The Future of Golf School in Sanya features a team of four western professionals that are PGA affiliated and certified in teaching everyone from beginners to the seasoned golfer the fine points of this celebrated game.
 
Where in Sanya can you learn to play golf while simultaneously upgrading your conversational English? For the answer, one needs to look no further than the Future of Golf facility on the second floor of the Luhuitou Driving Range. Opened just four months ago, it features a team of four western professionals that are PGA affiliated and certified in teaching everyone from beginners to the seasoned golfer the fine points of this celebrated game.

Recently WOS spent an afternoon at the Future of Golf School on the top floor of the Luhuitou Driving Range in Ban Shan Ban Dao. During our visit we had the opportunity to observe a class of young students, an elite student athlete and a private lesson for a spritely grandmother that spoke almost no English.

The group class had seven students in it, average age about nine. The class was made up of kids from the Canadian International School (CIS) and several local Chinese schools. The level of English demonstrated was highly varied but it quickly became apparent they were learning how to understand and take instruction in English. The reason was because all the instructors spoke and taught in English 100% of the time with the support of a trained interpreter present during the instruction plus a trained Western teacher named Holly Cruickshank, who is specifically tasked with helping the kids learn conversational English.

One of the school’s elite students, a fit looking 15 year old named Vera Cao, talked with me about her experience at the school. “When I first started three months ago, we had to go slow. I thought my English was pretty good. Now I think I didn’t understand how much I didn’t know. It was a big surprise. Everyone was very calm and patient with me. I didn’t understand much of what was being said. Mrs. Cruickshank and my Instructors would insist on using English. I soon began to hear and make sense of what they were saying. Having the interpreter here helped me make the connections. Now, I can understand almost everything. I have also learned to ask questions when needed. This daily practice has improved my confidence so much. I was just accepted into two American High Schools. I will choose which one I like and go there next year to study – and now I know how to play golf as well!”

For the spritely grandmother, the experience was different. When interviewed, she commented that “learning English is not important to me, but learning golf from top instructors is. I was a total beginner. The fact that they employ full time interpreters has made it easy for me to learn the game and how to move effectively.”


We asked teacher Holly Cruickshank to talk about the Future of Golf’s instructional philosophy and approach. “For our youth, we have found out their parents want them to be able to speak conversational English for future educational, social and business reasons. We noticed early on that while many had a solid dictionary understanding of English, most of them had diminished conversational skills because they haven’t had the advantage of speaking with native English speakers.”

"We decided we could help them greatly by exposing them to how English is really spoken in conversation and having fun with appropriate words and expressions. Watching these smart young people start to put the pieces together is very rewarding. We never make light of them trying. We always appreciate their efforts to speak because we know how tough it can be. Once they experience some success in communicating, their confidence level goes up quickly in many ways. Several have told me they are having more success communicating with their teachers in school as well. They are more willing to naturally communicate with us and with each other in English. Our kids have made huge strides in a short time.”

So, if you want to work on your English and learn the game of golf simultaneously, stop by and check out the offerings at Future of Golf. Imagine…after you win your first golf tournament your acceptance speech can be in perfect conversational English.

If you are intrigued by the Future of Golf offerings, they will be happy to have you come by their state-of-the-art facility on the Second Floor of the Luhuitou Golf Course Driving Range. For English talk with Dr. Ron at 185-6669-5713 and for Chinese talk with Stephen Xu at 185-6669-7848. They can also be reached by email at ronc@futureofgolf.cn and stephenx@futueofgolf.cn

SOURCE: Future of Golf School in Sanya