intensive spanish – Intensive Spanish Courses – A Comparison With Extensive Courses
Intensive Spanish Courses – A Comparison With Extensive Courses
A new Spanish student has to make the decision between taking an intensive Spanish course and an extensive Spanish course. This article will explain the characteristics and advantages of each to enable you to make the right choice for yourself.
Intensive Spanish Courses
There are no official definitions but intensive Spanish courses, or cursos intensivos de espaol, generally involve about 5 hours per week or more of language study. Language schools in Spain often offer intensive programs consisting of about 2 hours per day. Due to its intensity, the course will run for a shorter period than the extensive language course.
Extensive Spanish Courses
Extensive courses, or cursos extensivos de espaol, are less than 5 hours per week. Most often they involve one session per week of about 2 hours. Such a course must run for many weeks so that the total time spent learning Spanish over the entire period is enough to provide benefit. The name “extensive” is derived from the fact that the course is spread out over this longer, or extensive, period of time.
I Want to Learn Spanish – Which Course Is Best?
You can learn Spanish in an intensive or an extensive course, which is preferable depends on the individual’s needs. If you want to learn Spanish as quickly as possible and are not afraid to put in some muscle, then an intensive course is definitely the best option. Not only does one learn more quickly, but focus is easily maintained through the course and the student’s progress is more visible in a much shorter time, which creates motivation.
An extensive course is excellent for keeping a language alive. If you’re outside Spain or a Spanish-speaking country and wish to maintain your Spanish without necessarily making great strides forward, you would be well advised to take an extensive course. Inside Spain, an extensive course may be appropriate if your Spanish is at a good level and you are practicing Spanish daily at work or otherwise. In this case the weekly Spanish lesson serves as a way to ask questions, correct some mistakes and learn grammar rules of which you were not aware. Additionally an extensive course may be the only option if you simply don’t have the time available to dedicate to an intensive course.
Lastly an extensive course appears to be a cheaper option and may suit those with a lower budget. However, keep in mind that it’s only cheaper in the short term because in the end a student will progress according to the amount of hours they learn, and the same amount of lessons will cost the same amount of money irrespective of whether they are completed over a short period (intensive course) or a longer period (extensive course). Language schools in Spain do generally tend to recommend an intensive course for maximum Spanish learning speed and effictiveness.
So the choice is yours: if you’re able, take an intensive Spanish course for maximum benefit in minimum time. If the intensive course is not appropriate, then an extensive Spanish course will deliver benefit spread over a longer period of time.
By: Mark Booth
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Mark Booth studied at Abla Lenguas language school in Valencia, which offers and recommends intensive Spanish courses as the most effective for learning Spanish. They also offer extensive Spanish courses where they fit the student’s needs.
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