5 March 2018
“Institut de Francais – what an amazing experience !
I recently took a French language course at the Institut de Francais, located in Villefranche sur mer. Having done some research on language schools, I went in with high expectations, given all of the very positive reviews that I had seen. After 4 weeks with the school, I can honestly say that my already high expectations were by far exceeded!!
This was not only the most fulfilling French language educational experience I have had, it was overall one of the best experiences of my life – If your goal is to be immersed in French both in and out of school, while also experiencing everyday life on the Cote D’Azur, this is the place for you!
By the end of the program, armed with 4 weeks of intense french language teaching, every student was able to engage in more sophisticated french conversations – a huge difference from day 1, where there was a lot of hand gesturing used to communicate.
What makes this school amazing? For me it was clearly the teachers. Led by Frédéric, this is an amazing team (Julien, Bruno, Sylvie, Edith,and Stéphan), who have been teaching together at the school for many years. These teachers are engaged, dynamic, and motivating which is exactly what you need if you want to jump into the deep end.
The teachers and their teaching method help you gain confidence, and when you have confidence, the flood-gates open and French starts to pour out! The lesson topics are relevant and impactful. The teachers are adaptable and never miss an opportunity to teach something new. Although focused on oral communication, the amazing thing is that without realising it, you also learn and absorb grammar in a very natural way. It’s all about communication! And the teaching approach supports this – you won’t be taking heaps of notes or running through conjugation all day, which is refreshing. You learn with your ear!
The day goes by quickly and you make close friends whom you continue to talk in French with outside of class. However, the best part, aside from the great teachers, the program, the location and the other students, is that you learn while having fun.
Highly recommend it!”