We offer both group classes and private lessons, so I think we are in a good position to be transparent about which one is better.
And my answer is very simple.
Choose one-to-one if you can
If you have the means to do so, always choose one-to-one lessons.
I don't believe people learn better in a group environment. They are simply less challenged.
In a group class, you can spend a significant amount of the lesson listening to other people, waiting for your turn or doing very little. It can feel comfortable, and that comfort can sometimes give you the impression that you are making more progress than you actually are.
Private lessons are different.
You have to show up. You have 100% of your tutor's time and attention. You have nowhere to hide when you don't understand something, haven't done your homework or simply aren't putting in enough effort.
That might sound less appealing. But when it comes to learning a language, I think it is precisely the point.
Accountability changes the lesson
There is also the question of consistency.
If you don't show up to a group class, the class still happens. Everyone else continues without you. In a private lesson, someone is there specifically for you. There is naturally a greater sense of accountability.
The case for group classes
So why do we offer group classes at all?
Because I think the comparison changes completely when you stop comparing them with private lessons.
Compare a group class with an app, a video, a book or another largely passive way of learning French, and suddenly the group class starts to look very good.
You have a real tutor. You have to speak. You have to listen and respond. You can ask questions. Someone can correct you. And, perhaps most importantly, there are other people expecting you to be there every week.
It isn't one-to-one tuition, but it is still real interaction.
The economics of group teaching
There is another side to group classes that isn't often discussed.
They can be very lucrative for language schools. A tutor can teach several people during the same two hours, which makes the economics considerably better than private tuition.
Ironically, they are also becoming increasingly difficult to fill.
There are now private tutors offering one-to-one lessons at prices that aren't very different from the cost of joining a good group class. When faced with that choice, it is understandable that many people choose the private tutor.
Why our group classes are staying
We have thought about stopping our group classes almost every year for the past seven years. Usually, the conversation comes back when a class is particularly difficult to fill.
And every year, we continue.
Partly because our clients are very happy with them.
But also, quite simply, because I enjoy teaching them.
There is something genuinely enjoyable about seeing the same people every week, watching a group develop together and seeing people become increasingly comfortable speaking French in front of one another.
So, for now, our group classes are staying.
I would never tell someone that they are better than private lessons. I don't think they are.
But not everyone wants, or can justify, the cost of private tuition.
And compared with learning alone through videos, apps or books, I think a good group class is a very different proposition.
It gets you out of passive learning and into actually using the language.
And that makes it worth doing.
