Italian Language & Photography Workshop

I enjoyed my time at Koine school & consider that my Italian improved a great deal. As I had, had a break from studying at home, it provided an ideal opportunity to revise and improve my language skill. I was placed in a small class where there was a great deal of opportunity to speak with confidence. liked the fact that the emphasis was on conversational Italian.
I did find that the 8.30am start with oral assessment on the first day a bit off putting as I had spent the whole day before travelling and was very tired and a bit dis-orientated. Also it would have been more helpful to have had the tour of Lucca on the first afternoon rather than the second, so as to familiarise myself with the area and to be introduced to a few more students.
The teacher I was placed with was patient, organised, fun and very importantly encouraging. Due to my improved level of confidence I have joined an Italian class at the Continuing Education o& the university at home. I thought I would strike while the iron was hot!
My accomodation in Lucca was excelllent, convenient for the school and my host’s cooking provided an opportunity to taste regional cuisine which I very much enjoyed. My host encouraged communication through the medium of Italian at all times.
I am hoping to return to Lucca next year and stay with the same host but this time for longer than a week. I guess that speaks volumes.

Beautiful Lucca, nice teachers and nice group. However, the level of the group was bit too high for me and it made attending little difficult. Hard to contribute to the discussion if you can hardly understand the conversation. And, the lower class would have been again too easy.
Couldn’t attend to the activities much, would have liked to though, but not much available.
And stayed in the hotel.

My tutors, Lorenzo and Ciara, were very good. Though, I started with Lorenzo and at the end of the first week I was reassigned to Ciara without any notice or say. I noticed that Lorenzo was assigned to a small class (2-4 students) in the same time slot as my tutorial. It seemed odd to me. Luckily, Ciara was very good as well. Stefano was an excellent organizer and leader of student activities.

After 3 minute conversation I was placed at level A1 with an other student. At home I am studying at level B1. It was quite annoying to repeat things I already could. It was boring. On Friday I told the teacher that I didn't want go on with this course, but he was only locus tenens so he couldn't decide. When I came on Monday secretary told me that I was supposed to continue at level A1, but I didn't want to do that. There was no course at level A2 because of so few students. Then the headteacher took over and after a short discussion he said I could try in group at B1 level. They had already studied one week together and they were already a composite group and they had told me they were a sufficient group, so I didn't want to disturb their group community. After that I hadn't anything to do at that school and went home after one weeks studies. It's pity that the school can't have courses at different levels. Fortunately I am from Europe, so it was not so long way home. Facilities are quite poor in these old Italian schools.

I spent 1 weeks at Koine College. I realised once I was in the Class that I really should have had a Basic Knowledge of Italian as I was a complete beginner with no knowledge of Italian, however, I explained this to Isabella who was my Tutor she was really understanding of my situation and really helpful. I certainly would recommend Isabella as a Tutor. Very helpful and pleasant.

So Koine College itself I'd say an excellent place to study Italian (if one had a Basic Knowledge) my problem. I met many students from different countries who having been coming back for many year's .

In three weeks, I gained more confidence in speaking Italian. That was my main goal. Although I have no idea what level I ended up at, it was certainly educational. The teachers were friendly and experienced. However, I did miss a certain structure in the learning program. The blackboard was used a lot in the first week, but less so in weeks 2 and 3. The group size was good in all weeks, but the difference in level was most noticeable in week 3. The teaching materials could be better; I would have liked to have had a textbook and homework for extra practice. I had expected more from the cultural program.
The school was a 5-minute walk away for me, and everything was within easy reach. I had a wonderful time in Lucca, and my half-board accommodation was great. It made my stay familiar and comfortable. It was an unforgettable experience, and I thoroughly enjoyed the country, the language, and the people.

I enjoyed the experience of being in Lucca while learning Italian with other like minded students whom just wanted to become more fluent in Italian. The teacher I had, Lorenzo, was exceptional. He was personable, friendly, could answer any question you asked of him and never made anybody feel uncomfortable if they were having difficulties speaking. I really enjoyed him as a teacher and would highly recommend him. The location was perfect just within the walls and close to coffee shops and restaurants. The facilities were adequate. I cannot comment on the activities because I did not attend them because my wife was also with me in Lucca but not attending the school. We rented an apartment in Lucca on our own which was reasonable and a 10 minute walk to the school.

