Ethan Hsu
Personally, Thrive English has been one of the best English learning space for me to practice speaking without worrying the grammatical and the “correctness” of the language. It’s a place designed well for beginners and enthusiasts alike. One can hone their English speaking skills at their own speed and without a worry. If there’s accent then that’s okay! It’s natural part of speaking English when starting out. And don’t worry, nobody really will judge you based on the accent. Plus, Thrive is a free space welcoming people of all ages and backgrounds to join in on the fun of using English as a medium for communication.
Here’s the kicker, if you’re looking to advance your English proficiency, Thrive got you covered. There’s also a small group class designed none other then Cate herself to help push you to the next level. It targets people of intermediate level. But don’t worry as the course can also be designed just for you!
I’m honored to say that I was the first to attend the small group speaking classes. In my experience, I was able to practice English speaking skill along side Cate, who is super nice and patient. And being someone who often fumbles under pressure when there’s a speaking test, I never really come under any pressure! Cate was super chill to be around and I think she really has the ability to bring out the best of ourselves without using pressure! The course is well-designed, I remember fondly that I was able to have a chance to give a small 10 minutes presentation about the history of the alphabets, which was super fun. It really challenged me to go an extra mile. There’s just enough challenge to the task to push you but never too much to put you under pressure. It was really a good opportunity to learn.
All in all, Thrive welcomes all that are into English. And don’t pass on the chance of meeting new people and friends! That’s Thrive is all about! You thrive among others!
I had a lot of opportunities to practice speaking and learned about high-context and low-context communication styles. In the final class, I gave a presentation on my favorite topic. In this class, there were two students, me and another student with high English proficiency. Because we were both advanced English learners, Cate was able to plan her lessons that suit our level. Having a partner learning together was fun, and Cate was able to give us personalized feedback, which we usually don’t receive in larger group classes. I also learned about American social etiquette. The class was fun and contained a lot of knowledge.