The New York University College Experience

The New York University College Experience The tutors behind Varsity Tutors are not just here to teach theyre sharing their college experiences as well. Adrianna is a Cincinnati tutor and 2013 graduate of New York University. She tutors several subjects, specializing in Elementary Math tutoring, French tutoring, and Reading tutoring. Check out what Adrianna had to say about her time at New York University: VT: Describe the campus setting and transportation options. How urban or rural is the campus? Did you feel safe on campus? Are there buses or do you need a car/bike? Adrianna: New York University is definitely an urban campus, as most of its buildings are in the heart of Manhattans Greenwich Village. That does not mean it is unsafe, however. Walking between the dorms, library, and dining halls at all hours of the night, I never felt unsafe. Just use common sense like you would in any situation, and you will have nothing to worry about. New York University does offer shuttle buses that run on a schedule throughout the day and night. You can also make use of the schools rental bikes, or the citys Citi Bike program. Walking, or taking the citys subway or buses, is also perfectly safe and sometimes more reliable! VT: How available are the professors, academic advisers, and teaching assistants? Adrianna:I never had any trouble getting in touch with professors or advisers when I needed to. In fact, some of them were more reliable about keeping meetings than I was! This varies from program to program, but I have definitely heard more positive than negative feedback about students getting the help they need. Remember: your professors and advisers want you to succeed! Take advantage of their office hours, and schedule meetings whenever you can to discuss how you are doing. I promise, it makes all the difference! You will be more engaged in your education, and if you do find yourself in a rough patch, professors and advisers will be much more understanding if they know you well and understand what you are going through! VT: How would you describe the dorm life rooms, dining options, location, socialization opportunities with other students? Adrianna:New York University is very different from more traditional colleges in a lot of ways, and dorms and dining are among the most stark differences. For starters, there are no communal bathrooms in any of the dorms. Most of them have a kitchen area. They are also the nicest apartments you are likely to ever have in New York City. This is a blessing and a curse definitely enjoy it while you can, but do not expect your first off-campus apartment to be as nice as your dorm, unless you are prepared to pay sky-high rent! There are plenty of opportunities to socialize with other students, but because the university is so large, you have to do some of the legwork. Meet people on your floor, in your hall council, in classes, in one of the hundreds of clubs and societies, or out on the lawn in Washington Square Park! But one of the best things you can do is to get out in the city and make friends outside of school! VT: Which majors/programs are best represented and supported?What did you study and why? Did the university do a good job supporting your particular area of study? Adrianna:This is the main reason I chose New York University. I went to the Gallatin School of Individualized Study because that particular program allows you to design your own course of study. If you have an oddly-specific subject you want to study and cannot find a school that offers it as a major, come to Gallatin! It is also great for people who have an idea of the general area they are interested in, but not specifically enough to commit to any one major. Gallatins professors and advisers are some of the most interesting and intellectually engaging people I have ever met, and I really could not have been any more supported. VT: How easy or difficult was it for you to meet people and make friends as a freshman? Does Greek life play a significant role in the campus social life? Adrianna:New York University does have some fraternities and sororities, but Greek life is not really a big player in campus life for the majority of students. People tend to come to New York University because they want to buck the trends, and Greek life does not really lend itself to that. But there are so many other opportunities to meet people and make friends that you will not even miss it. Some of my best friends to this day are people I met in my Freshman Residence Hall Council. And all the Resident Assistants in the dorms are very good at getting you involved in events and excursions into the city. It is New York City, so there is no shortage of people to meet. You just have to get out there and meet them! VT: How helpful is the Career Centerand other student support services?Do many reputable companies recruit on campus? Adrianna:I did not take as much advantage of New York Universitys Wasserman Center for Career Development as I perhaps should have, but from what I understand, they are a fantastic resource! The Stern School of Business and Tisch School of the Arts are internationally renowned, and their alumni are in high demand all over the place. VT: How are the various study areas such aslibraries, the student union, and dorm lounges? Are they over-crowded, easily available, spacious? Adrianna:That depends on whether or not it is exam time! For most of the semester, public study areas are plentiful and easily available. I spent many a night camped out in a corner of Bobst Library, leaving my computer and books unattended while roaming the stacks, popping down to the vending machines, or stepping outside for some fresh air. The dorms all have their own study lounges, as do most of the academic buildings and the campus Starbucks. But once again, it is New York. There are literally thousands of coffee houses, libraries, parks, and bookstores where you can study if your dorms study lounge is full! VT: Describe the surrounding town. What kinds of outside establishments / things to do are there that make it fun, boring, or somewhere in between?To what extent do students go to the downtown area of the city versus staying near campus? Adrianna:The five years I spent living in New York City were the best of my life. There is an embarrassment of cultural riches, and the opportunities for exploration and adventure are literally endless. When you live in the greatest city in the world, it is definitely hard to be bored! City living is not for everyone, though. It takes a certain kind of toughness to live there, especially after graduation, but if you have the right stuff, you will have the time of your life! VT: How big or small is the student body? Were you generally pleased or displeased with the typical class sizes? Adrianna:The student body is huge, with something like 50,000 students in total. But with 1,300 or so faculty, it is easy to get small class sizes! Of course, some courses will inevitably be large lectures, but for the most part, classes are small. At the Gallatin School of Individualized Study, for example, the maximum class size is 16. The smallest class I had was four students. So you get a lot of individualized attention, and you really get to know your classmates. VT: Describe one memorable experience with a professor and/or class. Perhaps one you loved the most or one youregretthe most. Adrianna:The most memorable experience of my college career was traveling the world with my classmates and professors! Through the Gallatin School of Individualized Studys honors society and my own study abroad semester, I traveled to South Africa, England, the Netherlands, Spain, Poland, and Morocco, all within two years! I reached through the bars of Nelson Mandelas cell on Robben Island, walked through a gas chamber at Auschwitz, and sat in a pew in the cathedral nestled inside the Grand Mosque in Crdoba. These life-changing experiences really helped me put my life in perspective, and they helped shape my academic concentration. Check out Adriannas tutoring profile. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.

