Background
Before moving to Medellin I did some research on language schools, since one of my main reasons for moving here was to learn Spanish. The school I found the best was Blink Spanish Immersion. I have a long history of learning languages but I had never done an immersive course before, and was curious to see how much I could improve in only a couple of weeks.
About Blink
Blink is a language school located in El Poblado, the most touristy neighborhood of Medellín. Since it’s an immersive school it offers accommodation and meals in addition to Spanish, but because I already had a place to stay and like to cook I only got the Spanish classes. Blink offers several different packages and I decided to buy three weeks of the BLINK UNLIMITED package.
As you can see the BLINK UNLIMITED package contains three different kinds of classes: group classes, private classes, and master classes.
Group classes
Group classes are the bulk of the learning. They usually start between 8-9 am and last for four hours plus a fifteen-minute break. The groups consist of 2-6 students and it’s the same group teacher for one week. There are fifteen different difficulty levels and to decide which groups students should be in everyone takes a placement test a few days before the first day. The levels are the following, with A1.1 being the lowest and B2.3 being the highest:
A1.1, A1.2, A1.3, A2.1, A2.2, A2.3, B1.1, B1.2, B1.3, B2.1, B2.2, B2.3.
I got placed in A1.3++/A2.1 for my first week, which is between A1.3 and A2.1. It was a good starting level for me.
The structure of the group classes depended a bit on the teacher and the level. On each Monday we received a booklet with exercises for the level. During the group classes, we learned new concepts and did related exercises both in the booklet and that the teacher came up with. We talked a lot. At the end of each class, we got homework that we presented the next day.
In the last week, when my level was A2.3, we got more complicated tasks like “research online for 10 minutes and then describe an iconic food from your home country to the rest of the group and say the recipe of it” (to practice past tenses and imperative) or “describe your favorite future home” (to practice future tense). However, I am not sure if the difference in the types of tasks was because of the higher level or because of the teacher’s preference.
Private classes
In a private class, it’s just a student and a teacher. It can be the same teacher as the group teacher or a different one. In my private classes, the teachers asked what I wanted to do and sometimes had exercises and games prepared. Apart from some specific questions that I had I mostly just talked with my teachers during the private lessons.
Master classes
Master classes are different one-hour group classes focused on one specific topic. The topics range from reflexive verbs, pronunciation, the past tenses, or the subjunctive, and there were 35+ weekly master classes to choose from. Importantly, there were the same master classes each week, which is why I switched my master classes to more private classes for my third week. I found the master classes useful but only for two weeks.
The Good
The thing I liked the most about my time at Blink was getting to know the other students and doing activities together. We danced salsa, played tejo, went to a football match, and went to several language exchanges. Most students were in their twenties and from Europe, the United States, or Canada. Almost everyone was on a long trip either around the world or through South America. A few people were on a shorter trip to Colombia and maybe some other country. I didn’t meet anyone else who was planning to stay longer in Medellín like me.
I also learned a lot of Spanish during my time at Blink. I liked the group, private, and master classes. What primarily influenced how much I liked a class was not the type of class, but the teacher. My favorite teachers were Danny and Daniel Gaitan and for the third week, I asked for Danny and managed to get her as my private teacher which was great.
The Bad
I didn’t eat the food or stay at Blink, but I talked to a lot of people who got pretty bored with rice and beans after two weeks. Some people also moved out of the hostel after a few days.
Another thing I didn’t like was that at the beginning of each week the founder and owner of the school, Christian, sent out a message to everyone saying that it’s not a good idea to take too many master classes. If that is the case, then why is there a package with unlimited master classes and no mention of this recommendation? I ended up taking as many master classes as I could anyway, and I think it was fine.
The Ugly
My last lesson at Blink was a one-hour private class with a teacher I hadn’t had before. She told me some things that I think it’s fair to share.
My levels for my three weeks at Blink were A1.3++/A2.1, A2.2 and A2.3. That level of progression is unrealistically fast. The teacher at my last private class said they do this because students need to feel like they are progressing. To be honest, it worked; I did feel happy that I leveled up each week. But the teacher told me that the price of this is that a ton of stuff is skipped on each level. She said to properly learn (and teach) a level you would need several weeks, not one.
This matches my experience. I felt like the pace was very high. We were constantly bombarded with new information before we’d learned the previous thing. Every student I talked to felt the same way. Because of this, I wish I had only done two weeks instead of three. I had learned so many new concepts during the first two weeks that I would’ve preferred to simply consolidate them. If I’d do Blink again I’d start by paying for one week and then extend as I felt like it.
My Recommendations
- Don’t do more than two weeks
- Pay for one a week at a time
- Join activities and hang out with the other students
- Go to language exchanges to practice speaking
- Ask for your favorite teachers
Conclusion
I am happy with my choice of studying at Blink. I learned a lot and had a lot of fun with the other students. For anyone who is planning to stay for a longer time in Latin America, I think it’s a great idea.
I wish I had done two weeks instead of three because I think it would’ve been better for me to consolidate all the new information I got during the first two weeks instead of learning more new things.