Looking For Language School in Santo Domingo...

[ss1971]

Hi,

I've been studying Spanish off and on for a couple of years and have decided that I'd really like to take a couple of weeks in Latin America and spend them doing one-on-one sessions at a language school with an experienced, knowledgeable instructor. I'm considering the Dominican Republic because, though I've traveled pretty extensively in South America, I've never been to the Caribbean. The Dominican Republic also seems relatively inexpensive.

So, anywho, I've been googling around and have found only one school with any kind of web presence. But surely there must be more than one.

So, I was just wondering if any of the regulars on these boards have any first hand experience with any of the language schools (my preferred location is Santo Domingo) in the Dominican Republic and if so, what your experience was like. I'm particularly interested if you did one-on-one rather than a classroom, but whatever experiences you can share would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance for any replies.

-ss1971

 

[Yachtmaster]

I have been to the following Language School in Santo Domingo a couple of times to learn Spanish. It is quite good. I did not do one on one but it was available.

hispaniola | spanish language school - learn spanish

The school is located in the Zona Colonial area of Santo Domingo which is quite interesting. They normally use young female college students or grads as instructors. The school also has a good social program to get students involved with the local culture and language. Hanging out with some of the other students can be great fun. The school offers free bachata and merengue dance classes twice a week for those students who may be interested.

I may enroll for another two weeks of lessons again sometime early in the new year.

 

[ss1971]

Thanks Yachtmaster for the time to reply. I actually had seen links to that but for some reason until this morning I had never been able to get the page to load. So now I have at least two options - hispaniola and IIC (Instituto Intercultural del Caribe) which is the one I already knew about. I'll have to try to compare costs at the two places.

 

[john_tn]

I went to the Hispaniola language school mentioned in an earlier post. The school was very organized. I had three instructors, two were in their late 20s and spoke very good English and another was a college student who also taught dance classes. The prices were very reasonable. I recommend the school.

I have since bought Rosetta Stone. It is expensive but it is very good and I am learning a lot when I have time.

 

[Slick James]

In my own experience, language classes tend to be something close to useless, especially if you already have a 101-level of knowledge with the language. I'd recommend getting a good grammar book, teaching yourself the 16 verb tenses and their conjugations, and then memorizing lists of vocabulary bit-by-bit. When you get here, just talk your ass off with the locals and learn that way. Trust me, there will be no shortage of people wanting to talk to you.

In a contrived environment like a language class you're never gonna get the fluency that comes with just figuring things out on the fly without the crutch of reverting to English....especially in a place like this, where the local accent and terminology is sometimes very different from standard classroom Spanish....

 

[corsair74]

Try this website: Learn Spanish Free Online | Lessons and Tools

It lists several spanish schools in Latin America. Several in the DR. And it also provides ranking done by actual students who have attended the schools.

This is how I found the school where I took an immersion course about four years ago.


Vince.

 

[corsair74]

In a contrived environment like a language class you're never gonna get the fluency that comes with just figuring things out on the fly without the crutch of reverting to English....especially in a place like this, where the local accent and terminology is sometimes very different from standard classroom Spanish....

Based upon my own experience, I couldn't disagree more. While depending upon classes alone might result in the "contrived environment" that you speak of, quality classroom instruction combined with immersion into a spanish speaking culture is one of the fastest, and most effective ways of learning the language.

And a good instructor will speak less and less english as the class progresses. I believe that mine started conducting class primarily in spanish by the middle of the second week. A good instructor will also teach you about regional differences in the language. While just "figuring out things on the fly" without first having a good understanding of the basics will often result in an individual developing some bad grammatical habits.

Keep in mind as well, that people learn differently. And not everyone has the discipline required to teach themselves a language.


Vince.

 

[ss1971]

Thanks

Thanks everyone for the responses.

I'd also like to make a quick comment on Slick James' reply. I agree that there is a *lot* of value in just being immersed in the language especially with respect to vocabulary acquisition. I don't agree though that it is a substitute for formal instruction, at least not if one wants to speak the language correctly. I'd rate my current ability at high-intermediate to low-advanced. Depending on my comfort level with a persons accent, I can generally carry on a decent conversation, though I get frustrated often when I try use more complicated constructions. I also translate literally way more often than I should.

I have several Spanish speaking friends and visit Mexico frequently (I live in Arizona) so I have no shortage of opportunity to practice. But despite this, my ability with the language has essentially plateaued. As I said, I can generally convey what I'm trying to express, but I make a lot of mistakes, especially with the subjunctive, and tend to fall back on the same linguistic crutches. At this point, I think what I need is some formal instruction on some of the more advanced features of the language, coupled with the opportunity to practice it a lot as I learn. Hence, my idea to do an immersion program.

Okay, enough rambling and thanks again for the responses.

-rs1971