An Online Math Tutor Can Help Your Child Get Top Grades In Math

An Online Math Tutor Can Help Your Child Get Top Grades In Math 0SHARESShare Online math tutoring helps you get the grades Is your child missing the expected grades in Mathematics? Is he or she getting frustrated day by day in mathematics studies? If your answer is yes, then it’s time to consider an online math tutor. This is the only tutoring method through which your son or daughter can get instant help without making any kind of sacrifice on quality family time and extracurricular activities which are a part and parcel of students’ lives. Online math tutoring simply helps students to make the grade only when they get it from the right kind of provider.   Providing math excellence is not the tea of everybody’s cup While opting for this new-age tutoring method, it is necessary for you to know that all online tutor bureaus are not equal in providing you with the tutor  that your children exactly need. There are tutoring sites which are completely automated and may not help you the way you need. Providing math excellence is not the tea of everybody’s cup. Before making the final choice, you need to weed out hundreds of websites very carefully. Some of the essentials that you must look for: If you have made up your mind to buy an online math tutoring package, you must be highly particular about finding the following in an online math tutor: The online tutor that you are going to choose should have a Masters level Degree in Mathematics. He or she should utilize the best of interactive technology The tutoring package must have fully individualized tutoring plans He or she must give a trial session also  [starbox id=admin]

How online tutoring is cost effective way of taking education

How online tutoring is cost effective way of taking education The internet has brought revolution in the education industry all across the world. Online education and distance learning have gained immense popularity in last few decades. These days, students, parents and tutors prefer home based education instead of traditional learning methods with the reason that it offers affordable, real-time one-to-one tutoring right at home. Online tutoring   is available right at home; eliminates the need to travel for students and their parents chauffeuring their kids. It saves both time and money making live coaching far more cost efficient. Live tutoring provide flexibility of timing, content of subjects, quality of the tutoring as distance is never an issue to find tutors anytime, anywhere to take tutoring in any subject. It offers world class education at lower cost without compromising the quality of education. Students with tight financial conditions can register tutoring services that offer discounts for low income students or one who offers shorter one-to-one tutoring sessions. Students who are academically good but seek help and assistance for homework and assignment will reduce the overall cost of personal tutoring. Distance learning and tutoring websites help students whose parents are moving from one country to another to fulfill professional commitments. Such students can continue taking education with the same curriculum and same textbooks residing outside their native country. It reduces the cost of traveling to and fro to native country continuing taking education. Online learning is cost effective solution for adults especially for working professionals. A lot of adults continue to work at their jobs during day time and take classes at night using computers. A large number of students across the world cannot afford the cost of a college education, which is a substantial barrier holding them back from obtaining a college degree. Tutoring online gives only 40% of overall costs in comparison to the traditional college education. Traditional education is critical for rural students as they tend to be economically depressed. The financial difficulties of these students force them to choose between work and school. Lower cost is also one of the factors that naturally fit for students studying in rural areas. Online learning gives better opportunities once they past our school and enter into the working world. Web-based online tutoring platform does not have the huge expense overhead that physical tutoring centers have. For the same reason, it allows tutoring websites to offer lower prices and save your pockets too. Thanks to the online tutoring websites!

