An interview with Ruth Pringle who runs English conversation holidays in Scotland. Read on to find out more
Abigail Fulbrook: Okay, welcome back to the Elevate blog. I’m here with Ruth Pringle today. Uh Ruth, you’re in Scotland, I think.
ruth pringle: Yeah. Yeah. In central Scotland in Perth.
Abigail Fulbrook: And is that location important for your teaching? English teaching?
ruth pringle: I love that question. It is so important. When I started our language school, um yeah, it was just I picked Perth because of its beautiful landscapes. Um it’s under visited in terms of tourism. So it attracts a lot of um quite posh like it’s full of posh luxury hotels, but there’s very few people visiting it in terms of just um on a on a more regular budget exploring the landscape that it has. Um and then also lastly, friendliness. Um Perthshire recently got voted the friendliest region on Earth. Um and that’s really important for people um who want to start conversations and people remark on it. They just it’s so funny when I pick people up from the airport and we’re driving and then we can go the main road or we can go the scenic route through the hills and that’s following a one-way track. And then when we’re driving and there’s another car coming, we’re like, “No, after you. No, after you”, cheery waves. So even before people arrive, they have a flavor of just how generous and big-hearted our community in Perthshire is.
Abigail Fulbrook: That’s lovely because what you do is a bit different to other teachers in Elevate. You have language immersion holidays.
ruth pringle: Yeah, I’m starting to call them language conversation holidays now because the immersion is a little bit loaded in terms of its methodology. Whereas, um, what I’m trying to do is abandon quite a lot of traditional English language teaching and not even think about it as teaching but creating. Um, so it’s a place where people can come to feel safe, and to speak English. So I create the conversations. So that’s with my friends, with peers in the community, with local businesses. Um, and so there’s lots of different places to to start practicing and speaking English. Um, but the idea of immersion is really you’re dropped into it and you’re alone and and you you’re kind of you have to cope. It’s sink or swim. Um, I prefer doing it like real world English coaching. So I’m there, I’m by your side. Um, I am part of the conversation. um you get plenty of talk time, but I’m there to sort of nudge the conversation into different subjects or uh if you get stuck, help you find a word or um or be kind of be a buffer because when we’re talking to the public, who knows? I mean, there’s cities all over the world that you like New York is famous for it. If you try and stop somebody and ask a question in the street, they can be rude to you. So, um that’s a bit too much immersion.
People who are using their English as a second language feel a bit fragile sometimes about taking that risk. I make it safe. So I create a safe place for lots of conversation.
Abigail Fulbrook: That’s nice. Okay. So, people are coming to you for a week or two weeks?
ruth pringle: Or normally a week. Sometimes two weeks.
Abigail Fulbrook: Okay.
ruth pringle: that’s a good time frame for for really this kind of it’s I think of it as a bit of a treat a bit of a retreat as well. Um it’s it’s tiring using English all day every day. So even when it’s fun, like I have people say, “I’m tired and I don’t know why.” I’m like, “Well, you’re speaking English 10 hours a day.” And they’re like, “Oh no, but it doesn’t feel like work.” But you know, your brain is working. So a week’s kind of perfect for this. We fit in lots of activities that are designed to be relaxing and restful and peaceful, so you’re constantly being rejuvenated and replenished. But um yeah, it’s it’s designed for um a short burst of English holiday.
Abigail Fulbrook: Nice. So what kind of people are are taking holidays with you? Are they business people, creative people?
ruth pringle: Yeah. And mostly professional people. Well, all professional people. In the beginning I was expecting to attract more creative people because the way that I deliver this course is is quite it draws on my creative skills and it draws on my creative energy and my love of culture. Um but actually what I’m finding it’s attracting people who are professionals living in cities who are just short of time in nature. They have all so far had a desire to be creative. like they come and they say, “Oh, I’m not a creative person.” And they’re like, “Well, actually, I like drawing flowers.” Or, “Oh, I’ve always wanted to try mono printing.” Or like or even photography. They’ve got an interest in taking photographs. So, I mean, I genuinely think most people are creative. They say, “Oh, I’m not creative.” And then cook an amazing meal. And you go, you’re creative. But they’re not people who describe themselves as creatives. Um, but certainly using that creative energy is part of the secret of unlocking the English because um, if you’re making something, if you’re doing something with your hands, even if you’re washing a lettuce, just imagine washing a lettuce and the action that takes your your mind and your hands are are thinking about the lettuce. And that’s enough to quiet the part of your brain that is fearful of English. It’s not enough to stop you speaking, but it’s enough to quieten the little part of your brain that goes, “You can’t do this.” Which so many English learners have. So a transformational.
