School of Polish for Foreigners at the University of Lodz

Hi,

I'm a Polish-Canadian expatriate (meaning, I came to Canada some 22 years ago). Unfortunately, I never got the chance to attend a Polish school here where I was young so over time I lost some Polish language skills and became somewhat unfamiliar with the culture.

Now I want to get re-acquainted. I would like to take a preparatory course in Polish language/culture from the university of Lodz. I've got family living in Lodz can speak a bit of Polish.

Question - are there any other universities in Poland offering Polish language/culture courses? I'm more partial to universities as opposed to private language schools.

Any help would be appreciated. I'm thinking about going in a year or two (must save up for this little endeavor)

-Calgarytek

Of course there is.But it says the one in Lodz is the best.Who knows...I just study here, the teachers speak very little English, and even they speak, it's hard to understand...

So, good luck~!

Just about every town with a major university offers Polish courses for foreigners.

If this is the same school that used to teach foreigners who were going to be studying in Poland then it's the best.

They routinely took people with no Polish experience and within one year got them to the point where they could take university classes. That's very impressive. I've heard good things about Kraków and Toruń as well but having relatives close by would seem to close the deal in favor of £ódź.

The main potential problem is they might not know what to do with you if they perceive your level as higher than it is. If you learned Polish at home your accent might fool them into assuming more ability than you have. And AFAICT there aren't any programs anywhere for foreigners who know all the grammar and are interested in things like composition and style...

Whatever you do, though, don't go to Poznan. The program for foreigners seeking to learn Polish is very weak (very strange considering that overall the university has the strongest language programs in the country).

Hey,

Thanks for responding. Perhaps I can turn this into an opportunity. My English is excellent but even though I can speak Polish I would probably be at the early-intermediate level. Spending six months in Poland may change that. I really would like to know how to write.

With my English, maybe I can find a part time tutoring gig. Guess I better take some English courses to familiarize myself with the language jargon before heading out.

Cheers,

Calgarytek

I study on this type of course in Krakow. If you have any questions just PM me.

I think it would be cheaper for you to move to greenpoint. You'll learn all you need to know about polish culture in 6 months and you'll save some money maybe even make some.

Zenek

xoxo

btw i got a job placement offer for ya to clear asbestos from old office buildings. No health-care benefits, but you're young though, so you gonna be alright.

email me at wanna_learn_bout_Poland@comcast.net

University of Lodz is very friendly to all kinds of foreigners... welcome.

No, I would rather be in Poland right in the heart of it.

No thanks on the job offer. I already have a good one. Also, you may want to revise your posting before you hire someone that will promptly sue you.

Calgarytek

Greetings All ...

I am proud to say that I am a graduate of the Polish for Foreigners program at Lodz University. I am happy to tell you what I know and what I remember about the program.

1. The teachers are all professors at the University. In my case, there were two teachers with PhDs and a third was a PhD candidate. At the University they all involved in either teaching Polish or studying the Polish language. I believe I should say that they are all in the faculty of Polish Philology. You would be very hard pressed to find better qualified individuals from whom you could learn Polish.

2. The course I attended was made up of about 12 or 14 individuals, from a total of 8 or 9 different countries, all of whom spoke at least one or two languages in addition to their native language. (One fellow student spoke a total of 8 languages fluently and Polish was to be number 9.) (As an aside, I want to say also that it has been 8 years since I took this program and I still correspond with one of my fellow students regularly and two others infrequently.)

3. Classes meet all day, let's say from 9 to 5, but I can't remember the hours for sure. Everyone there, with one or two student exceptions, including the teachers, spoke at least a little English. So, for the first two days, learning was easy for me. However, starting with day 3, nothing was spoken in the classroom other than Polish.

4. The pace is very fast. The material comes at you very fast. There is no doubt that the intent is to get a student involved to the point where he doesn't even think about learning, he just absorbs everything in the learning environment. The class moves on "without time to pick up the sick and the wounded" as one of my high school teachers used to say.

5. I was there because, at that time, I was serious about relocating to Poland. However, I spoke only English, I had never learned a second language, and I wonder now if this program was the proper one for me. It is not cheap. It is not easy. The programs presents ALL of Polish grammar very early on, I believe that the teachers do that so that the student has something to use to structure his learning. For me, all that did was to create a state of massive uncertainty and confusion. I never recovered from it. I was pretty much lost after that. To this day, I speak Polish with basically nouns, grunts and gestures.