FAQs about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)

FAQs about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) If you are the parent of a high school student, college is likely on your mindand so is how to pay for it. Many parents are not as informed as they could be about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), says CEO and Co-Founder, Eileen Huntington of Huntington Learning Centers. Most families understand that the FAFSA gives them access to federal student aid in the form of federal grants, work-study and loans, but the financial aid process can still be quite overwhelming, says Huntington. She answers some of the most frequently asked questions about federal aid: What are the requirements to receive financial aid? Students must hold a high school diploma or General Education Development certificate and be enrolled in an eligible program as a regular student seeking a degree or certificate, maintaining satisfactory academic progress. They must be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen with a Social Security Number, not be in default on any federal student loans, not have any convictions for the possession or sale of illegal drugs, and register with the Selective Service System if a male and not currently on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces (more details on all of this at https://fafsa.ed.gov). What do students need to complete the FAFSA? A Social Security Number or Alien Registration Number, federal income tax returns, W-2s, and records of taxed or untaxed income, bank and investment records, and an FSA ID, which parents and students can create at https://fsaid.ed.gov. Do students need to wait until their/their parents taxes are filed to complete the FAFSA? No. For the 2018-2019 school year, students will report their 2016 income information (not 2017). What are the federal student aid deadlines? The FAFSA for the 2018-2019 school year was available on October 1, 2017 and students/parents can apply between then and June 30, 2019 for aid for the 2018-2019 school year. For the 2019-2020 school year, students/parents can apply between October 1, 2018 and June 30, 2020. Are state student aid and college aid deadlines different? Yes, they might be. Check online at https://fafsa.ed.gov/deadlines.htm. In New Jersey, for example, the fall and spring term state aid deadline is September 15, 2018. Each college might have its own financial aid deadline, so students need to contact the colleges theyre interested in attending to find out for sure. Do students need to wait until they are accepted to a college before completing the FAFSA? No. They do have to list at least one college that will receive their FAFSA information, but students can list all schools they are interested ineven if they havent applied or been accepted yet. If they submit the FAFSA and later consider a school that they did not list previously, they can submit a correction to the FAFSA online. Are grades taken into consideration when financial aid is awarded? No. If students want to continue receiving federal student aid, however, they must maintain satisfactory academic progress. This essentially means they must meet a minimum grade-point average and complete a certain number of credits each year. Each school has its own policy, so its a good idea to check with them. What happens after a student submits the FAFSA? The U.S. Department of Education processes the application within 3-10 days, depending on whether the student applied online or not. Then they will receive a copy of a Student Aid Report (SAR), which summarizes the information provided on the FAFSA and includes an Expected Family Contribution. Colleges use this figure to assess eligibility for other federal and nonfederal student aid and creating students award packages (and distributing that aid). These are some of the most common questions about financial aid, but Huntington encourages parents and students to visit the Federal Student Aid website for more information about the FAFSA and federal aid for students: https://fafsa.ed.gov. About Huntington Huntington is the tutoring and test prep leader.Its certified tutors provide individualized instruction in reading, phonics, writing, study skills, elementary and middle school math, Algebra through Calculus, Chemistry, and other sciences. It preps for the SAT and ACT, as well as state and standardized exams. Huntington programs develop the skills, confidence, and motivation to help students succeed and meet the needs of Common Core State Standards. Founded in 1977, Huntingtons mission is to give every student the best education possible. Learn how Huntington can help at www.huntingtonhelps.com. For franchise opportunities please visit www.huntingtonfranchise.com. 2018 Huntington Mark, LLC. Huntington Learning Center, the three-leaf logo, and 1 800 CAN LEARN are registered trademarks of Huntington Mark, LLC. Each franchised Huntington Learning Center is operated under a franchise agreement with Huntington Learning Centers, Inc.

