Looking For a Review Of Spanish Classes In Medellin

soylocombiano says on Oct 17, 2009, 06:41:

Univ PB is very flexible and economical and good too

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cstew47 says on Oct 17, 2009, 06:53:

Yes, I looked at them also. They are a little more expensive than Nexus. That is why I am asking for comments. Thank you for your advice.

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kenblanquito says on Oct 17, 2009, 07:04:

Never heard of them and I know quite a few foreigners here who have studied.
You get what you pay for; going for the cheapest may compromise the quality. Depends if you are after a student visa or really want to learn the language.
I attended the UPB for 7 months and I learnt a lot; exceeding my expectations. Good teachers there on a pleasant campus in Laureles. Also, no obvious anti-gringo feelings among the students. If you can join a group of your level, it will be quite economic and makes the learning experience more dynamic.
Good luck, it can be fun in a masochistic way but also expect to supplement the classes with at least the same number of hours at home or you will not keep up and will eventually drown in it all.

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cstew47 says on Oct 17, 2009, 07:09:

Thanks Ken. At what level did you start and how did you feel about your fluency when you finished? How many hours/day and days/week did you attend? I live here and want to find an intensive conversational course. The grammar can come later. I appreciate any comments you can give me.

Thanks again

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eternalspring says on Oct 17, 2009, 07:12:

Look into Smart Training Society in Floresta (Cra. 15. No. 85-42 / Tel: 636-0904) -- Jamie Bonilla is the director.
Nicholas, who's a Paisa and their Spanish teacher, is terrific and he lived in NJ for many years so he's fluent in English as well. 27,000COP per hour for individual instruction.

Jim in MDE

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cstew47 says on Oct 17, 2009, 07:14:

Thanks Jim, I'll check it out.

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bickerss says on Oct 17, 2009, 07:14:

I checked out Nexus as it also has english classes for my GF. Seems very good; quite professional. For spanish - group classes were 10 k, single classes were 15 k. Nice setting with organised classrooms etc.

The other place is Yadira at the Blacksheep - she is a really good teacher with an awsome grasp of grammer. I think they also have another teacher there.

Investment Strategy - buying when others are crying!! Offloading when others are gloating!!!

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cstew47 says on Oct 17, 2009, 07:18:

Thanks Bicker. I'm glad to hear a positive review of Nexus. They seem to have a good program and the costs are the lowest among the schools I checked out. Blacksheep is a school?

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kenblanquito says on Oct 17, 2009, 07:21:

Started halfway through Intermediate and needed to finish at the beginning of Superior, whatever they may mean.
To say that I am fluent would be an overstatement but I get by pretty well and I am very fluent after some beer, haha!
My grammar improved a lot, as did my self-confidence; it is more a matter of working on the vocabulary, which one picks up by immersion on a daily basis. Grammar is important if one day you wish to speak well. Recognising irregular verbs in various forms so you do not lose the meaning of what is going on.
To start with, to get up to the level in which I had entered as I was lacking a few topics, I had a 2 hour private session followed by the 2 hour group session, 5 days per week which was hard. After a month, I was up to speed and just continued with the group. The group session was mixed, sometimes concentrating on grammar topics, other times more conversational and interactive-the mix suited me anyway!

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bickerss says on Oct 17, 2009, 07:25:

www.blacksheepmedellin.com

Investment Strategy - buying when others are crying!! Offloading when others are gloating!!!

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cstew47 says on Oct 17, 2009, 07:38:

Thanks Ken and Bickerss, you have been extremely helpful. I have contacted Blacksheep and Nexus and am waiting for a reply. Ken I assume the fluency-enhancing beer is Newcastle Brown. Maybe we can enjoy one together some day.

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theflatline says on Oct 17, 2009, 08:26:

I never took any formal spanish classes, other the ones I had in college in the States.

My grandmother did this.

1. Put post it notes on the entire house.
2. Made me write ten words out the dictionary a day(nouns) each word and definition was written ten times
3. Same with ten verbs conjugated and present past future.

I would make sure you are fairly fluent conversationally before you dive into the grammar.


Also, what I did was befriend a couple of girls a Unis Laguange department, who were only too happy for english/spanish exchange lessons.

