El jueves 12 de marzo tuvo lugar en la Sala de Recursos de la EOIP, el acto de entrega de las becas que la EOIP, en colaboración con la fundación CAN, otorga a los 10 mejores proyectos presentados por el alumnado en los diferentes idiomas. Este año los alumnos, cuyos trabajos han obtenido las más altas puntuaciones, han sido:

ANTÓN REMÍREZ, Mª Carmen
SANZ ELIZALDE, Francisco
LÓPEZ TAULES, Juan Carlos
IZA LÓPEZ, Leire
ASENJO LOZANO, Margarita
IRIBARREN MORRÁS, Irantzu
MARTÍN LARUMBE, Mireya
ARRAIZA OTAZU, Raquel
GURUCETA AIZPURÚA, Oihane
DOMÍNGUEZ BERGES, Mª Rosa

Yolanda López, profesora de francés y vicedirector EOIP, impartió una conferencia la conferencia: "El viajero lingüístico".

Todo el mundo está de acuerdo en afirmar que los viajes al extranjero son un paso obligado para quienes aspiren a hablar y entender a los nativos. Sin embargo, para que estos viajes sean rentables hay que elegir el mejor momento, prepararse a fondo para sacar el mayor partido a nuestro esfuerzo, energía y también dinero. Luego queda elegir el destino y la fórmula. Posibilidades no faltan. La charla dirigida a todo el alumnado de la escuela contó con un público convencido. Muchos de ellos partirán este verano y seguro sabrán aprovechar muy bien el dinero de sus becas.

Las becas están financiadas por la Fundación Caja Navarra y constituyen el proyecto nº10.667 del programa: "tú eliges, tú decides".

When I got the EOIP-IHEO grant to learn English firstly I thought in travel to Wales. The project that I made was in order to go to the North of Wales. However, I changed my destiny. I chose an academy in London because there were low cost flights to London. In addition to the cheap flight, London is a fascinating city where the cosmopolitan atmosphere is tangible. I have been during two weeks on September. I attended a course of twenty five hours per week. The academy was located on Le Green.
Lee Green is a suburb located in south-east London, near Blackheath, Lewisham and Greenwich. Blackheath is an expensive market area of cafes and restaurants. Greenwich is where the world's time is set. Greenwich has a lovely park. Lee Green is half an hour from Central London by train. It has the friendly feeling of a small neighbourhood. So I could get the advantages of a small town and an accommodation that was close to the school. One day I met an artist. She works as a sculptor and painter. She used to make performances and happenings during the seventies. She invited me to see her house and her workshop. It was amazing. It was decorated with a lot of pictures and sculptures, such as one of Bob Dylan. There is a public sculpture from her near the Thames River. Most of Londoners were polite. Although their accent was not always easy to understand I tried to improve my understanding of different accents.

The academy and the residence were simple and comfortable. The residence was situated at the back of the academy building. There was a supermarket really close to the residence.
I had a TV and a private bathroom in the residence and I shared the communal kitchen with more students. There were Swiss people. It was nice to practice English with them.

In the academy there were people from a lot of countries. Most of them were from Switzerland, South Korea and Saudi Arabia. In addition to those nationalities, there were Colombian, Brazilian, Argentinian, Italian, Turkish, Japanese and Spanish people. Fortunately there were not Spanish people in my classroom to practice English as much as possible.

In the academy there was a library. The library had a range of resources, including grammar reference books, grammar worksheets and books which you could borrow. The materials in the library were colour coded by level such as in EOIP-IHEO library. There were three additional computers for internet and e-mail. Apart from the classrooms there was a dinning room to have lunch bringing your food. There were also two ping-pong tables to play and join.The teacher asked to us for writing and listening test the first day. He gave us a list of language points which we could practice. It included recommendations for materials to help ourselves. Furthermore they recommended to you a good way to study and prepare exams, such as IELTS...