Python Tutor - What You Need to Choose the Best One - Private Tutoring

Python Tutor - What You Need to Choose the Best One BobbiM May 30, 2017 If you are studying Python these days, it can get overwhelming quite fast and thats when many students start looking for a Python tutor.   And once you fall behind on this or just about any course, it becomes a struggle to catch up.   Thats where staying on top of your course will make all the difference in your grades as well as your stress levels.   Last minute, end of semester scrambling for grades or figuring out what you need to learn months before becomes more difficult and stressful. Python is a complex object oriented programming language.   And like any programming language, students have areas that can become difficult to grasp.   Since much of programming builds upon earlier knowledge, making sure that you grasp all the steps of your coding and the processes along the way is critical for not only your coding but your grades at this point. So if you want to stay on top of your courses, and Python in particular, its time to start exploring what types of private tutors or other tutoring options are available. Python Tutor Options: You can keep on muddling along.   Give it a go for another month or two and see how things work out?   Maybe you and Python will all of a sudden connect and it will all fall into place?   You never know, these kind of things do happen! Give up some of your free time and make some appointments to see your teachers for assistance.   Depending on where you go to school and the teacher, this can be a great choice.   After all, the professor is the one that makes the exams so knowing what they want, how they are thinking can make the difference between a B or an A at times.   For a quick fix or an occasional question or two, this might be very effective and helpful. Online resources are becoming better in just about any academic or technical topic that you can think of. There are many computer tutoring options available! And this holds true for Python tutoring as well.   If you are good at researching and digging into information, theres several options that you can explore.   Just make sure that you are choosing solid websites that have the correct and applicable information. Python tutors are yet another option to consider.   These days finding one that can either help you in the convenience of your home or office is easy.   In addition, online Python tutors are additional options that you might want to consider.   This way you can find the best tutor no matter where you or they are located.   Both at home tutors as well as online tutors can work with your schedule and requirements.   In terms of flexibility, this is the best option! What to Look for in a Python Tutor: Like with any tutor, when you are choosing a Python tutor, you want to make sure that they have experience.   Are they well versed in the areas and topics that you need now and that you will need in the future.   Once you have found your programming resource, you want to make sure they can assist you into the future as well.! Have they tutored others in the course/s or areas that you need assistance with?   This avoids any lags or downtime which can be a money saver.   If they have tutored in these areas then theyll be ready to help you as soon as you kick things off rather than trying to get up to speed on where you are and what you need. Find a Python Tutor Near You Today! How much tutoring experience have they had?   A newbie can be great, but do you want to be the person they test out their tutoring skills on?   The call is yours as is the expense.   Experience might cost a little more initially but in time saved when your Python tutor is there?   You might find a big savings. Flexibility and availability.   Life and schedules can get in the way sometimes of the best intentions.   A tutor who understands that is much easier to deal with and makes your life better as well. Dont let yourself fall too far behind in any courses!   Finding a Python tutor can make all the difference in how you do in your courses.   Its worth taking a little time to see what tutoring options are available to you.   Just search for your tutors in your area or online and see the options.   If you have questions or find a tutor that might be a fit, send them a message to find out more.   Might make all the difference this year! Find the Best Private Tutors At Reasonable Rates - Get Real Results Fast! Choose Your Subject - Add Your Zip Code - Find Top Rated Tutors Today InPerson or Online Online InPerson

Do the Classics put teenagers off reading

Do the Classics put teenagers off reading The Education Secretary Nicky Morgan and children's author David Walliams issue a call to publishers and schools to make English pupils Europe's most literate. Education Secretary, Nicky Morgan argued that: Books by Authors including Jane Austen and Charles Dickens should be made available for all pupils to enjoy them. ...If a child fails to learn how to read - the consequences can be nothing short of devastating, holding them back for the rest of their lives. The aim is for every secondary school to have sets of a wide range of classics, to improve reading standard as a Nation and to tackle the 'long tail of underachievement' . So why do teenagers find the Classics boring? There are arguably many reasons that a larger contemporary audience may struggle with older works of literature. Inaccessibility: A lot of teenagers struggle to identify with, for example, the whims of the landed gentry as so well portrayed by Austen and so find the stories a bit inaccessible. The Prose: Factors such as distance from the subject matter, the archaic nature of the vocabulary and the formal structure of the language can be pretty hard going. (Has anyone - other than English undergraduates - ever finished a Dickens novel?) Technology: Today's children's lives don't naturally have space for reading. They grow up with a continuous stream of entertainment - endless TV channels, digital devices and on-demand access. How do we make the Classics interesting? There's no doubt the Classics are great vocabulary boosters (indeed, how would we survive without knowing that 'consumption' also means tuberculosis - that most common of literary killers) and the role they play in illustrating correct grammar is invaluable in the era of the wandering apostrophe. I am absolutely determined to make sure that every child, no matter where they live or what their background, learns to read, to read widely and to read well - giving them the best opportunity to get on in life. The plot can be glacial in pace when compared to today's world of Fast and Furious films and Xbox games in which characters explode long before consumption takes hold of them. So what is a tutor to do to make them engaging and how can a parent entice their teenagers to surrender the iPad and take up the humble paperback? Is it a battle worth fighting? We'd love to know your thoughts!

