After having participated in 80 classes of the Callan method, I feel I can say mine about the effectiveness of this method and to whom this type of course is directed. Here is a complete note that I hope may be useful to many people!
How to register
Surely the school in which it is easy to enroll in London is the Callan. It is not necessary to know English to register because for each country of origin there will be a youngster or a young woman of languages who will attend you at the reception. Therefore my only advice is that as soon as you arrive in London, go immediately to a Callan school.
For registration after 5 days of testing your address will be requested in UK (you can invent it, the important thing is to put the zip code correctly, eg Camden Town – NW1), the cell phone number (better if UK) and a identification document.
Admission test
Unlike the other schools, the admission test will be exclusively oral. In this mode the teacher can understand your level of English by asking you a series of questions about what you do in life, where you live, what you want to do, why you want to study English, etc. You will not be asked the grammatical rules and above all the teacher who will do the test will NOT tell you if you are wrong or not.
Therefore, they have to be very attentive! I give you a practical example:
“A young woman who has taken the test with me knew how to speak English discreetly and understood any question the teacher asked her, but in the answers she gave she has mistaken practically all the irregular verbs in the past, for this reason the teacher had to put it in level 2 next to people who almost do not speak English. ”
The teacher was incredulous for every mistake! In the end the test has told him all his mistakes. After the admission test, you will be directed in one of the 7 levels / books available at Callan School. He is attentive because there are many people who start with the book ONE and therefore many times you will have to wait for weeks before you can start the course.
Class – your classmates
What has surprised me about this school is my classmates. Each one completely different from the other by age, nationality, reason for which they frequent the course. The reason, according to me, is very important, but for some of your classmates, who do not have the minimum desire to take the course, you can delay the classes a bit! Unfortunately, it is difficult to socialize with your colleagues if not after many classes.
This is because the average level of people who choose this school is very low and most have things to do before the course (many work) and therefore have no interest in socializing. There is also to say that there is little time to socialize a day (more or less 10 minutes)
The teacher
One of the fundamental aspects of the Callan method is the teacher. For now I have tried three teachers and I have to say that each one has their own teaching method, even if they have to follow step by step what is written in the textbook. For me the teacher is very important so if unfortunately you get one you do not measure up you can risk not learning the Callan method correctly.
A particular teacher in theory can not answer your questions during class, just before and after it. This is because in the Callan method the question and answer rhythm between the teacher and the students is very high, therefore if a student demands an explanation in merit to a problem he can break the rhythm that has been created and that is fundamental to quickly improve the own English.
The lesson
The teacher simply asks a question and the student has to answer. Nothing simpler. At the beginning the teacher will tell you word by word how you have to answer the question he has asked you, then with the passing of the class you will be yourself to respond quickly without needing help.
You have to pay close attention because the answers have to follow a very precise line and you can not move in any way adding phrases or words not provided in the book. This thing may seem absurd but it is part of the Callan method. If you want to feel a piece of a lesson from the Callan method, send me an email.
The lesson is divided into 4 parts:
- REVIEW OF THE PREVIOUS LESSON
- READING THE BOOK
- DICTATION
- INTRODUCTION NEW QUESTIONS / ANSWERS relative to VOCABLES
The lesson lasts 50 minutes.
Cost
The Callan School is one of the cheapest in London. With 57 pounds a week or so you can do 2 hours of classes per day of one hour each for 5 days a week! By booking several weeks of the course before the price drops significantly!
The cost is 5.5 pounds a day. Based on how many weeks you will pay in advance you will receive a substantial discount on the total. In this link you will find the table that gives you the weekly cost of the classes based on the frequency hours and how many weeks you book at the same time.
Works??
Good question! The method according to me, has a great advantage:
forcing you to respond in a certain way helps you to THINK DIRECTLY IN ENGLISH.
The other advantages are:
- LOW COST
- FLEXIBILITY IN THE SCHEDULES OF THE CLASSES
- NO HOMEWORK TAKE HOME
- USEFUL TO IMPROVE THE PRONUNCIATION
The disadvantages are:
- ONLY 2 HOURS A DAY (because making more than 2 does not make sense)
- A POOR TEACHER IN TEACHING MUST CONVERT YOUR VOICE
- DIFFICULT TO SOCIALIZE WITH COMPANIONS
To whom I advise
According to me it is a method adapted to those who have time to devote to the study of the language and are mainly in London to work. Young people who are on vacation choose this type of school are really few because two hours a day are not enough to quickly learn the language!
Website and advice on booking
Site with more information about the Callan School of Oxford Street is http://www.scuolacallan.com
SoñandoLondres.com gives you the opportunity to book directly from Spain your English course in London with the Callan method! Thanks to the direct collaboration with an important English school in London we give the possibility to register online to ensure the start of the course already from the first day you arrive in London.
Let’s discuss in the forum:
What do you think about this note about the Callan School? Do you have more opinions about the school or other questions to ask? You can do it sul forum Callan School!
