School Facts

Name: LAL Malta
Address: Matthew Pulis Street, Sliema SLM 3052, Malta

Tel: +356 2132 0381
Fax: +356 2134 3332
Email: malta@lalgroup.com

Location: The school is located in a quiet area of Sliema, Malta, within a few minutes of the sea, the harbour, shops and restaurants. Just five minutes walk from the main school overlooking Sliema harbour lies our dedicated centre for Young Learners. In preparation for the summer 2008 season, the centre will be renovated to create a dedicated learning environment for teenagers. LAL Malta also runs an adult summer school in the lovely village of Ghajnsielem, on Malta's sister island Gozo.

Recognised by: the Department of Education and is a full member of FELTOM, the Federation of English Language Teaching Organisations Malta.

LAL Malta main school, Sliema
Facilities:
• Reception
• Lounge
• Bookshop
• Internet café
• Cafeteria
• TV/Video room
• Self Access/CALL centre
• Student Welfare & Info office
• Snacks and drinks vending machines.

The Self-Access centre is where students can make use of various learning aids including CALL (computer assisted language learning) multi-media software programmes, reading books, tape cassettes, etc free of charge.

Internet café - Currently 16 computers available for internet access with a charge of LM 1 per hour.

Other Information:
• Private school with 120 classrooms, founded in 1985
• Number of Teachers: Full time 40, Part time 140
• Maximum number of students LAL Malta can accommodate 900
• Average number of students in summer 700
• Average of number students in winter 250

LAL Malta young learner centre
Facilities:
• Reception
• Video Room
• Tape Recorders
• Student Welfare & Info Office
• Snack and Drinks vending machines

Other Information:
• Private school with 60 classrooms
• Number of Teachers:
• Full Time - Nil
• Part Time - 60

Public holidays in 2008 – Jan 1, March 19, 21 & 31, May 1, Aug 15, Sep 8, Dec 22 - Jan 4 (Christmas Break)

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Class Information

Teaching Methodology
Our students want to be able to use English both accurately and fluently. Our methodology combines the best of traditional language teaching and the latest developments in teaching techniques. Students learn relevant language, which they can put to immediate practical use.

We teach all four-language skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking) according to the students’ needs. Carefully selected and personalised fluency activities, such as role-plays, allow students to improve their pronunciation and speak with confidence in a wide variety of situations.

We also encourage students to develop effective learning strategies, which enable them to continue learning outside the classroom.

We offer students the opportunity to discuss their progress with their teachers regularly, and all students are encouraged to do appropriate homework, on a daily basis, to improve their language.

Our classes
We place importance on the students’ learning environment and therefore keep our class sizes small and attempt to have an appropriate balance of nationalities in each class.

A sample day for a student following our General English course may include the following:

First two lessons
Language input, either new language (including grammar and vocabulary), or practice of language the student has some knowledge of, but is having difficulty with.

Second two lessons
Either further communicative practice in using the language they have learnt in the previous lessons, or related topic-based practice in the four skills.

If the student has booked either the Minigroup, English Intensive, Minigroup Plus, Business English Plus or General English Plus course, their afternoon classes will place special emphasis on oral communication. The private lessons in the afternoon (Minigroup Plus, Business English Plus and General English Plus) provide an opportunity for the student to look at themes connected to their occupational, academic and personal interests.

Our Teachers
LAL schools only employ teachers with a recognised teaching qualification such as the UCLES Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults (CELTA) or Trinity Certificate in teaching English to speakers of other languages.

Many of our teachers also possess the RSA or Trinity Diploma and some a Masters degree in ESOL, EFL or Applied Linguistics, while others have a post-graduate certificate of education (PGCE).

First Monday
On the first Monday morning students are expected to come to the LAL Malta reception at the time to be given on their welcome pack envelope.

All new students will be welcomed by our LAL Malta staff. The students will be assessed to determine their grammatical knowledge and fluency of spoken English. They will then be placed into classes with students of a similar aptitude. After testing, they will be provided with a full orientation session describing the school, the courses and the location. Students are introduced to the Director of Studies and the staff who are responsible for their welfare and leisure activities.

Course Books
We provide students with one of the following textbooks, appropriate for their level and age as part of their course:
· Headway beginner
· Headway elementary
· Headway pre-intermediate
· Headway intermediate
· Headway upper-intermediate
· Headway advanced
· Master class series (Examination courses)
· (IELTS Examination courses)
· New Business Matters

It is recommended that students bring a dictionary and writing materials, however the school’s bookshop has a variety of these on sale as well as other EFL books and cassettes. All students are given a certificate of attendance at the end of the course.

Class Times
Group courses are provided in the morning. Private 1-to-1 lessons (part of the General English Plus) are usually taken in the afternoon.

Morning lessons
Class 09:00 – 10:30
Break 10:30 – 11:00
Class 11:00 – 12:30

Afternoon lessons
13:00 – 14:30
14:30 – 15:00
15:00 – 16:30

The times may vary in certain situations, for example, if there is a public holiday during the students’ stay or depending on the number of new students enrolling in a particular week.

Class Size
The maximum size for all adult courses at LAL Malta is 10 students.
We accept a maximum of 12 students in our Young Learners programme.
In the case of an insufficient number of students at a particular level we reserve the right to provide students with another course.

Pricelists
• Our Prices show the cost of tuition and accommodation separately.

