What’s the best way to learn English?

Online classes, one-to-one private tuition, in a group – there are so many ways to learn English these days. Learn English online and you’ll learn quickly and affordably; learn in a group and you could have more fun, or maybe you need the extra support of a private tutor? Which way is best?

The truth is that there is no ‘best’ way to learn English.

Everyone learns differently – some people excel in group situations, others are more reserved and find group classes stressful. Some students work brilliantly online and are great at motivating themselves, while others struggle without the encouragement of a private teacher. That’s why so many methods of learning English still exist.
Cost – private tuition costs more, and not everyone can afford this. However, internet teaching can be a cheaper way to access private tuition, and there are lots of alternatives to one-to-one tuition that helps thousands of students learn English successfully every year.

Which way is right for me?

You need to ask yourself some questions in order to figure out which English learning method is right for you.

How much time can I spare? If you have the time to devote to a full-time English course that’s great. Some people may find their spare time restricted by work or family commitments. Learning English online is a fantastic option for those who can’t spend hours every day learning English, but who can spare several hours a week to learn English part-time.

How quickly do I want to learn? Some people need or want to learn English quickly. This might be because their work demands it, or they have a holiday to an English-speaking country coming up and want to learn before their trip. If you want to learn English quickly, you might want to consider intensive classes, which are available online and offline, which deliver lots of one-to-one tuition to help you learn fast.

Why do I want to learn? Do you want to learn English for a holiday you have coming up? For work? So you can gain entry to a UK or US university course? Whatever the reason there is a course for you. Specialist English courses are available to help international students looking to achieve the IELTS score needed to begin a university degree. Conversational English tuition is available for those who just want to learn a bit of English to help them on holiday. And there are business English courses designed specifically to improve English language skills for those who need to learn English so that they can do their job and improve their career prospects.

How much help do I need? Some students are naturally very good at motivating themselves and working unaided. Online English learning is perfect for them. Online English classes do offer group tuition, online forums and chatrooms, and one-to-one tuition options with teachers, but some students feel they need the support of a physical classroom, group of students, or teacher to help them.

Learn English online

Before the development of Skype and video streaming, online language learning was a little limited. Not any more. Now when you learn English online you have a whole range of options to choose from.

As well as traditional online courses that improve your reading and writing skills, you can now access:

Interactive learning – hundreds of video-based English lessons and interactive exercises to improve your English listening, reading, writing and speaking skills. This method of learning can be fun and motivational too.
Private teacher-led classes – benefit from one-to-one tuition online. You can receive classes with a friendly and helpful teacher via chat, email, video chat and voice calls, and a time that suits you.
Group conversation classes – the fastest way to learn English is to speak it every day. Thanks to video chat you can now benefit from all the advantages a traditional group class provides, but in the online classroom instead.

Some of the benefits of learning English online include:

Access the best teaching, wherever you are – it doesn’t matter if the best English school is thousands of miles away – now you can enjoy the best teaching standards wherever you live.
No need to relocate to study – because you can study from home, there’s no need to leave friends and family behind while you relocate to learn.
More affordable – online tuition tends to be cheaper, as it is less costly to deliver than traditional classroom-based teaching. You don’t need to commute anywhere to study, so you save on transport costs too.
Flexible learning – learning English online makes it easier to fit your studies around your existing work schedule, study schedule or family commitments.

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