Legaleez for Complete Morons - A book for gringos in Colombia for who think they understand the nature of the law in a country where they cannot speak the language.

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cstew47 says on Oct 17, 2009, 08:34:

Thanks Flat, I am reading some textbooks everyday and trying to expand my vocabulary. The grammar is tough and there are a lot more verb tenses to deal with. I, like you, am self-taught. I figured it's time to get serious. I do like the idea of finding some helpful chicas though.

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theflatline says on Oct 17, 2009, 08:46:

cstew47,


Language department students usually have a better understanding of their own language, due to the fact when learning another they have to make the comparisons.

Legaleez for Complete Morons - A book for gringos in Colombia for who think they understand the nature of the law in a country where they cannot speak the language.

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cstew47 says on Oct 17, 2009, 09:10:

That's very true. I also think it is easier to learn another language if you have a good technical knowledge of the grammar of your native tongue.

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kramer says on Oct 17, 2009, 19:07:

Diego at studyspanishmedellin.com was the best teacher I ever had. He was a UPB prof until earlier this year. But he is a lot more expensive than Nexus.

Have you thought about mixing up your lessons at different schools? Trying one for awhile and then another, getting the benefit of different styles and price structures.

I advanced a lot with Diego and he quickly picks up on weaknesses and spends a lot of time outside of the class customizing lessons for you. I would get so much material out of the class that 2 hours a day was plenty and I would have a lot of material from the class to study outside the classroom. So I felt I was getting excellent value. For me, personally, I wouldn't consider using anyone else again unless Diego was unavailable, but I was not on a strict budget.

I think many people take too many hours of classes instead of also focusing on memorization and practice outside of the classroom. Each time I have attended Spanish school, I have attended for fewer hours per day as I realized it was more economical and profitable to focus on self learning simultaneously. Although the best approach may depend on your particular learning style.

Kramer

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kenblanquito says on Oct 18, 2009, 08:43:

Diego was not my teacher but I got to know him quite well; very decent and interesting guy. I know people that were taught by him and he always received glowing references. He may be expensive but he has his overheads to think about too now that he is independent. Perhaps it may be worth contacting him/seeing him about doing a restricted number of classes as Kramer says and getting self-motivated outside of the classroom. My learning style was such that I did at least as many hours outside of class as I did within it. As in all subjects/levels, a lot is down to the individual and self-discipline and the will to learn are just as important as the input of the teacher: the teacher is more the guide/trouble-shooter, not there to wipe your bum! Too many people moan about their teachers but without making an effort yourself, you cannot expect to make serious progress.
cstew47, in terms of grammar and the various definitions involved, having studied a foreign language before does help, or being an advanced student in your own particular mother tongue. At school, I learnt more about what "perfect/imperfect/conditional/subjunctive/direct and indirect object and prepositional pronouns" for example as a result of having studied some French and German than from any lessons I had in my own tongue. However, if you do not understand those terminologies now, it becomes obvious as you progress in Spanish anyway. Why is everybody scared of grammar anyway? It is just the science of the language and in a language like Spanish, when certain things are not always clear, the grammar keeps to its rigid rules very well and once learnt, hard to forget when you are applying them.

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cstew47 says on Oct 23, 2009, 03:23:

Thanks guys, for all of your input. Yes Ken, I agree with your comments. I have studied other languages and consider myself a pretty good technician in English, my mother tongue. I also consider myself an advanced speaker of Spanish and want to take the final step forward to full fluency. I have decided to try Nexus for a week at 2 hours per day and five days per week. The difference in cost between them and the other options, including Diego, is significant. I will report back with my experience with Nexus. If I am not satisfied, I will try one of the more expensive options. As a side note, Diego, Blacksheep and Nexus all responded very promptly to my e-mail requests for information. I get the impression that they are all very responsive.

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davidslc46 says on Oct 23, 2009, 05:45:

Yadi at blacksheep hostel is so good I just keep going back.

David

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cstew47 says on Oct 23, 2009, 07:42:

Blacksheep was the next least expensive after Nexus. If I am disatisfied with Nexus, I will try Blacksheep. I appreciate the feedback and will return the favor after my first sessions next week at Nexus.

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