Job Discussion Forums

[lumberjackej]

Hi,

My name is Eric and I will be teaching Spanish this Fall at the high school level.

I am hoping travel for 1-2 weeks with the goal of improving my Spanish and would love to get some advice from you ESL teachers. I can speak Spanish very well, but my grammar could definitely use a review and I'd like to spend my trip speaking entirely in Spanish.

Here is what I would prefer:

1) I'd like to go somewhere where people are warm and friendly and easy to talk to, as I plan on going alone and practicing Spanish with the locals. This probably sounds like a huge clich� as most people I've been in South America were warm and friendly. Still, I think if I went to Mexico City or Buenos Aires, it might be harder to chat it up with the average passer-by.

2) I think I can practice Spanish on the bus or train, and won't be taking any conversational Spanish courses. However, my compositional Spanish (especially my writing skills) could really use a review. Do you know of any good places where I could get good instruction on, say, how to compose formal essays...perhaps some sort of week-long class?

3) This will sort of be like a study vacation for me, and I'd like to go somewhere special. I've already been to Mexico, Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia, and would like to go somewhere new. I don't need to go visit an island resort or a beach, and really wouldn't mind roughing it, as long as I travel somewhere that is interesting and scenic.

So, if you are working or living in Latin America and know of a place that would be great for somebody to both brush up on their Spanish and enjoy a vacation, please let me know!

Thanks for your advice,

Eric

[spanglish]

Antigua, Guatemala is perhaps the best place in the world to study Spanish. The entire city is built around Spanish schools. If you're looking to study for such a short amount of time, that would be a good option. I've also heard Lake Atitlan and Quetzaltenango (Xela) are good places in Guatemala for Spanish study. If you go to Antigua, I recommend Jose Sanchez's school, Latinoamerica Spanish Academy. They're strength is conversational, but they also focus on grammar and you will benefit if you already have good conversational skills. You can let them know what you would like your classes to focus on (it's one-on-one). They charge $160 US/week for 3 1/2 hours of Spanish a day and room and board with a family.

[naturegirl321]

I've heard that EL Sol in LIma and Excel in Cusco are good places.

[spanglish]

I've heard Quito in general is a good city for Spanish study.

[ghostdog]

You may have to be both specific and insistent to get what you want. Most of the language "schools" in Central America don't offer classes with other students, but one-on-one lessons with a private teacher, and everything depends on the competency of the teacher, whether you click with her/him, and whether s/he is willing to do what you ask. You pretty much have to interview the schools and the teachers individually before you make a decision. (I can't really speak to the situation re schools in South America).

In terms of where to go, I personally like Antigua, but it's Disneyland for gringos, and if you want cultural immersion you'd have to work hard to find it and not be sucked in by the pastry cafes with English-language mags and the profusion of backpacker bars showing English-language DVDs. It would also likely be pricier in Antigua than any other place in Guatemala, if cost is an issue. There are any number of other towns and cities in Guatemala with similar "schools" and homestay arrangements (teaching English to gringos is almost a cottage industry in Xela as well as in the towns up on the lake), and it would be easier to avoid gringo temptations (less so at some places on the lake). Nicaragua is also a possibility, as is Honduras. You'd get better value for money in Central America than South America.

[spanglish]

Well put, I agree with ghostdog. I'm not a huge fan of Antigua, but it's a great place to learn Spanish. One reason it's good for me is that I'm familiar with a number of teachers there from having studied there before.

I've found as I have continued my Spanish studies that the teacher you get very much continues to matter, no matter how 'prestigious' the school/university.

ghostdog, have you studied in Xela? Could you recommend a particular teachers?

[ghostdog]

Can't help you with a specific school or teacher. In any case, it's a matter of personal taste and comfort. My suggestion would be to pick a place where you would have several options to look at, and then spend a day or two interviewing as many schools and teachers as you can. Again, Antigua is chock full of English teachers, but they cater to a market who tend to drift back into gringoworld when they're done studying, and that doesn't sound like what the OP is looking for.

