Spanish World Institute

Two very different weeks

I signed up for two weeks and quit after four days. The first week was brutal: traditional classroom training focused heavily on grammar, and not in an environment conducive to learning as anything spoken or asked was met with ridicule or excessive correction to the point that you couldn’t speak. I actually stopped asking questions because they weren’t heard and were constantly interrupted. Note that I’m pretty good at Spanish already. This situation was due to Maria, the director, running the class instead of having a trained teacher run it. My problem was more with her than anything else, and we argued too much and disliked each other too much for it to be worth returning.

However, I will give credit where it is due. After informing Maria that I was quitting and asking (unsuccessfully) for a refund, she transferred me to online private classes with Eduardo for the following week, for half the time. And wow, what a difference! Eduardo was a great teacher, covering all the grammar remaining for me yet to learn, teaching logically and in a way that trained me to quickly apply it. He gave me the tools needed to take my Spanish from good to great.

All said, I would proceed with caution here. I was extremely disappointed one week and then quite pleased the next. The school really just needs to be staffed properly and managed with customer service in mind (we are adult customers not children in a mandatory school). It has potential but needs some serious issues to be addressed before I could comfortably recommend it to someone.

Publié 23 Il y a ... jours

Best School in Bogota!!

I attended the 4 week semi-intensive course and I made more progress than I could have ever imagined! Maria and Eduardo are kind and gracious hostess, not to mention phenomenal instructors. I highly recommend anyone interested in improving their Spanish to take this course. It’s definitely worthwhile!!

Publié 2 Il y a ... ans

Improving my Spanish thanks to Spanish World Institute in Bogota

A friend of mine who works in Bogota recommended the Spanish World Institute to me, as a means of practicing the language for a few weeks while I stayed in Bogota. I spent six weeks in the city and at the institute, taking three hours of Spanish classes every weekday. I teach Spanish I in my home country, so the opportunity to exercise my skills with native speakers was not to be missed.

Four of these six weeks were spent in private lessons, and the remaining two were spent studying alongside two other students. We were able to practice all four key components of the language: speaking, listening, reading and writing. Two of the teachers were especially effective in delivering their lesson plans due to their experience, and I will remain in contact with them in the future.

The activities we engaged in on Wednesday and Friday afternoons were also a fun way in which we were able to explore the city of Bogota in more depth. We went to such places as the Finca Bolivar, the National Museum, Parque 93 and the Usaquen market. I highly recommend the institute to anyone who wishes to improve their understanding of the Spanish language while also immersing themselves in local Bogota and Colombian culture.

Publié 4 Il y a ... ans

Worst nightmare ever!

Maria is the head of the school.
Fortunately I first had classes for 8 days with an employee who was patient but had no clue about grammar. But it was bearable. Then he disappeared and Maria took over. She did not correct me but yelled at me for not knowing the what was explained in the book.
No way of discussing with her.
An absolute nightmare!
Within one week Out of three students I was the second to leave for the same reason!
Do not go there!

Publié 26 Il y a ... jours

Spnischkurs / Bildungsurlaub in Bogota

Ich kann das spanish world institute sehr empfehlen.
Habe hier zwei Wochen Bildungsurlaub genossen.
Ganz herzlichen Dank an meine Lehrer! Die Mischung aus Konversation, Grammatik und Kultur ist perfekt. Gelernt wird in entspannter Atmosphaere mit viel Humor und gutem Kaffe :-)
Ich habe schon vorher Spanisch gelernt, in verschiedenen Schulen, aber hier zum ersten Mal den Subjuntivo verstanden !Muchas gracias a Maria, Lorena, Juan y Jefferson.

Publié 4 Il y a ... ans

Terrible experience

Maria Rozo is (the owner) is a horrible person, she treats her teachers and every person in general as slaves, yell at them allá the time, she is really insane, there are better schools in Bogota, don't waste your money there.

Publié 4 Il y a ... ans

CARTAGENA

I only spent a week at The Spanish World Institute in CARTAGENA and it was fantastic!
I was the only student and had two wonderful teachers, Victoria and Tania. They helped me a lot and now I feel much more comfortable speaking in Spanish (even though it's still very basic). I could ask them anything and they know a lot about their language. I also loved the fruit stand near the school, where you could get fruit salads during recess :-)
Sometimes we had activities in the afternoon, like a bike-tour or a juice-afternoon in the old town.
Cartagena is very charming and there's lots to see and do.

Publié 7 Il y a ... ans