One for the Road! A Comprehensive Language Study Guide

One for the Road! A Comprehensive Language Study Guide Plotting Your Way to Fluency: A Flexible Language Study Guide Hindsight is 20/20.Looking back, well always see that it was at the beginning where we went wrong.Its when we set out on a journey of some kind that we can benefit the most from preparing ourselves for whats to come.But it may only be later that we understand just what we were missing at the start.When I started teaching myself French, I had no idea what I was doing.I bounced between different resources and techniques for more than a year, just picking up a few words and phrases here and there.Sometimes Id study like crazy. Sometimes Id put the language out of my head for a week.I finally enrolled in a great French class at school and realized that I could barely speak French.On top of that, Id been making some very ridiculous grammar mistakes.If Id had a study guide or a study plan to show me the way, I could have aced that class the minute I walked in.So now, Id like to give you the advantage I didnt have and show you a complete map for learning a language that you can adapt to you r own individual preferences.Ill show you what to study at each stage of learning and  how to keep your study time balanced over days and weeks where you might have a lot of other things going on.The key to learning success is consistency. As long as you keep at your studies and keep moving ahead, everything else will fall into place.And in this post, well look at how to ensure that things fall into place as quickly as possible. How Long Does It Take to Learn a Language, and How Can a Language Guide Help?But how long do you need to keep at those studies? Thats a question thats been asked many, many times over.It depends on a few main factors:The frequency of your study sessions.The familiarity of the language.The interest you have in the language.If you only study once a week, youll barely get anywhere. You need to give your brain a chance to absorb the material by frequently thinking in or about the language. More frequent and more consistent study means faster learning.A languag e that’s closely related to others you might know, or that shares a lot of vocabulary, will fit easier in your mind because you can guess how to apply your previous knowledge.Finally, if youre fascinated by it and the people who speak it, any language can become childs play, because youre intrinsically motivated to understand and communicate using it.You may not have as much control over the last two factors, but you do have some control over the first. Additionally, if youre disorganized in your learning, youre likely to retread old ground or run up against walls. Youve got to have something to help you along and show you what you should be focusing onâ€"like a language learning guide!A dedicated, motivated self-learner following a good guide should be able to achieve a comfortable intermediate level in about 300-500 study hours, spread over a period of roughly 10-14 months.That means averaging around an hour, or at least 40 minutes, of learning time every day. Its hard for most people to set aside that kind of time, but cut it into two or three chunks of 20 minutes and suddenly it seems far more doable. You might even spend 20 minutes reading posts or articles like this one today.An audio course in the car, a book in the bus, a video before bedâ€"thats how you fit those study hours into a busy day.You want to get in the habit of never really letting the language out of your sight.So youve got the time, but what should you do with it?Plotting Your Way to Fluency: A Flexible Language Study GuideBeginning: Pronunciation, First Words PhrasesPronunciationOne thing polyglots tend to do differently from the average learner is starting with pronunciation.Because practice doesnt make perfectâ€"practice makes permanent.If you get the wrong patterns in your head, youll have a devil of a time getting them out later on.Youre going to want to do some research on the sounds of the language youre learning and make sure you know how to make them and distinguish them.Wikip edia has articles on the sound systemâ€"called the phonologyâ€"of virtually every language out there, big and small. The articles are a bit technical, but in my opinion its some of the best technical knowledge you can pick up when it comes to language learning.If the Wikipedia articles are beyond you still, then go to YouTube and look for videos about the pronunciation of your target language. Try looking for more targeted, academic videos instead of just quick two- or three-minute overviews.If youre learning French, for instance, search for specific features like French R or French vowels.Once youre confident about the individual sounds, move on to words.Words PhrasesYoull need to practice listening and repeating words in isolation and in the context of an example sentence to understand the rhythm of the language.Rhythm is one of the most important parts of accent, and it really cant be ignored. Think of a toddlers speechâ€"they might have trouble with some consonants, but nobody would ever say they have a foreign accent. Thats because theyve already mastered the rhythm. They were hearing it even before birth, every time their mom spoke aloud!And so most dedicated learners will look high and low for courses with audio or good audiobooksâ€"they want to get as much exposure as possible to the sounds of the language and really soak the rhythm into their heads.A lot of these course books or guides will tell you to avoid memorization as if its something that might hurt your learning.At the true beginner stage, though, youre going to have to memorize something if you want to start understanding this language.The advice should really be something like dont memorize lists of words without context. Youve got to connect what youre learning to feelings or memories.So start with a simple game of pretending: Imagine the very first things most people will say to you.That means greetings, certainly.Lets assume youre using the language for travel. Youll want to know how to say hello, how to get someones attention, how to politely step past people in a crowded space, how to say thank you. If you still dont know exactly where to begin, these words and phrases