Student Reports: Palma de Mallorca

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Emma

2 week Private Tuition course in May.

I expected to improve my rather elementary Spanish as much as possible in the time available. This was something of a voyage of discovery – ideally I would take a much longer course over a period of several weeks/months. As this was not possible, I decided to have a go anyway for the 2 weeks. I elected to take 2 hours of lessons a day on the basis that anything more intensive would not have allowed time to consolidate (or have any time left for a holiday!)

My expectations were met but, I would have liked to have stayed longer. The lessons did consolidate some areas of knowledge and I began to feel more confident using the language actively (in shops etc.)

The one to one lessons were great, I found my teacher charming. The school is in a fantastic central location, particularly as I was staying in an apartment in central Palma. It may not be convenient for students travelling in, but I’d guess the prime location would far out way the commute. It’s right at the heart of a fun city.

The schools policy is to use only Spanish at all times during lessons. This is a sound principle in theory and makes sense practically given a range of students’ nationalities. However (call me old-fashioned) there are times when certain aspects of the language can be more effectively explained in the students mother tongue – some languages are fundamentally different from Spanish and effective teaching may require knowledge and the students mother tongue. Actually I didn`t mind speaking only Spanish – it’s a good discipline – but on a couple of occasions it would have been helpful to clarify a point in English.

Palma de Mallorca is one of my favourite places so I was quite content being based there. I’d recommend it as a place to study , there are lots of young people, the coastal location is great, the city is beautiful and lively.

CESA Languages Abroad were good, the staff were extremely helpful in tailoring a course to suit my requirements. Thank you. If I had the time I would definitely go on another course to Palma, maybe for longer this time.”