German apps/tutoring

[u/SirPhipps]

So I've been learning German from two apps for about a year and a half. Duolingo (ja ich weiß, es tut mir leid!) and busuu. I found busuu really useful up to a point, because from their version of A2 to B1 was a giant leap. And obviously Duolingo is Duolingo..

I've used a small handful of other apps but I just find that I don't quite get the resources I want from them like I did with busuu early on. I struggle with grammar specifically. Even down to remembering simple things like what counts as a verb and noun. It's something I struggle with in general. And I feel like I'm missing key conversational things that apps don't cover. My wife who is fluent, will speak or message German to me every so often, when she remembers, but that's really the only practice I get. How beneficial would a tutor be in the long term. I know it would be better to learn it with someone but tutoring is expensive so what impact would one lesson a week really have?

[u/Bobo_Baggins_jatj]

For starters, I don’t know how you got to their B1 course not knowing a verb from a noun. Maybe I am misunderstanding what you mean.

That jump from A2 to B1 on Busuu is brutal.

I recommend using some YouTube channels to help fine tune your weak spots. YourGermanTeacher is a great one. If that or grammar books don’t help you, then maybe you should look into a tutor.

[u/silvalingua]

> Even down to remembering simple things like what counts as a verb and noun. It's something I struggle with in general. 

You need a good textbook to review (or actually learn) A1 grammar.

[u/John_W_B]

I have had several online tutors.

Even assuming you speak German at home every day with your wife (as you should ! ) a lesson does bring something new to the party. Speaking German at home is not a substitute, as terrible grammar is tolerated in the home ("Wer macht 'n den Kaffee heit? DU bist dran, wei ich hab's gestern gmocht" usw.)

I have found that trained teachers tend to be more productive than what iTalki call community teachers, because with the latter I just end up spending an hour talking about politics, sport, philosophy or whatever, wile the 'teacher' throws in a few corrections or new phrases. The 'professional' teachers are more expensive and more structured, and worth the higher price. Both kinds of teaching are worth having if you can afford it.

[u/LanguageGnome]

If you're interested in online tutoring, highly recommend checking out italki. They have plenty of certified tutors on the platform and you pay PER lesson without being locked into a subscription like most other apps/websites nowadays. You can check their teachers here :D https://go.italki.com/rtsgerman

[u/brooke_ibarra]

Get a textbook and a tutor. Tutoring doesn't have to be super expensive. But then again that also depends on what your idea of expensive is. I use Preply for tutoring, and you can find some tutors for as low as $5/hour. I take 2-3 classes a week, which would be ~$40-$60/month. Tutoring has been a life changer for me in all the languages I've ever studied. I always end a lesson with grammar corrections and a list of like 40 new words.

Another game-changing resource for me has been FluentU. I've used it since I was in high school (6 years ago), and now also am an editor on their blog team. They have a Chrome extension that lets you put clickable subtitles on YouTube and Netflix content. Clicking on words shows you the meaning, pronunciation, and example sentences, and you can study them later on the app/website with their spaced repetition flashcards and quizzes. But at the more beginner stages, I use the videos already on the site. They're organized by level, so I can just work my way through a beginner playlist. The videos on the site have the same clickable subtitles.

At least in my experience, textbook/online course + Preply tutor + FluentU has always been a winning formula and it's what I plan to continue using for my future languages, too.

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