{"id":43130,"date":"2020-08-20T12:43:00","date_gmt":"2020-08-20T10:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/?p=43130"},"modified":"2020-08-20T14:45:20","modified_gmt":"2020-08-20T12:45:20","slug":"how-to-maximise-your-online-course-faqs-tips-and-solutions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/how-to-maximise-your-online-course-faqs-tips-and-solutions\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Maximise Your Online Course: FAQs, Tips And Solutions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">If there\u2019s one good thing to come out of this year, it\u2019s that learning a language has never been so easy or accessible. That\u2019s right, not even a pandemic could stop us from <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>attending<\/strong><\/em><\/span> our English and Spanish classes. In 2020, language schools were forced to close. But we saw students globally put down their school bags, open their laptops, and join the biggest online learning movement ever.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">And for many of you, it\u2019s become a more convenient, and more preferable, way of studying. It\u2019s no surprise why. There are lots of <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/6-benefits-of-learning-english-online\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">benefits to learning a language<\/a> virtually. Studies show that you retain <a href=\"https:\/\/www.weforum.org\/agenda\/2020\/04\/coronavirus-education-global-covid19-online-digital-learning\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">25-60% more material when learning online<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">So if you\u2019re already <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>enrolled on<\/strong><\/em><\/span> an online Oxford House course, or you\u2019re thinking of giving it a go, here\u2019s how to maximise your course!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #2d346f;\"><strong>FAQs about your online language course<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>1. Is the content the same as face-to face classes?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Yes, thanks to <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>the beauty of<\/strong><\/em><\/span> technology, we can pretty much do everything we would normally do in a face-to-face lesson. Our classes help you develop your skills in reading, writing, speaking and listening. And we cover all the usual grammar and vocabulary topics.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Screen sharing capabilities mean your tutor can show you a <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>vast amount<\/strong><\/em><\/span> of material remotely. There\u2019s still the opportunity to <strong>play games, listen to songs and watch videos<\/strong>. Teachers are also able to share resources with you, so there\u2019s still plenty of homework in our online classes.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Check out this video or this post for more information &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/whats-it-like-to-study-online-at-oxford-house\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">What\u2019s it like to study online at Oxford House?<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"element_size_\"><iframe title=\"Oxford House Online Classes\" width=\"870\" height=\"489\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/4qP-WsyoY8w?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>2. What platforms do you use?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Depending on the objective, we use three platforms in our online classes. With <a href=\"https:\/\/telegram.org\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Telegram<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whatsapp.com\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Whatsapp<\/a>, teachers can send text messages and voice recordings to keep you updated.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/zoom.us\/signin\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Zoom<\/a> is the virtual classroom we use. It has some great capabilities such as screen sharing, audio sharing, virtual whiteboard, breakout rooms and a chat box. Our students also love the virtual backgrounds!<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">We have our own online platform &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/ohconnect.com\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">OH connect<\/a> as well. This is a great way to keep a record of the lessons, and your teacher will often post additional links and homework too.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>3. What materials do you use?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">This will depend on the course. Many of our classes require a textbook, which makes the class easier to follow from home. You will be told what you need when you sign up for the course. Teachers often have access to a digital copy which they can annotate and <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>highlight<\/strong><\/em><\/span> information on screen to enhance the learning experience.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>4. Will we still do speaking activities?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Absolutely! In fact, online learning is perfect for it. Many teachers will use Zoom\u2019s <strong>breakout rooms<\/strong>, which facilitate small group speaking activities. This means you\u2019ll still get lots of opportunities to talk in pairs and groups. And for students that are a little bit <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>shy<\/strong><\/em><\/span>, this is actually better. It\u2019s like being <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>tucked away<\/strong><\/em><\/span> in your own private chat room without everyone listening. Plus, your teacher can drop in and out and give feedback after the session.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>5. Is there still an exam at the end of the course?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">The online exams are exactly the same as with face-to-face classes. We do <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>termly<\/strong><\/em><\/span> assessments for all courses to test the four skills (speaking, reading, writing and listening) to measure your progress. This is normally sent to you as a PDF via OH Connect or Zoom, and depending on the teacher you will either do this in class or in your own time as homework.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Remember, you can still come into the school to take the test if you prefer. And for exam classes like the <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/summer-english-courses\/summer-cambridge-intensive\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Cambridge English exams<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/summer-english-courses\/ielts-summer-intensive\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">IELTS<\/a> we offer a free mock exam in addition to those termly exams.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>6. Can I do a level test online?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Yes! Our <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/levels\/level-tests\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">online level test<\/a> automatically sends us your results when you enter your email address at the end. This means that when you come to sign up for a course, we already have your test results on our database.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Students wishing to take Cambridge or IELTS courses are sent a written exam via email which they must complete in addition to the online level test. You also have to do an oral test over the phone or on skype to access the course. General English extensive and intensive courses (kids, teens and adults) will need to take an oral exam as well.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>7. How can I book onto an online course?