England, Ireland and Canada meet...

The last two days have been very interesting and enjoyable. As you may know, Camden College of English is a member of Tandem International, which is a group of language schools around the world that shares similar ideas. There are schools in Spain, Germany, France, Italy and Chile where you can learn the language of the country - and all the schools are independent and have a high quality.
This week, the English group met to discuss a million and one things. As owners of schools from Canada (Montreal and Toronto), Ireland (Dublin) and England (Totnes and London) we talked about teaching, courses, marketing and helping our students.
We are also working on a plan for a very special course where students can study in more than one of our schools.... more news about this to follow soon.

In the photo you can see (left to right): Yuriko from Point 3, Margie from Totnes School of English, Manjinder from Linguabiz, Kevin from Annalivia School of Languages and me (!) from Camden College of English.

Have a good weekend!

Stuart

Greenwich...

As Friday was a Bank Holiday and the school was closed, we took a group of students to Greenwich for the day.

The sun was shining and we started with an hour's cruise down the River Thames and then had a picnic in the park.

Greenwich is an interesting place because of GMT and the history of sea, space and time. There is so much to see here!

I have been taking students on trips for many years but this is the first time that Ben, my little boy, joined. You can just see him in this picture on the left.

It was also a special day because two old students, Gloria and Ricard from Barcelona, came with us. They were students at Camden College of English in 1998 (and I was their teacher) but this time they were here on holiday with their little son Marcel. So it was a great family occasion.

Regards,
Stuart

Some feedback from students...

On a Friday, students who are leaving complete a feedback form about their English course, teachers, accommodation etc etc...

I thought I would share a couple of comments we received today:

"Wonderful teachers.... well organised school, I liked it and I'd recommend it to other people. The way of teaching of Rebecca is extraordinary." D (Hungary)
"I really liked my course and my teachers and I'll come back soon." H (Ethiopia)
"I'm very pleased with everything - especially my teachers." E (Sweden)
"0ne-to-one was great. The greatest course I have had..." H (Japan)

Have a good weekend everyone!
Stuart

Chairs and exams

The school (the one we are going to leave soon) is getting full at the moment... with chairs! A number of different companies have sent us samples so that we can test them before deciding what to order for the new school. They're all comfortable but I want something that doesn't really look or feel like it belongs in a school. I will sit on them all tomorrow and then decide!

This evening I will be teaching the CPE (Cambridge Proficiency) class. It's good to spend time in the classroom otherwise all I do is administration in order to run the school. I'm probably at my happiest when I'm teaching...

Stuart

The new school - a good morning!

Lots of my time at the moment is spent planning the move to our new building. This morning I was choosing furniture... of course our students will need somewhere to sit. Two of the classrooms will only have sofas and beanbags so that they are a very relaxing place for conversation practice.

I think it will take 4 weeks to get everything organised and then we'll be ready.

Here's a photo of me and the front door...

A lovely day in London...

For a few minutes today I forgot about the world of teaching English, running a school teaching English, moving the school to a new building to continue teaching English....

I was in central London this morning for a meeting at the British Council offices and, as usual, I was early (I'm always early!). The sun was shining and I was standing in Trafalgar Square with my camera like a tourist...

Stuart

We're on the move!

Yes!!!!

Today (Friday) at 1100, I signed the contract to move the school to a new building. This is very exciting and I will post more news about it next week... including photos.

The building is very near the British Museum (a perfect location!) and will be a wonderful place to study.

Have a good weekend everyone.

Stuart

The Summer Solution

We have spent a long time trying to find a solution for our summer students...

They (maybe... you!!) usually come to London for 1 - 4 weeks and want to make the most of studying English and enjoying all the tourist and social attractions of this great city.

Some students come to class tired in the morning because of late nights so...

Our idea for summer 2007 is to have a mixed timetable with some morning and some afternoon lessons. This will give all our students the chance to study and visit museums, go clubbing and do everything they want.

Details are here...English courses in London summer 2007.

Of course, I'm always happy to hear your ideas...

Stuart

Innovation in English teaching

Last year, Camden College of English became the first school in the world to win the British Council's prize for innovation in English language teaching.

This year, I was a judge on the panel for the 2007 awards.