are a good bet.After you pick these things up, you should branch out and learn some verbs, nouns and adjectives from dictionaries, phrasebooks or vocabulary lists.At this very early stage, its a great psychological boost to be able to recognize and understandâ€"so dont stress out if you cant produce very much in the language.High Beginning: Constructing Sentences, Listening to DialoguesConstructing SentencesPretty soon, youre going to want to move beyond the phrases youve learned and begin to express yourself.For that, youre going to need to know how to construct sentences.In many languages, you can start picking up these rules intuitively just by looking at a handful of examples.If your phrasebook tells you that What is your name and What is his name are identical except for the pronoun, theres a good chance that What is her name follows a similar pattern. Keeping your eyes open for these patterns is going to boost your learning significantly.But when its not clear from context what the next word should be, youre going to have to move beyond the phrasebook and begin with a grammar resource.The very concept makes a lot of people cringe. But these days, you can sample many simple, free online courses with an emphasis on sentences.Your local library may also have well-known coursebooks in its collection. Try books in the Teach Yourself  or Dummies series for a solid intro to the grammar.An extra-easy alternative is to start learning with FluentU, as it starts you off putting words and phrases into grammatical context immediately. FluentU takes real-world videosâ€"like movie trailers, music videos, news and inspiring talksâ€"and turns them into personalized language lessons. Youll find content on FluentU for complete beginners, but itll continue to fit right in with your learnin g as you make your way all through the rest of this guide and beyond, starting withListening to DialoguesAt the same time, youre going to want to begin your long listening journey around this point. Listening is incredibly important for learning languages at really any level, for all kinds of reasonsâ€"from getting used to different accents to improving your reaction time with new vocabulary.Use FluentU, search through YouTube to find beginner lessons or dialogues in your target language, or look for a textbook with companion audio that you can get at a low cost (or from a library!).Listen to these dialogues again and again over a period of a few days.You want to be giving your mind two simultaneous tracks to learning the language: naturally, through examples and dialogues, and systematically, through overt explanations of grammar rules.Low Intermediate: Improving Vocabulary, Listening, Speaking WritingAs you progress through the stages, youre naturally going to become a better and better self-learner.Because of that, you probably dont need this guide to tell you, Repeat after your dialogues. Keep an eye on your pronunciation. Of course, youre going to continue doing the things that make you progress onward.So take these next several steps as additional suggestions rather than all-encompassing instructions. Stay well-rounded in your learning, and even go back and review older material for as long as you want.Improving VocabularyNow that youve got some of the basics down, the whole wide world of vocabulary out there is yours to conquer. The only question is, where to start?Again, one of the best ways to learn vocabulary is to really connect with what youre trying to memorize. If you watch an interesting video or read an interesting article in your native language, look up some of the main vocabulary points and youll remember much better than if you learned those same words from a list.Continue to follow the guidance of whatever grammar resource youre usingâ€"i deally, your resource should challenge you enough as you move on that you dont grow bored and try to jump ahead too fast. If you bite off more than you can chew, youll likely lose motivation.ListeningAt this point, you should be looking for as many listening resources as you can.Its difficult at this point to pick up new words from listening aloneâ€"so dont shirk on the vocabularyâ€"but unless you plan to mostly read and write your target language, listening is the core skill.And it takes a lot of time to develop.That means enjoyment is the key to progress. Dont waste your time watching things you don’t like. If youre into photography, watch camera reviews. If you like makeup, there are makeup tutorials in hundreds of languages on YouTube.One of the most valuable resources at this point in your learning is audio with transcripts, such as videos with subtitles.Again, this is something you can turn to the trusty learning tools on FluentU for.Outside (and occasionally inside) of Flue ntU, the YouTube project Easy Languages is an outstanding collection of street interviews with subtitles in both the target language and English.Watching short, entertaining videos is a great way to keep yourself focused and on task during this important study activity.Speaking WritingIts tough to speak when you dont have much you can say.Thats why we havent mentioned speaking too much until now.Some language acquisition experts believe that you learn most effectively if youre not pushed to speak or write until you can understand a lot of what you read and hear.And that makes senseâ€"its demoralizing to enter a conversation and constantly be lost as to what your partner is saying.At this stage in your learning, however,  you should be itching for some speaking practice.The single best free place for speaking practice online is a language exchange site called Hellolingo. Its got a huge community of people from all over the world, waiting to help you with their native languages.If yo ure willing to spend a little money, though,  iTalki cant be beat for finding tutors. The selection of professional teachers and skilled enthusiasts is truly unparalleledâ€"plus theres a large community that will help you with writing practice as well.Writing is daunting, especially in languages with lots of grammatical forms to memorize. But writing practice always has a positive effect,  even if nobody corrects your mistakes.  