You are going to some country in two months and you don’t know its language? You probably hope that your English stays well enough but it will not help in all countries. The best way of preparing for this journey is learning at least basics of the language (enough for ordering a cup of coffee or find the hotel). Even two months is enough but the main mistake you may make – try to learn it by yourself.
Why learning language by yourself is not effective?
The first thing people do when they face the need to learn any new language – seeking online free courses and trying to take as much as they can. Students even don’t know that using free Korean language course as an option instead of hiring tutors on https://preply.com/en/skype/korean-tutors leads to a waste of their time. Don’t you understand why?
1. There is no real-life communication
Learning language without communication adds nothing to linguistic skills. Even though students can transcribe words on Google translator or listen to free lessons, they still cannot express their thoughts using that tongue;
2. Self-learners never stay organized enough
If students study with tutors, they supervise the progress, make learners do their homework in time, and evaluate their progress. Only a few people can organize themselves well enough for making impartial assessment of progress, don’t try to persuade yourself that you are one of them;
3. Your learning will remain chaotic
Most tutors create their lessons based on educational programs which have already helped thousands of students. They will know where to start and where to finish. Those, who try to learn the language by themselves, will rush in different directions and not learn anything well enough for application;
4. Self-learners never feel enough responsibility
If students pay their money for an education they feel much more responsibility to make a progress when paying nothing at all. Money should never be a key stimulus but as students pay, they know the price of quitting or doing nothing.
Students never pay tutors because they want them teaching the language. They pay teachers so that they can teach them how to study that tongue and how to gain higher levels of proficiency in case they will want to go deeper. A computer program or website will never do the same as a good tutor can do for your success in languages.
How to find a good teacher?
10 years ago if students needed to learn some exotic language, they would get in trouble as there might be no teacher for that language in their city. Now they shouldn’t worry that much because they can find a lot of excellent tutors on the Internet. They teach using Skype and the communication stays the same way real as if you were studying with a tutor from your city.
If you’ve already found some tutors on the Internet, there are 3 qualities which they should satisfy so that you can order their services:
- Affordability: Price should never stay your main criterion but if you don’t have enough money for studying with this tutor, there are cheaper ones;
- Flexibility: It is better to find a teacher from your country so there will be no problems in organizing lessons as you will have different time zones;
- Experience: Read feedback from clients of that tutor, use any response you might get because you don’t want to waste your time on a wrong tutor.
