The ESL Insider eNewsletter
October 2011

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What to Expect from an English Immersion Program

This month, we are highlighting a few of our many outstanding English immersion students. These students have come to Denver to immerse themselves in learning English for a variety of professional and personal reasons. English immersion programs are one of the best ways to become proficient in the second language while developing an increased cultural awareness.

Immersion programs also energize the learner, inspire real motivation to learn the language, enable learners to overcome shyness in English and allow the learners to extend their contact with English.

I know, I know, you've heard that all 1,000 times before. And if you are considering an English Immersion Program, you are probably wondering what to expect. From my own personal experience, living in France and Argentina were the best things I ever could have done for improving my French and Spanish.

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Read My Lips: A Profile of One Very Special ESL Student at Bridge

Learning the English language is no easy task. It can be downright frustrating even. As a teacher, the comment I hear most from students is that listening is the most difficult part of learning English. Students tell me that even though speaking is obviously a challenge especially at the beginner level, they are still able to express certain ideas or ask simple questions and get their point across.

The problem, however, comes when the person they are talking to responds, especially when it is a native English speaker. The learner finds himself wide-eyed and dumbfounded looking at the person who just responded with a glazed-over look of confusion because, unlike English teachers who are accustomed to speaking slowly and modulating their words, most native English speakers speak, well, really, really fast, just like our foreign counterparts of any country. We cut our words short and blend them all together so that sometimes they just sound like one, big word.

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Meet Amer, a Student in the Academic English Program at Bridge English

Amer Alshaibi is a student in the Academic English Program at Bridge in Denver, CO, USA. He hails form the far-away land of Saudi Arabia and has been studying at Bridge for five months and will continue studying for the next seven months. I had the chance to interview Amer about his experiences here in Denver and at Bridge.

AB: Amer, tell me a little about yourself.

AA: I am 24 years old. I come from the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I grew up in a city called Makkah with my family. After high school, I went to university in the city of Jeddah where I studied regional planning. I studied at university for six years. After university I worked for about one year for a company called the Red Sea Company participating in a project called "local plans and details for the region of Hail". After that, I moved to Colorado and came to study at Bridge.

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Meet Ramiro Gallo, A Fourth Time Bridge English Immersion Student

Ramiro Gallo is a BridgeEnglish full-immersion student who came to Denver from "The Athens of South America" Bogota, Colombia. Ramiro's recent trip to Denver marked his fourth time as an immersion student at BridgeEnglish in Denver. In 1998, as a true beginner, Ramiro completed his first program at Bridge, focusing on basic grammar and the structure of the English language. With continued practice at home in Columbia, Ramiro returned in 2001, 2002, and again in 2011, demonstrating greater confidence and comfort with the language.

Today, Ramiro communicates at a high-intermediate level and remains very dedicated to refining his English skills. Ramiro believes that his overall experience has improved with each visit to Denver.

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