Just the act of writing on its own helps you recall words better. As you continue reading, youll develop more and more of an intuition for the grammar as well, and before long youll even be able to correct your own mistakes.Scheduling your output practice is something youll have to do on your own depending on how comfortable you are with it and how important it is for your purposes. If you enjoy it, try to work in some speaking and writing at least twice a week so you dont get too rusty.Intermediate: Grammar and ReadingGrammarAt this point, youre going to ne ed to shore up any remaining leaks in your grammar knowledge.Your general online courses and book guides may not cut it here. Luckily, for commonly studied languages like French, Russian, Japanese and German, the internet is awash with free and in-depth grammar guides.Heres where I actually wont recommend YouTube, though there are of course some gems to be found, as the best resources tend to be single-purpose grammar overviews like Dartmouths German grammar page or JGram for Japanese.Beyond that, the publisher Routledge has a whole line of Modern Grammars  for ten major languages. Theyre some of the best reference grammars and workbooks around, and can really help you figure out what youve been missing. If your language isnt on that list, try their Essential Grammar line or looking around for a reference grammar at a library or online bookstore.Grammar is so important at this stage because youre likely to start internalizing mistakes soon. If you dont nip these in the bud, your gra mmar mistakes will become bad habits later on that are harder to break.ReadingNow you can slowly but surely work your way through simple native texts.I really like the NHK World news site for its no-frills daily news reporting (in 18 languages). The articles are written for natives, not learners, but theyre short and digestible enough to be very helpful reading practice.Every major city around the world has newspapers or other media outlets in their own language as well. For just one of scores of examples, check out Público,  a popular news source from Portugal.Now, its likely that the feature articles and opinion pieces on these websites will still be too hard for you at this point.But thats just fineâ€"most have all kinds of lighter content like recipes, entertainment news, sports scores and lifestyle tips. Usually with video included, too!Check out the topics that most interest you. Its fine if you end up only looking at pictures and their captions. The most important part is th at youre immersed in the language wherever you go on that site.Offline, you should look for translated books from your native language. If theres a best-seller youve read cover to cover tons of times, thats a perfect tool for diving into literature.Translated books are easier to start out with because the plot and characters are likely going to be more familiar to you, culturally speaking. With a more accessible story-line, you can focus on absorbing the language through your extensive reading.High Intermediate and Beyond: Expressing Yourself and Understanding OthersExpressing YourselfThe more you read, the more you listen, the more you expose yourself to, the more youre going to learn.Understanding complicated, authentic native speech is not an easy task. And at the high-intermediate stage, it really can seem like youve plateaued because the gains are harder to see.Going from a vocabulary of 100 to 500 words feels amazing, but from 4000 to 4400, the effect barely registers, since y ou can already understand most of what you encounter.The key is to keep going and to branch out. Challenge yourself with material you might not normally think of, such as cooking shows or comedy routines. When you come back to material you saw earlier, it wont seem nearly as hard.Understanding OthersRepeating after dialogues, writing on your own and reading aloud are all excellent learning strategies, but if your goal is fluent communication, theres no better way to get there than communicating.Whether its with a tutor, a friend or even strangers on the street, you should take whatever opportunities you can to have conversations.Ask your speaking partners to strike a balance between correcting your mistakes and allowing you to speak freely. Schedule some sessions as tutor sessions and some as conversations.You need a mix of these two practice styles to get into the flow of a natural interaction while also continuing to work on your mistakes.After that… its up to you.The intermedia te-advanced stage of language learning sometimes seems like itll never end.Even if youre continuing to study, it might not seem like youre making progress until you really challenge yourself.But then all of a sudden, you look back at an old piece of writing you did or a book that was giving you troubleâ€"and you see how far youve come.Consistency is the single most important part of any personal improvement.When you put in the time and effort on a regular basis, you simply cant fail to see results. And One More ThingLooking for engaging material for developing your language skills? Then youre going to love learning with FluentU!FluentU makes it possible to learn languages  from music videos, commercials, news and inspiring talks.  Its all stuff that native speakers  actually watch.  With FluentU, you learn real languagesâ€"the same way that natives  speak them. FluentU has a wide variety of videos like movie trailers, funny commercials and web series, as you can see here:FluentU A pp Browse Screen.FluentU has interactive captions that let you tap on any word to see an image, definition, audio and useful examples. Now native language content is within reach with interactive transcripts.Didnt catch something? Go back and listen again. Missed a word? Hover your mouse over the subtitles to instantly view definitions.Interactive transcript for Carlos Baute song.You can learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentUs Quiz Mode. Swipe left or right to see  more examples for the word you’re learning.FluentU has quizzes for every videoAnd FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that you’re learning. It uses that vocab to give you a 100% personalized experience by recommending videos and examples.Start using FluentU on the website  with your computer or tablet  or, better yet,  download the FluentU app from  the  iTunes  or  Google Play  store.

