Testimonios

“Sin lugar a duda, para mí el gran punto fuerte, y mi favorito, de estudiar en Chester College fue la oportunidad de estudiar en el marco de dos sistemas educativos simultáneamente. Esto es algo que hace al colegio realmente único, ya que permite a los alumnos ampliar muchísimo su abanico de opciones a la hora de fijarse un objetivo de cara a la universidad. Aunque este sistema dual pudiera implicar el doble de trabajo personal, los profesores se aseguran de que cada alumno tenga un horario personalizado y una selección de asignaturas ajustada a sus aspiraciones futuras. Mi paso de 3 cursos escolares por Chester College (Grados 10-12) me ha ayudado sin lugar a dudas a llegar a donde estoy. El hecho de estudiar en dos sistemas educativos, me facilitó el proceso de solicitud de plaza en universidad de España y el Reino Unido. Los profesores me ayudaron muchísimo a nivel de asesoramiento y apoyo con los trámites del proceso de admisión (UCAS) a universidades británicas y a solicitar becas. Académicamente, las destrezas y habilidades forjadas en Chester College me están sirviendo constantemente de ayuda en la Universidad. A menudo repaso mis apuntes de matemáticas y de física y recuerdo las técnicas de estudio y de gestión del tiempo aprendidas en el colegio”.

«Un colegio acogedor y familiar. Con atención personalizada para cada alumno y clases pequeñas donde se unen chicos de diferentes edades, lo que ayuda a fomentar la empatía en los mayores y la madurez en los menores. Profesorado muy capacitado y buen nivel de inglés. La hora de la comida es compartida por todos en el precioso comedor, en mesas servidas como en casa para disfrutar de la deliciosa comida de la cocinera, Pilar. Las familias de los alumnos, encantadoras y muy unidas. ¡Lo recomendamos ampliamente!».

“Mis hijos asisten felices al Chester. Destacaría, sobre todo la educación personalizada y la atención cuidada a cada niño, que les permite descubrir su potencial y desplegar al máximo todas sus capacidades. En un ambiente bilingüe, los profesores consiguen desarrollar el gusto y la motivación por el aprendizaje en los niños, la lectura, el razonamiento lógico-deductivo, el profundizar y preguntarse... cuidando no sólo las asignaturas propias del currículo español y estadounidense, sino también otros aspectos más transversales como el teatro, la actividad deportiva o la expresión artística y musical”.    

«Educación en valores, educación bilingüe, adaptación curricular a las necesidades de cada niño… qué bien suenan estas palabras, que bonito es escribirlo pero qué difícil llevarlo a la práctica. Yo, como madre apasionada por mis hijos, como psicóloga y coach y como amante del mundo de la educación formal y no formal, trato de aplicar todos estos conceptos en mi día a día, sin embargo, me sigo equivocando cada día de mi vida. Me gusta pensar que no se trata de un problema personal, sino que es inherente a la dificultad de la tarea. Tarea que consideraba imposible de cumplir hasta que tuve la grandísima suerte de conocer un proyecto educativo como el del Chester College. Un proyecto en el que la implicación incondicional y tremendamente respetuosa, de la directora y fundadora, por la educación y evolución de cada uno de los alumnos impregna todo lo que, en esos jardines repletos de rincones mágicos y en ese caserío de tejado rojo y paredes de piedra, se lleva a cabo. Un proyecto en el que se preocupan por la vidas, en su globalidad conceptual, de cada uno de los integrantes y en el que se cuestionan continuamente el por qué de las cosas con una actitud libre de juicios y prejuicios y con la única finalidad de buscar soluciones en colaboración con los padres. Soy de las que piensa que “las palabras se las lleva el viento” y que de nada sirve tener un proyecto sobre el papel redactado por gurús de la educación si las personas que lo llevan a cabo no lo viven o no lo sienten así. Mi paso por el Chester College fue sólo de 1 año, debido a mi reciente traslado a Munich, pero el impacto que este proyecto ha tenido en mí y, sobre todo, en mis dos hijos – Uxía de 5 años y Marko de 4- será para toda la vida. Y por esto quiero agradecer todo lo que han hecho por las dos personitas que derriten mi corazón y me despiertan una sonrisa cada mañana. Y, con el mayor atrevimiento del mundo, invito a quien se encuentre leyendo estas palabras a que se acerque a conocer el centro, el proyecto y, sobre todo, al motor de este gran barco, su Dirección. Y para todo el que haya decidido o decida viajar con ellos os deseo, con mucha envidia, ¡muy buen viaje!”.

