Learn Spanish by the sea in Malaga!
Malaga, the city of paradise, is the capital of the Costa del Sol, and a city that enjoys “300 days of sunshine” per year. Founded more than 3,000 years ago, Malaga is a city with a typical Andalusian atmosphere where the local people are open and welcoming.
Summary Info:
Ages: 16 and up
Location: Malaga
Accommodation: Host family
Duration: 2 weeks and up
Availability: Flexible, year round admission
Supervision: Suitable for mature teenagers, as there is unsupervised free time.
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School
Established in the 1980s, our partner school is located in the Malagueta area, right in the old quarter of the city. The school building is brand new and offers excellent conditions for our students.
On the school's site there are:
- Reception area
- 6 classrooms
- Library
- Cafeteria
- Multifunction room with AV materials
- WIFI
- Air conditioning and central heating
Features of the school:
- 50 m from the beach
- Short walk to the city centre
- 7-minute walk from Plaza de la Merced
- Reception is open during school hours with friendly, multi-lingual staff to help.
Accommodation
Spanish Host Family Accommodation
Staying with a host family is the best type of accommodation to promote and enhance language learning. What better way to practice and improve Spanish skills than to go home every night to native speakers? All families are sourced and vetted by the school, which knows all of the families well and visit them regularly. All will be delighted to share their lives and cultures with their students and offer the comforts of their homes.
Host families come in all shapes and sizes; single parents with children living in the house, nuclear families, older couples whose children are no longer at home, as well as young couples who may not have children, are all considered potential host families. Our main criteria is a warm, caring, and comfortable home environment for students to be nurtured and thrive in. Applicants cannot reject host family placements and must agree to accept them without prejudice and to go into the programme with an open mind.
Our partners try their best to place students within walking distance of the school, however most students will have a 30-minute walk to the school, or will have to take public transportation. Host families as standard provide breakfast and lunch for students, as students generally want to maximize their time at the beach after classes and take care of their own evening meals.
Courses
Leaving Certificate Preparation Course
At our request, our partners in Malaga have organised this intensive language and activity programme for Irish participants travelling with EIL. In just two weeks, students' oral and written Spanish can significantly improve. The combination of language classes and staying with a Spanish host family offers dual language learning - ideal for Leaving Certificate preparation! Students will also have a chance to relax and have some fun through tours, cultural activities and excursions. This is a closed group course; there are a limited number of places (maximum 12 students per group) and there will only be other Irish students taking part in the class. Irish students have been taking part in EIL Leaving Certificate Preparation courses for over 7 years, and we are delighted to offer the programme for Spanish once again.
This course is suitable for students from Transition Year to Leaving Certificate level. Students will sit a placement test on arrival to assess their level in order to ensure maximum language learning. The course material is specifically geared towards preparation for the Irish Leaving Certificate Exam for Spanish.
The course takes place over set dates. Programmes will not be confirmed until the minimum of 6 participants is secured for each session. In the event that 6 students do not sign up for any particular Leaving Certificate Preparation Course, a place on an alternative session can be arranged, or a place on one of the other courses (Standard, Intensive, Intensive Plus or Super Intensive) for the same dates can be arranged. If neither of these options suits, deposits can be refunded.
Included in the Leaving Certificate Preparation course are:
- 26 lessons of Spanish per week
- One half day and one full day excursion
- Books and materials
- Single room, half board accommodation with a host family
- A schedule of afternoon and weekly activities
- Transfer from Malaga airport or railway station
- CareMed medical travel insurance
If students prefer to extend their programme to more than 2 weeks, it is possible to add on one of the other courses for any number of weeks either before of after the Leaving Certificate Preparation Course. Please enquire for prices.
1 group lesson = 50 minutes of teaching time.
