Advantages of learning remotely:
The exceptional circumstances of recent years, related to the Covid-19 pandemic, undoubtedly prompted many companies to change their usual work practices and seek new solutions, organizing remote work with clients or adopting a hybrid working model. These circumstances have impacted both adult foreign language learning and “Skrivanek.” Currently, the majority of the courses offered are conducted remotely.
It should be noted that the “Skrivanek” language school had already prepared the first tools and accumulated experience in remote language teaching before the pandemic – at that time, the most popular remote learning tools, such as Zoom, were used. Even then, our team’s goal was to develop remote learning products that would help save our clients’ costs in the future while maintaining high service quality.
Lower costs
The main advantage of remote courses is the lower costs when planning the foreign language training and development budget for employees. The “Skrivanek” language course price list distinguishes between in-person training at a school or company and remote training offers. Online language courses are cheaper because there are no transportation costs for the teaching staff, and time is saved that would otherwise be spent traveling to the client. Remote training is financially more favorable for companies located in more remote areas of the capital or in other cities.
Professional instructors and many additional interactive solutions help ensure that English language courses, German language courses, Russian language courses, and other language courses bus efektyvūs mokantis ir nuotoliniu būdu.
To give our clients confidence in the effectiveness of distance learning language courses, we focus on improving teachers’ digital skills using a range of online tools and adapting teaching materials and methods to the needs of distance learning. Our teachers can deliver training in a “virtual classroom”, which is essentially equivalent to a live classroom. We offer lecture-style sessions with theoretical material such as explanations of grammar rules and exercises, as well as listening or video exercises similar to those in a live classroom.
We plan and deliver successful distance lessons with a wide range of communicative activities for pair and group work, helping you to develop practical speaking skills. Both teachers and learners speak highly of the Zoom platform break-out rooms (chat rooms) feature, which allows larger numbers of participants to be divided into pairs or small groups, so that no one is just a passive listener during the distance learning sessions! Using break-out rooms the tool makes it easy to engage each participant in a live conversation. What’s more, participants are not distracted by nearby conversations during the remote session, as they are during live lectures. The lecturer can also answer individual questions or correct inaccuracies without disturbing other participants. Feature break-out rooms makes the learning process dynamic and interactive.
In addition to the traditional online platforms Zoom and MS Teams, we use other tools to enhance the learning process, such as Mentimeter, an interactive presentation platform that helps you create engaging, multi-purpose presentations.
Wider availability of learning materials and content
„Skrivanek Language School has worked particularly long on adapting its teaching materials to work in a digital environment. This means that, just like in a live class, learners always have the learning material available to print or download to their device, depending on technical possibilities. The advantage of distance courses is that the learning material is always available to participants who have missed the lectures, as it is sent individually by email, so that any member of the group can follow the material even if they have not attended the lecture.
A current trend is the recording of remote sessions, an option that did not exist in face-to-face sessions. In the past, group members who missed the lectures tried to absorb the material on their own or did not do the assignments at all due to lack of time. Meanwhile, the recordings of the teleclasses are an excellent opportunity to follow the content of the training at a time and place that suits them. If a participant misses a session for various reasons, he or she can see and hear a recording of the session, which explains and puts into practice the training material sent to them.
Distance is no longer a barrier to learning languages
Distance learning solves the problem of distance for organisations with branches in other cities or countries. In the past, branch staff were often excluded from company-organised foreign language courses due to low numbers, inconvenient location and high costs. Current online learning solutions make it possible to involve branch staff from regions and other countries without increasing training costs. Branch staff have increased opportunities not only to learn foreign languages but also to strengthen their relationship with colleagues, as learning foreign languages is a communicative process.
Distance learning offers the flexibility to plan your time and work schedule without the hassle of travelling and finding a place to leave your car. Another key advantage of distance learning is the improvement in attendance, which is confirmed by the observations of Skrivanek Language School. Participants attend distance learning courses more regularly because it is easier to fit the flexible training schedule around work and private life.
Distance learning gives you geographical independence also when it comes to choosing Skrivanek language school teachers – we can now work with professionals from anywhere in the world and offer our clients teachers who are native speakers of the language concerned.
Breaking down stereotypes
„Skrivanek Language School’s professionalism and adaptability to changing conditions has changed the attitude of many sceptics towards distance learning. At the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis, we were often confronted with the categorical attitude that distance learning is not serious because there is no human contact and it is impossible to learn anything that way. Lower costs, smart use of online platforms, planning the content of the training and the active involvement of the participants are the keys to Skrivanek’s success in breaking the stereotypes about distance learning. Moreover, distance language learning has a connection to real life – Skrivanek’s language teachers analyse language use with learners during remote sessions and simulate situations that almost everyone encounters at work, virtual communication with colleagues, management, partners, remote meetings, conferences, presentations, job interviews and so on.
„Skrivanek“ Languages and Skills Academy will help you improve your communication in a foreign language by taking advantage of distance learning and reducing costs.
