studentsineurope

A.C.L.E. – Live and Work in Italy this Summer And Get Paid For It!

Relaxing in Italy

by Katherine Pittore

As an American student one of the greatest hurdles to European travel can be the cost. More adventurous students might try to find a job, but that can be an exercise in futility, since most jobs require European Union citizenship, or at least proof that you can work in Europe (which is near impossible to get unless you are fluent in five languages and hold multiple degrees). Even the most common option, finding work teaching English abroad is often not a possibility in Europe, as it would be in other regions such as Asia and Latin America, because most of these jobs go to British citizens who are both native speakers and able to work in Europe. What, then, is an American student who wants to work in Europe to do?

One option is to apply to A.C.L.E. an organization which runs summer camps throughout Italy and recruits young people to serve as English instructors during the summer.

A.C.L.E. strives to create a fun and enriching language learning environment and encourages the use of skits, song, and games to help students master the English language. Because of this goal, the application forces you to think of creative lesson plans and songs which you could use in the classroom. If you are accepted you are invited to participate in a distance learning course which includes creating detailed lesson plans and coming up with several games to play in the classroom. You will also have to answer questions about what you would do in various situations you might encounter. If you are successful in completing the distance learning course you will be offered a tentative offer of employment, which is contingent upon your completion of the TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) orientation.

Best friends

TESL orientation is offered four times during the summer, twice in early June, once in early July, and once at the end of August in the town of San Remo, which is about an hour from Nice, France. You pick the orientation that works best with your schedule. The orientation lasts 4-5 days and includes topics such as cross cultural issues, how to teach English to Italian speakers, voice modulation, using games and skits in the classroom and other teaching strategies. If you are successful (very few are not) you will receive a placement at a camp. There are two types of camps, city camps, day camps where the students return home in the evening, and summer camps, which are residential, and instructors and students live at the camp for a period of two weeks. While working at a city camp you will live with a family who will provide meals and transportation to and from camp each day. When working at a residential camp you live in a hotel with the campers.

Costs and Pay

You are responsible for your flight to and from Italy and must pay 150 Euros for orientation which includes room and board. You are paid 220-240 Euros a week (depending on the type of camp you are working at, those at residential camps make slightly more) in addition to housing and food. You are paid at the end of your service, but advances can be arranged if you are short on cash and need some to get by. A.C.L.E. will pay for your transportation to each camp but you are responsible for any additional travel. Depending how long you plan to work at the camps you may have time to travel in the middle of the summer or take a few weeks and travel after camp ends.

Basic Requirement

Individuals must be native English speakers 20-30 years of age. Applicants must have completed at least one year of university and have a valid passport or be able to prove that they have begun the process of applying for one at the time of application. A.C.L.E. also requires that teachers are motivated and genuinely interested in alternative teaching methods and working with children.

Teaching at A.C.L.E. is a lot of work and you must be prepared with lesson plans and fun activities and be excited (or at least seem excited) about teaching English. Participants receive many rewards including living in beautiful locations, learning more about Italian culture, living with an Italian family, having the opportunity to impact the lives of young people, and meeting people from around the word as instructors come from Australia, England, Canada, and the United States.

If you are ready to work hard, and are flexible, this is Italy after all, nothing ever goes quite as you expect it to, and have an open mind, you should consider applying to A.C.L.E.. You can work for a little as two weeks or for as long as three months (depending on how many camps are running and how good an instructor you are). Past participants have suggested assuming that you will want to stay longer then you originally thought and to buy your plane ticket accordingly. If you are worried about the unknown or the challenges of working in a new country, don’t be. Will everything go perfectly? Of course not, but that is all part of the adventure.

More information and the application can be found at: http://www.acle.org

A Wesleyan University student, Katherine spent the summer of 2007 working in Italy. She is currently teaching English in Viet Nam.