Thanks to new technology, there are many more methods available to
second
language
learners today than in the past.
However
, I would agree that using the internet to
self-
study
is the best for three reasons.
Firstly
, self-education enables people to
study
at a time and place
that is
convenient for them, which means they are more likely to
study
on a regular basis.
Although
I acknowledge that for many people making commitment to a group class is the only way that they can motivate themselves to
study
many students find that after the initial few weeks they start skipping class because the promise of regular attendance is too much. Online
self-
study
,
however
, offers students full flexibility in their learning timetable and, as the key to learning a foreign
language
is regular
study
, they are,
thus
, more likely to succeed.
Another factor is the low cost of online
study
.
Although
it could be argued that students can
also
watch foreign TV programmes or listen to music in
otherany of various alternatives; some other
language
for free, these materials are designed more for entertainment than
language
instruction. Many websites,
however
, offer high level learning content for free. I believe that
this
is particularly important for students at beginner level, who may just want to have a free taste of the
language
before they commit to a full paid course.
Moreover
, even course that
a payment work out to be more cost-effective over time than other types of lessons.
Finally
,
self-
study
gives you full control over your learning because you are able to choose your own curriculum and decide how quickly to move through it.
In contrast
, in a
class rooma room in a school where lessons take place
environment, you have to move at the pace of a whole group, which may be too fast or too slow for your needs.
Moreover
,
although
many argue that the biggest missing element in an online course is a teacher to guide your learning, I would say that most educators give only the same narrow range of content to all their students, rarely creating courses that are tailored to an individual student’s needs.
As a result
, you benefit very little from having a real life teacher rather than a virtual one in terms of guidance, but lose a lot in terms of control.
In conclusion, I agree that computer-based
self-
study
is the best way to acquire a
second
language
as it allows students to
study
what they want, where they want, when they want and
as a result
, they are much more likely to keep up a sensational learning effort.