The results were announced last night (01 March), at a wonderful ceremony in London. Many of the most important people in the world of English teaching - academics, course book writers, educators - gathered at the Delfina gallery for a very enjoyable evening.

I would like to congratulate the winners on their success - you can read more about them here.

The British Council describe this as the "Oscars" of English teaching - maybe it's not as glamorous but it certainly means a lot to those who win!

If you want to try something different and innovative then you could join our prize winning course this summer. We only accept 12 students each week, so book early.

Stuart

Back in dear old England...

What a fantastic holiday!

Greta and I took Ben to Argentina and Uruguay to see his grandparents and we only checked emails from the school everyday! We still managed to have a good rest and enjoy the wonderful weather and food but... Camden College of English was still in our minds.

I want to give a big blog welcome (back) to Rob Tunnell, who is the new Director of Studies at the school. Rob was a teacher at the school for a few years before going travelling and studying more about English as a Foreign Language. We're very pleased to have him back with us at Camden.

At the moment we are all getting ready for the big move to our new building... this is very exciting and I hope to give you more news next week.

A little advertising... our very popular evening courses (General English, Cambridge exams, IELTS preparation, English for Work) are starting again in March and April. Places are very limited so book now!

And finally... congratulations to Chelsea on beating Arsenal in the Carling Cup Final. Come on you blues!!

Stuart

It's my turn!

As Principal of a language school in London, I meet students from all over the world every day. They come to England to take an English course and have a fantastic experience. Sometimes I forget how wonderful it is to be a tourist in another country... where everthing is new and interesting.

For the next two weeks I will be on holiday in Argentina and Uruguay... eating the best beef in the world and playing on the beach with Benjamin, my one-year old son.

I'll try not to think about everyone working in London!

See you soon.

Pub Evening...

We try to arrange lots of activities at Camden College of English... things which we believe have cultural importance. These include a monthly book club, a school newspaper, visits to important museums and galleries. Here are examples of social activities we had last year... click on all the links and you'll see some great photos.

Last Friday we had the most popular social activity... yes, a pub evening!

It might not be the British Museum but it is the British Friday Night!

Students have to learn the culture... you do not buy individual drinks but buy "a round". This means you pay for the drinks for a few friends and then one of them buys the next round etc etc.

It's not only grammar that you learn at Camden College of English.

British Council Accreditation

I remember our first inspection for accreditation in 1993...the process was not so professional and the standards were not so high.

The inspection is now every 4 years and covers everything!

I am pleased to say that we have passed our most recent British Council inspection, which took place in October. The report, which we have just received, shows that we meet the required standards but also have "points of excellence". These are the areas where we are better than the standard!

The categories in which we received points of excellence are:

• Structure, staffing and employee administration
• Academic management and administration
• Course design
• Classroom observation
• Leisure opportunities

This is great news and shows what we believe... this school is constantly improving and we are moving in the right direction.

A new year... a new promise...

Every new year we make "resolutions", which are promises to ourselves and are usually things that we think will make our lives better.

Typical resolutions are to give up smoking or to get fit. Well, I gave up smoking a few years ago and I don't think I'll ever get fit (even if I pay a fortune each year to the gym to be a member).

My promise for 2007 is to learn Spanish! For so many years I have been encouraging our students to learn English but now it is my turn.

I'm happy to take any advice from you about how to be a good language learner.

Goodbye....

It may seem strange that the first blog is called "Goodbye" but it's December and a lot of our students are about to finish their courses and return home to wherever they are from. Italians, French, Spanish, Germans, Swiss, Colombians, Brazilians, Chinese, Koreans, Japanese... for many years I have witnessed them saying goodbye - exchanging email addresses and taking photos. But how many of them really keep in touch? How many will visit each other in the years to come?

Well, the amazing thing is that many students see their time spent in London as one of their best"life-changing" experiences. Almost every week someone comes into the school looking nervous saying "I don't know if you remember me but I was here in 198...".

I don't remember everyone but in the 14 years I have been at this school there have been 100s of students whose faces, names and stories are part of the rich history of this small school.

So... the first blog is called "goodbye" but it's really "hello". So, if you are an old student of Camden College of English in London then post a message with your name, year at the school, teacher's name and list any students you remember.

Goodbye, hello and see you soon!