EVERY STUDENT has a preferred way of learning. Where one might prefer the structure offered by a traditional classroom, another may find a more interactive, or even a distance-learning approach more suited to their needs.
Finding a language provider that meets personal requirements depends largely on those preferences, but it is worth keeping in mind that learning a language is about learning to communicate.
The process is different from mastering accountancy or strategic analysis, for example.
To study a language means eventually to be able to understand it and practise speaking, reading or writing it.
Alison Ridley, acting head of the Centre for Professional Business English at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, said there were four components to language learning: exposure, motivation, use and instruction.
The last component was not essential, but could be useful when the student was not immersed in the target language, she said.
Studies have found motivation to be far more indicative of success than age or ability.