Standard Spanish Courses (For ages 16 and up)
- Intensive (20 group Spanish lessons per week)
20 Spanish group lessons per week, focusing on all aspects of the language: oral and written comprehension and communication, grammar, vocabulary and conversation. - Intensive plus (20 group Spanish lessons plus 5 one-to-one lessons per week)
In addition to the Intensive Spanish course, students will receive 5 one-to-one lessons per week to supplement the Intensive morning lessons. The day starts with the one-to-one lesson and its content is determined by each student’s needs. This would be ideal for Leaving Certificate Preparation as well, so students can individually focus on aspects of the language that they need to focus on most. 20 groups lessons plus ten one-to-one lessons per week are also available. Please enquire for more details. - Super-Intensive (30 group Spanish lessons per week)
This course consists of 6 classes per day, two focusing on Spanish grammar, two focusing on communication, and two more to allow for extensive practice and further amplification of learning.
1 group lesson = 50 minutes of teaching time.
1 private lesson = 45 minutes of teaching time.
Schedule
Classes take place from Monday to Friday, normally during the mornings but sometimes, depending on the number of students and the available space in the school, there will be courses in the afternoons. The group classes last 50 minutes and the private classes last 45 minutes.
Activities
In order to apply what has been learned in class and at the same time learn the “art of life”, the school organises many activities. Each week the school gives out information about the activities on offer and the main events that are happening in Malaga at the time. Some examples are as follows:
- Fiestas, where students can meet other students and Spanish people in a relaxed environment (free).
- International cuisine - Students have the chance to learn how to cook one of the best-known dishes: paella, Spanish omelet, as well as trying typical dishes from the countries of other students (students cook their own food).
- Lunches and dinners in restaurants in Malaga, for the opportunity to try typical dishes of Andalusian cuisine (additional cost).
- Visits to museums, monuments and the botanical gardens of Malaga are free, organized weekly and accompanied by a guide.
- Organised excursions to places of cultural, monumental or tourist interest (Granada, Seville, Cordoba, Ronda, Gibraltar, Morocco, etc.) are organized every Saturday and are accompanied by a guide (additional cost).
- Concerts, theatre, cinema, Flamenco, shows (additional cost).
- Films - Spanish DVDs are shown in the school followed by group discussions (free).
- Sports, in combination with the course (active Spanish-enquire for details) or independently (additional cost).
- Courses in flamenco dancing or flamenco guitar - During the summer the school offers 2 hours of flamenco classes each week free of charge.
FAQ
Questions
- How do I get to Malaga from Ireland?
- How many students will be in my class and how old will they be?
- If staying with a host family, can I be placed really near the school?
- Can I go with a friend?
- Are the teaching staff qualified?
- My child has allergies, can these be accommodated?
- What supervision is there?
Answers
How do I get to Malaga from Ireland?
Transfers from Malaga Airport are included in the programme. Students will be met at the arrivals area and again returned to the airport once the course finishes.
How many students will be in my class and how old will they be?
The maximum number of students in a general class is 8 (12 for the Leaving Certificate Preparation Course), but often the number is between 4-5. As this is an adult course, ages can range from 16 to 90 (16-18 for the Leaving Certificate Preparation Course), however during the summer months (July-September), more teens are in attendance, as schools are on summer holidays.
If staying with a host family, can I be placed really near the school?
The school tries its best to place students as near as possible to the school, however students generally will have to walk up to 30 minutes to get to there, and some will have to take public transportation.
Can I go with a friend?
The course is available to anyone who would like to book and genuinely has an interest in studying and having fun, too. If two friends would like to go together, this can be facilitated. Please note, however, that two students of the same nationality will not be placed in the same host family, nor can we guarantee placement in host families near one another. This is to maximize the learning experience for all participants. If this is a requirement, we will have to check with the school to make sure they can or will do this, but we make no guarantees and would need written permission from both sets of parents before we would be willing to coordinate this.
Are the teaching staff qualified?
All of the teachers are university qualified and trained and are native Spanish speakers.
My child has allergies, can these be accommodated?