6. I believe that university qualified staff, presenting a language at the university level, and in an extremely scholastic manner, may be good for experienced language learners, and people who want to study a language. But, for me, I believe that I would have learned more usable day-to-day Polish by spending the same amount of time at the Irish Pub or in a lovely little coffee shop called Gado Gado.

In addition, I believe that I made a major language mistake when I decided to live by myself. If at all possible, live with a Polish family. Then, after a year or so of learning to speak Polish using the same method that everyone in Poland has used in learning to speak, THEN you can go to Lodz University and expand on the base of Polish that you have. The presenters of this program have overlooked the fact that Polish people learn to speak Polish in a social environment, and do so over a period of six or seven year before they are introduced to an academic explanation of grammar. To begin to learn a person's second language, and to have that second language be Polish, and to study beginning Polish at the Polish for Foreigners program at Lodz University, will certainly present, if I may I say, and in my humble opinion, ... a challenge of a lifetime.

Should you go there, and should you have a presenter by the name of Gregor, please say hello. Ask him to sit down one day with his guitar and teach you Polish folk songs. That has turned out to be the one part of the program that will stay fresh in my memory as long as I live.

Best wishes to students of Polish everywhere. There are no people on earth for whom I have more respect than people who attempt to speak Polish As A Second Language.

John W
Bloomington, Indiana

I hope he comes back...

Merged:LODZ - NEW SCHOOL OF POLISH FOR FOREIGNERS IN LODZ!

For people who want to learn polish in Lodz - NEW PRIVATE SCHOOL OF POLISH!!!

The purpose of the School is to prepare foreigners to participate in everyday language communication and to start learning, studying or working in Poland.

Name: Polonus Lodz School of Polish for Foreigners

Check school's offer on website!!

Good luck!! :)

Looks interesting, thanks for that. Have you any idea what websites to look at for work in Poland for someone who does not speak Polish yet? I am a native English speaker.

There's no work in Poland for non-Polish speakers who only speak English.

If you want to work in Poland, you should know althought the basic words and a little Polish grammar. Best for you is monthly course of polish.

Polonus Lodz School of Polish for Foreigners offers a special discounts: 10% for the first 5 persons which sing up for a course.
You can also get a special discounts:
If you together with your friend sign up for a course at the same time: 5% discount (Friend Discount)
If you sign up with another member from your immediate family: 5% discount (Family Discount)
If you want to continue your education in Polonus School: 5% discount!

It's very good for people who want to learn polish language in LODZ!!! :))

In my opinion new school of polish - Polonus Lodz School of Polish for Foreigners - has great offer eg. courses of everyday comunication or courses of general language or courses for students preparing to study in Poland (9-months)! Thanks to it you can eg. study or work in LODZ :)

What a load of crap.

I agree, I think that Polonus Lodz School of Polish for Foreigners is great idea! School has a professional website and very interesting offer!!!!!!!!

Yes Wojt, all useful information are located on the main page of School Polonus! :)

Thank you!

Do you really think anybody would fall for that? It shows that your school considers its students or prospective students to be suckers.

What a load of crap that is!I came here six months ago and speak hardly anything in Polish.I found a job within two weeks and im now a fully certified welder (paid for by the company).i take to my hand almost 3000 zl a month and thats in a small town where things are reletively cheap.maybe i was lucky,who knows but thats how ive found it.

This School is for people who want to learn Polish so if you live in Poland and you don't speak polish - it's your choose. I think that people who decide to live in Poland should know polish!

Take care!

And I know that there are far better schools than yours (especially schools which don't assume that prospective clients are complete cretins).

Opinion is not fair.

Neither is spamming this website. You get what you give.

Everyone has own opinion :) Take care :)

Good luck, tis a grand idea;)

And what else does the school offer besides traditional language learning? Do you have some other incentives for students?

Indeed, why would anyone go there when the University of Lodz has a very, very well regarded department that teaches Polish to foreigners?

No sense whatsoever in studying in a private school in Lodz - the university does a great job there.

taking into account my experience, private language schools are much better than public schools preparing to certificates and diplomas. I wouldn't question that!

megg

School offers eg. city walks with Polish language, because the main purpose is to teach a practical Polish language. School helps you eg. rent a flat, get around city, find laundrette, hairdresser, do the shopping, buy a train, bus or plane ticket, catch a taxi and find the best polish dishes. Moreover School shows Lodz best tourist spots and interesting ways to spend free time :)