«Mi hijo se incorporó al Colegio con 12 años, y en él fue creciendo académica y personalmente hasta que terminó el Bachillerato, hace ahora dos años. Está ahora estudiando 2º de ingeniería, académicamente le va muy bien y sobre todo se siente seguro y feliz y lleno de sueños y objetivos. Recomiendo el colegio a todos los padres y madres que quieran tener una educación un poco más personal, un poco como estudian «los hijos de los nóbeles», en un colegio pequeño donde, tú alcanzas un nivel, y si quieres seguir con un nivel superior porque puedes, lo puedes lograr porque tienes un profesorado que te va a impulsar para ello. Es decir, que no te detienes. Te detienes donde tú quieres detenerte. El profesorado te impulsa, te ayuda muchísimo, también en el tema de valores que me parece fundamental para vivir hoy. Desde el primer pilar del Colegio, la persona que te coge el teléfono, hasta la persona que daba de comer a mi hijo, todo ha sido un bien para él, un impulso que lo ha hecho mucho mejor persona. Yo a todas las personas que puedo y que me preguntan: ¿dónde estudió tu hijo?, lo digo con orgullo y esperemos que todo avance, todo siga igual, y que tengamos la suerte de que siga habiendo colegios como éste».  

«Haber tenido la posibilidad de estudiar en Chester College ha sido un cambio radical en mis estudios, nunca me había sentido tan acogida por un profesorado que se preocupa por ti y está pendiente de todas tus necesidades. La oportunidad de contar con personas que se fijan en tu crecimiento educativo y desarrollo personal para que saques lo mejor de ti, es lo que hace que Chester College sea un lugar único. El abanico de opciones que te ofrecen, como poder cursar dos sistemas educativos, te abre oportunidades de cara a la universidad que no podrías ni haber llegado a imaginar, y así, poder elegir entre la mejor opción que se adapte a uno mismo, como es mi ejemplo. Gracias a ellos he podido tomar la decisión de irme a estudiar a una universidad estadounidense o quedarme en España, donde estoy actualmente, estudiando ingeniería informática en la universidad de Salamanca. Sin duda alguna, el colegio es una gran familia de donde nos ven salir reforzados gracias a su apoyo y confianza en nosotros, no podría estar más agradecida de todo su esfuerzo.»

“I think moving to a different country, to children to a different school… Those are big decisions to make. Clearly there was an amount of nervousness about how the children would settle in, would they enjoy it? But, when we arrived, those concerns disappeared, from the very first day the children settled very quickly and were very happy to be here. They made friends very quickly, which helped and any issues that were raised in the first few weeks were quickly resolved. It was an easy process to settle in. Communication with the school and the teachers was fantastic. Right from the very first moment of making contact, coming for a first visit, getting to know the School, learning about the curriculum… all was very clear, if there were any doubts, the communication was very quick and effective and it carried on in that way after joining the school. It’s been a very positive experiencE”.

“Living abroad for six months have been quite an adventure for the entire family. As soon as our daughter started at Chester College, it was clear that she felt safe around the teachers and the other children. Even though she did not understand the languages, she quickly became a part of the class and began to play with the other children. The language of play and fun is universal for kids, and no words are needed. The activities both in class and during play time have challenged her, but at the same time been adapted to her level in regard to language and learning skills. We were particularly excited and a bit concerned about how she would handle to be a part of the annual Christmas Play. From being shy and hesitant in these activities back home in Norway, she really bloomed and enjoyed the experience. This shows how secure she felt and how the school manage to build up the confidence level in the children. Our daughter came to Spain knowing only a few words in English and nothing at all in Spanish. She quickly understood that there was no use in speaking Norwegian. Her quiet-phase at the beginning of the term ended quickly, and she began to communicate with simple words in both Spanish and English. She used some time to observe the languages and silently learn, and as she felt confident enough, she suddenly started to speak sentences and communicate without any problem. As us parents only spoke English (and Norwegian), we could not practice Spanish with her at home, and her English skills increased faster than her Spanish. It was hard and a bit frustrating for her to retell what she did at school, as she did not necessarily know the Norwegian words and the English and Spanish skills were not good enough in the beginning. It helped a lot to talk with the teachers about their activities during the day, such that us parents could help and were prepared when she wanted to tell something she had experienced. This experience has been nothing but positive for our daughter and us parents. The challenges with the languages were never too big for her to handle. During her five months at Chester College, she has grown quite a lot. Support from home is important. Prepare them that it will be a bit hard in the beginning, but encourage the children to have fun at school. Engage in their activities and make home a place to relax and a place to talk about good and bad experiences during the school day. We would definitely repeat this experience."

