It is possible to learn English or French spending less money

Post date: Apr 6, 2016 12:15:31 PM

Introduction

If you have studied languages before, you know how expensive it is. Not only for the material (text books, audio CD, workbook, etc.) but also for the school. You are well aware that nothing comes for free and that schools have to pay for their rent, their teachers taxes and other necessary expenses. What is then the cheapest way to study a language? There are lots of ways available on the market, but there is only one that makes it possible to have it cheap and I have created it!

First let us look at the different possibilities offered on the teaching market:

Schools and universities

are the most obvious when you are still a student, but if you are not or if you want to focus on languages only, it is not a sensible choice.

Local language schools

are usually cheap, but chances are that you will join a group that has already started long before you joined it. Another aspect with groups is that they go either faster or slower than your own pace. Individual lessons are expensive; it is easily explained by the fact that a teacher is paid by the hour, thus if a group of 8 people pays a “x” price per person, you will have to pay 8 times “x’

Individual repetitors

are usually viewed as the alternative best option. As a matter of fact, the teacher comes at your place at your most convenient time. But it comes at a price: the cheaper the teacher, the less you get. Another aspect of the price is that a private teacher has less opportunities to teach if they want a minimum income at the end of the month. Therefore those teachers include the time and the money spent on transport.

Native speakers

are usually visitors of your country, either because they are students or they have another job and want to make extra money. Some are even simple globetrotters who want to earn pocket money. Their prices are high but their teaching experience is close to zero. There are some exceptions. Some native speakers are already teaching at language schools, and they can only offer you their free time.

Language exchange with native speakers

is the cheapest way but the least effective way as you spend half of your time speaking in one language and the other half in the other, not to mention the price of your drink as you will meet mostly in bars and cafes.

Language learning websites

are the in-thing nowadays but they offer a minimum. The level is mostly low and you miss the discussion and the speaking part. It is also a self-learning concept which means that the student must be self-motivated. Some websites propose you to connect with another learner. But a learner is not always a teacher who you can rely on. Some websites propose you to connect with a tutor or even a professional. But, then, we come back to the same as individual repetitors/tutors.

Learning methods that come for free

Bilingual relationship

is by far the best way to learn a language. Many examples in history could illustrate that. But it comes with some conditions. First you should be willing to speak your partner’s language and your partner should be willing to this exchange. Most of the time, only one language is spoken, which means that one of you learns a new language while the other keeps speaking their native language. The downside of this method is that one or both partners might want a relationship just to be able to learn a foreign language which comes to what we could call exploitation and surely, for the less lucky, a broken heart. This method is quite idealistic because in most of the cases, one of the partners takes on a language course outside the relationship anyway.

Corporate training

is one of the best way to learn for free, for the learner, with the conditions that, first, the company is willing to pay for it and, second, that there are enough people willing to do it. But it is not free for the company!

What does a student want?

Quality

Is the first criteria that a student requires because it saves them time and money. The more efficient is a course, the faster the student can use the language efficiently. Therefore a student will mostly choose a qualified and experienced teacher with a good feedback and good recommendation

Price

Is regarded as the second criteria in the choice of a teacher. The cheaper, the better. But it is only after having tried several teachers that the student will find the right balance between quality and price, which comes to a cost if the student chose either to start with the cheapest or with the most expensive (if the student thought that high price means “most effective”)

A la carte

The student wants their lesson at the time and place they choose. If they could, students would have a tutor living next door and be able to call the him/her whenever they are up to have a lesson. But, also, they would want to be able to cancel or postpone the lesson at the last minute, even without warning the teacher, at no cost.

Interactivity

Group classes are still the most popular because the student can interact with other students, having discussions, debates and also to be able to use the language as soon as it is learned. Still, individual students do not always feel the need to be in a classroom if the teacher is able to bring this interactivity.

Material

Depending on the student’s needs, material should be adapted. The teacher should add or skip some lessons depending on the progress and the knowledge of the student otherwise the latter loses interest in the course if they have to repeat things they already know or if the lessons are too difficult. The material should also meet the purpose of the course, whether it is for business, to prepare for a test or to improve the student’s academic level.

