitting in a job interview, a quick and decisive answer could be what makes the difference between acceptance and rejection.The presence of a language certificate on your resume is the quickest answer of all.Be Eligible for Employment, Study or ImmigrationSome places set a hard limit on accepting applicants based on how well they can speak a language. No matter how good your other credentials, youre not getting in that door without proof of a certain language level.In Germany, for instance, many university programs require proof of a C1 level. Universities in China generally require about the sameâ€"around an  HSK 5 level, to be exact.And if youd like to live and work in another country, chances are youre going to have to demo nstrate your language ability with a certificate of some sort.In Japan, if you manage to pass the JLPT N1, you prove to the government that youre able to use Japanese at an extremely high level and easily function in the business world. That goes a long way towards getting you a coveted skilled worker visa.But say, what is the JLPT N1 anyway? Read on to find out!5 of the Worlds Most Useful Language CertificatesBelow are five of the worlds most recognized and useful certifications for languages. These arent by any means all the language exams that exist, so dont feel distressed if you dont see your target language represented or are interested in other options.There are many other tests to measure language proficiency, including the DSH for German and the TOEFL for English, but this list covers a broad range of languages and should be helpful for seeing useful examples of whats out there.JLPT  (Japanese)The Japanese Language Proficiency Test measures ability from N5 (basic) to N1 (ad vanced). People who pass the N1 are said to have about the same linguistic ability as a native high school graduate. Its offered at testing centers around the world, though usually only once or twice per year.There are three sections: Language Knowledge (vocabulary and grammar), Reading and Listening. You wont have to produce any written essays, nor will you have to sit through a spoken interviewâ€"but dont let your guard down.Just around 30 percent of applicants on average pass the N1 exam each year. So when you try for this Japanese certificate, make sure you can talk the talk and walk the walk.DELE  (Spanish)The Diplomas of Spanish as a Foreign Language is administered by the Instituto Cervantes in Spain as a measure of European Spanish proficiency. In the past few years, the Instituto Cervantes has worked with test centers in Mexico to design a more international test known as the SIELE, but the DELE still has a powerful presence. There are more than 1,000 test centers worldwide !When you apply for the DELE, you need to pick one of the six CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) levels from A1 to C2 as your test level. Each test has four sections that cover listening, reading, writing and speaking.DELF/DALF (French)Just like the DELE, these two exams are based on the CEFR scale of language proficiency. If you sign up for levels A1 through B2, youll apply for the DELF (Diplôme détudes en langue française).At the C levels, the name simply changes to DALF (Diplôme approfondi de langue française). These French certificates are organized almost exactly like the DELE in Spanish. You simply sign up at any one of the hundreds of locations around the world.Passing the C2 French exam is no walk in the park, but once you do youll be eligible for all kinds of benefits such as employment in the Francophonie, a job as a teacher or translator and access to French-language higher education.HSK (Mandarin Chinese)The Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi, or Mandari n proficiency exam, is well-known all over China. There are six levels of the test, ranging from knowledge of just a few hundred words and characters to many more. Unlike some other exams, there are freely available vocabulary lists published for each level.Theres also no speaking sectionâ€"you have to sign up for the separate HSK speaking exam if you want proof of oral Chinese proficiency.But once youve passed HSK 5, youll be able to take ordinary Chinese classes surrounded by native speakers. And by HSK 6, youll have no problem reading or understanding Chinese that you see and hear around you every day.TELC (several languages)The European Language Certificates (TELC) is a German organization that offers a smorgasbord of languages and certificates to choose from. For major world languages like English and Spanish, youll be able to sit exams rated at any of the CEFR levels.Other languages, like Arabic or Polish, are just as important but dont yet have one unified exam like the DELE or HSK. In this case, TELC also offers a limited selection of exams at the intermediate level that can serve as an important benchmark for your skills.The exams are held in thousands of test centers worldwide, and the results are accepted as valid in just as many places.As a German company, TELC  works especially closely with the governments and businesses in the German-speaking regions of Europeâ€"so if youre looking to study or do business in these places, TELC  may be a perfect option for you.How to Prepare for a Language Certificate ExamTake a Look at Previous ExamsExam agencies often publish mock exams, older questions or practice tests for you to prepare.Some are in book form, and some are even online.  DIALANG is a great one-stop resource for finding practice tests in a ton of languages. Theyre modeled after the standard exams used in Europe like the DALF and DELE. Your results here are likely to be a good diagnostic for what level exam you should take.Another way to find exa ms is by checking the websites of test centers or places that offer exam prep classes. Heres an example from the HSK center at the University of Manchester.If you dont know what youre going to be tested on, youre probably not going to do well. As much as the designers of the test try to make it reflect real-world language use, its necessarily going to be a little bit artificial for the purposes of grading.Thus, just having a high level in your target language never guarantees a solid score.You need to be prepared for each exam section in turnâ€"and, of course, youll need to know how to follow the exam instructions in the target language!Read Nonfiction Articles from Different SourcesThe reading portion of standardized language exams is almost always nonfiction. Fiction reading is extremely important for your vocabulary development, but when you study for a test you need to get used to the type of writing youll encounter on that test.That means you should be extremely comfortable rea ding easy news articles in your target language, such as  those found on news sites like NHK World in many languages.But beyond just news, you should be able to read different types of nonfiction.Can you follow the main arguments of opinion pieces? How about understanding the flow of step-by-step instructions or the pros and cons in a product review?These are just a few of the writing genres we encounter every day in our native languages. If you want to excel at the reading comprehension sectionâ€"a component of every examâ€"you’ll need to be familiar with all of these and more.Ditch Your HeadphonesThis is a small tip, but it might end up making all the difference in your exam preparation.When we sit down to study languages at home, more often than not we use headphones or earbuds. And why not? Theyre comfortable, the sound is clear and theres no risk of bothering others.But if youre used to having your target language piped cleanly into your ears all day, you might start to sweat when you see a cheap boombox at the exam center.Although all the exam centers prepare the same test for you, the conditions for the listening part can be completely haphazard. Its entirely possible that youll be asked to do the listening exam in an echo-y room with construction going on outside.Practicing your listening with computer speakers in a variety of environments will get you prepared for whatever conditions the examiners throw at you.Fine-tune Your Writing with a TutorWhen was the last time you challenged yourself to write something difficult in your target language? Its not something self-learners often do.And in fact, its actually not necessary for all the exams I mentioned or all the exams out there. At lower and intermediate levels, the JLPT and HSK dont test your composition skills at allâ€"the writing section of those exams is multiple choice.But the fact remains that for an advanced language certificate, you had better be able to write well in your target language.T he best way to study writing is to write and get feedback. Some people are lucky enough to have good friends or colleagues that can give them tips on their writing.Even better than that, though, is a tutor who has successfully coached exam candidates in the past. You want a tutor with a proven track record in getting students the language certificates they want.Now that youve taken a look at some of the major language certificates out there, what do you think?Do you want to join the ranks of millions of people around the world who have sat and passed exams in their target languageâ€"proving their ability to themselves and others?Theres no better time than now to start preparing.Get your hands on a copy of a practice exam, read some online articles, browse through some tutor listingsâ€"and be on your way to your first language certificate of many.