«Our family lived in beautiful Santiago de Compostela for six months and attending Chester College was a very rewarding experience for Millie, our daughter. Attending the summer camp in July was a rich and fun experience for her and helped familiarise her with the school and some of the staff and students before the term began. Millie quickly settled in when school term started, thanks to the caring staff and personalised teaching. Millie’s Spanish came along very quickly from socialising with the other children, and she enjoyed the school’s small, family-like environment, the expansive gardens to play in (particularly beautiful in Autumn), the amazing lunch time food and all the fun of preparing for the Christmas play. As a family we were very grateful to be welcomed so warmly into the school community even though our stay was a short one, and we sincerely hope we can return for a visit one day!».  

«Our son studied three years in Chester College (Grades 10-12) and we couldn’t imagine a better place for him during such stressful (for him and us) teenage years!!! We are so thankful to all the staff members of Chester College for their great cooperation, deep understanding, strong support, high professionalism and responsibility, must-have discipline and school organisation and management!!! They helped him a lot in preparation for college entrance.He found there everything he needed for it, so it ended up with a full scholarship in a prestigious US University. No need to explain how happy we are!!! Great respect and gratitude to everyone in Chester College for their hard and well done job! Special thanks to our son’s tutor Ms Veiga!».

«No cabe duda que el ambiente físico, rodeado de un maravilloso paraje natural en el que se encuentra el Colegio, ayudó a que se desarrollen y potencien, aún más, las virtudes personales de nuestra hija que junto con el soporte académico, son hoy en día las principales fortalezas en su recién iniciada carrera universitaria. Les quedamos muy agradecidos por todos esos detalles y anécdotas que de seguro son de los mejores recuerdos de nuestro paso por Galicia».

“I've gone to Chester for 4 summers now and each time has been an amazing experience. The people there are so hospitable that it almost feels like a second home. It's a wonderful learning opportunity too, not just for different languages but different skills too. The excursions and other outings are great fun and make really great experiences with friends. The friends I've made in camp are some of my best friends. There's a sense of comradery amongst your peers that you probably wouldn't get even in school. The food there is really nice too, very rarely did I have a meal that I didn't enjoy. Camp is just an amazing experience in general, no matter what age you are or what languages you speak. I would definitely suggest going to Chester if you're given the opportunity, chances are you won't regret it”.

“My kids had a blast! They enjoyed the activities very much. They liked the Spanish lessons and loved their teachers! They said that they are certainly coming back. From the parents point of view : I couldn’t have chosen a better camp for my children .This was their first time away and I was a bit nervous. The staff took care of each of my children’s needs, they knew each well, and made sure they were happy at all times. They also made sure my picky-eater ate; thank you for that! Regarding the academic side of the camp, I am also very satisfied . The teachers identified their strengths and weaknesses and gave them level-appropriate material to help them improve in those areas. Although they were in a group, the program was adapted to their individual needs. I loved that! A big thank you to all the staff and teachers of Chester College. It was a pleasure. See you next year!”.    

“By word of mouth we heard about this college in Santiago de Compostela where kids learn Spanish well. Although we had never met someone who had their kids previously enrolled, we took the plunge this summer and enrolled our 16 year old daughter to improve her Spanish for her upcoming IB exam. 4 weeks seems a long time to be away from her but she was immersed in Spanish and that is what we wanted. The daily schedule was well organized, teachers knew what my daughter needed to learn, identified her strengths and weaknesses. They also made sure that all the kids had enough fun activities as well. As parents we loved the play “Hamlet” they performed at the end of the summer camp in Santiago town, and were impressed (although it was in English) by the performance of all students. Thank you to all the staff who made this Summer camp successful”.

“Our son Noah spent a great time in Chester last summer. In the morning he learnt Spanish and in the afternoon he enjoyed all the fun activities with his English and Spanish speaking playmates. He especially liked all sports activities like swimming, riding, tennis, soccer and baseball. Chester created a wonderful learning environment combining language and fun activities. During the camp he made a lot of new friends. All campers prepared the musical “Sister Act” and performed it for all parents and brothers and sisters. This was an unforgettable evening. Noah wants to return next year. Greetings!”.

"It was a really nice experience. Not only did I learn Castellano as a language, but I had a terrific time meeting a lot of new friends. I also experienced neat and different kinds of field trips. I would love to return for another summer experience".

“Upon enrolling my granddaughter at Chester College for the summer program, I was thoroughly impressed with the reception from the staff, the daily schedule which was highly organized. I felt extremely comfortable that my granddaughter was in an enjoyable learning environment being immersed in Spanish. I continue to recommend this experience to others”.

“Mi hijo acudió al MINI Camp durante todo el mes de julio y terminó encantado. Quería que durase más. Y nosotros estamos muy contentos con la forma en la que trabaja Chester y lo atentos que son con el niño y con nosotros”.

“Encantada con Chester College, mi hijo disfrutó muchísimo, hizo muchos amigos y aprendió inglés. El exterior es fabuloso y las profesoras y demás equipo son dulces. ¡Sin duda repetiremos!”.