The Independent.co.uk - 4 January 2011

To celebrate the release of the iconic film ‘Gainsbourg’, the Independent is offering a very special holiday to one lucky reader.  We’ve teamed-up with Cactus Language Training and Optimum Releasing to give one Francophile the chance to jet-off and spend a week learning French in the very heart of Paris at one of their top partner schools, Ecole France Langue. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/win-a-unique-trip-to-paris-to-learn-french-2175789.html

Language Travel Magazine - January 2011

This article by Gillian Evans takes an in-depth look at language schools in Latin America and student trends over the last five years.  Alex Wolfson from Cactus is quoted: “Clients realise that Latin America offers much better value than Spain for courses of three weeks or more,” he says.  Argentina is their number-one Latin American destination because, says Wolfson, “there are son many things to do there and because you get European quality at Latin American prices”. 

Get off the Beaten Path - December 2010

This article written by Anna Downing includes a round-up of interesting and unusual gifts ideas.  “Bonjour! Hola! G’day! If you want to know what these words mean, sign-up for a language courses. You can get gift vouchers from Cactus, which will pay for a language holiday anywhere in the world, or for evening courses in the UK. perfect pressies for adventurous travellers.”

Metro-UK - 4 October 2010

This full-page article written by Lisa Scott, Travel Editor at The Metro, looks at options for learning a language on the move.  It covers a variety of courses around the world, as well as including some interesting facts about languages in general.  Lisa writes: “Learn French while surfing in Biarritz.  Your language classes will take place in the morning, leaving the afternoons free for surfing. £829 for two weeks – https://www.cactuslanguage.com.”

France Magazine - October 2010

This three-page article, written by Eve Middleton, takes an in-depth look at Cactus’ wine tasting course in Toulouse, from descriptions of the city and school, to the excitement of learning French on location. Eve comments: “Whether you’re new to learning French or you simply just want to brush up on your grammar, the prospect of a language course in France with day-long intensive classes can be somewhat daunting.  A more palatable option is to combine traditional study with a vocational option – not only does this allow you to solidify your syntactical foundations, it all means you can practise your French outside the classroom.  With France’s long-standing reputation for producing some of the world’s best wines, I chose to sample the country’s finest vintages with a combined language and wine course from Cactus Language at the Langue Onze language school in Toulouse.”

Cactus launches specialist DELE exam preparation evening course

Cactus Language Training, the world’s leading language training company, today announced that it has developed a new, 20-hour Spanish course helping students to achieve their Diploma de Español como Lengua Extranjera. The course offers expert tuition for students and professionals looking to take language learning to the next level and attain this internationally recognised certificate.

Cactus has designed the course to be taught by qualified and experienced exam preparation teachers over three terms with one, two-hour class per week. Classes focus on the DELE exam tasks and cover the key skill areas of reading, writing, listening, speaking, grammar and vocabulary, with students advised to undertake four hours of additional home-study a week.

The next course is scheduled to start on April and will take place at one of Cactus’ top partner schools in Holborn in London. Students will then be prepared to sit their DELE examination in August.

Richard Bradford, MD of Cactus Language Training, commented: “We’ve designed this course to cater for any students of Spanish who are looking to achieve the diploma but can’t study during office hours.  The evening programme will prepare them for the DELE exam by providing small, friendly classes and a thorough grounding in all the key skill areas. We’re pleased to be adding this new course to our existing training portfolio which offers the best possible choice and teaching methods for anyone wanting to learn Spanish.”

For more information about this, and other exam preparation courses, simply visit: https://www.languagecoursesuk.co.uk/courses/exam-preparation.php

Woman and Home - September 2010

This article in Woman and Home magazine takes a look at the top holidays for learning a new skill.  Cactus’ German weekend crash courses are included in the guide, alongside options for learning the language in Italy and taking Flamenco classes in Spain.

Easyjet Magazine - August 2010

This article in EasyJet’s in-flight magazine offers advice for anyone wanting to take a gap year before getting a job.  It explores courses and volunteer programmes that will appeal to a range of different interests.  “Learning a foreign language is an ideal way to experience a different culture and knowing a second language will set you apaprt from other job applicants.  Cactus Language (cactuslanguage.com) offers courses for up to 12 weeks (one week starts at £199), with 20 hours of lessons from Monday to Friday. For an extra cost, you can really immerse yourself in the local lifestyle by staying with a host family.”

GCSE students spurn languages

It’s GCSE exam results time again and for thousands of students up and down the country, there’s been much to celebrate with overall results improving for the 23rd year running.  Unfortunately, the study of languages has taken a further hit, with French dropping out of the top 10 most popular subjects for the first time.  Figures published by the exam boards show that less than a quarter of pupils now take French in the last two years of secondary school, with German also falling to a new low.

And it’s not just the fact that languages are being dropped in favour of easier subjects that is worrying.  There also appears to be an increasing class divide around languages, with public and grammar school pupils much more likely to study languages than those students in state schools, reinforcing notions of elitism.

For anyone involved in the languages industry, or in fact anyone interested in languages, the statistics are sobering.  A CILT spokesperson commented: “Languages are seen as difficult and, with an array of other subjects on offer, there is little incentive for either schools or learners to make languages a priority for option choices.  There is a widespread consensus, shared by employers, educationalists and politicians of all persuasions, that we are letting our young people down by allowing so many of them to opt out of language learning as early as 13 or 14.”

So what can be done to stop the rot?  Surely the first step is for the Government to reinstate compulsory language study for 14-year-olds.  There clearly needs to be a major government drive, similar to that for single sciences, to boost the flagging numbers of student taking languages.  But the study of languages is also in need of a major face lift to engage with young audiences, making it more exciting and more accessible.  And that needs to happen well before 13, by inspiring primary school pupils to learn about other cultures, other people and how they communicate. 

Perhaps the Government’s strategy of boosting languages in primary schools will ultimately pay off, by engaging children early on.  But surely it’s only worth while if students can’t then just drop their studies later on.  For private companies like ours, the numbers of language learners continues to grow dramatically every year.  So we see a real desire in the UK to learn but we need to catch people at the earliest ages to make languages a lifelong passion.

Telegraph.co.uk - 20 August 2010

This article on The Daily Telegraph website is the annual directory of 100 gap year travel companies, essential reading for anyone considering a gap year.  Cactus is featured at number three of 100 companies. 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/hubs/gapyear/7954809/Gap-Year-100-company-directory-learning-a-skill-or-language.html