Demanda Chilena de L´ acteos

The main points raised by the seasonal tourists in this research were: • Lessons in Britain were in the winter months (wrong time of year); • Lessons in Spain were expensive;

• There was no provision for “older learners”;

• There were limited low cost or free lessons available.

The first point is correct and cannot be changed. Lessons from the Local Education Authorities (and Councils) in Britain run during the academic year which is through the winter months. There is then no incentive for the seasonal tourist to attend these classes as they may be able to start but not complete the course as they will be already in Spain. The

research on availability of language lessons in the locality showed that there are plenty of options for learning but there is a cost involved. The average cost of private lessons started at €_{20 per hour which is not a large amount but in order for language learning to be effective} there has to be regular and frequent lessons. This would involve a significant investment for a learner over the period of the winter and this is prohibitive to some of our target group of retirees. Further, the perceived return for the investment of money, time and effort is reduced due to their own self-imposed limitations as they do not feel their ability to learn will justify the cost.

It has been shown that there is no problem with the availability of lessons not only through the private lessons as advertised in the newspapers but also by the number of language schools in the area offering courses. But these courses are considered by the target group as being expensive particularly if it is to be an ongoing investment and the structure of the lessons was deemed more appropriate for younger people. Even though there were courses for older “50 plus” age group the structure of the lessons were directed at those early retirees who were either new to the area or were considering their options. Because there is little incentive to learn or improve on Spanish there is therefore little incentive to spend money on lessons that may well be under utilised or forgotten.

The comment regarding the lack of low cost or free lessons is unfounded as the empirical research has shown that there are such lessons available. Even though these lessons appear well attended our target group did not seem that interested in attending mainly due to their own social activities and apathy. They openly admit that they have been coming to the area for so long that attendance at lessons would, in their mind, not make any difference. In other words, they have given up on learning, not because they do not care, but because they have never needed to in the past, so would find it too difficult now. This target group, because of their age and the fact that they have managed for so long with out the need to speak any Spanish may then be a lost cause. Perhaps emphasis for greater language integration through language learning should be directed at younger and newer retirees.

It has also become apparent from reviewing the EU website on “Life Long Learning” that there is a gap in the provision of language lessons for the older age group. There is a particular area for learning for “adults” but this is for professionals and those in the work place who ultimately need some language to benefit their job prospects or advancement. The

main target area for language learning under the EU banner is specifically directed at the younger age group such as students and those able to, or wanting to, move between Member States. The philosophy of “Life Long Learning” therefore is to start learning young and continue through adult life but starting to learn at a much older age is obviously not considered. This shows that the EU sees learning for younger people and professional adults as being long term benefits for the EU in economic and political terms. As they do not include learning for other sectors of the market i.e. young people who are not students, non- professionals and retired migrants therefore the EU obviously does not consider these sectors of the population as having any long term viability to the wellbeing of the EU as a whole. This is wrong. This gap in the learning market shows that the integration and language learning policies of the EU are selective and not accessible for the common citizen. If the EU was really as keen on the success of the ideals it promotes on the issues of integration, especially through language, then there would be more facilities for those people who fall into the migrant bracket but are outside the student or professional sectors. There seems to be something of a contradiction in philosophy and practice.

The other issues that have come from the discussion on language learning and lessons were that the Spanish always speak in English and so they (the seasonal tourists) would not have any opportunity to improve. This was qualified by the author’s own experience in a number of situations where it was not until there had been persistence did the conversation then turn to Spanish. As discussed, this is not necessarily done intentionally but is something that with a little incentive or education would easily be changed. For instance, the reason that a Spanish waiter (for instance) replies (or leads) the conversation in English is due mainly to time constraints and wanting to provide quality of service to customer. However more significantly there are the following points to consider:

• That there is a common presumption by the seasonal tourist that the Spanish will speak English;

• That there is a common assumption by the Spanish that the seasonal tourist does not speak Spanish;

• There is a common expectation by the tourist that if they instigates a conversation in Spanish the reply will be in English

Unfortunately, these presumptions are all too prevalent and have also been confirmed in instances during the period of research. The reason there is the common presumption that an English tourist would not speak English is two-fold; they have never had the need to learn before and secondly, are not expected to have any language ability. But this presumed lack of ability should not be confused with a lack of interest. On the contrary a number of respondents would be keen to learn if only a little more but only if they were able to practise. Learning should be a two sided experience which assists in the follow through and improvement to be successful.

The Spaniards spoken to about this situation acknowledged that there was this common presumption but the difficulty is that they are unable to tell on first instance whether the English person is able or wanting to use Spanish. A simple request does not mean that they are able to converse. Alternatively, a simple request responded to in Spanish is often met with a blank expression therefore the continuation is lost. Essentially, most people revert to English to be helpful and do not consider that they are hindering any process. Both parties agree that if there was some sort of standardised system that would allow a visual indicator of whether a person was trying to learn Spanish this would make the situation much easier to deal with. Each person would then know if the person was learning and at what level and be able to respond and assist accordingly. This would also reduce misunderstanding, confusion and be a significant lift to self-confidence. But for the present they have to continue with either guess work or presumption.