I enjoyed my week in Lucca. The school was central and easy to get to. lots of nice cafes near by. The class size was small and everyone was friendly. the classrooms were fine, plenty of room if a bit functional.
The teaching was good, but for me I think I was in too advanced a class. there seemed only a beginners and an intermediate and I was somewhere just below intermediate. so I did struggle a little. It was all conversational which was great to just get me speaking. there wasn't enough grammar and sometimes I just needed some explanation in English to help me progress with the task. I think I spent too much time trying to understand the task rather than doing it and a little help in English would have meant I could get a clearer understanding.

School is well organized and is situated in beautiful Lucca. The teachers are professional and very sympathetic. My Italian language has really improved. Hope to return one day!

High level teaching appropriate to each language level. Grammar language and cultural training in good balance.
The private lessons I had for two hours every day were a high light for me.
The teaching facilitated very fast progress in language learning.

The training location was a 10-minute walk from my accommodation (perfect). Lorenzo had put together a new, great and challenging program every day. He led and facilitated the lessons excellently. The training room was very echoey and it was difficult to communicate with each other at times. My accommodation was good. It was a pity that the room was small. Unfortunately, it was always dark in the house because the shutters were closed.

Classes were not to big, we always had enough time and opportunities to speak. All teachers are very good qualified. The school is in a old house; all the houses within the wall in Lucca are old. The facilities are functional but not modern. The activities in august were ok and useful to get to know Lucca better but also to get to know other students and to practice italian. I was very lucky with my accommodation, not far away from school and a wonderful host.

I liked the ambience at the school and the professionalism and friendliness of the teachers.

Lorenzo, the teacher, made the experience of learning fun and challenging. Very knowledgeable about language learning, skilled in English and other languages to help us foreign students along the road to understanding and speaking. Wish I could have stayed longer than this week.

The staff was very helpful. Facilities were airy and adequate for # of people. We felt taken care of. Nice historical lecture/excursions by staff. Lucca an interesting city with much to see and do.
Great students, good food and gelato.

July heat was a challenge; housing generally lacked good air circulation.

I loved being in Lucca for 2 weeks. Obviously the Koine Center was a major portion of this.

I enjoyed my classmates and the school location.
What I would have liked is an introduction to the other students on the first day. I wasn't introduced to the staff or the students. Yes, I'm an adult and did what I could to learn names and countries of origin while in the room the first day. The second week I went right to my classroom and did not meet the rest of the students.
Staff was generally friendly but again there were no introductions. Again - yes, I'm adult and maybe this is the Italian way and if it is, I apologize for my lack of cultural knowledge. It would have been nice to meet other students.

The first day of the second week there was an introduction to Lucca as students were taken through the city and shown buses, trains, etc. I learned of this on that day and couldn't participate. It would have been nice to have had the same opportunity the first week I was there.

I paid for the full day of classes for 2 weeks yet because there were only 2 of us in the first week's class we stopped at 11. That's about 10 hours where I did not have instruction. I enjoyed my time with Karen as we made the most of it but I think this is a big shortcoming. The first few days of class for the first week had different instructors and no set curriculum as it seemed they were trying to find instructors for the class.

The second week during class was much better as we went from 9 - 1 rather than to 11 so there was much for teaching and learning.

I wish I had been able to participate in the events for the 2nd week and would have arranged my schedule if I had known ahead of time rather than on Monday.

This no doubt sounds negative and maybe my expectations were too high but I was ready to be fully engaged so I was disappointed. At the same time I enjoyed my time in Lucca and would have to ask more questions if I were to return.

Also - I'm wondering whether I paid for round trip travel between Pisa airport and Lucca. If I did then I would like to have the return trip refunded.

My housing was great - Loved Francesco and his family. I had recent knee surgery so it was a surprise to find 64 steps to the 4th floor but I got stronger as the weeks went on. I participated in Cooking with Momma and Francesco was an enjoyable and patient instructor.

