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Feedback Canada
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The absence of Chinese students was a noticeable finding in this year’s Feedback survey on Canada, although the top three nationalities of Korean, Japanese and Mexican remained the same. Agent usage was also high among students.
Canada feedback at a glance
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Total number of students: 113 (female 66, male 47)
Average age in years: 24.1
Average length of programme in weeks: 17
Average number of students in class: 10
Average number of hours of language tuition per week: 22.2
% of students who found out about their course through an agent: 45
% of students who booked through an agent or advisor: 51
% of students who had been on another language programme: 39
% of students who would recommend their school: 90
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| Respondents by world region of origin |
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Top nationalities |
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1. Asia 38%
2. Western Europe 24%
3. Latin America 24%
4. C & E Europe 8%
5. Middle East 3 %
No reply 3% |
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1. Korean 16%
1. Japanese 16%
3. Mexican 10%
4. Swiss 8%
4. Brazilian 8%
4. Spanish 8%
7. German 7%
8. Colombian 5%
9. Czech 3%
9. Italian 3%
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| In my class there are... |
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How easy is it to practise your language skills with native speakers? |
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1. The right number of students (51%)
2. Too many students who speak my language (16%)
3. Too many students (16%)
4. Too many students from one other country (12%)
No reply 5% |
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1. Quite easy (51%)
2. Quite hard (31%)
3. Very easy (14%)
4. Very hard (2%)
No reply (2%) |
| How did you find your programme? |
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Did you book your course through an agent or an educational adviser?
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1. Recommended by an agent (39%)
2. I found it on the internet (27%)
3. Recommended by a friend/relative (26%)
4. I saw it advertised (8%)
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Yes (51%)
No (42%)
Unknown (7%)
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Student reasons for school selection included:
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“The school provides an EAP course”
“It’s a great place for outdoor sports”
“I liked the idea of the English-only rule”
“In Montreal you can speak English and French”
“The person at the study fair was convincing”
“Good price and good classes”
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| Before looking for your course, did you know where you wanted to study? |
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Country
Yes (80%)
No (19%)
Unknown (1%)
City/town
Yes (67%)
No (32%)
Unknown (1%)
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School
Yes (36%)
No (63%)
Unknown (1%)
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Student nationality
The top three nationalities remained Korea, Japan and Mexico in this year’s Feedback survey as in last year’s survey (see LTM, December 2007, pages 16-17). However, Japanese students are now level with Koreans in the top spot, with Mexicans remaining in third position but with two percentage points more market share (10 per cent up from eight per cent). The nationality notably absent this year from the list is Chinese; only one Chinese student took part in this year’s survey, compared with six per cent of the total student body last year. Meanwhile, Germans and Colombians are now in the list of most populous student nationalities.
Student motivation
Just about half of all students surveyed said they were university or college students, while a further 15 per cent were professionals. The average age was 24.1 years, very similar to last year’s 23.9 years, and 50 per cent were studying a language for current or future work purposes. Twelve per cent planned to continue with their academic studies in Canada, and eight per cent planned to go to another country for further study. Twenty per cent were learning a language to help studies back in their own country, including a quarter of all Koreans, some of whom also cited work reasons for studying a language.
Student enrolment
Average class size was 10, although there was also a high number of students with 12 people in their class. Class sizes ranged from three to 15. Half of students were satisfied with their study conditions, but 16 per cent felt there were too many students, all but one of whom were in classes of at least 10. A further 16 per cent thought there were too many students of their nationality, incuding a third of all Swiss clients. Fifty-six per cent of students were staying with a host family and 25 per cent made other arrangements, aside from host family or residences. The most typical way of finding out about a school was through an agent, with the Internet just ahead of recommendation from family/friends as the next most likely source.
Standard of the schools
Ninety per cent of students said that they would recommend their school, while seven per cent did not reply to this question. Accommodation scored the weakest response with more “satisfactory” grades (21 per cent) than the other categories of teaching, academic programme and social programme. In fact, when it came to teaching, 90 per cent of teachers were graded as excellent or good, with 56 per cent in the excellent category. When asked why they chose their school, a number of students singled out one school’s “English-only” policy, while others pointed to a school’s brand name, competitive pricing, location, programmes offered and small size.
Living in Canada
Close to two-thirds of students thought the cost of living was higher in Canada than in their home countries, while 27 per cent thought it was the same. Those who thought it was higher included all Mexicans and 77 per cent of Koreans. Average money spent on a course plus accommodation per week was estimated to be US$300. Fifty-one per cent of students said it was quite easy to practise English with locals; 14 per cent said it was very easy, including a third of all Spanish enrollees. When asked what they liked most about Canada, the people came out on top, followed by the language and countryside.
Thank you to the following schools for participating in our survey: ABC ESL Canada, Mississauga, ONT; Berlitz, Vancouver, BC; Geos, Montréal, QB; Hansa Language Center, Toronto, ONT; Heartland International English School, Winnipeg, MB; ILSC, various; CCEL, Vancouver, BC; LSC, various; Stewart College, Victoria, BC; Study Abroad Canada, Charlottetown, PEI; Tamwood International College, various.
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Contact any advertiser in the this issue now
The following language schools, associations and accommodation providers advertised in the latest edition of Language Travel Magazine. If you would like more information on any of these advertisers, tick the relevant boxes, fill out your details and send.
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