ESL

[doodlebug 3]

Has anyone taken formal ESL classes and if so was it worth the $$? I"m looking into the free ones offered but I have to wonder if they are as effective as the ones most colleges offer.

[vanee 13]

Has anyone taken formal ESL classes and if so was it worth the $$? I"m looking into the free ones offered but I have to wonder if they are as effective as the ones most colleges offer.

Some questions you can ask the schools:

• How many students are in each class? (About 8-12 is a good number for interaction.)
  
• What countries are the students from? (The more countries, the better)
  
• How many levels does the school have? (The more, the better = students will be in classes with other students close to their level)
  
• Does each course have a curriculum?
  
• What language areas are covered? (E.g. grammar, conversation, listening, pronunciation, vocabulary, reading, writing)
  
• Do you teach functional English, e.g. how to ask for directions in English, or focus more on grammar or other skills? (Advanced levels won't need functional English.)
  
• What types of teaching materials do you use? (Textbooks, photocopied materials, tapes, videos, etc.)
  
• Are the students given textbooks and homework?
  
• What credentials do the teachers have?
  
• How long is each class?
  
• How long is each course? (Classes per week, how many weeks)
  
• (For schools where you pay) What is your refund policy?
  

[mybackpages 0]

Has anyone taken formal ESL classes and if so was it worth the $$? I"m looking into the free ones offered but I have to wonder if they are as effective as the ones most colleges offer.

Many of the free ones are good starting points taught by professional teachers and former esl students. My husband found them to be not helpful because his English speaking ability was so much higher than most of the students.

community colleges usually have good ESL programs. In many ways these are like really beginnger or remedial english classes. They have many levels to enter depending on teh skills your husband brings to the table. Classes that focus on speaking and listening and classes that focus on grammar and writing.

I've taught ESL and for the most part, success seems to be based on the amount of resources the programs has access to. The majority of people teachign are quite good- though you will always find a few that just do not seem to understand the needs of an ESL student.

[GabachaYucateca 0]

The biggest problem with community based ESL classes is the multilevel classroom. We simply can't teach to true beginners and high-intermediate students at the same time with any hope of success, but we're often forced to. So if your partner is advanced or intermediate, make sure that there is a level for him.

Where we live, you can't make a living from teaching just at one place, so many people teaching through organizations also give classes at the community college. But the community college has the luxury of offering more targeted classes.

My husband is taking ESL right now two nights a week, and I'm not too psyched about how the class is given and the materials that are used. I'm used to a life skills curriculum to teach them to be better able to navegate every day life here, but she's got them reading something about the anciant Eygptians every class. I want him to learn how to buy stamps, damnit!

But he likes it because of the social aspect. He knows no one here and loves that he's meeting others. He was so excited last night because he got invited to one man's house (and got a tip on a barber who speaks Spanish) for beers and is meeting another this evening to see about playing soccer. For me this is priceless...if that's what he gets out of his classes, I'm thrilled for him.

[SimoFati 0]

Has anyone taken formal ESL classes and if so was it worth the $$? I"m looking into the free ones offered but I have to wonder if they are as effective as the ones most colleges offer.

the good thing about the community college classes is that you have to do a placement test before attending any classes.

this is a good thing if you have taking any english classes before, it make sure you are being challenged enough. you have a classmates that are in the same level and the learnning experience gows smootly. i have taking esl classes in a community college before and in my case it was worth every penny.

best of luck