I hope this helps. - sorry for being so late in responding - the end of the class was not the end of my travel and I'm just now able to get the time to sit and write.

Carol

Unterricht: zunächst etwas enttäuschen, da ich die einzige Anfängerin war und somit keine Gruppe und keinen Kontakt zu den anderen Schülern hatte (da auch meine Unterrichtszeiten anders waren). In der zweiten Wochen waren wir zu zweit, das war dann echt prima.

Die beiden Nachmittagsveranstaltungen (Stadtrundgang in der 1. und 2. Woche, Besuch im Nationalmuseum, Vortrag über Puccini) waren etwas enttäuschend, zum einen, weil alles auf italienisch stattfand und zum anderen wenig abwechslungsreich war. Ich hätte mir etwas mehr Alltag (kochen oder Olivenölverkostung, Ausflüge, ...) gewünscht.

Die Unterbringung in einer Gastfamilien mitten in der Città war ganz hervorragend, herzliche Menschen in toller Umgebung. Kleines Problem zu Beginn: Die Gastgeberin spricht kein Englisch, aber nach einigen Tagen konnten wir uns doch verständigen. Ich habe mich dort trotzdem vom ersten Moment an wohl gefühlt.

J'ai bien apprécié le professeur, très patient et bon pédagogue.
Bien apprécié le nombre de personnes dans le cours (3), donne plus d'échange et beaucoup plus d'apprentissage de la langue étudiée.
Je souhaite vraiment y revenir l'an prochain, pour plus longtemps cette fois!
Concernant les activités d'après-midi (une activité a été offerte deux fois dans la semaine), j'ai aussi bien apprécié!
J'en aurais pris d'autres!

Merci beaucoup!

This was my fourth visit to Koine in Lucca so I already new what to expect and I wasn’t disappointed. I was in a class at B1-level and I think it was good that we got to talk quite a lot. At the same time we also learned some grammar. I had the teacher Isabella and was pleased about her way to teach. I will return again!

Housing was very nice, staying in a home with an Italian family was nice and very good for learning Italian
School, nice location in the city center, very good teachers, as well Isabelle and Nadyah.
Activities, especially cooking were very nice and good for learning Italian

Thank you for the opportunity to provide feedback.

Location
Lucca is such a beautiful place, so the location of the school is ideal. For someone travelling in-and-out on a daily basis by
train, the school was easily accessible from the train station.

Staff
The staff are friendly and helpful, and it was a pleasure to meet all of them. As residents of Lucca, their knowledge of the city
and all it has to offer is excellent!

Facilities
I only availed of classes offered by the school and did not make use of housing offered.

Activities
I thoroughly enjoyed the excursions that were offered to explore Lucca and learn about the culture of the city, even though I
could not join all of them.
I suggest offering the afternoon excursions earlier in the day rather than at the end of the day. For a non-resident of Lucca,
travelling in-and-out it meant spending most of the day walking around in the city. Without a "home-base" to return to in the
city, the days were quite long and exhausting. I understand that the majority of students either reside in Lucca or availed of
the housing offer however there was no provision made for non-resident students.

Classes
Although I am currently residing in Italy for a while, I am originally from South Africa, and Italian is not my native language.

I understand, and fully agree that the best way to learn a language, is to speak it. This is quite difficult though if one lacks the
vocabulary and the grammatical knowledge.

There was no indication that grammar will not be covered in the class, and I (erroneously, in the end) assumed that the
lessons throughout the day would include some grammar learning.

This was not the case, and combined with the fact that the class had students with different levels of knowledge of the
Italian language, (some students were attending a second or third week of classes, or had been attending classes for
longer), it was sometimes difficult, not just for me but also for other new students, to follow the conversation(s).

In-class activities were mostly group-based (which I actually enjoyed as far as I could understand everything) to enable
conversation however it was not possible to determine how correct the "answers" were, because it was only conversation -
based. There was no way of knowing (especially with written activities) whether we were on-track with the answers provided.
Some group members were more comfortable with conversations and had a better ability to express themselves, which
means not everyone was learning at the same level. and/or pace.