• Tuition
• Tuition Materials
• Registration fee
• Certificate of Attendance
• Welcome Orientation & Drinks
• Welcome Dinner
• Malta Experience Multi-vision show
• Entrance to LAL Malta’s Beach Club
• Membership at local Gym
• Taxes (where applicable)

NOT included in the fees
• Accommodation
• Transfers
• Personal Pocket Money
• Travel & Medical Insurance
• Local Transport
• All excursions/ activities except LAL Malta’s Welcome Party on Monday evening

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City Information

Location
Sliema is a popular cosmopolitan seaside resort just 3 miles from the capital Valletta and half an hour’s drive from the international airport Sliema is a cosmopolitan seaside resort. Ideally located close to the promenade join the locals as they enjoy the daily evening stroll around the bay to lively St Julian’s and its multitude of restaurants, bars, roadside cafes and discos!

Population of Malta: 450.000

Transportation
Malta has a good and inexpensive bus system. There are regular services connecting towns and villages with Valletta, where the main bus terminus is located. The bus ticket costs €0.48c. there are also a number of special direct bus services from Sliema to a number of places such as Bugibba (bus no 70), Marsaxlokk (bus no 627), Rabat (bus number 65), Golden Bay (bus no 652), Cirkewwa (Gozo Ferry terminal bus no 645) etc. the bus fare for these bus rides costs €1.20.

Students also have the possibility to bus a 1, 3, 5 or 7-day ticket. With these tickets the students have an unlimited use of the bus services. The costs for these tickets vary between €3.60 - €14.40.

Some city areas like Paceville offer a late bus routes services and there is also general information on how to get around in Malta by bus including bus route map & special weekly bus fares.

Local Time
GMT + 1
Summer Time (GMT + 2) is applicable in Malta as in other European countries.

Climate

Young Learners Programme Information: Easter and Summer

Course Information
The first Monday is regarded as information and introduction day and all students take the classification test.
Every student will be issued with a card to be used as their identification during their stay. It will also provide important information concerning the name, address and telephone number of the student’s host family and emergency number of the school. Please ensure that your students are aware that they must carry their ‘Student Card’ at all times.

During the introductory morning the new students will be able to meet the key people involved in their stay such as the Activity Programme Manager, Welfare Assistants and Activity Staff and are shown the important, relevant aspects of the town i.e. Banks, Post Office, Bus Station, meeting points for the school etc.

Looking after our students
Students are met by our Airport Representative upon arrival in Malta and provided with a Welcome Guide with practical information about our school and Malta. Our experienced team of activity leaders organizes and supervises the daily programme of activities and ensures that students have a safe and enjoyable stay with us.

Procedures and Supervision
The activities take place both during the day and in the evenings, and are supervised by our Activity Leaders and qualified guides also accompany some.

The Activity Leaders are also available for the students to approach if they have any questions or problems of any nature (host families, illness and general information). The school has a Student Welfare coordinator and a team of assistants to deal with such problems and this team is on call 24 hours a day to handle all sorts of emergencies.

Activity Staff are responsible for the organization and the welfare of the students in their particular group. The groups are formed from five or six classes, each class containing no more than twelve students. The groups are generally of mixed nationalities in order to encourage the students to speak in English rather than their mother tongue and to make new friends and learn about other culture.

Absentee Lists
Activity Leaders will check attendance during lessons and if applicable, will establish the reasons for any absenteeism with the host family. If the same student is absent without a valid reason for two days, the agency (or parents) will be informed.

Included in the Teenager Programme package price:
• Home stay/ residence/ hotel accommodation in sharing triple or quadruple rooms.
• Full-board Basis including a packed lunch and water with meals.
• Tuition (20 lessons per week)
• Tuition Materials – Inside Out Series (Mac Millan)
• Airport Transfers (arrival and departure)
• Meet and Greet Service by LAL Malta’s Airport Representatives
• Activity Programme
• Activity Leaders’ supervision
• Transport to school
• 24-hour Welfare support
• Taxes (where applicable)

NOT included in the fees
• Personal Pocket Money
• Travel & Medical Insurance
• Local Transport (if required)
• Additional excursions/ activities

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Advice for young students

These are some of the most important rules, which are included in the Student Guide for Young Learners.

1. If something happens to you, please inform your host family and the school as soon as possible (e.g. theft, illness, accident etc.). You will find the telephone numbers on your student card.

2. If you have a problem concerning the school, teacher, host family or activities, please contact your group leader or the Student Welfare Co-ordinator at the school.

3. Although Malta is safe, you should not walk alone in the evenings, only in groups.

4. You should always carry your student card with you at all times. If you lose your student card you can get a replacement from the school.

5. Passports, airline tickets, travellers' cheques and large amounts of money should always be kept at home, locked in your suitcase or looked after by your host family or your foreign group leader.

6. Please tell your host family where you are going and at what time you will return.

7. If you damage anything belonging to their host family or the school, you are responsible and will have to pay for it.

ALL RULES ARE FOR THE STUDENTS OWN SAFETY AND WELL-BEING. PLEASE RESPECT THEM AND ENJOY YOUR STAY WITH US.

Malta International Airport is served by incoming flights (Air Malta and other European major carriers) with regular flights from hubs such as Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Gothenburg, Istanbul, London Heathrow, Milan and Rome. One of the most convenient options is Rome with two daily flights and flight time of just one hour and a half.

Transfer time to Sliema: 30 minutes.

LAL Malta provides a transfer service from Malta’s International Airport for students regardless of the time and day of arrival. This is included in the package price. After collecting their luggage, students should pass through the Customs area. Our airport representatives will be waiting for the students, holding a sign with "LAL MALTA” prominently displayed.

Students should show the host family/hotel/apartment address so that our airport representatives can identify them easily.

Please note: It is absolutely essential to send us the exact flight details (date, time, flight number) at least 7 days prior to arrival, to ensure that transfers can be arranged and host families know when to expect the students.

LAL Malta offers a 24-HOUR EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBER: +356-9943 5051

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