Friendly, experienced tutor (10+ years) – Spanish, French, Italian for exams, fluency, and confidence

Find out more about Ruqayyah

• 1) Do you speak this language fluently because of your origins or because a teacher inspired you to learn?

  1) My mother arrived in the UK from Pakistan as a baby, part of the Windrush generation. Her mother was from Uttar Pradesh and her father was Sindhi. She taught me to recite Qur’anic verses in Fusha Arabic and to speak broken Urdu. More than the languages themselves, she gave me the discipline to learn them, which I’m still grateful for.

• 2) Can you name a living, historical or fictional character that you think is the emblematic representative of the language's culture?

  2) Languages carry both art and power. They’ve given us poetry, music, literature – and they've been tools of empire. With French, I think of Aimé Césaire, who used it to challenge colonialism and assert Black identity. With Spanish, José del Valle’s work on its political history. With Italian, writers like Giovanni Pirelli and Franco Fortini, who brought anticolonial questions into industrial-era literature.

• 3) Is there a typical word, phrase, tradition or behavior in the language that you particularly like?

  3) In French, I love bouquiner – to read for pleasure. In Spanish, sobremesa – that long, warm conversation after a meal. In Italian, abbiocco – the drowsy bliss after you’ve eaten well. (You may notice a slight theme with the latter two!)

• 4) Why does speaking this language matter to you?

  4) Languages keep the brain young and open doors to other people’s worlds. I’ve always felt we’re here to learn and experience; every language gives you more people to learn from. I’m also fascinated by how we acquire languages as children – it’s a window into how we learn to be human.

• 5) What is the main difficulty in learning this language and what can help the process of learning?

  5) The hardest part is finding the balance between discipline and fun. You need enough structure to learn the rules, and enough play to stay motivated. Hope helps too – if you can picture yourself speaking fluently, it’s easier to keep going... enjoying the journey is usually the quickest way to progress!

• 6) Provide a valuable anecdote related to your language learning or your days at school.

  6) During my degree, I worked as a journalist in Málaga. One weekend, a friend and I hiked into the Sierra Nevada to watch the Perseids. We camped under a sky thick with comet trails; experiences like that are why I’m so glad I learned languages!

• 7) How has travel or a specific trip helped you to increase your skill and knowledge of the language?

  7) Studying at the Sorbonne was terrifying and brilliant. Learning Italian and Spanish through French pushed my brain to switch between languages quickly – and that flexibility still serves me now.

• 8) What makes you a Superprof in language?

  8) I don’t have a sales pitch – just a genuine love for teaching. Helping someone gain the confidence to use a new language is one of the most rewarding things I know. I keep lessons lively and human; we learn best when we’re enjoying ourselves! For me, language isn’t just information, it’s what keeps us connected.