Hi there - sorry it's taken me so long to answer this. I was going to Swissing, although I am not continuing with them. Our instructor changed when one went away for an extended holiday, and I was not learning as well from the new one. Also, the night of the week has not been working as well for our family as it did in the beginning.

I will say, 30 weeks on, that it is frustrating to look at the class level designations (A1, A2 etc.) as I research other schools, and find that I could have been twice as far along if I'd gone 2x week. Now, that may seem like a no brainer to some, but I somehow convinced myself that we were doing the same material as a 2x week class, at the same pace, because our classes ran longer . That said, there is no way a 2x week course would have worked for me in the context of my other commitments, hence my decision to try the online/phone instruction for the school I posted about above. I think I am going to give them a trial and will post back my thoughts to this thread when I've had a few lessons.

__________________
Thus far you have been adrift in the sheltered harbour of my patience. ~ Cobra Bubbles

Do they teach in English?. Do they have courses that cater to absolute beginners??

I'll second that. You can also watch TV channels like "ZDF Doku Kanal" or german news channels which allow you to learn more sophisticated language skills.

Another great way is to watch your favourite TV series (e.g. 24, Lost, Prison Break, Desperate Housewives ect.) in german (DVD).


BTW: What about having a "german" channel on the english-forum chat where english speaking people could help one another learning german? (correcting, translating stuff ect.)

	Quote:	viosno
	Do they teach in English?. Do they have courses that cater to absolute beginners??

No, they don't teach in English ! And I found that that was the main problem why the course was so bad.

Seriously, avoid Migros.

Buy yourself Michel Thomas, Rosetta Stone, or a decent CD+Vocab book which claims to get you to A1/A2 level of German, and you'll be spending your money a lot more wisely.


Mike
(Read my previous posting, for a description of everything you'd cover in the 20-lesson German beginners course, and why it's such a bad idea to do it..)

It seems everyone's experiences are different.

I went to Migros klubschule, and I have also learned at the Goethe Institut here in Australia.

Migros taught without a word of english, and the Goethe Institut taught with english, both in a class setting.

Both were very professional, at a similar standard. The main difference was that Migros was more difficult in that it forced you to interact in German. For some, this may be too challenging and confronting a proposition, however I believe you learn German a whole lot faster as a result of immersing in a classroom speaking totally German. When english is used as a by-language, people use it as an escape and the learning curve is much lower, or slower.

Sorry Mike if my experience contradicts yours but I just felt you seem to be promoting this idea that immersing yourself in a class focussing on the primary language is a bad thing, when it is not a bad thing for SOME people.

Just a final word on Migros. I went to Oerlikon for three months full time intensive and had a great group of people and a great teacher. I only stopped going becuase of cost, as I was not working at the time. Otherwise I would have kept it going longer.

Why not post those comments in THIS thread. Who knows, it might help the idea .

I agree with you here. I'd had a couple of years of German lessons back in schooldays, and had a good grasp of the basics of pronunciation and grammar, but still had a sense of inhibition about opening my mouth in German.

The total immersion approach was just what I needed to get rid of that inhibition. I simply looked stuff up in a dictionary when I got stumped.

The teacher/class dynamics are very important too. The school offered to bump me up a level at one point, but I chose to stay put not only because the teacher was good, but the class got on well together and had a positive attitude to learning. We had lots of fun learning together, and that made the world of difference.

Thanks for the info. Got to know from the webiste (Rosetta Stone), that there is a '6-month online subscription'. Is it as good as the Books and CDs?? Any ideas??

I'm joining the A2 intensive course of Migors Klubschule Oerlikon, anybody else here too? My class starts on the 8th.

i have been to alpha, bellingua and oekos.

i liked oekos the most cause it just teaches german and i found the teachers very good. half day per day, five days per week intensive course for a couple of months.

im still far from fluent in deutsch, however.

krlock3

Hi

I have just finished the book Themen aktuell 1. I understand that takes learners to”level A1 of the Common European Framework of Refernce for Languages”.

I am going to take a German language course in Zurich from Jan 07 (haven’t picked one yet). In the meantime, I am wondering what would be a good next book to start – my competence level is still very basic so I would like to get a head start for my next course if possible.

I have some questions: -

• Is Themen aktuell 1 a book which is commonly used by the language schools?
• If not, is there another book that is commonly used (if so I might buy this to try and do some advance reading).

Thanks a lot.

Anyone has taken (or knows someone) lessons at EB Zürich (at Kant. Berufsschule für Weiterbildung)? The prices are very low, so would you recommend it?

I learned DE in DE with Themen 1 though ISTR its more than A1...

For your next book, I suggest contacting the language school YOU ARE LIKELY TO USE when you get here (I recommend Alphasprach studio) and asking them what books they use..

Hey guys,
Is there a link for Migro ( or is it Migros??). Sorry-- i am a newbie in Zürich and don't know if there is both Migros and Migro.
thnx

Here

the website is not in English though, so depending on your existing language background, you may need a dictionary to navigate . . .

I shud have listened to you. In spite of reading your post, i decided to give it a try and guess what.; I'm paying for it already. I enrolled myself for the intensive course from 22nd of this month to 16th of Nov. I enter the particular room on 22nd only to find out that some other course was going on in there. When i inquired they tell me that, my course starts only on 12th of Nov. They never informed about the schedule change and they never cared to apologize. Worst part is, the monthly SBB ticket that i had taken, solely for attending this course is an utter waste now.

Well I went to Oekos.Benedikt and Volkshochschule. Oekos was the best. Benedikt is too big and too bureaurocratic. Volkshochschule is not so good. Oekos is friendly and good relaxed teachers.
http://www.oekos.ch/

Hi Dinivan,

I go to EB Zürich, its by far the best school and cheapest and it actually depends on the teachers too.. I was lucky to get 2 teachers.. its more interesting!!! I asked around a few other schools too before i registered.. The thing with EB is you have to be quick to book a class, the maximum in one class is 15 person so better do it now..

errna bonita - beginner 2 now!

Well,

after changing a couple of language schools, I found that german is a very different language to english and you need time to accept that.
Was lucky to discover through a friend a language school 'Clarity language school' and have a trial lesson with Käthi.

Was amazed with her teaching approach, the way she introduces german. Since then I have been attending her fun class for 1.5 years now. Also proud with my achievement: passing the Zertifikat Deutsch exams! :-)

So, I guess if you are looking a german language school, book a trial lesson with Käthi. For more details you are more than welcome to PM me.

Cheers
Vera

Another great thread.

I would never advise anyone to take an English course abroad without knowing the basics first. I've heard time and again how difficult it is to learn English in another country at an absolute beginner level. The students just don't understand the teacher.

This seems to be the same problem here. For absolute beginners in German, I would suggest finding someone who can teach you the basics using English and German. Or, if this is impossible, buy German language books and CDs that explain basic grammar and vocabulary in English before attending an absolute beginner course (as someone has already mentioned previously.) You'll learn far quicker and be less frustrated.

And I absolutely HATE the books Migros uses for their English courses. Headway, English File and many other books are far better!