Time is money. Save and smile strategy

It happens that an experienced tutor does not have a place to meet students. And the student at the same time does not have a place at home where he could practice with a tutor. Online lessons solve the problem! All you have to do is sit down at your desk, put on your headphones, and ask your family members not to disturb you. No one bothers anyone. It is very comfortable for both the student and the tutor.

Usually a banal cold without temperature can serve as a reason to cancel the offline lesson. The tutor does not want to infect the student and vice versa. Classes are often canceled, especially during late autumn and early spring. Remote lessons will never be canceled for this reason, which means that you will be able to follow the schedule. Even summer vacations will not interrupt online classes if you have fast mobile Internet. During any trip you will definitely have a couple of hours for meeting with a tutor. Plus, associated expenses of offline lessons. You have to pay for travel, for a snack, for various textbooks. If you connect with the teacher remotely via Skype, for example, then these expenses are automatically removed. All you need is a notebook. You save a huge amount of money. The teacher gives a lot of electronic material, prepares various presentations, and sends the necessary tasks. And for a lesson, you only need a computer, tablet or smartphone.

Live communication. Why do students prefer offline classes?

An important feature of offline lessons is live communication, which allows to exchange experience between participants and learn from professionals. It is really useful while the student needs fast and effective feedback. It is also attractive for development of practical skills and experience exchange.

The students who want motivation and control try to choose offline courses. This sometimes gives them the prospect of internships or future employment. It can be fruitful while getting recommendations from competent tutors. But at the same time offline lessons require more time. As a rule, they are more expensive. You are bound to a fixed schedule. It can be inconvenient for those students who work while studying. It is much harder to transfer classes when you are on holidays or you have to learn on your days-off.

Forget about boundaries. Practice when it suits you

A typical obstacle on the way to obtain a deeper knowledge and understanding of a language is procrastination or the inability to allocate one's time and lack of motivation. Now everyone has almost unlimited access to information. To use it to your advantage, you need to learn to filter out the necessary and unnecessary. Online learning requires concentration and free time. Ask your students to think about what they want to do so much that they are willing to sacrifice a couple of hours of daily rest or communication with their families.

It is important to understand what time of the day your students can study most productively. Some people perceive information better in the morning and are even ready to get up an hour earlier, while for others, evening time is ideal. A fairly common problem is when a student loses interest due to routine. He is bored with the same explanations of topics and the same tasks. Sooner or later, the student simply realizes that learning does not make any sense. This problem can be solved by using interactive teaching methods. Distance learning is just such an opportunity! The teacher sends presentations, various audio and video materials with which the student works. Communication via Skype with native speakers can be organized. It allows you to awaken students’ interest. Never forget about motivation!

How do I switch from offline to online classes? We are looking for options

It is wise to start with the online tools you already have on hand. If you know how to use a smartphone, you will most likely be able to record short and long videos on your phone and send them to students. My 14-year-old niece is a much better streamer than me. It is unlikely that something that she can do will not work for you.

In messengers you can create groups and communicate with students, send useful links, videos and assignments to channels in Telegram, WhatsApp, Skype or Viber. As a result, you get the simplest educational environment. The same with calling someone on Telegram. You can easily give a lecture or amuse the audience with poems, while simultaneously sending useful links to the chat. For example, on Skype you can conduct classes for small groups of students (10-30 participants), exchange ideas, check how students have learned the material. Alternatively, try the free version of Zoom, it's user-friendly and intuitive. The free plan is ok for 40-minute meetings. Do you know how to work with Google Docs? In them, you can open access to materials via a link, open a file for joint editing and commenting. These simple tools are enough to quickly organize classes online. In future, I am sure you will expand your arsenal of online tools.