English is a tough language to learn, not only for non-native English speakers but for native English speakers as well. During my schooling in Canada, English class had to of been my worst class and I am not afraid to admit it. You have all these verb tenses, run-on sentences, grammatical rules that have so many holes in them that you could drive a car through them (they are more formally known as exceptions). Exceptions to a rule is what makes something so tough because it requires you to engage in thought to decide why this is correct or incorrect. Knowing every single possible bit of information in the English language is very hard to achieve and after finishing school, I said to myself “I have the basics down, so what more do I have to learn”. Fortunately knowing the basics of English will get you very far and over time you will learn the rules, if not by name, by memory.
So, if you are learning English, relax and take a deep breath. Don’t fret the small stuff or every small detail as you will do just fine with consistent practice.
Language is developed over time and even native English speakers have trouble remembering all the rules, names of grammar and why we do something the way we do. If your English is improving with practice year after year and you don’t remember all these rules or get confused take the easiest path and don’t worry about it. Nobody can be expected to know everything there is to know about English unless you’re an English teacher :) in the meantime keep up the great work, enjoy life and don’t get caught up with all the finer points of English.
So you want to try out something new… and you’ve heard about this learning English online thing… sounds interesting but how exactly does it work… and how is it better than traditional English classes?
Well, first of all — Thank you for signing up for lessons with TalktoCanada. You will not be disappointed! How English learning works with TalktoCanada is fairly simple — once you get past the whole internet part. The good thing is — is that almost everyone already has the basics to start learning right away!
We mostly use Skype and WebEx for our online learning — very simple programs to manage — and very little equipment needed to take full advantage. We recommend you have a headset with a mic and you can do it with a webcam or not — its up to you. That’s all you really need (besides a reliable net connection, and a computer).
What’s important on your first lesson is to tell your teacher exactly what it is that you hope to accomplish with your English lessons — then they can develop a course that is appropriate for you and your needs.
Then, as the lessons go by, you work with the same teacher — working on your target/problem areas until you are confident with your progress.
In no time you will notice improvements — much quicker than in a traditional classroom. I encourage you to test us out… and see for yourself just how easy it is to learn English online!
Recently I was placed with a student who had taken lessons with TalktoCanada in a corporate program of our’s over 2 years ago. He told me that TalktoCanada was the ONLY program that taught him effective English — that he could use in everyday life as well as in business situations.
TalktoCanada works. It allows students to TALK and LEARN in a variety of ways that STICK — and that are useful. When students say that they are confident in our methods and pleased with their outcomes — I know I am standing behind something that is for real.
With the changing ways of the world — everything towards technical and internet — e-learning is something that has taken a HUGE leap, and TalktoCanada is a step in the right direction.
I encourage you to take a step in the right direction with TalktoCanada!
TalktoCanada.com is a proud user of WebEx to facilitate its online classroom learning with students around the world. WebEx allows both students and teachers to meet and work together (no matter what part of the globe they are from) and improve their English.
TalktoCanada.com increases the interaction with the students by using the different features that WebEx has to offer such as whiteboard sharing, video conferencing, media sharing, and annotations on all documents.
Check out the video below and see how WebEx has made e-learning that much better!
TalktoCanada.com has primarily been focused on teaching adults, but is increasing its “kids” client base. One of our teachers — Lusi Brace — talks about her experience teaching kids online.
She says…”I believe that the online teaching is definitely a breakthrough in education. Working for TalktoCanada I have had the pleasure to teach different nationalities and different ages. In the last couple of months, I’ve started to teach children online. Although for some teachers, it can be challenging to maintain a child’s attention and concentration in a class environment, the online experience does not shy away from that same effort. I would say it requires more effort to keep the child concentrated in a virtual classroom where he or she has an easy access to internet. However as a TalktoCanada teacher I am trained and prepared with materials to keep my students interested in the lessons. I try to organize the lessons to meet each of my student’s needs. I believe that it is important to get as personal in understanding and helping the student whose needs might vary from learning the language, building vocabulary, or reinforcing their reading and comprehension. In a virtual classroom I have from 3 students to just one so it is easy for me to help them acquire the knowledge and skills that they need. When I teach children online I try to keep the lessons as entertaining and simple without forgetting the necessary and essential points of the lesson. More importantly it is easier to also keep in touch with the parents and communicate their child’s strengths, weaknesses and improvements. I welcome any concerns that the parents might have about their child and try to work with them to help the student become better and more prepared. Not many teachers can say that teaching children is effortless, but I can happily confirm that teaching children online is no longer an effort but a pleasure.”
Ideally this 4 part series has helped you understand more about corporate language training, and the questions that you need to ask yourself before signing a big contract.
