testimonials

Portuguese as a heritage language
Portuguese tutor in Brazil

I teach students of many different cultural and linguistic backgrounds and most of them tend to be native speakers of English and other European languages such as Spanish, Italian, German and French. But I also had Japanese and Chinese students, including those from Macau, a region in China historically connected to Portugal.

 

I’ve had the pleasure to teach Portuguese as a heritage language to learners looking to reconnect and understand their identities. Some choose Portuguese as part of their university degree, others want to grow professionally by acquiring a new language and set of skills. I have students who want to communicate in their partner’s language or be part of a new family through the relationships of their sons and daughters.

My students are now able to communicate as a local with their neighbours, their gardener and their baker as part of a new and exciting life in Brazil, Portugal, Angola or Mozambique.

 

As a teacher, I am happy and grateful that they have trusted me to help them reach their goals and I am proud of my students’ achievements. Please, take a moment to read about the experience of some of my students with their Portuguese lessons.

Ho avuto il piacere di frequentare le lezioni di Rafael durante il mio Erasmus in Inghilterra ed è stato uno dei miei corsi preferiti in assoluto! Ho seguito lezioni interattive e coinvolgenti, che mi hanno consentito di acquisire una buona padronanza della lingua ed un buon livello di sicurezza, nonostante fosse il mio primo corso di portoghese. Il suo metodo di insegnamento è molto efficace e le sue capacità relazionali sono una vera marcia in più. Assolutamente consigliato!
Chiara e1595484697821
Chiara Corbi
Philip Morris International, Lausanne (Univ. of Manchester)
My name is Ellen Harding, I live in Brighton and work in recruitment for the video games industry. I studied beginner’s level Brazilian Portuguese at the University of Sussex with Rafael Argenton. I chose to study Portuguese because my boyfriend is from Brazil and I would love to feel confident enough to speak to him and his family in their native language. I studied in my own time before taking up lessons but what I found especially useful and unique about learning in a class environment was that I could let go of my insecurities and practise with other learners. Rafael’s classes were incredibly helpful in supporting my learning. We were given material at a comfortable yet challenging rate as well as Brazilian music (a great way to practise listening!) and web resources such as Rosetta Stone to supplement the course. Rafael was a fantastic teacher, immediately understanding my and my classmate’s level of Portuguese and tailoring the classes accordingly.
Ellen Harding e1595485090301
Ellen Harding
Recruiter for the Games Industry, Brighton (Univ. of Sussex)
Avant de partir pendant un an au Brésil, j’ai voulu commencer le portugais à l’Université de Manchester. Rafael a été le parfait tremplin pour apprendre les bases de la langue en étant toujours très pédagogue et disponible. Après six mois de cours, en arrivant au Brésil, j’étais moins perdu et j’ai pu m’adapter beaucoup plus rapidement. Le portugais est une langue merveilleuse qui permet avant tout de comprendre une autre culture et de rencontrer de nouvelles personnes. Merci Rafael pour ton aide!
Valentin
Valentin Allard
Strategy Consultant, Paris (Univ. of Manchester)
Soy Luis Tornadijo, español. Estoy trabajando en la industria del fútbol en un club profesional. Mi experiencia con estudiar portugués fue simplemente maravillosa. Estudié en Manchester, con otros estudiantes extranjeros. Rafa fue un maestro increíble. Adapta sus clases a todos los niveles al mismo tiempo. Para mí fue más fácil, porque mi idioma materno es bastante similar, pero todos los estudiantes podían aprender. Me sentí bien, porque no es lo mismo entender portugués que hablar portugués. Ahora estoy trabajando en una atmósfera global. Viajo varias veces a Portugal. Gracias a poder hablar portugués, estoy trabajando sin problemas cuando estoy allí. Recomiendo estudiar portugués para todos los estudiantes, pero para los latinos será más fácil y podrías hablar un nuevo idioma en unos pocos meses.
Luis Tornadijo e1595485131879
Luis Tornadijo
Football Industry, Portugal/Spain (Univ. of Manchester)