Assessment

The last but not least criteria is the possibility for the student to assess their progress either through tests or through a conversation with their teacher, and to check if what they have studied is learned and acquired correctly.

What do I propose? Lessons at 1 Euro each!

I am still teaching classes and by Skype, but I also thought about all that has been mentioned before and that is why I have come up with this website that will meet ALL the student’s requirement.

Quality

If you do not know me yet, someone does already and they can recommend me to you. I am a qualified and experienced language teacher, known and appreciated in many countries.

Price.

The price of 1 Euro is not really a calculation. It is mostly symbolic. First it is a unit, secondly it is a currency that many can refer to. Some will find it expensive (in some countries, that amount is still a monthly wage, unfortunately), some will find that it is too cheap to be true.

Here is the explanation. While I was thinking about that project, the question of the price I would ask obviously occurred at some point with these reasons: I am a supporter of free education for all, even for language education, but I am not sponsored and I still have a family to take care of; and even if I had none, I would still have myself to take care of. So, I need to be paid somehow. On the other hand, it is not my philosophy to become a millionaire and build my fortune on someone else’s bankruptcy. So, I first kept in mind “I should make lessons at the symbolic price of 1 Euro”, from there I made sure that it was possible to get a minimum income allowing me to have a normal lifestyle in accordance with my principles.

So, whatever the number of students using this method, I will not starve or be a millionaire. I will not be the latter for the simple reason that if there are more students than I can afford to have physically, I would hire and train teachers of the same kind to be able to support me, as well as other employees if it is necessary, always taking into account that the price of a lesson should stay the same.

The price also includes the price for the material and the copyrights.

A la carte

• • The lessons are online so, the students are able to take them any time they want at the comfort of their home, in the office or on vacation as long as they have an internet connection, even on their mobile phone or tablets. The concept has been thought to make it has light as possible.

  • There is no schedule for the lessons. The students have their own pace and there is no need to cancel or postpone anything.

Interactivity

Contrarily to other self-learning websites, the teacher (me) is always available for explanations, corrections and assessment.

Some discussions, group discussions or extra life lessons can be ordered for an extra affordable cost either scheduled with other students or, if the student prefers, individually at the time of the student’s convenience.

In any case, the student is not alone and, this is important, it is the teacher and creator of the site (who knows the material and the student’s progress) who responds personally. If other teachers are participating to that program, each student will have their own permanent teacher, but still have the possibility to interact with me.

Material.

The site is divided into different sections depending on the students’ needs. At the beginning of the course, the students select:

• • The language to study

  • The course they need (academic, business, test preparation)

  • The level (they take a free placement test)

The material is from well known authors and editions adapted for the website. That way, the student receives EXACTLY the same curriculum as they would in a classroom: no shortcuts.

Since the material is put on the website by the teacher, the student has the guarantee that the teacher knows what the student is learning. Which means the student can expect a correct support from the teacher.

Assessment

The website will propose progress tests conceived by the same authors as those of the lessons. These tests will be checked, assessed and corrected by the teacher himself. Each correction will be sent personally to the student by the teacher with comments on mistakes and on the progress.

The website will also include a “Student’s portfolio” personalized for EACH student, who will be able to see their current lesson progress, their balance and their assessment. That section will also include some personal tasks that the student should complete in order to self-assess their progression or to add more to their curriculum.

Conclusion

My goals, when I started teaching were to teach all over the world and to make language learning affordable to everyone. Life, human life, has its own unavoidable limits: one needs money to live if not survive and one cannot be everywhere at the same time. But thanks to the internet, it is now possible.

My ultimate goal is to be able to bring this virtual classroom free of charge to children in poor countries or in poor families thanks to this project.

Which brings me to that conclusion: All is up to you, whether you are a language student, a teacher or a cause supporter, you can make a difference!

Contact

Either send an email to : katphyl@gmail.com

or fill the form on this page