Which is the best online PAID Swedish language course?

[Darren844127]

Please share your opinions and experiences. I rate access to some one on one tutoring very highly too...

I am currently using the free version of swedishpod101 (as well as duolingo) - it has some pros and cons imo. The QUIZ is next to useless as it wont accept any legit variation in the answers - so even if you are correct you can get a "wrong" result. The class NOTES (in English) are very helpful IMO as it makes it easier to follow the lessons. And of course the ability to immerse yourself in the language with the longer podcasts is excellent.

I like Duolingo but I feel it has some real shortcomings, such as the soon to be absence of the incredibly valuable forum! I feel that without the forum it will be much harder to learn and progress. I have already learned so much from the forum that the SOFTWARE was incapable of teaching me!

[Basler Biker]

Italki is one place where you can pay for 1:1 courses with live teachers.
Whether it's the best one would depend on the teacher you select.

You have a choice between

• being helped by other users (for free)
• it's not so expensive to be helped by a paid "community teacher"
• it may be a bit more expensive being helped by a "professional teacher"

And also in this case, more expensive is not always better. Professionals have to submit proof of their profession, where as community teachers just give proof of their language capabilities. professionals may be better in explaining the grammar and theory, whereas community teachers are often fluent/native speakers in their mothertongue, and you know, for being native fluent one doesn't need any grammar. On the other hand, community teachers maybe better in informal chats, culture exchange, etc, whereas a professional may be too much focussed on the errors you make

Also, professionals may be better equipped with all kinds of didactic material to be shared and studied together.

BB - Basler Biker

[Darren844127]

Italki is one place where you can pay for 1:1 courses with live teachers.

Tank for the feedback.

I am looking into Italki based on your advice and yes it looks very good. My attitude at the moment (as an absolute beginner) is I am happy enough with chatting to others on forums or searching out pre-existing chats, but I can see that I will almost certainly want some real one-on-one in the not too distant future. At the moment I would envision some very minimal assistance to answer/explain the occasional query, but over time that could change to a need for more in depth tutoring.

I am seeing an average rate of around 25 dollars per hour (Australian dollars) for their Swedish tutors and that seems reasonable to me. I can definitely see myself using them in the future.

[Basler Biker]

I am currently using the free version of swedishpod101 (as well as duolingo) - it has some pros and cons imo...

Hej Darren,
Tack för de två produktrecensionerna. Eftersom duome sajten är under uppbyggnad arbetar jag på en mall för såväl "recensioner" som för "funktionslistor" av en produkt. De är inte där än, men du kanske kan prova dina inlägg och inspirera mig till en mall? Personligen gillar jag att se en PROS/CONS-lista med funktioner, med sedan eventuellt ytterligare förklaringar.

Vad säger du om det?

Tack!

[Darren844127]

Thanks for the suggestion/offer BB.

To be fair to the sites I have to say I don't feel capable of a proper review analysis atm as I am only in the very early beginner levels.

I am not feeling a great amount of love for Swedishpod101 atm, as I am not sure I am getting what I hoped from it. I was quite optimistic and even excited about their 'podcasts' when I started but I am feeling a bit disappointed with them. But I have to be fair and give it more time to see if their method delivers... also I am only on the free plan and I think I may be suffering from not having access to their flashcards and wordbank (where you can save the key words and translations for easy review). I have started making my own very simplistic flashcards now though...

I was kind of expecting Swedishpod101 to fill in a lot of the gaps that Duolingo leaves, but it just isn't happening YET...

I was also primed to become a SP101 paying member when I started, but am questioning the worth of it now..