Blacklisting tutors Story of Torezhan

Blacklisting tutors Story of Torezhan As a part of their work tutors commonly have to deal with the problem of fraudulent client requests. According to our experience the most common type of fraud is the “Nigerian Fraud” technique. This article discusses this type of spam and tells the story of Torezhan our encounter with “Nigerian Fraud”. The Nigerian Fraud technique involves the student’s farther who is conveniently a rich business person living in Nigeria (or Australia, Canada, UK, etc.). His son is going to visit your town in a few weeks. The son is new to the U.S. so he needs help with English. The rich business person offers you a very generous hourly rate ($50-$150) and you’re looking forward to this opportunity. The Nigerian business person sends a Western Union wire transfer for $3,000; he emails you a copy. Later he realises he put $1,500 to much on the write transfer and wants the remainder back. If you paid now you loose the $1,500 because the wire transfer copy is a fake. This is the typical form of Nigerian Fraud and it occurs in all possible variations. So watch out! To help our tutors we started to create a blacklist of shady clients. So here is our first blacklisted client: Name of Guardian: Mrs. Gaukhar Name of Student: Name: Torezhan Upushev Location: Kazakhstan, Central Asia Mrs. Gaukhar’s Email: gaukhar.kn@gmail.com On June 12, 2009, Tutorz.com has received a phone call from a woman Mrs. Gaukhar. According to her story she is an employee of a rich Kazakhstan business man whose son Torezhan is visiting New York City. Mrs. Gaukhar wanted immediately been connected with suitable tutors and who have excellent credentials. She also said the per hour is $100 hour and to be paid in cash at the end of the session. The tutoring should be starting immediately on Monday, June 15. A request like this raises several red flags. First, the client named an hourly without any negotiation and the rate was quite generous ($100). Next, the client lives aboard (Kazakhstan), so its out of the U.S. jurisdiction. And lastly, the client wanted tutoring for the next business day. Normally, these red flags would suffice to categorize this tutoring request as a fraud. But Mrs. Gaukhar sounded honest on the phone and gave phone number and hotel. Therefore, we took the risk and connected Mrs. Gaukhar with some of our Tutorz.com working NYC. Jeff Antkowiak of FastForwardThinking called the tutee, his name is Torezhan Upushev. Jeff reported on story (thank you Jeff for your report): We did indeed meet once on Monday for 2 hours, but the situation was a bit confusing. Torezhan said that he was staying in a Manhattan hotel for the next month, and this was where we met on Monday (in the lobby). He scheduled a second meeting for Wednesday at 9am, but did not attend, and it appears that he checked out of the hotel the prior day. His full name is Torezhan Upushev, and I believe that the “Mrs. Gaukhar” was simply a female friend of his. I’m not sure why he wanted this initial meeting or what he was after, but given that both he and “Mrs. Gaukhar” will not return any emails, and that the number they gave is now disconnected. The funny thing about this Torezhan situation is that he actually paid cash after the first session, then made an appointment for the next meeting 2 days later. The next day though, he checked out of his hotel and completely disappeared, and neither he nor the Gaukhar person will return emails or calls. I was very suspicious after the request for a CV in the initial email, but thankfully I did not give him/them any personal information. It’s hard to tell what their motives are when someone is not sincere, but at least no harm was done this time. What can we tutors learn from this story? Look out for the red flag and don’t give out your personal information unless some trust has been established with your client.