Has anyone attended the Lucca Italian School in Lucca? I am considering staying in the town for a few weeks and taking some classes. I am curious if any RS devotees have had any dealings with the school, bad or good. The school website is full of endorsements, but I'd prefer to hear some unscreened opinions. Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions (perhaps a different school?)
Posted by
752 posts
Where are you in Italian language proficiency? What do you want to learn?
If you are a beginner, any school should be fine. The problem arises when you reach the US American apex of high literacy where you are proficient in grammar, writing, and reading, but lag behind in listening and speaking. If you think you will learn conversation at a school in Italy, they are Not set up to correct this imbalance.
Instead you will spend two hours going over grammar you already know, and two more hours watching students from other countries dominate the class in conversation.
If you can find a school that teaches conversation to a high literate, that would be a good experience.
Posted by
Atlanta, GA, USA
795 posts
I do agree that any Italian school should be fine if you are a beginner.....I took 2 weeks at a school in my town at the beginning of each of my years, and they were ALL in Italian.....it actually is very easy to pick up (if you have learned a language before it will make it easier).......but I actually disagree about the reading, writing, and grammar being the only things that Americans learn over there, I actually knew quite a bit of Italian when I went back the second year, but I tested into the class just the next level up from the 2 weeks I took before.....and I was bored....so I can barely compose a paragraph in Italian completely correct if I was writing, but I can make myself understood VERY easily, using the knowledge I picked up from talking to people on top of the base that I learned the 2 weeks in class...