Learn más with MaS Online
Over the last few months Na’atik’s online Spanish team has been making some exciting changes to our online language learning program. We have a new curriculum, access to curated resources including pre-recorded bonus content, free monthly webinars, and much more. We recently spoke with Evelyn from the MaS Online team about the changes and future of our program including even more content and benefits as well as our soon to be launched Conversation Circles.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your role on the MaS team?
Hi! My name is Evelyn and I am a Spanish teacher by profession. I mostly teach online, although very occasionally I teach immersion students at Na’atik as well. In addition to my teaching responsibilities, I help oversee the online student curriculum and resources and assist the other online teachers. I work to improve our class and student space content as well as the placement and progress tests. I also lead our monthly free webinars and will be overseeing the upcoming Conversation Circles.
Why did MaS choose to make changes to the online program and what are those changes?
We launched online classes during the pandemic to ensure our students could still take classes and achieve a form of language immersion. However we felt that classes alone were not achieving the immersive dynamic we wanted. We decided to redesign the classes and the program in general to better achieve immersion and help our students achieve the language progress that they want. Part of this was creating a new curriculum and training the teachers on the best ways to teach it. Another part of this was in creating resources that our students could use beyond and in conjunction with their classes. This is why we introduced our Student Space webpages, where students can find video recordings, links and downloadable resources.
Tell us about the Webinar Series.
We created the webinars for two reasons. One is to offer more value and resources to our current students and the other is to give students who are considering classes a way to try them out without committing to a full program. The webinars are short, free, live classes hosted on Microsoft Teams which are focused on a specific topic. Normally I give a presentation on the subject and then take questions. After the webinar we upload the video to the Student Space so that our online students can go back and watch any webinar that they might have missed as often as they want. We include the questions section in the upload so that students can hear the things that other students were asking and the answers.
We do them once a month and announce the topic in advance. The live webinar is free and all are welcome. You can sign up to the next webinar here.
Can you tell us about the Conversation Circles?
The Conversation Circles are a new program that we are launching this year. They are a small, 30-minute, seminar-style web meeting with one of our teachers and up to 10 online and/or immersion students in which they can practice speaking about a specific topic. The teacher takes a backseat role, providing guidance and correction where necessary, but primarily focused on facilitating a fluid conversation between the students. We are aiming to run two every second week, one session in the morning and another in the afternoon. Themes will be non-grammar focused, covering everyday topics like art, technology or common interactions. The teacher may vary depending on the subject matter in question.
They will be free but only available to students currently enrolled in either our immersion program or online classes. We have lots of exciting ideas for developing this program including reading groups or regular meetings to discuss specific topics. We look forward to receiving feedback from our students and working together to make them an indispensable tool.
What would you say to someone who wants to improve their Spanish but is unsure that Na’atik online classes are right for them?
One of the key parts of language acquisition is regular learning and practice. Online classes allow you to do this from anywhere in the world at a time that works for your schedule. Our classes are also 1-on-1 so you are able to build a relationship with a teacher who will be able to focus on helping you meet your learning goals without other students in the class. This personalization can help accelerate learning but also means the teacher can provide you with personalized learning tasks between classes and can focus on areas you are finding challenging or need to master for a specific reason. We also offer a wealth of additional resources on our Student Space so that you can practice and improve whenever you have spare time.
This program is also one of the few ways you can learn Spanish online while also supporting an important cause. Every class package purchased helps us run our English program for local and Indigenous students.
Thank you, Evelyn!
To read more about our online programs for both Spanish and Maya or to book your first class visit the MaS Online page. You can also sign up for our next free webinar here.