This academic year the Marbella Official Language School has only been able to offer places to 35 per cent of applicants. Of the 953 pre-enrolment forms received from residents all over the municipality, only 436 have been admitted. The school has 17 teachers who offer five languages in 42 groups. The most popular language is English (216 places), followed by German (70), French (66), Spanish for foreigners (55) and Arabic (29). The students are selected taking into account a number of factors: income, proximity of home to the school and the number of siblings already enrolled. However the most important factor is age, as 70 per cent of the places are reserved for the under 18s.
“This system means that the majority of youngsters use the school as if it was a private academy, where the classes complement their schoolwork”, points out Fernando García, the director, who adds that many of the students are attracted by the methodical teaching methods.
The main reason why more students cannot be admitted is the lack of physical space. The building is the old Santa Teresa school which is more than 40 years old. The director explained that the library has had to be closed to create space for new classrooms. For the same reason, the school has no staff room, no lecture theatre and is not adapted for use by the disabled.
The director went on to explain that every year reports are sent to the Education Department regarding the school’s deficiencies. Their aim is for money to be invested in providing a new location for the centre or an extension of the present one in order to offer subsidised language classes to more local people.
The Marbella school also takes in students from other towns in the Marbella area such as Coín, Benahavís and Ojén, as well as San Pedro Alcántara.
In the past the lack of space has meant that the number of groups has had to be reduced. Five years ago four English groups were cut and Spanish classes for foreigners have been reduced by half.
Department considers San Pedro school
The figures of applicants not admitted to the language school make it quite clear that the Marbella centre needs bigger premises and more teachers. José Jaén, the local councillor for Education and Culture, claims that the Junta de Andalucía is studying a proposal made in June to create a a new language school in San Pedro Alcántara, and to extend the existing building or find new premises.
“The demand to study languages at this centre is greater than in other Andalusian municipalities”, pointed out Jaén, who added that the service is saturated because there are not sufficient teachers or adequate space”.
Courtesy of Sur in English
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