Language training organization. The
company was started by Mr. Maximilian D. Berlitz in 1878 when he founded the first Berlitz
school in
Providence,
Rhode Island. Currently Berlitz is owned by a Japanese publishing
company called
Benesse.
The company comprises several branches: language instruction,
translation and
interpreting,
cross-cultural training, and publishing. The
language instruction part involves more than 400 language schools, including 80 in the U.S.A.
The Berlitz
method of
language training is a
conversational method. Students learn by listening, repeating and speaking, similar to the acquisition of the first language by children. The goal is to enable the student to use the new language in real-life situations, rather than to teach grammar and theory. The methodology aims to be fast, effective and fun.