In the classroom there were about ten students. I started the classes on the morning and finished on the afternoon except two days that I finished on the evening. I used to have a little lunch in a restaurant near the academy with some classmates. The first week I had two teachers. The first teacher taught grammar and listening, language laboratory and speaking-communication activity. The second teacher focused on oral classes. We made different exercises in group. For example, one exercise was reading some real news in order to discuss and debate it. Before the discussing the teacher introduced to us some topics and issues related with the news.

One Friday we played a game. We had to work on mixed groups with other levels. We were encouraged to ask people some funny questions about the academy’s surroundings. It was a simple game that helped us to break with the routine order of lessons and to cooperate meeting new people. This kind of informal learning made us realized that learning also takes place out of school as well as the powerful social impact of groups, social discussion and cooperation.The second week I had two new teachers that continue as well as they focus and emphasize in some aspects like pronunciation. At the end of my course the teacher measured my level with a written test. Then I received a certificate, which stated my level.
The academy social programme gives opportunities to enjoy ourselves. However I saw the city by myself. I had been once before. I changed the way I had travelled some years ago. The first time I had enjoyed a lot as a tourist with some friends. This time I had been as a student and traveller. People usually advice that speaking English is not only about using proper grammar but to use English effectively you need to understand the culture in which it is spoken. I tried to be more open to the English culture and to take personal and personal experiences. For example I usually walked by the Thames River and sat down on the Greenwich Park. Furthermore, I went to some pubs, bookshops and street markets. There are wonderful parks, multicultural restaurants, alternative markets and incredible cultural events in London.

I have realized that this experience has been such a help to me. I have opened my mind and have learned how to interact with people from different cultures around the world. I usually do not like to give advice about anything. However, this time I would like to recommend you to go abroad. Go to an Anglo-Saxon country and you will be able to speak English all day long. There were a lot of situations and ideas that certainly gives you food for though. Your head will be full of ideas and opinions that you would want to speak them out, to share them with more students and native people. There will be great challenges ahead of you and you will know to get along with life in a different country. There are also disadvantages, well known from a different culture and country, such as the expensive public transport, the food and mealtimes, etc.

In conclusion, London is a city to be visited and a city where you can learn English. Finally I would like to thanks to some people: Sue Harris; Arantxa and María from Best Idiomas-Hizkuntzak Academy; and EOIP-IHEO for the effort of achieving grants.

Taking advantagje of a grant Marta Gonzalez, a student from the C1 module, group A, went on an enriching journey to discover Malta. Here are her impressions…

My intention of going to Malta was mainly educational but when I arrived there it turned out to be so much more. The first day at school I was asked to choose a topic for my daily practice. I had no doubts: my topic would be Malta itself.

Malta gives off a good vibe before you have actually stepped on Maltese grounds. While the plane approaches Luqa airport you can’t take your eyes off the breathtaking view of the Mediterranean sea lit up by the sun.

Malta is such a small country – being the smallest member of the European Union since 2004 – but still bears so many treasures. Having for centuries been at the heart of the Mediterranean´s power struggles, the five islands that constitute the Maltese archipelago still reflect their turbulent history nowadays. With its 27 km long and 14 km wide surface area, the island of Malta is the largest and hosts the country´s capital city, Valletta. Gozo is the second largest in size and is also known as the Island of Calypso, the land depicted in Greek mythology where Ulysses was held prisoner for seven years. The smallest of the main three Maltese islands, Comino, remains an uninhabited territory surrounded by turquoise waters that automatically bring to the visitor memories of far-flung paradises. The islets of Cominotto and Filfla complete the Maltese archipelago.