I for one, struggled to express myself and many times the nuance(s) of what I was trying to say were lost as a result of that.

My suggestions therefore would be to:

* Indicate very clearly when advertising the classes, that knowledge of Italian grammar and vocabulary are a pre-requisite
* Ensure that all students are at the same level (of knowledge and ability) in the same class
* Conduct an online interview prior to student(s) arriving to ensure that students are placed in the correct level of class
without having to combine different levels in one class because everyone already arrived
* Provide some form of feedback, in the form of a memorandum/summary and of possible and correct
answers to activities/questions, for reflection and reiteration of learning
* Provide an activity book for students to complete activities and revise the day's learning

. It is difficult for me to comment on the school facilities, as I am not sure exactly what that entails.

If the pre-requisites and student expectations were clearly stated upfront, students could benefit more from attending the
classes. That way learning will be more effective, and the overall experience will be better.

I would not have enrolled for the class had I known exactly what it would entail, because I know that my language skills and
conversational abilities are not at the level that was expected in the class.

Creating a safe learning space for students is integral to the learning process. Expecting a learner to perform at a level they
are not fully capable of is detrimental to their learning process. I stayed for the full course because I really wanted to learn as
much as I can, and because I had already paid for the course.

I (tried) shared my experience in the class and tried to explain to Isabella exactly where I was coming from however,
again, the nuance of that conversation was totally lost, as I did not have the ability to express myself.


As a student, my needs and expectations were not met, and as such, left me disappointed.

Location is amazing. Lucca is a one of a kind place Just big enough to get a little lost but small enough to feel comfortable in just a couple of days. Other students in my class were great and I loved meeting people from alll over the world that love Italian like I do.

We had a very nice group, 5-6 persons from all over the world. Teaching focused on speaking which was important to me. The most important grammar issues were covered, but not too much. The teachers were experienced and almost all spoke Italian clearly.

The location of the school was perfect, near the wall in the old historical city. The toilet facilities of the school were small and old-fashioned.

The cultural activities as well as the lectures organized by the school in the afternoon were interesting. I participated in all of them. I liked the best the walking in the old city of Lucca and the excursion in Pisa. The guidance of the school teacher in both places was excellent.

Koine center organized my accommodation in Lucca. I had a room in a family. Otherwise I was satisfied with the accommodation, but during the first week the room was extremely cold. The heating device was not working properly? The nights were very cold.

La signora was very friendly and helpful and the food, breakfast and supper, was good. The living was at a suitable distance from the school, 20 minutes on foot.

I had a wonderful time learning at Koinè Center. Located within the walls of Lucca, it was a perfect location to be immersed in Italian language and culture. My teacher was funny, engaging, and caring with her students.. She was a wonderful conversation facilitator and ensured everyone's interests were covered by covering a lot of topics: music, Italian history, fashion, politics - in addition to Italian, I learned so much! I enjoyed the afternoon lectures and walking tour of the historic downtown.

I had taken Italian over ten years ago in college - so was a bit rusty. While not a "true beginner" because of this foundation, I found the freer practice method of the teaching a bit challenging at times. If you have a basic foundation of the language, this course is great to be able to use the language with an experienced instructor there to help fill in gaps in your knowledge and answer questions. If you're not confident speaking Italian - perhaps some focused self-study would be beneficial before starting the course. They do offer a true beginner's option.. which may have been helpful for me. Regardless, my understanding of the language and confidence in using it certainly grew after my time at Koinè!

Kleine Klasse, viel reden, kompetente Lehrerin,

The small school is in an excellent location within the walls of Lucca and near the train station. Given it is small size the staff and teachers are able to be very flexible in adding private classes and accommodating schedule changes when possible. For my advanced beginner level the teachers had a wonderful approach of favoring conversation among the students, coupled with grammar when needed.

Class size depends on who is there at the time. My class was only 3 students including myself.

My spoken Italian felt like a pea under an enormous number of duvets. I am only an elementary level and could hardly express myself, but after one week I was ever so surprised how much the teacher's encouragement and structured lessons allowed for the pea to shoot up so beautifully. At the end of the week I was able to have meaningful conversations. The teachers are fantastic - so dedicated, passionate, professional, knowledgeable and can answer the most tricky questions. They know how to adjust their language so that you understand and learn so quickly.

