Interesting. I'm an (exclusively) online English language tutor, and I actually feel quite the opposite, for tuition. I certainly agree that something is lost, but for some purposes, that's a good thing. Online, here in central Europe, students and myself drop pretenses very quickly, and focus on the language much more readily. In a face…
Interesting. I'm an (exclusively) online English language tutor, and I actually feel quite the opposite, for tuition. I certainly agree that something is lost, but for some purposes, that's a good thing. Online, here in central Europe, students and myself drop pretenses very quickly, and focus on the language much more readily. In a face-to-face lesson, I find, students are much more prone to consider how they look (not for me; for each other), their manner, the smell of their breath (!) etc. Sat at home, they're more comfortable and grounded. Granted, this is probably not the kind of work you're referencing, but thought I'd throw it in as an interesting counter.
It's funny, I'm thrilled with my Zoom yoga class, which used to be in person, for all the things you list. I've known the teacher and other students for 25 years now, so we're all comfortable. I can imagine that a one on one Zoom or Facetime is easier than a large group, (say more than five people) for an English language class.
Interesting. I'm an (exclusively) online English language tutor, and I actually feel quite the opposite, for tuition. I certainly agree that something is lost, but for some purposes, that's a good thing. Online, here in central Europe, students and myself drop pretenses very quickly, and focus on the language much more readily. In a face-to-face lesson, I find, students are much more prone to consider how they look (not for me; for each other), their manner, the smell of their breath (!) etc. Sat at home, they're more comfortable and grounded. Granted, this is probably not the kind of work you're referencing, but thought I'd throw it in as an interesting counter.
It's funny, I'm thrilled with my Zoom yoga class, which used to be in person, for all the things you list. I've known the teacher and other students for 25 years now, so we're all comfortable. I can imagine that a one on one Zoom or Facetime is easier than a large group, (say more than five people) for an English language class.
Should note that I'm only advocating for the efficacy of online communication in this single context, however =)