One of the best way to learn a language, especially when abroad, is to interact with local people - so what do you have to offer? Well, think about this: you’re a native too! Maybe not of that country in particular but nevertheless, you have some language skills and there are people who won’t have them yet will want them. So look into language exchanges. We don’t mean going abroad to the country to stay with someone and have them come back with you for a while. You can do the language exchange in-situ, in one night, in the place you are staying. For example, there are many people in Spain who want to learn English So if you are learning Spanish, go for a night of drinks, having one drink speaking and learning Spanish, one drink teaching English to your partner. It really works and that you are changing languages throughout the night adds to the diversity and keeps your mind working! The experience in explaining issues such as grammar and vocabularly use will also help you understand your language structure better and hence the language structure of your second language.
So how to organise these intercambios of language? Bars are good places to go - your local friend can tell you about the best places - but make sure they are not too noisy, you need to be able to hear everything clearly or there is no point to the exchange. Restaurants are a good idea as they are often quieter than bars but are as relaxed. However, be aware: you have to practise a language often to see improvement…so going once, twice (or even three times!) to a restaurant to practise can end up being very costly! One of the best ways is to involve people - the more the merrier! You can organise quiz evenings or games nights, playing Spain’s “juegos de casino“, have fun and learn - a great idea!
When you go for your language exchange, make sure you can take advantage to the maximum. Take pen and paper to note down new words and think about what you want to discuss before going. It could be that you want to learn something particular about the culure or it could be you want to clarify a grammar issue. It’s your opportunity with an expert on the language so don’t let it go to waste!
LEARNING another language will surely go a long way here in Spain. For example, if you want to learn the other dialects here such as Catalan or Basque, then you can go to as far as Tenerife or Las Palmas next to the African coast or any other island in the Canaries Archipelago. You can explore El Teide National Park and ride the cable car going up there. If you know how to speak French, then you can organize a road trip with your friends and go all the way to the Spanish-French border. On the way, there will be no language barriers with the French locals so you already know how to speak French. Just be sure though that you have prepared yourself for a road trip. Do not attempt a road trip alone so someone can assist you when you are dozing off driving. Also, make sure that your car is filled with gas. Anyway, that’s just one aspect why there is wealth in learning another language. It’s not just money that I’m talking about here. The wealth of learning and accumulating another culture is more important.
But one cannot deny that material wealth is also needed during a lifetime. Well, you can actually make money just by studying another language. Consider this, if you only are diligent to study English for three academic semesters, you can in turn teach English. There is a course called Teaching of English as a Foreign Language for that. Called TOEFL in short, this course consists of three stages – basic, intermediate and advanced. Each is equivalent to three academic semesters or six calendar months each. This may be an intensive training all week long but reaping its benefits is definitely worth it. During the first day of school, a student must write an essay about anything. Then he or she must read it in front. The essay gets longer as the class progresses. A student is also assigned a language exchange student through chat. The student may be someone from Great Britain who is also interested to learn Spanish. So that the student on the other end will tutor you what a typical British English conversation sounds like, then you must teach him or her a few Spanish words of your own. Of course, the British student also pays tuition to the language school just like you. After graduating from the advanced TOEFL course, you are now a full-fledged person to teach English.
You can either be a private tutor or establish yourself an English language school in Spain. Plan strategically so you can recoup your investment if you’re planning to establish an English language school. Know what’s the fastest growing tourist destination in Spain because the locals here too who want to work in the hospitality industry are eager to learn English. Right now, the fastest growing destinations are Valencia in mainland Spain in the Iberian Peninsula and Palma del Mallorca which is in the Balearic Archipelago smacked right in the middle of the Mediterranean. You needn’t be limited though, options such as Malaga Car hire mean you can be based in one place (this beautiful Spanish city, perfect for language learning) and escape at the weekends to other cities - not missing out on anything!
THE road to richness when acquiring a second language starts when one turns 21. At 21, one has graduated from college. You don’t need to have a bachelor’s degree in English to enroll in TEFL or Teaching English as a Foreign Language. All you’ll need to do is simply enroll. TEFL institutions are specialized ones and they don’t have any admissions staff that has to screen your qualifications and stuff. Once they’ve known that you have graduated from college, they will let you in no questions asked.
TEFL institutions are either offered traditionally or online. Those offered online has a relatively lower tuition as the school doesn’t need revolving funds to maintain the day to day operations of the physical facility. The only hardware that the school operates is its computers which act as servers and the most vital assets of an online school are in gigabytes or terabytes. Another advantage of enrolling in a TEFL online school is the economy of time. You don’t have to attend the grueling eight-hour classes online.
Instead, all you’ll need to do is check in to your student’s account daily and get the language lesson of the day. One must have to submit the answers of the corresponding quizzes of the day. Just like with the traditional TEFL institution, you will be awarded certificates at the end of the six-month course.
A traditional TEFL course usually has three stages – the beginner’s, the intermediate and the advanced. In the beginner’s course, the student learns the basics of the language. As the student advances in the module, essays passed tend to be lengthier and recitations tend to be long too. To help the student cope with the course, he or she will be assisted with video presentations. In the case of online courses, there will also be video conferencing with the other students and a guest resource person involved.
Students are also encouraged to form study buddies. These study buddies are usually housed in the same dormitory where they will complement each other by exploring their weaknesses in acquiring English as a second language and trying to mend them. Another strategy that language schools implement is for the student to be enrolled in an exchange program. In an exchange program, the student will be introduced to a person whose first language is English. This person will assist the student on how to cope with the grammars and nuances of English. In return, the student must also impart to his partner the basics in his own language.
Other students taking the TEFL course will go into immersion. They will be staying with a native family in the country and the native family will assist you in your English acquisition skills. The same rationale is applied when one has a language partner but being immersed with a family transcends into a more personal level. A language partnership is usually achievable only online when both the student and his or her partner are in video conferencing mode. After graduating from the advanced TEFL stage, you can now go into the world and embark on a promising career.