We cannot accept children on the programme who have special medical needs that they cannot manage themselves. If they have allergies, they must be capable of managing them independently and neither the school nor EIL can accept responsibility with regards to allergic reactions. This also applies to food allergies. While different food options are always available, special meals cannot be prepared for students with specific food allergies, such as dairy-free or gluten-free. Students may bring their own supply of specialty foods if necessary, but the purchase and management of these foods will have to be done independently.
What supervision is there?
The general courses and Leaving Certificate Preparation course are run in an adult language school, therefore programmes there are suitable only for students who are 16 or over and have a certain level of maturity and sense of responsibility. This course does not offer 24-hour supervision and is not suitable for all students. Students are supervised only when they are in the language school or on language school organised activities (which are optional). Students will have a good bit of unsupervised free time and will be free to come and go as they please when they do not have lessons, and in the evenings after dinner. The host families are not responsible for the students while on unsupervised activities.
Supervision
The general courses and Leaving Certificate Preparation course are run in an adult language school, therefore programmes there are suitable only for students who are 16 or over and have a certain level of maturity and sense of responsibility. This course does not offer 24-hour supervision and is not suitable for all students. Students are supervised only when they are in the language school or on language school organised activities (which are optional). Students will have a good bit of unsupervised free time and will be free to come and go as they please when they do not have lessons, and in the evenings after dinner. The host families are not responsible for the students while on unsupervised activities.
The evening curfew to return home to the host family is midnight Sunday-Saturday. This curfew is very strictly monitored and EIL, our partner school and the host family reserve the right to restrict evening privileges should the curfew be broken. Parents have the option to set an earlier curfew if desired. It is the students' responsibility to ensure that they keep to their curfews. Host families are not expected to wait up beyond their normal bedtime waiting for the student to return. If the student has not returned by the agreed time the host family will notify the language school the next day and disciplinary action will be taken. Disciplinary action will also be taken if it comes to the attention of the school that the student has broken any of the programme rules, including alcohol consumption, not respecting the host family, arriving to class late or non attendance, etc. In all cases where a student is disciplined, parents in Ireland will be notified. For a full list of programme rules, please see the course application form.
If parents are concerned about the level of supervision and feel that their child might not be sufficiently mature for this type of course, please contact EIL to discuss alternative programmes that do offer campus accommodation and 24-hour supervision.
Dates/Prices
2012 Prices
| Course | 2 weeks | 3 weeks | 4 weeks | 5 weeks | 6 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leaving Certificate Preparation Course | €1311 | €2104** | €2446** | €2693** | |
| Intensive | €1202 | €1498 | €1813 | €2039 | €2246 |
| Intensive (peak*) | €1252 | €1573 | €1913 | €2164 | €2396 |
| Intensive plus | €1346 | €1714 | €2101 | €2401 | €2681 |
Intensive plus (peak*) | €1396 | €1789 | €2201 | €2526 | €2831 |
| Super-intensive | €1306 | €1654 | €2021 | €2301 | €2561 |
| Super-intensive (peak*) | €1356 | €1729 | €2121 | €2426 | €2711 |
*Peak dates are July, August and September
2012 Leaving Cert Preparation Course Dates
- Easter 1-14 April
- 3-16 June
- 10-23 June
- 17-30 June
Please note: A minimum of 6 students is required to run each Leaving Certificate Preparation Course. An alternative course will be offered if this number is not met for the same dates or a refund will be given.
** Leaving Certificate Preparation plus extra week(s) Intensive Course
Intensive, Intensive Plus and Super-Intensive Courses 2011
Courses begin every Monday (arriving on Sundays) throughout the year.
Apply
In order to apply, please post the following back to our office:
- Completed youth application form or adult application form
- Deposit of €350 paid by cheque, postal order or bank draft made out to EIL Intercultural Learning
- 1 passport photo
- “Dear Host Family” letter written in Spanish.
Please do NOT book flights until you receive written notification from EIL that your course and dates are confirmed.
