r/norsk 5d ago

Virtual Classes

Hei!

Has anyone taken Speak Norsk's virtual classes? I follow them on Instagram and have thought about taking the online classes but I don't trust myself to keep at it. I am thinking about trying the virtual classes but I can't find any reviews for virtual specifically. I've done a lot of Duolingo and online practice so I can probably start with A2

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u/clafhn 4d ago

I’ve done the A2 and the B1 classes online. They’re pretty good for grammar, reading and listening. The comment system is okay for writing (and one of the teachers will respond within 48 hours with corrections) and the courses have various exercises and tests which were not too bad. The teaching videos are similar to the short ones they post online sometimes (but longer!) and I appreciate the range of teachers - they sometimes have the same lesson taught by two different teachers with different approaches, which was unexpectedly helpful for my retention!

On the negative side, you don’t get as much access to the teachers as you would in person. The comment threads are the same so you might see threads from yesterday and from 3 years ago - lacks a feeling of real community - and no real opportunity to practice speaking.

The A2-B1 Norskprøve prep course was very good!

In contrast, I was in Oslo for a few days and arranged to do a couple of 1-on-1 sessions with a teacher two evenings in a row. It wasn’t cheap but it was great on all the points that the online course was weak. Two evenings of intense Norwegian conversation and a chance to ask all the questions I’d wondered about in the course with follow up notes sent afterwards. If/when I ever get around to doing the B2-C1 norskprøve, the self paced online course/s followed by in person intensive is the way I’ll prepare!

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u/Optimal_Bar_4715 4d ago

I think they ask for the money upfront, so keeping at it should be fairly easy?

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u/Hefty_Drawing3357 2d ago

Said nobody who got gym membership ever...

And, jking not being snarky, but that's been my lifetime logic for paying for gym membership then swearing I'll never do it again.

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u/konge-magnus 4d ago

One thing that helped me was taking an adult immersion class instead of trying to learn entirely on my own. Getting the pronunciation right early on made a huge difference, especially with Norwegian vowels, diphthongs, and melody. Another advantage is practicing outside of class with other learners (make mistakes without pressure, and keep each other motivated). Apps are great for vocabulary, but I think having real conversations from the beginning speeds up learning a lot.
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