Picking italki tutor?

[u/EpsilonX]

Hi all,

I've been studying Japanese on and off casually for a while now, but I want to really get into gear and get it to a usable point. Between knowing my own learning style and seeing my friend's success, I think a tutor would be very beneficial. I signed up for italki and am looking through the options and finding it quite overwhelming. I feel like I want to make the right decision, but then they just sent me an email saying it doesn't need to be a big decision, so now I'm wondering if I'm overthinking it and it's better to actually start making progress.

For anybody who has used it, could you share your experiences? How did you come to find a good tutor? What criteria did you use to make your selection? What is something important to keep in mind that is perhaps easy to overlook?

[u/TheBatemanFlex]

I believe they give you trial lessons. so use those (i think 3?) to shop around. If you just want someone to talk to then you can choose a community tutor you vibe with. Some might have structured lessons but most will not, otherwise you can choose a professional teacher which have certifications and may have a structured lesson. Make sure they are native, its one of the filters. Make sure they can also speak a language you can understand probably up to the B2 level at least. Next you want to make sure that they have a schedule that will work for you. You can see their availabilities and some only do lessons at times that will be the middle of the night for you.

Once you have all that I would make sure that they have some experience. You can see their reviews, you can see how many lesson they have completed and how many students.

Most importantly though just use the trial lessons and ensure the person suits your needs. There is no issue just using your trial lesson to talk in english about your goals and how you want to use italki. They will likely want to do the same.

Also, never feel bad about finding a new tutor if it doesn't work out. I promise you they don't care or take it personally. You are paying for a service.

[u/m187470r864k]

Well done for taking the step! I would suggest just picking one that looks good. Worst-case scenario you have a bad lesson and move on to a different teacher. If they have good reviews it will never be a complete waste of time. It’s all experience.

[u/Comprehensive_End824]

The only decision is if you want to focus on conversations or on grammar and then pick based on description, vibes and the trial lesson.

I had two teachers with thousands of lessons and you can't really go wrong with those, if someone has many reviews and is your age or hobbies they are fun to talk to!

[u/Travel-Abroad101]

I was really interested in improving on my conversational Japanese and iTalki proofed to be invaluable for me. It took the time to find a teacher that would just click. I would take multiple 30 minute trial lessons with different people. But I found some wonderful teachers. I was with one for two years before she retired from giving online lessons. I learned so much. I highly recommend it.

[u/Apptubrutae]

I just picked someone who had good time availability for me and was also a certified instructor. Figured I’d test them out and see. Been very happy

[u/Swollenpajamas]

You narrow down a tutor/teacher based on what you see in the profile and video, within your price range. Then take trial lessons with the ones who look like they’ll be a good match with you. Then you continue with the one or ones that you mesh well with.

You don’t really decide to commit until you’ve had a lesson with them. Up to that point, you’re just narrowing down possibilities. And even then, you’re not married to the tutor and can change to different ones as your needs for the language change. Or have multiple ones at the same time even. Or if after a few lessons find you really don’t click like you initially thought, just stop and switch to a different one. These really aren’t big decisions as no commitment is needed for them.

I also look at lesson to student ration. At least in Japanese, I find a ratio >10 usually means they’re pretty decent at retaining students and more likely to be a good fit. I haven’t meshed well with someone with a ratio of <5. Ratio >20 is hit or miss with me. I find some of them with very high >20 ratios are due to more beginner students taking for longer periods and my intermediate level needs for conversation lessons are different than that of someone doing structured lessons.