Every year, thousands and thousands of youngsters around the world pack their bags and swap their classrooms for others in different countries, all with the aim of learning new languages and enjoying an educational and personal experience that will help them prepare successfully for their future.
The 2,400 Spanish youngsters who do so every year (a figure that is growing all the time but is still some way below other European countries) return home absolutely convinced that they have made one of the best decisions of their lives.
It is a decision that involves studying a school year equivalent to Compulsory Secondary Education (ESO) or Bachillerato (A Level/High School Diploma) and which can be validated on their return. Students can choose from a wide range of destinations, among them mainland USA, Great Britain, Ireland, Canada, France, Switzerland, Germany and to places even further afield, such as Australia and Hawaii. Depending on their preferences and those of their families, they can study in a state or private school and live with a host family – where they are welcomed as just another member of the family – or at a boarding school.
In spending an academic year of nine or ten months outside Spain, youngsters enjoy an unforgettable experience that is enriching in a whole host of ways. Learning thanks to highly practical and motivating teaching methods, they speak, write and think in a second language in an entirely natural way. As well as also learning to make decisions, which helps boost their self-confidence, they discover other cultures and customs, and become more sociable and more tolerant to those around them. And they do all this while leading the life all youngsters do: going to school, studying, making new friends, going on trips, playing sports, taking part in cultural groups, etc.
In short, spending a school year abroad is an intense experience that they find personally enriching and extremely beneficial, as it helps them to acquire knowledge and develop skills and attributes that will stand them in very good stead when it comes to pursuing their careers.
Just add up how much it costs for students to achieve language proficiency in Spain, with years and years of private classes and studying at a language school or a bilingual school, and you will see that it is much cheaper for them to spend a school year abroad, at a state school in the USA, for example. In a single year they can attain their objective and become proficient in the language while also enjoying all the advantages that come with their educational and personal development.