The Maltese islands were, as early as 5000 BC, the home of a Neolithic society. Over the centuries, the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Arabs and, more recently, the French and the British amongst others, came to the islands in pursuit of greater power, bringing their customs along with them. However, it is impossible when studying Malta´s history not to mention the knights of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, who ruled the country for almost 3 centuries. Their legacy can be found everywhere. From the omnipresent eight-pointed Maltese cross to the very name of the country’s capital city, that took its title from Grand Master Jean Parisot de la Valette. The knights left their imprint in the form of auberges, fortresses or temples of woship such as St. John´s Co-Cathedral, where one can admire two of Caravaggio’s most well known masterpieces, St. Jerome and The Beheading of St.John. In fact, the great painter was a knight of the Order himself, even if for a very short period of time.
Visiting some places in Malta makes you feel as if you were in another age. It is no wonder that Malta was chosen as the location for a number of films set in ancient times such as Gladiator, Troy and Agora.

When you are walking around the silent labyrinthine streets of Medina and you hear the clunking horse hooves, you can almost imagine bumping into a knight lurking in the shadowy corner, instead of one of the many horse-drawn carriages that await the tourists. Something similar happens in the little island of Comino, whose natural beauty has been preserved for centuries. Every single step that the visitor takes when following one of its winding paths takes him on a journey to the past. Upon reaching the solitary tower of Santa Marija, one gets the feeling that a pirate galleon in the horizon would not look out of place.

But Malta is also a land of contrasts. From the silence of the little traditional villages or the ancient temples –some of the oldest structures on Earth– to the non-stop partying in Paceville, luxurious cars share the sometimes-bumpy roads with old yellow buses depicting religious imagery and driven by drivers in shorts.

Malta´s glowing colours exceed everyone’s expectations. The bluest sky compliments the intense sea colour until they merge on the horizon. The mild climate allows the outdoors to be the stage upon which Maltese heritage plays out, such as the colourful fiesta, for which villages are decorated with flags and festoons.

In spite of the number of civilizations that have left their imprint on Maltese soil, the people have managed to retain a strong flavour of their own. Nowadays, around 400.000 people live in Malta, many of whom are able to speak Maltese and English, the two official languages of the country. Malta is therefore an exceptional destination for all those looking to practice and improve their English whilst enjoying both the cultural and entertainment aspects that these islands have to offer.

And as the plane soars into the sky and the glistening Mediterranean waters bid their farewell, the visitor’s mind inevitably drifts back to the golden glow of the limestone in the scorching Maltese sun. One thing is certain: Malta, it was nice to meet you.

Texto: Paula Carralero Bierzynska

La ville lumière

Dès que je suis arrivée à Paris, j´ai bien compris qu´il s´agissait de la ville dont j´avais toujours rêvé. A la gare Montparnasse, la foule m´a sorti à l´extérieur où des bâtiments anciens se mélangeaient avec une foule pressée d’arriver au métro.
Quand j´ai quitté Paris, j´ai bien compris qu´il s´agit d´une ville à de nombreux visages, dont le stéréotype est le plus connu. Plus on connaît la ville lumière, plus on trouve de le côté sombre qui se cache à l’ intérieur. On se promène dans les rues en regardant, d´un côté, les touristes issus de tous les coins du monde, les gens du quartier, les immigrés, les SDF qui habitent dans des banes au bord de la Seine…
Le Paris inouï se montre lorsque on va, par exemple, prendre un café au Marais, voir un film au cinéma a la Place de l´Italie, prendre un croissant aux noisettes dans une petite boulangerie à Pasteur ou écouter un concert au bord de la Seine…
On découvre le Paris quotidien au métro, lorsque on à regarde ces gens pressés, qui, sans parler, sans se regarder, font le même trajet tous les jours ensemble.
Au foyer des étudiants Fiap- Monet où j´ai habité pendant un mois, il n´y avait pas seulement des étudiants étrangers, espagnols en majorité, mais aussi des touristes étrangers ou français qui venaient là pour passer quelques jours. Cette variété était enrichissante, en cours, j’ai trouvé par exemple non seulement des étudiants étrangers, mais, par exemple, des policiers issus des vieilles colonies françaises comme le Liban ou l´Algérie qui y venaient avec un programme d´échange international.
Pour apprendre une langue, il faut rencontrer les gens qui la parlent mais aussi prendre son temps, s´arrêter pour apprécier le charme que Paris jette sur nous.

