Reviews of Québec Monde Ecole De Français (School)

A W

About nine months ago, I finished 10 weeks of study at Quebec Monde and have waited to review it so I could to draw comparisons to other schools where I’ve studied since. Here’s what I’ve concluded: The school is in a beautiful space in a cool part of Quebec. The people who work there are all kind and very bright. Upon arriving, I thought I had chosen the perfect place to refresh the French I used when I was younger, learn more and develop a greater level of comfort communicating. My results were mixed though, and this is why: The curriculum at QM isn’t structured. Yes, students were separated into proficiency levels, but those were vague. As a result, I was placed in a slightly higher group and wasn’t able to refresh the fundamental muscles I hadn’t flexed in 15 years. At some language institutes, like the Spanish school where I’m currently studying, a professor will teach a particular class with a specific curriculum and students will move through those levels, acquiring proficiency with different verb tenses, grammar, vocab, etc. like groceries on a shopping list. It says a lot that I showed up in Medellin with only basic Spanish under my belt and in five weeks I’ve learned present, gerund, all three past tenses, conditionals, imperatives, both futures and now subjunctive. I may not be proficient in them, but, academically at least, I know them. I’ve also learned object pronouns, conditional and relative statements, numbers to the infinite and a fair bit of mundane vocabulary. Contrast this with Quebec Monde, where my entire first week was spent learning how to place events in the past/present/future (ex. “ago”), and it’s easy to see why we only got through basic past tense (passé composé), pronouns (which are indeed time-consuming) and the two basic futures. We also spent a lot of time on the person neutral, pronunciation and vocabulary. However, we never reviewed present, never learned gerund construction, imperfect past, conditionals or anything subjunctive. At some schools you might have listening exercises with news or popular music. You’ll act out scenes in a cafe or maybe go to one. There will be a library of movies, books and more to borrow. QM’s style, however, is pretty standard classwork. There’s also one glaring problem: If you’re the only student at your level, your class time will be reduced to two hours per day. If another student joins you, you’ll get three. Once you reach four students, you’ll get the full session. The argument goes that as classes shrink, students get more personal attention. I understand the logic, but I didn’t move to Canada so I could spend two hours a day in class. I could have done that at l’Alliance Francaise back home without quitting my job. There are high points. The couple with whom the school paired me were wonderful, treasures truly. Living with them blessed me with invaluable lessons on both French, Quebecois culture and life. Likewise, Quebec is a postcard of a city and great place spend a few months, although I say that with a catch. If you want to learn French to travel the world, study in France. The accents you’ll encounter (outside of the school) in Quebec will give you an immersion experience akin to learning English in Scotland. However, if you plan to spend more time in the province, Quebec is perfect. For those with the time and money to spend six months learning Quebecois French, then Quebec Monde could be a great fit for anyone. Likewise, if you’re an advanced speaker and are seeking nuanced grammatical instruction or intensive practice, QM could be very, very good. If you’re a beginner though, the absolutely-zero-English policy could slow your learning. Likewise, if you’re at a mid-level, it’s important you arrive with a very clear idea of what you need to learn and push hard to make sure you’re getting what you need. I didn’t, and I’m now very aware that the time I spent there—though enjoyable—was sadly not nearly as productive as it should have been.

Michelle Faerden

I signed up for a one week program with the intention to increase my french speaking and listening comprehension. I think this program is set up for people who are able to participate in multiple weeks/months of classes. Classes were very heavy on worksheets and we spent very little time talking. I participated in a similar one week course in Spanish which was focued on conversation and had great results. I did not get the results I was looking for out of this class. I also found the administration staff hard to work with, but the teachers were very kind. My home stay was lovely. The couple was very sweet.