One of my goals with my school was to make a more affordable language school for students. The fact is that all language schools in Hanoi are geared towards the middle and upper class. From my research, I'm pretty sure that per class, APEX is the cheapest language school in Hanoi where students learn from a native speaker. On top of that, from what I've been told, my school is only about a dollar more per class than many of the private Vietnamese teachers. That said, my school is still not cheap and unfortunately isn't affordable for poor students. However, I have offered scholarships to students who wish to learn at Apex but can't afford the cost.
When I spoke at all of the universities, I told the students about the scholarship. Everyone seemed really excited but only two people applied. To apply, students merely had to write a short essay about why they wanted to learn English. I accepted both students and gave them scholarships. However, one student's level is higher than the class I'm teaching so she told me she would like to wait for a higher level class.
Eventually I want to set up a program where I get donations from people to sponsor students to learn English. In my head the students could then correspond with their sponsor about their English progress. I'm not exactly sure how to go about doing this but it is something I'll definitely be thinking about and looking into...
5 comments:
How much does it cost to take a class?
You can also think about setting up partnerships with American students who come to study abroad in Hanoi and make them language partners with the students in your school? That way the American students can practice Vietnamese and the Vietnamese student can practice English!
This is what I go to school for =)
It's about six dollars per class.
Good idea, Jessica. Now where do I meet these American students who are studying abroad?
bravo, ben! i wish you the best in your business endeavor! that's so awesome!!
Hi Ben!
Haven't been following your blog for some time (I blame the work load and too much partying :p) and just found out about your school! Woooww!! Congratulations!!! That is such a great start! You know what they say... every journey has to start with one single step!
Here's wishing you all the best of luck with the business and the noble idea of sharing the beauty of English language to lots and lots and lots of people :-)
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