A word in your ear
Would-be students who opt for a less mainstream method of arming themselves with another tongue are faced with a wide variety of teaching, ranging from high-tech 'i-learning' to the simply surreal via occasionally bizarre.
However, a handful of the once 'alternative' methods have now proved so popular that they are in danger of becoming mainstream. One of the most well-known, so-called learning 'systems' is the Callan Method, which has rocketed in popularity over the past 45 years since it was first conceived.
Aiming abroad
Alongside these methods are options to study abroad, where students are immersed in the life of the language of their choice for a period of a week or more. They will often reside with a native host to allow the pupil full exposure to the language and culture.
Of the less conventional learning systems, hypnosis claims many supporters who believe unconscious exposure to a second language allows students to get to grips with less effort than some other methods.
School's in
Of these, the Callan system has expand at an impressive rate over the past few years. Since the turn of the millennium the number of schools offering courses based on the Callan technique has jumped from just two institutions to around 30 in the Warsaw area. The organization claims its high-speed, intensive training can teach English in a quarter of the time a conventional course might take, offers a written guarantee of success in exams and boasts a 95 percent pass rate. One of the most notable expansions has been the Peritus - Speed English School, which was founded by Wioletta Siwek and now boasts 14 separate centers in the region. Siwek says her success lies with the ability to fulfill Callan's big promises.
Fulfilling promises
"The Callan Method is not a secret. Its effectiveness relies on the intensiveness of the teaching," says Siwek.
Classes are organized so that pupils sit around in a circle - there are no desks for students to hide behind. "The teachers speak at a rate of 240 words per minute and ask questions of the pupils at random. They will have to respond in a negative form then reply in a positive way. There is no 'yes' or 'no' option and the teacher will correct every single mistake," she explained.
Something in the air
"We try to create the sort of linguistic atmosphere that they would find in say London where everything is in English and they are being washed in the language and cannot use their native tongue. It relies on impulse responses and is very demanding.
"With 240 words spoken every minute for 50 minutes you can see that there is a lot of language. Pupils have to concentrate very hard and it can be draining. You can see them emerging from a class and the more tired they look the more they say they have benefited."
i-time
Of increasing importance in the market is computer or web-assisted learning. The world-wide English First school, which is part of the EF Group, runs courses that combine classroom tuition with web-based tutorials.
"Our system allows students to practice reading, writing, grammar and recording their own voice to perfect pronunciation," says English First's country manager in Poland, Mark Mugliston.
"It is much more sophisticated than the teach-yourself cd packages you can buy in shops. It allows students unlimited access to our i-labs - so that they can repeat classroom examples, and access to games and chat rooms so that they can link up with students say in Chilli. We find it is becoming valuable," he added.
Power of the mind
The marketing success of foreign language audio training can be assessed by the wealth of available courses. Anyone venturing into this field will need a helping hand to navigate the differences between repetition tapes, hypnosis (entirely audible and requires active mental participation), and subliminal and supraliminal recordings which play embedded suggestive messages at low and high volumes, respectively.
The internet offers scores of different systems for those who believe in the power of the unconscious mind. The Deep Trance website (www.deeptrancenow.com), which is dedicated to matters spiritual, reviews several different distance learning language tapes after conceding that the best way of learning a language is to live in the country where the language is being spoken.
Learn on the run
Of the basic Pimsleur program (30 half hour lessons) it says they "are most suited for languages you consider difficult to learn, as well as if you are a lazy learner. The learning process is effortless."
For the busiest students there are a number of learn-on-the-run offerings, such as Penton Overseas' 24 CD collection that includes VocabuLearn, Learn In Your Car, and Immersion Plus courses. "Even though you can use this program entirely while driving your car - it comes with booklets, which contain all the information on CDs in a written format," Deep Trance notes.
Foreign dreams
However, for those who are so busy that the only spare time they have for learning is while they sleep there are a wide range of subliminal courses. "Subliminal and supraliminal recordings contain suggestions for accelerated learning of foreign languages designed to be impressed directly upon your subconscious mind," the website explains.
One of the most famous - and most costly - forms of teaching comes courtesy of Polish-born Michel Thomas who operates largely in Beverly Hills, New York and London. While his eight-CD recordings come in at a little over zł.360, one-to-one tuition at one of his centers can set customers back the best part of zł.80,000. While undoubtedly hugely expensive his high profile testimonies indicate that his star clients, who include the likes of Barbra Streisand, Warren Beatty, Woody Allen and Bob Dylan, are well-satisfied with his service.
No alternative
However, at the end of the day many professionals believe that in most cases the level of language achieved will bear direct correlation to the time spent in effective study. Peritus' owner, Siwek, certainly doesn't flinch from the difficulty of learning a language and agrees that there is no alternative to hard work. "The claims made by Callan are very strong but we stand by them. No one is going to learn a language without putting in a lot of learning," she said.
