Edu-inter, International French School in Quebec City

Edu-Inter French School had everything it needed to be a successful school and to deliver what it promises. Unfortunately, the only thing it truly excels at is its sales department. Before you enroll, they are extremely attentive and responsive. Once you become a student, however, the experience changes completely. After the first-day tour, the on-site sales representative becomes a very different person, someone clearly uninterested in listening to complaints, let alone helping students receive what they paid for. I suppose that if the student is a teenager enrolled in their Summer Program, the focus on immersion through field trips and fun may work. However, as a language teacher myself, I was deeply disappointed to see how unprepared the teachers are to handle a multicultural group of adult learners. One of my roommates, from Bosnia, explicitly stated that she did not want to discuss war-related topics, yet the subject continued to come up in class. There is a complete lack of cultural sensitivity. Teachers fail to distinguish between purposeful classroom discussion and sharing their personal opinions, often spending a significant portion of the class talking while students sit quietly, confused, and struggling to follow along. When I raised these concerns, I was told this was simply part of “exposing students to the language” — LOL. As if listening to a teacher rant for over 40 minutes about how angry she was with the Canadian government for allegedly stealing billions from the motor vehicle department were an effective method of “listening with a purpose.” That is both disrespectful and laughable. The school invests heavily in marketing and promotions, yet not at all in equipment or teacher training. Lessons lack structure and progression. Teachers introduce delicate, politically sensitive topics, freely share personal opinions, and speak nonstop for entire class periods. There is no pedagogical plan whatsoever. In fact, one teacher even asked students to teach grammar to one another. Perhaps this mediocre curriculum works with young students who don’t know any better, but the school needs to seriously revamp its pedagogical planning and raise its standards if it wants to remain competitive. I did not pay for six weeks of French classes to listen to other students teach. Student presentations can be valuable for language production and practice, but the level of confusion in class was unbearable. Toward the end, I became so frustrated that I stopped attending altogether. Ironically, I learned more by studying on my own. Teachers urgently need proper training, and the school desperately needs better customer service. AVOID this school if you value your money.

Edu_Inter French School had everything to be a successful school and deliver everything it promises. Instead, the only thing they excel at is their sales department! Before they get you in, they are the most attentive ones. Once you're a student, now that's a different story. The sales representative on site, after the first day tour, becomes a different person, one that is not at all interested in hearing your complaints, let alone help you get what you paid for. I guess if the student is a teenager in their Summer Program, the immersion is about field trips and fun. Now, as a language teacher myself, I was able to see, top my sadness, how unprepared the teachers are to handle a multicultural group of adults. Lessons have no sequence, teachers bring up topics that are delicate and not politically correct - they give their personal opinions and spend a whole hour talking nonstop. There is NO pedagogical plan, and one of them even asks students to teach grammar to one another. AVOID!

Our son from New York spent 5 weeks this summer at the Edu Inter intensive French program. He thought the instructors were very good, the school was nice and in a great area next to the Plains of Abraham, and the facilities (gym in particular) were great. His host family was a 12 minute walk from the school. He tested at Level 2 going in, after 5 weeks at Edu Inter he tested at Level 5 for college placement. And he loved Quebec City and says he might want to move there to work after he graduates from Business School at UMass Amherst. He was very happy with the experience.