Italian at the MLC – interview with Paola

Today I have the chance to speak to one of our wonderful Italian teaching team, Paola, to discuss the Italian language and what it’s like to teach it here at the Marlow Language Centre!

MLC: Many thanks for chatting with me today. Would you like to introduce yourself and telling us about your time teaching Italian at the Marlow Language Centre?

P: My name is Paola and I come from Turin, in the North of Italy. I moved here to Marlow and I started to work at the MLC at the end of January 2017. I have been teaching since I was 26, at first artistic subjects in Italy, in public schools and now the Italian language.

MLC: At the MLC in recent years Italian has become a hugely popular language to learn. Why do you think so many people are rushing to learn Italian?

P: My students wish to learn Italian because they say it’s a beautiful language, it sounds musical and they desire to understand it and speak it when in Italy; to feel the connection with the Italians. They say that Italians are very sociable and generous, so they really want to communicate with them!

MLC: Italian has historically been closely connected with the worlds of art, music and science, and not to mention food! Out of all the reasons to learn Italian, what do you think is the most important?

P: I would say all of them. But my students also enjoy to go in Italy for holiday because they say the Italians really know how to live, enjoying the slow rhythm of life, socialising even for five minutes in front of a coffee.

MLC: Is Italian a tricky language to learn? Lots of English words have similar roots, does this make it easy for English native speakers?

P: I don’t think it’s difficult to learn the Italian language because there are rules that will help you to understand, pronounce and speak it. First of all, Italian is a phonetic language so the way the Italian words are written is the way you will read them. This means you only need to know the difference between hard and soft sounds – and this difference refers to only two letters of the alphabet (c and g). Learning Italian, as well as learning any foreign language, requires time and a lot of practice; but a good dose of motivation and perseverance is also important. I always have a lot of fun with my students because I know that this is the key to learning and remembering new things.

MLC: Finally, what’s your favourite part of teaching Italian at the MLC?

P: I feel very lucky to do this job, especially because of the wonderful team at MLC, which I consider like a second family. This is why I love to share my knowledge of the Italian language and this job gives me the chance to meet new people and to help them learn it, so that they can enjoy the loving atmosphere when in Italy. I also give all my students a newsletter that discusses Italian culture (art, music, history, etc.), because I know that they have an interest in it, and this is my way to say a personal thanks for their interest in learning Italian!

Thanks Paola! If this has inspired you to your start your Italian learning journey at the Marlow Language Centre, make sure to check out our Italian page for more information and contact us to help you book in your first class!