Learning a foreign language at home without attending school or courses is not a new idea: in the old days, wealthy people hired governesses and nannies for their children. These were foreigners who lived in a house and taught kids their native language during everyday communication. It was very effective, but today it is too expensive and uncomfortable.

A modern alternative is tutoring, but it is now not affordable for everyone, especially if you invite a native speaker (foreigner). Fortunately, there are different options. Today there is the Internet and online courses. In this article, we will talk about such an opportunity as distance learning of the English language.

Pros and cons of online courses

Here is several obvious strengths and weaknesses of this method of training:

However, the growing popularity of distance learning leads to the fact that as the number of high-quality online courses increases, the opportunity to provide such services around the clock is formed.

It may seem strange, but the significant advantages of distance learning English should include a personal approach to each student:

• Firstly, the system will initially offer a special test that will allow you to determine the level of preparation of the candidate with good accuracy;
• Secondly, the transition to the next lesson is carried out only after the student has mastered the previous level, which is also confirmed by passing the tests at each lesson.

But one of the main disadvantages is motivation because not everyone is capable of self-organization, especially children. We all know that it is incorrect to compare distance higher education with the education of children of preschool or primary school age!

English for beginners in an online format: is it possible?

Online English courses are a really powerful tool for a motivated student with numerous advantages and amenities. At the same time, real success is not easy to achieve, and the online course needs to be expanded with a variety of homeschooling techniques - such as:

• watching movies (first with credits, later without), listening to songs;
• different types of reading;
• writing various types of texts, including essays with reasoning on abstract topics;
• accessible communication in English.

So, a well-motivated, self-organizing and having free time person can learn English from scratch by picking up good online courses. Another question is to what level he can master the language because talking on everyday topics and watching movies is different from applying distance education in practice, entering, for example, a higher educational institution in England.

English as a second native is real

Distance learning has become an important and very useful part of the life of modern society and has acquired special relevance against the background of covid restrictions, but those who want to teach a child a foreign language should pay attention to another format of education - to international schools operating in Russia.

One of the best examples is the British CIS International School, which invites children from preschool age (you can book a tour and see the conditions created for toddlers and school-age children in campuses in Moscow, Moscow region, St. Petersburg and Tashkent).

CIS International School offers to study English with native speakers using British educational programs. Both lessons and communication between children are in English. Language environment forms the perception of English as a second native language.

Fluency in English, combined with the receipt of an international diploma at the end of school, provides a brilliant chance of further study abroad - a result that is almost impossible to achieve with the help of online language courses.