If possible, you can try asking for a sample lesson before you sign up. There was a school either in or off the main square in Grenada (Nicaragua) that actually advertised a free lesson as an inducement to get you to study there. I did one on a lark and recall it being surprisingly grammar-based, which may have been this particular teacher's comfort zone. Again, Grenada has too many gringos to suit me but you can generally avoid them if you stay out of certain places, and it's the kind of place where locals will chat you up in the parque central out of curiosity rather than because they're trying to hustle you. My feeling is that the less populated by gringos a town is, the better the service you're likely to receive from a local school, simply because they need the custom more.

[spanglish]

Yeah, I've had Nicaragua recommended to me as a great place to study Spanish. I'd never even thought about studying there before - nobody mentions it. I'm guessing it's cheaper than Antigua.

Well, if you're in class and doing homework for most of your day, I guess you don't have much time to talk with other gringos. The toughest thing I've had to deal with in my present location is the multitude of Colombians who speak (some or good) English and want to practice. Now, though it's a lot better because my Spanish is better than the English of most. But it's a good warning - it might be a good idea to stay away from more economically developed/educated areas if you want to learn Spanish, at least when you are at the intermediate stage.

[paddyroyal]

My experience in Guatemala is that the teachers are much stronger with oral communicative Spanish than with academic written Spanish. I would suggest checking out Instituto Cultural in Oxaca. When I was there, a very advanced student was studying and was happy with his teacher. They also have courses for Spanish teachers. I had a fabulous homestay where I could practice Spanish, and I found fewer gringos than in Antigua. It's more expensive than Central America, but I think you'd get more what you're looking for.

[spanglish]

Thanks for the tip. I guess that Oaxaca is in Mexico - I had to google it to find out.

That's a good point about Guatemala, but I've had classes in very well regarded universities since then and in my opinion the classes in Guaty were more effective than either. It is true that there is some lack in the academic side of things, but my teachers did give homework and some were more grammar focused than others.

[sweeney66]

I can recommend two schools in Quetaltenango/Xela. I studied at Juan Sisay, and they were very obliging, as I am a bit LD. My teachers read up on my problems and went the extra mile to help me learn in my own way. Cervantes Spanish School is run by a friend of mine. They are a newer school, the teachers are well qualified and really willing to individualize.
I had good experiences with both schools, and Xela is more low key than Antigua. People are very friendly and willing to chat with a clueless foreigner.
I also studied at UNAM in Mexico City. I they are very academic/writing focused, but they use "CELTA" type methods, so it works out okay.
They have classes in lit, art and history taught in Uni level Spanish, which I found most useful.
It's not that easy to chat people up there, compared to Guatemala.
Since you're only going for a couple of weeks, you could check out Rio Dulce and Puerto Barios in Guatemala. No one speaks English, and Rio Dulce has wilderness camping and a vacation atmosphere. You won't get much help with comp, but it's really fun, beautiful, and pristine.
The people are just lovely, and I still write to some people I met in Puerto Barios.

[spanglish]

Wonderful places - to the OP - just be careful. Guatemala hasn't improved any over the last few years in terms of crime. I certainly recommend it as a great place to visit/learn, but exercise as much or more caution as you normally would in a sketchier part of the world.

[wildnfree]

From experience of travelling and study in almost all LA countries and Spain, without a doubt Cuba is the the best.

Cuba is the best because of the very inclusive culture. You will rent a room from a family as a student and Cubans wont let you not be involved in the family's day-to-day life. If you are friendly, sincere, considerate and dont do all the dumb tourist things (Like get drunk and come back at 3 in the morning with 2 prostitutes) you will be readily accepted. Apart from that, Cuba has an (almost) world class education reputation.

I went to Spain to learn Spanish, but as i had to support myself teaching English to live there, in a year and a half I learnt only a few basic sentences. In the 7 months I stayed in Cuba I learnt enough to pass for Cuban when speaking with native Spanish Speakers.

Apart from that, its a shockingly safe country to be in. I found other LA countries cool and distant in comparison, especially Mexico. The economic situation in Cuba forces people to talk to their neighbours and help each other in small ways - a great way to learn .