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Just head to <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">our website<\/a> where you\u2019ll find information about all of our courses &#8211; both online and face-to-face. Once you click on the course you want, <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>scroll<\/strong><\/em><\/span> to the end of the page and look for &#8211; \u2018Sign up now!\u2019 Here you\u2019ll be asked to complete the online registration, select the course, choose your start date and timetable. We\u2019ll also ask for your details and give you information about payment.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>8. Is the price the same as a face-to-face course?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Yes, the prices are exactly the same for online and in-school classes. You can find out all our course prices on our website.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #2d346f;\"><strong>Tips for your online language course<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">When taking an online course with Oxford House, we recommend the following things:<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>Confirm your place on the course<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Make sure you have received an email confirming your place on the course. If you haven\u2019t heard anything from the school prior to the class, please <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/contact\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">send us an email or call us<\/a> before the course is due to start.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>Check your equipment<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">For online classes you will be required to have high speed internet connection. You will also need to have a working web camera, and either an inbuilt or external microphone. Please make sure you test your equipment before joining the class.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>Get set-up<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">The school will send you a link to Zoom before the class. Please ensure you have set up an account in advance. Don\u2019t worry, this only takes a minute, and then you\u2019ll be able to join at the start of the lesson without problems.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">It\u2019s also a good idea to have a notepad by your side. This will be useful for completing any written exercises and notes. And you may want to have some extra tabs open on your computer with additional resources. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wordreference.com\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">WordReference<\/a> offers translations in both English and Spanish. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oed.com\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Oxford English Dictionary<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spanishdict.com\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">SpanishDict<\/a> are great for looking up new words and checking pronunciation too.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #4d524d;\"><strong>Get involved<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">The most important thing is to have fun! Treat your online course like a \u2018regular\u2019 course. Get to know your classmates and participate in speaking activities. We promise you\u2019ll <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>get so much more out of it<\/strong><\/em><\/span>!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Check out this blog post for more <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/9-tips-for-studying-a-language-at-home\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">tips on learning a language at home<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">It\u2019s not too late to sign up for Online Summer Courses starting in September. <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/summer-english-courses\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Sign up online<\/a> or contact the school at info@oxfordhousebcn.com. We look forward to meeting you!<\/p>\n<div class=\"devider element_size_>\"><div style=\"margin-top:20px;margin-bottom:20px; \" class=\"divider3\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<h1><strong>Glossary for Language Learners<\/strong><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">Find the following words in the article and then write down any new ones you didn\u2019t know.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>To attend (v):<\/strong><\/em><\/span> singing along to a song, but by only moving your lips, and producing no sound.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>To enroll on (v):<\/strong><\/em><\/span> something on the internet becoming very popular, spreading from one person to another.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>The beauty of something (exp):<\/strong><\/em><\/span> immediately effective.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>Vast amount (n):<\/strong><\/em><\/span>  to move quickly through information on your phone with your thumb or finger.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>To highlight (v):<\/strong><\/em><\/span> short extracts or pieces of information.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>Shy (adj):<\/strong><\/em><\/span> a way of ending a relationship by suddenly stopping all communication with them.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>Tucked away (adj):<\/strong><\/em><\/span> to add.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>Termly (adj):<\/strong><\/em><\/span> problems and difficulties.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>To scroll (v):<\/strong><\/em><\/span> informal spoken language.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em><strong>Get more out of something (exp) :<\/strong><\/em><\/span> in detail.<\/p>\n<div class=\"devider element_size_>\"><div style=\"margin-top:20px;margin-bottom:20px; \" class=\"divider1\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\"><strong>Key<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">v = verb<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">n = noun<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">exp = expression<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 15px;\">adj = adjective<\/p>\n<div class=\"devider element_size_>\"><div style=\"margin-top:20px;margin-bottom:20px; \" class=\"divider1\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<h2><span style=\"color: #055f65;\"><strong><div class=\"messagebox alert alert-info\" style=\"align:left; background:#ffffff; color:#2D346F; border:1px solid #ffffff\"><h4>Study English at Oxford House Barcelona<\/h4><i class=\"icon-info-sign\"><\/i>Interested in taking an English course at Oxford House Barcelona? Check all of our different <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/summer-english-courses\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">summer courses, or <\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/contact\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">contact us<\/a> for more information.<\/div><div class=\"clear\"><\/div><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If there\u2019s one good thing to come out of this year, it\u2019s that learning a language has never been so easy or accessible. That\u2019s right, not even a pandemic could stop us from attending our English and Spanish classes. In 2020, language schools were forced to close. But we saw students globally put down their [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":43133,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_joinchat":[]},"categories":[268],"tags":[10830,137,11000,12482],"yst_prominent_words":[1332,12468,2040,1713,12466,1253,1033,12473,1469,12480,3532,4228,2201,12467,3525,1078,1080,12475,12479,12478],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43130"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43130"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43130\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43157,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43130\/revisions\/43157"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43130"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhousebcn.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=43130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}