A teacher's perspective
Flexibility is an important component of successfully learning a language in this day and age of pressing commitments and rushed schedules. Many people are eager to learn a new foreign language or wish to improve or refresh their level in a previously acquired tongue, but simply find that they lack the time. As a result, language schools all over the world have adopted new approaches to ensure that they are able to reach as many prospective students as possible. These include intensive one-to-one tuition, learning languages online or even by SMS.
Learning languages over the phone has emerged as a popular trend as it can incorporate a land line, an internet connection and a service like Skype, or even through mobile or cell phones. It's a flexible approach for students in that pretty much everyone has access to telephone services of some sort. The best thing about web-based access is that it's more often than not free* to contact a qualified and experienced language teacher in virtually any corner of the globe and access them around-the-clock and real-time, of course at a time that best suits both the student and the teacher.
Having taught extensively at English schools London, and also a selection of English language schools in both Russia and France, I find that while my preference remains firmly with face-to-face or classroom-based teaching, I can also appreciate that times have changed - and often for the better in terms of access for students. Those wishing to learn a language no longer need to be located in a major city centre to access the best level of tuition, and web-based teleconferencing tuition certainly comes at a far cheaper price than an in-country study.
However, I still have some reservations about relying solely on telephone or web-based tuition. As they say in the old expression: Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Variety is always recommended in any approach to learning a language.
While of course you get more one-to-one attention when web conferencing than in a group class, there are still the conversational possibilities that are ensured when studying for instance at English courses London. Language is a means of communication, and thus socialising is a crucial component of learning a new language. Being with other students is important for the generation of context-based conversation, and students are able to progress when exposed to other students, as an enhanced understanding of matters like pronunciation, grammar and syntax is fostered within the classroom situation.
* In terms of access or connection fees. Tuition fees depend on the teacher.
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Last revised:
April 06, 2010