https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Spain in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Madrid-based English teacher Simon Sternberg hit upon a revolutionary idea to improve Spaniards’ grasp of English. https://www.thelocal.es/20201120/discover-the-app-that-is-changing-the-way-spaniards-learn-english Fri, 20 Nov 2020 10:16:44 +0100 discover-the-app-that-is-changing-the-way-spaniards-learn-english As a new academic year is about to get underway for all those 'auxiliares de conversación' hired in bilingual project schools across Spain, old hand Audrey Ardanaz gives you the rundown on what to expect and her tips for how to survive. https://www.thelocal.es/20190930/seven-survival-tips-for-language-assistants-in-spain Mon, 30 Sep 2019 13:22:41 +0200 seven-survival-tips-for-language-assistants-in-spain Each year thousands of English-speakers enrol in a programme to work in public schools across Spain as language assistants known in Spanish as auxiliaries de conversación. https://www.thelocal.es/20200205/auxiliares-in-spain-why-some-language-assistants-in-the-valencia-region-are-still-waiting-to-get-paid Wed, 05 Feb 2020 16:51:28 +0100 auxiliares-in-spain-why-some-language-assistants-in-the-valencia-region-are-still-waiting-to-get-paid Language teachers in Madrid have faced an unprecedented attack on their working rights in recent years, and the UK’s looming departure from the EU could potentially make matters a lot worse. https://www.thelocal.es/20191015/why-its-time-english-teachers-in-spain-stood-up-for-their-rights Tue, 15 Oct 2019 12:40:45 +0200 why-its-time-english-teachers-in-spain-stood-up-for-their-rights New to the English Teaching game? Well, I'd love to say “there's no need to worry”, but that would be foolish. https://www.thelocal.es/20190902/a-z-guide-to-teaching-in-spain Mon, 02 Sep 2019 11:04:41 +0200 a-z-guide-to-teaching-in-spain For forty years, Bob Yareham (who was born in Hackney North in 1954) has taught English as a foreign language, mainly in Valencia, a challenge that involves explaining, for what seems like the millionth time, that “yes, ‘bare’ is pronounced like ‘bear’ and ‘queue’ is no different from ‘q’. https://www.thelocal.es/20180717/english-actually-40-years-in-the-wilderness Tue, 17 Jul 2018 12:26:57 +0200 english-actually-40-years-in-the-wilderness Kate Boyle spent two and a half years in Madrid teaching business and conversational English to adults. Now back in London, she reflects on what she misses most about her time there. https://www.thelocal.es/20180424/eight-things-i-miss-most-about-teaching-in-madrid Tue, 24 Apr 2018 14:55:35 +0200 eight-things-i-miss-most-about-teaching-in-madrid This week The Local chats to Englishwoman, Natasha Mason Kennedy, a woman who moved to Madrid for love and then started her own successful business. https://www.thelocal.es/20160408/my-spanish-career-careers-jobs-spain Fri, 08 Apr 2016 13:49:33 +0200 my-spanish-career-careers-jobs-spain Spain’s Education Ministry is looking for 735 Spanish teachers to be posted to state schools in North America for the next academic year. https://www.thelocal.es/20151125/go-west-spanish-teachers-wanted-for-schools-in-canada-and-usa Wed, 25 Nov 2015 14:21:50 +0100 go-west-spanish-teachers-wanted-for-schools-in-canada-and-usa After a report placed Spain 23rd out of 70 countries in the new world English learning ranking, The Local asked experts to suggest ways the nation could improve. https://www.thelocal.es/20151105/heres-how-the-spanish-can-improve-in-english Thu, 05 Nov 2015 17:16:33 +0100 heres-how-the-spanish-can-improve-in-english An hour of chess a week can improve a pupil's performance in maths by 30 percent, as schools across Spain are finding out. https://www.thelocal.es/20151023/spanish-schools-turn-to-chess-classes-to-boost-learning Fri, 23 Oct 2015 17:04:32 +0200 spanish-schools-turn-to-chess-classes-to-boost-learning Nearly 100 percent of Spanish primary school students are studying English, ranking Spain among the top European Union countries for multilingual learning. https://www.thelocal.es/20150924/spanish-primary-schoolers-rank-among-top-in-eu-for-learning-english Thu, 24 Sep 2015 15:16:19 +0200 spanish-primary-schoolers-rank-among-top-in-eu-for-learning-english In the latest instalment of My Spanish Career, The Local talks to Amy Elliott, an American born and raised in Pennington, New Jersey who has managed to combine a passion for theatre with Spain’s ever growing thirst for English learning. https://www.thelocal.es/20150525/americans-laugh-louder-spaniards-more-reserved Mon, 25 May 2015 14:01:50 +0200 americans-laugh-louder-spaniards-more-reserved As one of the only industries in Spain that has not only weathered the crisis, but positively flourished during it, it is boom time for English in Spain. So why are Spaniards finally embracing the language that for so long was held at arm's length? https://www.thelocal.es/20150518/spains-newfound-love-of-english Mon, 18 May 2015 11:55:30 +0200 spains-newfound-love-of-english Spain's results in future PISA tests will be much better if more is done to help students from immigrant backgrounds, experts have said in the wake of the country's poor showing in a recent PISA problem-solving exam. https://www.thelocal.es/20140404/immigrants-do-better-than-spanish-students-in-pisa-2 Fri, 04 Apr 2014 12:43:00 +0200 immigrants-do-better-than-spanish-students-in-pisa-2 Spain's students are still struggling with reading, science and maths despite all the money the country has spent on trying to improve its educational standards, the latest Pisa study results show. https://www.thelocal.es/20131203/spain-flunks-maths-in-pisa-test Tue, 03 Dec 2013 19:06:00 +0100 spain-flunks-maths-in-pisa-test Spain should motivate its best teachers with higher pay and greater autonomy, says the director of the OECD's International Student Assessment Programme (PISA). https://www.thelocal.es/20130910/spain-has-too-many-unmotivated-teachers Tue, 10 Sep 2013 15:55:00 +0200 spain-has-too-many-unmotivated-teachers Spanish children are more interested in helping animals and kicking footballs than winning votes when they grow up, a new study shows. https://www.thelocal.es/20130807/spanish-children-careers Wed, 07 Aug 2013 19:50:00 +0200 spanish-children-careers If your hopes of looking for work in Spain have been dented by news of sky-high unemployment rates, ever-decreasing salaries and long working hours, think again. https://www.thelocal.es/20130225/spains-top-jobs-for-expats Mon, 25 Feb 2013 10:51:00 +0100 spains-top-jobs-for-expats