Abigail Fulbrook: So, what you’re doing is if I come on holiday with you, I’m not going to sit down and do lessons at the table. Is that right?
ruth pringle: you’re not going to come and sit in lessons at the table. Um, it’s more uh it’s more about exploring Scotland. So, when you book with me, we start having a conversation about things you like and don’t like. So, um it’s not the same holiday for for anyone really. Um, some people want to walk 10 or 15 miles a day and we can build a holiday around that. For other people, that’s their worst nightmare and they just want to visit galleries and museums and sit in cafes and drink hot chocolate. We can do that, too. So, it’s really um I find out what your interests are and then I find out or I work out what’s slightly outside of your comfort zone in terms of um take putting you in situations that are new and familiar. out. Um, not in a scary way, just in a um,
I think that English language practice and um, development works best when you’re not doing something that you would ordinarily do because your your senses are are more receptive. You’re you’re you’re thinking about where you are. You’re really you’re open. You’re receiving. Um, your guard is down. You’re enchanted by what you’re looking at. All of these things help you love English.
Uh so lessons, no. Um in terms of language acquisition, no there is there’s still a language acquisition element. Um so in terms of uh working out, we well set one or two language goals for the week. No more than that. Um but might be you’re not comfortable using the present perfect. It might be that you you’ve only ever learned to use will for the future and we want to soften that slightly. We’ll describe the goals and then as we go through the day, opportunities, not in front of people, but maybe when we’re together in the car or afterwards when we’re having a meal, um, we’ll look at the different ways of saying the things, the the conversation, we’ll review some of the new vocabulary. Um, I do lots of sketches and drawings throughout the the holiday as well. So, we kind of keep a visual diary. Um, and then that’s where all the new vocabulary gets noted down. So, there’s definitely um tangible elements of language acquisition and language progress, but the goal is really to re-engage and fall in love with your English and be a more confident speaker through the process.
Abigail Fulbrook: I can see that. That sounds great. So, how do you have any examples of um students who’ve worked with you? Any memorable moments with them?
ruth pringle: You know, I just this is such a small this is such a small story, but I think it’s proof of concept. So, I do have quite a lot of returning guests. And it’s not because I don’t promise to fix everybody’s English in in one week. And if anybody is promising that, be afraid. But do you get people to a place that they feel comfortable and they feel at home here? So we talked about being in Crieff in Perthshire and it’s a small town and how, even after a week people start feeling like they belong here. They see people in the street that they’ve met at a workshop or we’ve already had a conversation and wave at each other and then that’s just part of feeling like they belong. But the story I want to share is one of my learners who um she came one year and part of the uh activities I had lined up was to go to a concert. So it’s a a folk singer and he was singing songs. So and songs about Scottish culture and history and she loved it but I didn’t think too much more about it. It was part of the parcel of activities. And then fast forward one year and she’s back and then we’re playing music in my car and she puts this song on and starts singing along in English and I said, “Oh, who’s this? I don’t recognize this.” And she’s like, “This is this is the concert I went to last year.” And she’d been listening to his Scottish singer, Dougie McLean. And so like she’d been listening to his music. She’d loved it. She was listening to it. She knew the lyrics of these songs. and she’s back in Scotland in my car singing all these songs about returning to Scotland and it’s just, like that’s that’s how it works. That’s when you know something is working. That is. Yeah. It was just it was a beautiful moment.
Abigail Fulbrook: Yeah, that’s really nice. Yeah. To see that it’s in a way, intangible input
ruth pringle: Yeah. It’s not it’s not easy to measure. Um, I just I plant tiny tiny seeds. So many seeds. Um, they’re not all they’re not all going to take and grow. Um, but you know, the the results of just having a few of those um is so powerful.
It’s and for everyone it’s different. For some people, like for her it was music and and um for someone else it might be recipes and cooking together and just the repetition because we eat meals um together and we prepare them together. So um I mean even just that you’ll notice that so many of your professionals with their professional language have got no vocabulary for in a kitchen, no phrasal verbs for being in a kitchen. And you might say, well why is that important? because they need it to make presentations. But that that language in a kitchen is absolutely applicable to socializing and um to using English in informal situations like you can present statistics, but you can’t ask somebody to pass the salt. They’re both really important.
Abigail Fulbrook: Exactly. Yeah, definitely. Okay, Ruth, I think I have an idea, but why is it what do you love about teaching? What What keeps you being a teacher?
ruth pringle: Yeah, I don’t know where to start. Um, I get to share things that I really love, which I think that’s probably obvious, but um, I am I’m so passionate about Scotland and its nature and its environment, and I want people to visit it and to share the landscape, but not in a not in a way that is intrusive onto nature. And so the way that I share the landscape, which is part of the the fabulous way of unlocking your English, is sort of through invitation. So I work with like um people whose profession is to protect wildlife, to plant trees, and they become part of the holiday. They become part of the story.
So I feel like um not only am I helping people with their English transformation, but in exchange my business and my my vision is kind of a more positive one for sharing culture and protecting landscape and a real positive form of tourism and I’m just increasingly keen to be an ambassador for that.
Abigail Fulbrook: Yeah, it’s really important, isn’t it? Great. Thank you very much, Ruth. That’s really nice to hear from you today.
ruth pringle: My pleasure. Thank you so much for having me on to talk about this.
You can contact Ruth through the Elevate directory of English language teachers here.
