The pandemic has brought down barriers but also prices in language teaching

19. Jan. 2022 at 9:10 am I Quality content

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Pushed out of their comfort zone by the pandemic, language schools have sought new ways of operating and interacting with their students.

An online-only education, once considered unimaginable, has brought many benefits. On the one hand, language schools have seen their market expand beyond previous geographic boundaries. They are also no longer limited by the number of classrooms. At the same time, online education has put increased pressure on schools to lower the prices of language courses, even if they have not yet caught up with their pre-pandemic income.

The new normal for most language schools that the Slovak Viewer talked about is a mix of online and in-person instruction. Teachers and students have become so accustomed to this form of education that they no longer want to return to exclusively in-person learning.

“The pandemic has helped break down any prejudice against the online form of communication,” said Katarína Lovíšková, general manager of the International House Bratislava language school, one of the largest in Slovakia according to the Largest in Business ranking for 2021.

Familiarity with online teaching an asset

Lockdowns, introduced during the first wave of the pandemic in March 2020, forced language schools to switch to online teaching overnight. Some of them had experience teaching online before the pandemic, but most teachers and students feared online classes.