I want to learn American Sign Language. As a kid I grew up know some Deaf people and am attracted to the culture. It is also very relevant to my current job and my work will pay for me to learn (both my time and expenses).
I spent last semester taking classes at the local community college and while I learned the expected amount of ASL, I also learned I don’t like going to classes. It feels like a good portion (>50%) is a waste of time. I’m conversing with other hearing students who don’t know the language either; some things I already know and it’s a review, other things I don’t understand and don’t get because the lesson moves on.
I think I should find an ASL tutor. But there’s a part of me that’s holding back. Partly because it’s something I’ve never done. I’ve never had a tutor. Also, it feels, bizarrely, like cheating. And I don’t know where to start, how to negotiate schedules and rates. Taking a class is nice in that it eliminates any of that messy negotiating.
So, I’m looking for perspectives from people who have used or provided tutoring on two things: the benefits of tutoring over traditional classroom instruction, and how to find and negotiate with a tutor.
But that’s a good thing, isn’t it? I mean, that’s what rational Harry Potter would do.
Try finding a tutor that will let you make short videos of them doing the signs, and then you can put those videos into Anki. (At least I hope it is possible to put videos in Anki, never tried. Or maybe photos.) Could be more efficient than usual learning.
how to negotiate schedules and rates
Decide in advance how much is acceptable for you. Find out the minimum hourly wage in your area. Those are your limits. You can start by offering something in the middle of this interval.
I paid $25/hr for an ASL tutor in Washington DC. I found it to be a lot worse than taking a community college class. My tutor was Deaf, but didn’t have a lot of teaching experience. She wasn’t very good at steering the convos into new vocabulary (“Tell me about what you did last week” involved a lot of repetition). And she was much better at helping me pick up vocab (which I was decent at on my own) than grammar/expression. I ended up stopping the lessons and looking for a better option.
Tutoring vs Classes
I want to learn American Sign Language. As a kid I grew up know some Deaf people and am attracted to the culture. It is also very relevant to my current job and my work will pay for me to learn (both my time and expenses).
I spent last semester taking classes at the local community college and while I learned the expected amount of ASL, I also learned I don’t like going to classes. It feels like a good portion (>50%) is a waste of time. I’m conversing with other hearing students who don’t know the language either; some things I already know and it’s a review, other things I don’t understand and don’t get because the lesson moves on.
I think I should find an ASL tutor. But there’s a part of me that’s holding back. Partly because it’s something I’ve never done. I’ve never had a tutor. Also, it feels, bizarrely, like cheating. And I don’t know where to start, how to negotiate schedules and rates. Taking a class is nice in that it eliminates any of that messy negotiating.
So, I’m looking for perspectives from people who have used or provided tutoring on two things: the benefits of tutoring over traditional classroom instruction, and how to find and negotiate with a tutor.
Thanks!
But that’s a good thing, isn’t it? I mean, that’s what rational Harry Potter would do.
Try finding a tutor that will let you make short videos of them doing the signs, and then you can put those videos into Anki. (At least I hope it is possible to put videos in Anki, never tried. Or maybe photos.) Could be more efficient than usual learning.
Decide in advance how much is acceptable for you. Find out the minimum hourly wage in your area. Those are your limits. You can start by offering something in the middle of this interval.
I paid $25/hr for an ASL tutor in Washington DC. I found it to be a lot worse than taking a community college class. My tutor was Deaf, but didn’t have a lot of teaching experience. She wasn’t very good at steering the convos into new vocabulary (“Tell me about what you did last week” involved a lot of repetition). And she was much better at helping me pick up vocab (which I was decent at on my own) than grammar/expression. I ended up stopping the lessons and looking for a better option.