Whether you decided to go with Face to Face training or E-Learning – the language providers should be able to accomplish your goals by the end of the course. Attention to detail and personalization is essential in weeding out the good from the bad, and the great from the good.
We are all connected through the universal language of business – English – and we just need to work together to make sure we are all on the same page.
Check out these helpful blogs for Business students:
It is important to realize what value you are placing on your corporate language training. Is this something that you are really interested in? Is it something that will really benefit your company? Is it something that your employees will really enjoy? Is it something that will bring in new business, or increase sales?
The value and importance that you put on these aspects of language learning will heavily influence the success of your training. Designing a curriculum and “action plan” that is NOT a cookie cutter model for each course/corporation is important. As mentioned in a previous post – telecommunications and medical supply salesmen have very little in common. You need to be certain that what you are getting is beneficial and worthwhile, that your employees are developing the skills that they need to communicate in English. And most importantly – that it is not considered a chore.
How we achieve this is different in each company – you need to feel out your options and select one that meets your needs – but beware – bigger doesn’t always mean better.
TalktoCanada.com has helped hundreds of individuals and companies since it has started in early 2006. I have to admit that being here since the start it has been a rough ride trying to convince students around the globe to give TalktoCanada.com a try. After much persistence and great offers for new students, including the 1 hour no obligation trial lesson, we have been able to start achieving our very lofty enrollment goals. A lot of schools will only allow you to sign up for the whole English course, not part of it especially if you are considering going to your more traditional classroom setting with a teacher physically in front of you.
Students who do register for just a 1 hour trial lesson, are usually very pleased with the results and we enjoy an over 90% registration rate after the trial lesson. This goes to show you that a lot students are now seeing the possibilities and quality that can be obtained through an online English training company.
So if your on the fence and not sure about online English language learning with TalktoCanada.com the trial lesson is a great chance for you to test out our services without making a commitment. One lesson will give you enough information to make an informed decision about our services, so I highly recommend you visit the link below to get started.
A lot of our current students were just like you before they tried online learning. They weren’t sure about TalktoCanada.com and they weren’t sure we could do what we said we could do. Please register for our 1 hour trial lesson today and let us convince you that we are the right solution for your English learning needs.
Pricing is sometimes a tricky concept when it comes to corporate language training. Of course the prices are higher than they would be if they were individual lessons due to many “behind the scenes” operations that are not always noticed upfront.
Depending on the size of your training – it will heavily influence the “extras” that you will be paying for.
Some questions that you need to ask yourself:
How many students will be trained and over what period of time?
What “extras” are being offered or needed?
What support or back up is offered – for e-learning, what technical support is available?
Sometimes money shouldn’t be the (only or most important) deciding factor – yes it is important obviously – but it shouldn’t be the “be all and end all” of your decision. Reputation, support, flexibility, vision and initiative should also weigh into your decision.
Check out this blog about investing in English training:
Now that you’ve figured out why and what you are going to be studying the next step is figuring out a time for corporate language training. You need to ask yourself, “Is it realistic to ask my employees to use their lunch break to study English?” In most cases the answer will be no. You need to find a time when your employees are not too tired from day to day tasks (end of the day is not a good time) – and aren’t too sleepy (first thing in the morning – also not a good idea). The best time is about 1 or 2 hours into the working day, or just before lunch. Lessons should be no longer than 2hs long, and be held regularly over a period of at least 12 weeks.
Employees should understand that corporate language training is essential for their advancement in any company, and as such should be taken seriously with 100% participation. You need to figure out how your employees will respond the best – either by face to face training or the increasingly common e-learning that is offered by TalktoCanada.com.
There are benefits to both – face to face training creates an atmosphere where students may take it more seriously – and put a little more effort in – it’s harder to not show up to a real class than to a virtual class. E-learning however offers convenience, native speakers, and interactivity that a face to face setting wouldn’t be as easy to incorporate into the learning material.
E-learning also focuses a lot on pronunciation and fluency – which is extremely beneficial in all aspects of business. Meeting simulation, role plays, debates, opinions, conversations…are all things that are present in an e-learning course EVERY SINGLE LESSON. It’s impossible NOT to talk in a lesson – and actually having it virtually breaks down some of those barriers, and students feel more confident when participating.
Regardless of what training you decide on, it needs to satisfy all of your needs and accomplish your goals within a reasonable amount of time. Corporate training that offers magical solutions in a short amount of time are probably too good to be true. It takes time and energy – and as the saying goes “the more you give the more you get back in return.”
Read some blogs about the benefits of E-Learning with TalktoCanada.com:
001 