I only wish the classes were longer ;)) but the afternoon activities make up for the craving. It is as if more learning happens without you even realising.

Lucca is the most picturesque place and I felt so at home. Safe and friendly atmosphere everywhere. So nice.

I am thinking of going back, this time for two weeks, to saturate myself even more so with the atmosphere of the town and the Italian culture.

With much love,

Sylvie

The teachers were very knowledgeable and friendly and we enjoyed meeting our classmates and learning more Italian with them. The facilities are typical of an old palazzo - which means in February you need to wrap up warm. Location was great and the wine and oil tastings were a real education as well as being fun. We are already thinking about booking ourselves in for another course.

Everything was superb!

Der Lehrer Marco hat den Unterricht sehr gut verständlich aber auch unterhaltsam abgehalten.
Der Standort der Schule befindet sich in der historischen Altstadt von Lucca.
Die nachmittäglichen Ausflugsangebote der Schule haben mir sehr gut gefallen. Ich habe zwei davon wargenommen.
Die Unterbringung in einer Gastfamilie mit Halbpension ist sehr empfehlenswert. Ich habe mich in meiner Gastfamilie sehr wohl gefühlt und die Verpflegung war exzellent.

After a conversation with a teacher I came to an average level. We were six in the class.

I always struggled at school even at an adult school. But at Koinè Center no! With this way of doing - great:

Hear the Italian or read a text 5 or 6 times, after each and every time talking to a person in the classroom in italian, it's perfect to find confidence, get the exercise and the joy of the language!

Thousands thanks to Tulle the teachers !!!

Every teacher was kind, competent and ready to help - always in Italian! We did not need a dictionary! The teacher explained all the unknown words in Italian until we understand! We've seen a bit of a movie - but we did not hear it! After we agreed with colleagues what the people in the movie talk about, we had to sync the illustrations - I enjoyed this very much!

In the afternoon there is a different, voluntary and interesting activity! 2 guided city tours and a passage to different topics with a teacher. We could understand all, even beginners! The legends in Italian by the teachers.

The school asked me for a private room with a bath - very good. I lived half of the city! Wonderful!!! I did not want to eat at home. I went to the bar or bought something in a shop to picnic on the city walls or river out of town.

Lucca is my favorite city! It's beautiful!
The price for school and home was not expensive!
Thousand thanks to Simone Reich's help. First with his help I could speak in German what course I wanted. It was better!

After this one week I know what I know and what I can not do: I can talk about the topics set up but at home I need a dictionary. I can not talk to all everyday events because I miss the vocabulary, but now I dare to speak!

Bad? just a little:

Without Simone Reich I could not book the right course for me.

The review form after the course and the online form are in English - I do not speak English!

I took private lessons with Marina for two weeks. I spent three to four hours a day conversing, reading and watching videos in order to improve on my previous knowledge of the language. This was so helpful as my previous lessons in the U.S. were I only had one hour a week with assigned homework and grammar. This was my big chance to speak the language everyday. The afternoon activities were also quite good. I went on a walk of the city with Stefano and other students. Stefano spoke clearly and slowly to the group as he gave us an orientation to the city of Lucca. I also did a tour in a palazzo with Elena, who also spoke to us in a manner that could be understood. I attended an olive oil presentation with Elena and Isabella and a hike in the hills outside of Lucca that ended with a ricca merenda of sausages, mortadella cheese and wine on a beautiful terrace overlooking the countryside. These activities were very useful to the learning experience and I should have done more of them.
Housing- I stayed with friends that rented an apartment. Very convenient.
Facilities- I would say that they were a little cramped. I would have preferred sitting at a table instead of a small student desk (especially since I am left handed). Technical issues with the Internet were somewhat of a problem. Bigger computers would be nice. Photocopies for exercises could be replaced with word or PDF files accessed on the computer or tablet.
Another thought could be for the teacher (one on one) to take an hour or so to walk and talk with the student and engage the student on how to order food, buy shoes, make a dinner reservation, etc.