Courses
Description
Class-size consists of no more than four people per classroom. The Turrialba and Dominical classrooms are held in the Hut House. La Fortuna will be inside a new complex. Regular classes have two 15 minutes breaks. Four hours of Medical classes are spread out over two days. During the high-season, class times and activities will shift to give equal opportunity to each individual. For example: classes are held on mornings or afternoons and will shift per person every week.
Schedule
7:30
AM |
8:00
AM |
1:00
PM |
1:30
PM |
3:30
PM |
6:30 PM | 8:00
PM |
|
Monday |
test for level |
Regular Classes Start |
Lunch |
Orientation |
Welcome drink |
||
Tuesday |
Classes Start |
Lunch |
Half day tour- see excursions |
Dance Class |
|||
Wednesday |
Classes Start |
Lunch |
Medical Class 2hours |
||||
Thursday |
Classes Start |
Lunch |
Medical Class 2 hours |
Medical Visits |
Cooking Class | ||
Friday |
Classes Start |
Lunch |
Medical visits (Optional) |
Facilities
San Jose Guest House, Turrialba, Dominica,l La Fortuna
Learning Process
When studying Spanish in this context and to gain a better understanding of the process, it helps to delve into the elements behind Language Immersion. The student must comprehend that learning another language takes time.
There are four parts to language study. These parts are composed of reading, writing, listening, and speaking. If you take advantage of the immersion environment, you'll make progress in all four areas. The schools emphasis is on communication and exposure to Latin culture.Traditional studies in the US or Canada sometimes emphasize rote memorization at the expense of spoken interaction.
Our language programs in Costa Rica take a different approach. Host families play a large and positive role in the immersion process. Students are constantly surrounded by native Spanish speakers thus forcing students to verbalize the language.
Schools also works with tours that are only held in Spanish.
For example, students are offered opportunities to visit snake farms, coffee plantations, archeological sites, rafting tours and the chance to be a "cowboy/vaquero" for a day in addition to many more exciting and engaging activities.
Students are constantly surrounded by the language in challenging situations and presented with a multitude of choices to practice their newfound language skills.
Testing
Testing is a simple process. When you arrive at school on Monday 1/2 hour before class starts, an exam will be given to determine the level of your Spanish.
Classes are geared towards various levels (beginner, intermediate, and advanced).
There are two tests.Oone for the regular classes held from 8:00 am to 12:30 pm and another for the Medical Program which it is usually held from 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm.
Credit
Credits for Classes
When you take classes in Costa Rica, you can apply to have the classes credited towards your schools degree/certification. Check with your school prior to signing with us to confirm that credits can be transferred.
This presents you with the opportunity to earn college credits.
The Western Association of Schools and Colleges "WASC" has accredited these units. These courses have graduate-level accreditation. They are primarily designed for students who have baccalaureate degrees and appropriate teaching credentials.
These semester hours of credit are used for professional advancement and to satisfy certain degree and credential requirements.
Obtaining advance approval from your institution is necessary, as each district, college, or state has its own policies regarding the types of credit it will accept. Over the past years, undergraduate students at the following Universities have received transfer credits for their time in one of our programs:
- University of Vermont at Burlington
- University of California at Santa Cruz
- University of Massachusetts
- University of Texas at Austin
- University of Colorado
- Lindenwood University
- Salisbury State University in Maryland
- University of South Carolina
- Florida State University
- University of Washington
- Stanford University
Teachers, graduate students or undergraduate students can receive 3, 6 or 9 semester credit hours for time spent in an language program total immersion course.
To receive 3 unit, a student must be in class for at least 48 hours and to receive 6 units they must be in class for a minimum of 96 hours. To receive the maximum number of units possible, 9, you must be in class for a minimum of 144 hours.
Students wishing to receive these credits will also have to pay a fee directly to the accrediting institute in the states. This is in addition to the program and lodging price paid to the school..
The charge is $60 a semester hour. For 3 credits the additional cost is $180, 6 creditsare $360 and 9 credits are for $540.
Teachers or students who are interested in receiving credits for their time in one of our Spanish immersion programs should contact us for more specific information on what is needed and how to go about getting these credit pre-approved.
Work Projects
The La Fortuna Campus has opened, and Spanish for Medical is closely following the progress of the school. We are working with past and current students to evaluate our program. So far the school has picked more host families to meet the amount of students attending.
Excursions
Turrialba
Half-Day Tour (held on Tuesdays at 1:30 PM)
- Snake Farm Tour
- Organic Farm Tour
- Pejibaye Rafting Tour
- Guayabo Archeological Site
- Full-Day Tour (held on Saturdays)
- Pacuare rafting
- Tour Horse-back riding
- Tour Mountain bike riding
Weekend Tours (Held all weekend)
This tour is optional and depends on how many students attend. Price is additional
- Over night at the Pacuare
- Overnight at Puerto Viejo
- Over night at Arenal
Dominical
Half-Day Tour (held on Tuesdays at 1:30 PM)
- Cowboy for a day
- Zip line Tour
- Horseback to waterfalls
- Butterfly garden
Full-Day Tour (held on Saturdays)
- Snorkeling Tour
- Diyamonte Falls Tour
- Corcovado National Park
- Manuel Antonio National Park
Weekend Tours
(Held all weekend. This tour is optional and depends on how many students attend. Price is additional)- Overnight at the Diyamonte Falls
- Overnight at Corcovado
La Fortuna
Half -Day Tour (held on Tuesdays at 1:30)
- Arenal Volcano
- Danaus Center Finca
- Colegio Técnico Profesiona
- l La Fortuna tour
- Hot Springs
Full -Day Tour (held on Saturdays)
Monteverde Cloud Forest
Venado Caverns (caving)
Kayak Penas River Canopy
Horseback riding tour