Our Year 12 Spanish students completed immersive work experience placements in Comillas, Cantabria. Throughout the week, they lived and worked in a rural, Spanish-only environment, gaining real-world language practice across diverse roles, including hotels, restaurants, pharmacies, schools, and even a local radio station. The students embraced the experience wholeheartedly, developing fluency, cultural awareness, and confidence, highlighted by hosting a live radio interview. The trip was a transformative milestone in their Spanish studies, leaving lasting memories and deepened passion for the language and culture.
and how the students fared in their new working environments:
“During the half-term break, our Year 12 Spanish students completed their work experience placements in Comillas, a small town in Cantabria.
This type of experience offered students the invaluable opportunity to fully immerse themselves not only in Spanish culture, but particularly in the lifestyle of the north of Spain, known for its more rural atmosphere and where, it could be said, English-speaking residents are few and far between. This meant students found themselves in a truly immersive context where Spanish was the only language of communication, whether with local people or with the teachers accompanying them.
The placements included a wide variety of settings: hotel reception and housekeeping, restaurants, souvenir shops, research in a delicatessen, cafés, pharmacies, a radio station, a state school and a private school. Each student had previously chosen their own placement based on their personal interests: some selected restaurants to interact with locals and learn about daily life, others opted for hotel kitchens to discover traditional Spanish dishes, and some chose pharmacies to gain technical and useful vocabulary for future careers in science or medicine.
Our students took on these roles with great enthusiasm. Below is the list of who took part in the programme, along with their chosen placements:
- Bar – Alessandro (SFS2), Nathan (SFH2), Cara (L6 MS) and Olivia (L6 CS),
- Hotel – Joe (SFJ2) and Sophie (L6 MO)
- School Isabella (L6 MO), Jessica (L6 KP), Maryam (L6 HS) and Yasmin (L6 PW)
- Pharmacy – Saahil (SFM1) and Lily (L6 HR)
- Radio station – Toby (SFM1) and Sophia (L6 MO)
- Restaurant – Dean (SFR3)
- Souvenir and gift shops – Vikas (SFJ1)
It was both surprising and inspiring to see how quickly the students embraced the experience, speaking Spanish among themselves as soon as they set foot in the airport in London, constantly asking questions to improve their fluency. Expressions such as “como vacas mirando el tren pasar,” “no meter la pata,” “tirar una caña,” and “salir de la zona de confort” stood out in the presentations the students delivered at the end of the week in Cantabria, showcasing not only their learning but their growing cultural awareness. In addition, the students had the opportunity to meet Spanish students of their same age, learn more in detail about the education system in Spain, and explore the city of Santander alongside them before enjoying some pinchos, a traditional northern Spanish snack.
Two of the students, Toby and Sophia, even organised and hosted a live radio interview with their peers on the local station, a broadcast that their families back home were able to tune into. You can listen to the interview and can also watch a video of the recording.
They did an outstanding job and truly raised the bar through their hard work, dedication, kindness, and genuine passion for all things Spanish. Their confident and spontaneous use of the subjunctive left more than a few jaws on the floor!
We teachers could not have been prouder, and with good reason. There were even a few tears from the organisers of the Links into Spanish programme, with whom the students bonded very well and showed great respect from day one.
Without a doubt, this trip has marked a before and after in their Spanish studies. We are certain that, given the chance, every single student would do it all over again.”
A huge thank you to Mr Simarro, Mr Smeaton, Ms Curtis, who accompanied the group throughout the week.
Related posts
See all posts
