Choosing The Right Spanish Tutor

New York City is one of the best places to learn Spanish in the U.S.A. With its 44 million native Spanish speaker residents, you won’t have to look far and wide to find the best Spanish tutor for you. But we need to keep in mind that being able to speak fluent Spanish is not all that we need in a Spanish tutor. Here are some tips to find the right Spanish tutor for you:

The tutor must be a native Spanish speaker

Of course this is one of the qualifications when you look for a Spanish teacher. As I said, some guy speaking Spanish is not enough. Remember that learning Spanish also deals with proper pronunciation, and teaching you that is just not possible without a native Spanish speaker.

The Tutor must be fluent in English

Learning is not a one way street. How would a student learn if he can’t understand what the teacher is saying? The same also goes for teachers. How would a teacher be effective in answering questions or helping the student if the teacher can’t understand what her student’s are trying to say? Being fluent in English also goes hand in hand with being accustomed to our culture to better relate with the student.

The Tutor must have studied Spanish Literature & Linguistics at College level

It is not enough that your tutor can converse in Spanish. Just like any other language, Spanish is a complex language so you would do well with someone who understands the underlying structure of the language so your tutor could provide you with clear instructions.

Professional Teaching Style

Your tutor should be patient and professional enough to understand that you are still a student struggling to learn. Having a teacher who knows how to correct a mistake with a smile and knows how to encourage you to learn would create a fun but educational atmosphere.

Experience

Having at least a year’s experience in teaching is a must when looking for a language tutor. I got to admit that some people are born teachers which mean that they have the gift for teaching and everything but nobody is good enough on their first time. You are paying good money so I don’t see why you would settle for anything less. Also, you could do a little checking on a prospect. You can ask their previous students how they are as a teacher and you could also ask what their teaching style is to help you decide if they are a fit for you.

NYC Spanish Classes

Leaning Spanish in a fast paced world such as New York City can be a real pain. Not only am I talking of the vast number of options, but I am also talking about the two things that stops people from   going to a language school – time and money.

Different people have different reasons for learning Spanish.  Some people want to learn it for business, and some want to learn it for personal use.  Whatever the reason is, most people have the same problem, and that is having the time to study. We people are often times so busy that we don’t have the time to go to classes, which is often the reason why we waste precious time not learning. Luckily, language learning schools has evolved. They are no longer the traditional school who just wait for people to enroll and that’s it. We now have different options to sort out the schedule problem.

Some schools offer private classes, and they will set a schedule according to your preference so you don’t have to rush to class after your job. This option is best for businessmen, or people who often travel since they can also reschedule your classes if you have other engagement. I don’t recommend moving your class schedule as this may delay your learning, but I guess some people just don’t have an option. You can check out NYC Spanish- NYC Espanol, who offers private classes for $80.00 an hour if the classes are going to done at their classroom, or $140.00 an hour if you want to do it at your place.

Other institutions also offer semi-private classes (made up of two to three people). Like a private class, this can be conducted at the student’s home, office or other suitable location. This option is not as expensive as a private class and unlike a big class, the teacher’s attention is almost undivided. This is one of the best types of classes if you ask me, and it’s a lot cheaper too. Some institutions, such as Spanish Classes in New York [http://www.spanishnewyork.com/], offer semi-private class for as low as $75.00 if you do it in their office and $79.00 if you want to do it in your place.

Now for those who are not comfortable studying in an office, and doesn’t have their own place to conduct lessons either, some institutions offer phone and webcam lessons. You can check out http://www.meanslanguagecenter.com for more information on this.

Generally, the cheapest option is going to a group class but you may want to be careful on this as other institutions have really big classes, sometimes up to 12 people. It tends to be really noisy, distracting you from learning plus you won’t have enough of the teacher’s attention, making the process of learning more difficult.

Crash courses are also offered for those who want to learn Spanish to survive at least a week in Mexico. Cactus [http://www.cactuslanguagecourses.com] offers a 4-week course, made up of a 2 hour classes once a week. The courses provide an ideal way to build confidence before using the language more frequently socially or when jetting off on holiday, a gap year or business trip. Their native speaker teachers gives instructions on Spanish so you’ll learn to speak and understand expressions and information that is commonly used.

Please keep in mind that the best way to learn a language is having the dedication to learn it. You may try all the courses offered in New York City, with the best teachers and undergoing all kinds of classes but these will not help you in any way if you don’t spend enough time learning and practicing the language.