Do you want to learn a foreign language but you don’t want to/can’t take classes at a language school or with a private teacher? Have you ever thought about online courses?
There are many options; via Zoom with a native speaker or with applications/websites. With web 3.0, online courses are developing through different tools and are undeniably interesting: attractive rates, saving time, learning from anywhere, the ability to test different accents. And this option still offers real communication through body language.
1.Attractive Prices
One of the first benefits of online courses is their competitive prices. For example, 10 hours of lessons with a private teacher in will cost you around 200 €. In Medellín, 10 hours of lessons at a Spanish school, still with a private teacher, will end up costing 550,000 COP (about 166 €). However, for 10 hours of online courses, you only pay 145 USD (about 123 €) with Hablea.
You don’t have to pay for gas or a bus ticket, so in any case you will save on transportation. There is also no need to buy a textbook that usually costs about twenty €.
Some specialized websites offer an online language learning system. For example, Babbel offers an effective method via its website and a mobile application and charges between 5 to 10 € per month depending on the duration of your commitment. It involves answering multiple choice questions, translating sentences, identifying images, and repeating or writing dictated sentences. Or, Rosetta Stone offers a more intuitive method, but at a higher cost: from 170 € for 6 months. To practice vocabulary we strongly recommend the app Mosalingua.
Online resources are a great way to supplement language learning. But the most effective method is having a native teacher with whom you can interact and who adapts the course to your needs.
2.Save Time
One hour of online language classes will only take you an hour. While if you go to a language school or meet your private teacher, a one hour class can easily double or even triple in length, if you take transportation time into account.
3.Learn from Anywhere
Are you sick, traveling, or just don’t want to leave your warm bed and your cozy pajamas? You can take classes online wherever you want. All you need is a good internet connection. It is also a more practical solution for people who don’t live in the city and who surely don’t have a school or language teacher nearby. Moreover, when taking private classes, there is often a question of where you will meet. In a coffee shop? If that’s the case, it’ll be necessary for you to at least buy something to drink.
4.Possibility to Test Different Accents
You would like to learn Spanish, but do you want to learn Spanish from Spain, Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela, or Peru? The accent differs a lot according to the Spanish-speaking country and courses via Zoom make it possible to test different accents. Hablea offers you a free online tutorial with a teacher from Colombia. You can even consider an immersion stay in the country in which they speak with your chosen accent.
5.Real Body Language
Thanks to technological equipment that continues to improve, the quality of sound and image is now excellent. This allows you to use real body language with your teacher as if you were in the same room. I advise you, anyway, to use good headphones to optimize the sound. Recently, Skype has been abandoned for Zoom, which presents more practical tools including screen sharing and the ability for the teacher to send you typed messages and vice versa.
Are you wondering if taking classes online is different from more traditional face-to-face classes?
According to Alejandra, a Spanish teacher at Hablea, this does not change anything about the quality of teaching or the relationship with the learner. It’s even better because he or she chooses where to go, so he or she can stay in his or her everyday environment: drinking coffee, with his or her children, pets… So, the student ends up being rather relaxed.
Before going to Colombia, I took 6 months of group Spanish classes. There were 10 students. It was a rather disappointing experience because the other learners made no effort on their accents and spoke in English all the time. I did not feel like I was progressing at all. After the fact, I very much regret not having thought about taking online courses.
You may also wonder how many hours a week are needed. An online session lasts 1.5 hours on average and it is recommended that you take two classes a week for consistency.
Learning a language online has many advantages. What I recommend is taking lessons with a private native speaker and supplementing your learning through online resources like MosaLingua, Babbel, or Rosetta Stone. Obviously, this option is only possible with a good internet connection and a computer that has a webcam.
If this is your case, then go ahead, take the leap!
Delphine PDD
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