However, a handful of the once 'alternative' methods have now proved so popular that they are in danger of becoming mainstream. One of the most well-known, so-called learning 'systems' is the Callan Method, which has rocketed in popularity over the past 45 years since it was first conceived.
Aiming abroad
Alongside these methods are options to study abroad, where students are immersed in the life of the language of their choice for a period of a week or more. They will often reside with a native host to allow the pupil full exposure to the language and culture.
Of the less conventional learning systems, hypnosis claims many supporters who believe unconscious exposure to a second language allows students to get to grips with less effort than some other methods.
School's in
Of these, the Callan system has expand at an impressive rate over the past few years. Since the turn of the millennium the number of schools offering courses based on the Callan technique has jumped from just two institutions to around 30 in the Warsaw area. The organization claims its high-speed, intensive training can teach English in a quarter of the time a conventional course might take, offers a written guarantee of success in exams and boasts a 95 percent pass rate. One of the most notable expansions has been the Peritus - Speed English School, which was founded by Wioletta Siwek and now boasts 14 separate centers in the region. Siwek says her success lies with the ability to fulfill Callan's big promises.
Fulfilling promises
"The Callan Method is not a secret. Its effectiveness relies on the intensiveness of the teaching," says Siwek.
Classes are organized so that pupils sit around in a circle - there are no desks for students to hide behind. "The teachers speak at a rate of 240 words per minute and ask questions of the pupils at random. They will have to respond in a negative form then reply in a positive way. There is no 'yes' or 'no' option and the teacher will correct every single mistake," she explained.
Something in the air
"We try to create the sort of linguistic atmosphere that they would find in say London where everything is in English and they are being washed in the language and cannot use their native tongue. It relies on impulse responses and is very demanding.
"With 240 words spoken every minute for 50 minutes you can see that there is a lot of language. Pupils have to concentrate very hard and it can be draining. You can see them emerging from a class and the more tired they look the more they say they have benefited."
i-time
Of increasing importance in the market is computer or web-assisted learning. The world-wide English First school, which is part of the EF Group, runs courses that combine classroom tuition with web-based tutorials.
"Our system allows students to practice reading, writing, grammar and recording their own voice to perfect pronunciation," says English First's country manager in Poland, Mark Mugliston.
"It is much more sophisticated than the teach-yourself cd packages you can buy in shops. It allows students unlimited access to our i-labs - so that they can repeat classroom examples, and access to games and chat rooms so that they can link up with students say in Chilli. We find it is becoming valuable," he added.
Power of the mind
The marketing success of foreign language audio training can be assessed by the wealth of available courses. Anyone venturing into this field will need a helping hand to navigate the differences between repetition tapes, hypnosis (entirely audible and requires active mental participation), and subliminal and supraliminal recordings which play embedded suggestive messages at low and high volumes, respectively.
The internet offers scores of different systems for those who believe in the power of the unconscious mind. The Deep Trance website (www.deeptrancenow.com), which is dedicated to matters spiritual, reviews several different distance learning language tapes after conceding that the best way of learning a language is to live in the country where the language is being spoken.
Learn on the run
Of the basic Pimsleur program (30 half hour lessons) it says they "are most suited for languages you consider difficult to learn, as well as if you are a lazy learner. The learning process is effortless."
For the busiest students there are a number of learn-on-the-run offerings, such as Penton Overseas' 24 CD collection that includes VocabuLearn, Learn In Your Car, and Immersion Plus courses. "Even though you can use this program entirely while driving your car - it comes with booklets, which contain all the information on CDs in a written format," Deep Trance notes.
Foreign dreams
However, for those who are so busy that the only spare time they have for learning is while they sleep there are a wide range of subliminal courses. "Subliminal and supraliminal recordings contain suggestions for accelerated learning of foreign languages designed to be impressed directly upon your subconscious mind," the website explains.
One of the most famous - and most costly - forms of teaching comes courtesy of Polish-born Michel Thomas who operates largely in Beverly Hills, New York and London. While his eight-CD recordings come in at a little over zł.360, one-to-one tuition at one of his centers can set customers back the best part of zł.80,000. While undoubtedly hugely expensive his high profile testimonies indicate that his star clients, who include the likes of Barbra Streisand, Warren Beatty, Woody Allen and Bob Dylan, are well-satisfied with his service.
No alternative
However, at the end of the day many professionals believe that in most cases the level of language achieved will bear direct correlation to the time spent in effective study. Peritus' owner, Siwek, certainly doesn't flinch from the difficulty of learning a language and agrees that there is no alternative to hard work. "The claims made by Callan are very strong but we stand by them. No one is going to learn a language without putting in a lot of learning," she said.