When I got the grant the first place that came to my mind was Ireland. I was there for one month when I was seventeen years old with an Irish family and I had such a good memories that I wanted to go back again. Many people had talked to me about Galway, a very beautiful place near the beach where a lot of people all around the world spend their time studying English. So I decided to go there.

Galway is a town located on the west coast of Ireland. It’s the fifth largest city in Ireland and it has a population of around 70 000 habitants. Galway is known as the Ireland’s cultural heart because of their numerous events, festivals and celebrations. Actually while I was staying in Galway it took place the Galway International Oyster Festival.
When I arrived to the school the first thing I did was a level test. We had a meeting f with the school’s headmaster and learned all that we need to know about Galway Language Centre and living in Galway. They showed us where to find the computer room, how to borrow a book from the library, Wi-Fi coffe shops and other useful places.
The timetable of my course was from 9.00am to 12.30am. Monday to Friday.
We were seven students in class. It was a very multicultural class because there were people from Korea, Switcherland, Peru, Brazil, Poland and Italy and luckily I was the only Spanish which was the best opportunity to avoid speaking Spanish.

The course consisted in some grammar, reading , listening, writing, speaking practice, vocabulary building, idioms and current usage, and aspects of Irish History and culture. For example we used to listen to some popular Irish songs, learning their meaning and the stories of the songs and then we could listen the same songs in the pubs where the people usually sing those songs. "The fields of Athenry" is an example of that which is an Irish folk ballad about a fictional man named Michael from near Athenry in County Galway who had been sentenced to transportation to Australia, for stealing food for his starving family.

Every Monday there was a walk around the city of Galway, especially for new students to know where all the important places were and to know a little bit of the history of the city. Every Tuesday we had the opportunity to try to learn how to dance traditional Irish dancing by watching others dancing and joining in. Although it was really difficult because it was something new we had a lot of fun and learned a few new dance steps.

Every Wednesday in the Cottage Bar we could enjoy an evening of Celtic Tales told by some storytellers who were famous in Galway. On Thursday we met in the evening with some of the teachers and our classmates to go for a night of traditional Irish music. All Friday evenings we went to see some cultural activities like performances, exhibitions, demonstrations, workshops…

And finally as around Galway there are so beautiful places where you can go sightseeing and hiking, the school organised some trips to discover the surroundings of Galway in the weekends: Cliffs of Moher, Connemara, Kylemore abbey, the Aran islands, …

Other activities organised by the school were the Homework Club on Tuesday where you could ask questions or any doubts to your teacher. Every Friday afternoon after the lesson we met with all the students in the school and watched a film in original version.
Apart of the lessons I had in the morning I attended in the afternon English free lessons that were taught by students who were learning how to teach and wanted to become English teachers.

In general my experience in Galway was quite good. The school is very well organised, they try to make the students feel very comfortable. They organise a lot of activities in which you can involve in and so meeting people is easier so you can speak and practice your English. They also offer the possibility of knowing the city of Galway and the surroundings. Another thing that I liked a lot was that we had some pronunciation lessons what I think is one of the most important skill that I have to improve because generally Spanish people speak with a very bad pronunciation.

There was a very good atmosphere between all the students and we used to meet every evening with the students of all levels in the school and of all nationalities.

I think the highest levels of the school which are upper-intermediate and advance weren’t as high as they should be. The problem of the school is that they don’t have more levels and there is no difference between the upper and the advance level. All depends on the teacher you have and how he or she organise the class. In my class there wasn’t time to speak because the teacher was always speaking so we didn’t practice a lot.
Finally although I think I did my best in such a very short time, two weeks are very few time, so definitely I think I will go back to Ireland or another English
speaking country to go on improving my English.