The Frugal Language Learner: Tips On How To Save Money When Taking Lessons Online

By Daniel Borsody

One of the great benefits of online language learning platforms, like Italki, is that language students can find a variety of teacher’s to help them improve their English. There are several factors to consider when choosing a suitable teacher. Of course, one of the most important factors is cost. One needs to be able to find a teacher that they can afford. In my experience as a teacher and student, cost is, unfortunately, one of the main factors (if not the main factor) that keeps student from taking lessons. Happily, there are a variety of teacher’s at different price ranges on Italki. However, it can still be difficult for some students to afford an experienced, professional teacher. Here are some tips from the Frugal (careful about not wasting money) Language Learner to help students on a budget (with a limited amount of money) afford quality lessons on Italki.

1. Know your goals and develop a plan of action

A big part of life is knowing what you want to achieve and developing a plan to help you get there. And, of course, this is true with language study. If you have clear goals and a good plan, it can help you to save time and money on the road to achieving your goals. When making goals, it’s useful to remember the popular acronym SMART, which stands for specific, manageable, achievable, realistic, and time-based. The more your goals follow the SMART format, the better they usually will be to help you develop a plan of action. A good teacher also may be able to help you develop SMART goals and plans.

Another tip related to goals and plans is to focus on specific topics or areas of study with a teacher. For example, some students may want to improve their general language skills, but don’t have the funds to cover all these topics. Instead they can focus on their speaking skills with a teacher, and focus on other areas of a language, like grammar, listening and reading, on their own, with language partners or with a less expensive teacher or tutor.

2. Variety is the spice of life

In English we have the expression, variety is the spice of life, which means that variety can make life more interesting and exciting. Variety, or more specifically, varying your learning options, can also be a good way to save money. As mentioned above, it can be more cost effective to study with different teachers sometimes, or to vary how many times a week you study with teachers.

Maybe you can’t afford lessons three time a week with the very experienced teacher that you like, but you can afford them twice or once a week. You can combine lessons with the more experienced teacher and then another, less expensive teacher. In addition, as we’ll see in the next tip, there are other options with teachers that can be helpful too.

 3. Ask about deals and options

Don’t be afraid to ask a teacher about possible deals or different price options for lessons. Although most teachers can’t afford to go lower that their current rates (Remember they’re not making big bucks, a big income) they sometimes offer package lessons with discounts, or other special rates or deals.

In addition, teachers may have other options that can help students to save money. For example, informal tutoring is often less expensive than formal, structured lessons. Or taking a 45 or 30 minute lesson may be less expensive than a 60 minute lesson. Finally, some teachers offer group lessons (more on this below).

4. Commit to a language challenge for a short but intense period

In general, frequency is better than intensity for learning, but some intense periods of learning can be helpful. Italki’s language challenge can be a great way to stay committed to your learning goals and to save money. Many students take the language challenge to start learning languages, but it can also be used to commit to a short but intense period of study. This can be useful for brushing up (reviewing and improving your knowledge and skills) your language skills, and perhaps getting the extra push you need to reach the next level of competency. If you have a limited budget, developing a study plan for short, but intense periods of practice can help you by getting the most out of a brief period of lessons. For example if you can only afford lessons once or twice a week, try to develop a plan to commit to a short, intense period of practice for a month with four or more lessons a week. Or you can try sessions that are longer than usual, for example hour and a half or two hour sessions a day (weekends can work best for busy professionals). Even two weeks of intense practice can be useful. So, why not save up a little money, and commit to some short, intense practice?

5. Take advantage of trial lessons

The purpose of trial lessons is to help potential students find an appropriate teacher. The short, half-hour sessions give the student and teacher enough time to meet and see if there are a good match. They’re also a good way to have a short lesson with teachers, for a minimal cost. Most teacher’s charge a very small amount for trial lessons. However, remember that you have a limited amount of trial lessons (usually about three). So, make sure to use them primarily for their main purpose of trying different teacher’s before you commit to one of them.

6. Use Italki’s referral system

Italki has an excellent referral system, which allows you to earn Italki credits (ITC) when you invite friends to join Italki. When someone clicks on your referral link, makes a new account on Italki, and then purchases ITC on the site, you will be both rewarded with 100 ITC that can be used for future lessons. If you have a blog or social media account, this can be a potentially significant way of supplementing your income to take lessons. I’ve read about at least one language learner who was able to get a good deal of credits because his blog and website lead to many referrals.

7. Take a chance on a teacher new to Italki

To take a chance on someone means to take a risk on meeting someone new, which might lead to something positive. This can be true for trying lessons with teachers new to Italki. New teachers will often start with lower lesson prices in order to develop their ratings and get new students. If you take a chance on a new teacher, you might be able to get lower prices on potentially excellent teachers. However, remember, as teachers get more and better rating, they will almost always slowly increase their prices to what is competitive for other quality, experienced teachers on Italki. This usually is a gradual process though, and professional teachers will want to keep dedicated, long-term students, so they might give their long-term students temporary deals to help them with the price increase.

8. Try small, group lessons

Small, group lessons can be an excellent way to have lessons with an experienced, professional teacher that one might normally not be able afford. Some teacher’s offer small, group lessons, which allow several students (usually around 2-5) to have lessons together. While the cost of the total lesson is more expensive, for each student it can be much more affordable. For example, a group lesson might cost 250 ITC, but divided among three students, it’s only 830 ITC per student.

Some students think that they may not get as much attention as they would in one-on-one lessons, but a small group still allows a teacher to pay attention to each of the student’s needs. In addition, there are benefits from learning with a few other students. Students might be surprised at how much they can learn from listening to the teacher correct the other students, and the social benefits of learning together with a few people can make things much more fun and enjoyable (especially if you like the people with whom you’re studying!). So, how do you find people to join you in group lessons? Try getting a few of your friends, classmates, or co-workers together for lessons, or family members can have lessons together too.

Here are some tips to make sure you have successful group lessons. First, it’s usually helpful for all students in the group to be around the same level in the language they are studying. All the students don’t have to be exactly the same level, but it can be difficult if the levels are very different. For example, it might be difficult for pre-intermediate students and an advanced student to have group lessons together.  Second, agree on a schedule for lessons. Third, agree on a way of paying for lessons ahead of time. Remember that currently Italki only allows one member to pay for an individual lesson or a package of lessons.

What else?

These are just a few ways of saving money while taking lessons on Italki. I’m sure there are more ways that can be found by unlocking the collective creativity of Italki’s community of language learners. Frugal language learners, feel free to share some of your own ideas for how to have lessons on a budget in the comments section. And, if you found this article useful, you are welcome to share it.