People looking for English courses in Tirana often have the same questions: Which school should I choose? How much will it cost? How long will it take? Why can I understand English but still struggle to speak it?
Parents have another set of questions. What is the best program for my child? How do I know whether my child is struggling with English—or with some of the underlying skills needed for learning?
We have been teaching in Tirana since 1997, so we have heard these questions thousands of times. Here are straightforward answers to some of the questions people in Tirana are asking most often.
There are several good English language schools in Tirana. The best one for you is the school that can accurately determine your present level, understand what you want to accomplish, place you in the right course, provide excellent teachers, and show measurable progress over time.
When comparing English schools, ask some basic questions:
Lincoln Centers of Albania has taught English in Tirana since 1997. We teach children, teenagers, university students, working adults, professionals, companies, and institutions. Our English programs range from beginner through advanced levels and include General English, Business English, English for specific professions, and preparation for international examinations.
Our advice—even if you do not choose Lincoln—is simple: do not choose an English course only because of price, location, or advertising. Choose a school that has a credible plan for helping you make measurable progress.
English-course prices in Tirana vary considerably depending on the school, number of instructional hours, class size, teacher qualifications, materials, and whether the course is taught in a group or individually.
At Lincoln, currently a standard group course is generally 650 ALL per session of 70 minutes, although specialized courses, private instruction, corporate training, and other programs may be priced differently.
When comparing prices, ask what the fee actually includes. A less expensive course is not necessarily less expensive in the long run if you need to repeat a level or make little progress.
A useful calculation would be:
total course price ÷ actual instructional hours = cost per hour of instruction.
Then compare the quality and amount of instruction you receive for that price. When you do this, you will find our prices are a remarkable value.
If you are considering a Lincoln course, contact us for the current schedule, price, and available class options for your level.
The best way to determine your English level is through a placement assessment rather than trying to estimate it yourself.
English ability is commonly described using the CEFR levels:
A1 – Beginner
A2 – Elementary
B1 – Intermediate
B2 – Upper Intermediate
C1 – Advanced
C2 – Proficient
However, your ability may not be the same in every area. Someone may read English at B2 level but speak at B1. Another person may know a great deal of grammar but have difficulty understanding spoken English.
That is why a useful placement process should evaluate more than whether you know certain grammar rules.
Lincoln provides English placement assessment in Tirana to help determine the appropriate starting point for a student. From there, we can recommend the level and course that best fits the student’s present ability and goals.
If you have studied English before but do not know where to begin again, start with the assessment, not with a guess about your level.
This is extremely common.
Many people in Albania have studied English grammar and vocabulary for years and can understand quite a lot of English. But when someone speaks to them, they hesitate, translate in their head, search for words, or become afraid of making a mistake.
Knowing English and using English automatically are not the same thing.
Speaking improves when you regularly have to retrieve words, form sentences, listen, respond, make mistakes, receive correction, and try again.
If speaking is your weakness, you probably do not need simply to study more grammar. You need a course that gives you substantial, structured opportunities to use the English you already know while continuing to build vocabulary, accuracy, listening comprehension, and confidence.
One of the first things we try to determine at Lincoln is not simply, “How much English does this person know?”
We also want to know:
“What can this person actually do with the English they know?”
That distinction can make a major difference.
There is no honest answer such as “three months” or “six months” that applies to everyone.
How long it takes to become fluent in English depends on your starting level, your goal, the number of hours you study, the amount of English you use outside class, your attendance, and how consistently you practice.
Someone beginning at A1 has a much longer journey to B2 than someone who is already at B1.
There is also no single definition of “fluent.” A person may become comfortable handling everyday conversations long before being ready to negotiate a contract, study at an English-language university, or give a professional presentation.
A better question is:
“What level of English do I need for what I want to accomplish?”
Once we know the goal and your present level, we can map out the levels between the two.
Learning English is usually better understood as steady progression through measurable stages rather than a race toward an undefined point called “fluency.”
Start with the learner, not the textbook.
A good English program should match the student’s age, current ability, learning needs, and purpose for studying English.
For adults, ask whether the course will help you accomplish your actual goal. English for travel, university study, business meetings, international exams, and professional advancement may require different emphases.
For children, also consider whether the classroom is engaging, age appropriate, structured, encouraging, and taught by someone who understands how children learn.
Look for:
Parents should be particularly cautious about assuming that starting English very young automatically guarantees fluency. The quality and consistency of the learning experience matter enormously.
Lincoln offers different programs for young children, school-age children, teenagers, and adults because a six-year-old and a thirty-six-year-old should not be taught English in the same way.
Lincoln offers English programs in Tirana from early childhood through advanced adult and professional levels.
For children and teenagers, programs include age-appropriate English courses that build listening, speaking, reading, writing, vocabulary, grammar, and confidence as students progress.
For adults, Lincoln offers General English as well as specialized programs including:
Students can begin at different levels. A person who has never studied English does not need to wait until a particular time of life to begin, and an advanced learner should not be placed in a course that simply reviews material already mastered.
The first step is to determine where you are now and where you want to go.
Then we can help identify the right program.
Yes.
Lincoln provides Business English and customized training for professionals, companies, organizations, and institutions in Albania.
Our Business English program develops the language people actually need in professional environments, including meetings, presentations, negotiations, emails, professional vocabulary, and cross-cultural communication.
Lincoln also develops customized training for work groups and organizations. Training can be adapted to the English level, professional responsibilities, industry, and objectives of the participants.
In addition to language training, Lincoln provides professional-development programs in areas such as management, communication, soft skills, and Microsoft Office.
For an organization, the first question should not be:
“Which course can we buy?”
It should be:
“What do our people need to be able to do better when the training is finished?”
Good corporate training begins with the desired result and works backward from there.
Foreigners living in Tirana can study Albanian at Lincoln Centers of Albania.
Lincoln’s Albanian for Expats program is designed specifically for international residents who want practical Albanian for everyday life in Albania.
The emphasis is on useful communication: speaking with neighbors and colleagues, shopping, transportation, social situations, work environments, and participating more confidently in Albanian life.
The program progresses from A1.1 through B1.2, with additional advanced or professional study possible.
Each level includes structured instruction in speaking, listening, vocabulary, grammar, reading, and writing, but the goal is not simply to know Albanian grammar.
The goal is to use Albanian in Albania.
Many foreigners discover that even basic Albanian changes their experience of living here. You understand more of the culture around you, communicate with people you otherwise could not, and participate more fully in the community.
Parents who see a child struggling at school often begin by asking, “Does my child need more tutoring?”
Sometimes tutoring is exactly what is needed. But sometimes the difficulty lies deeper than a missing math concept or an English grammar rule.
Learning depends on underlying cognitive skills such as attention, working memory, processing speed, auditory and visual processing, reasoning, and other skills the brain uses to take in, process, store, and retrieve information.
Lincoln Brain Lab in Tirana provides cognitive assessment and individualized cognitive training for children and other learners who may be struggling with learning.
The assessment helps identify relative strengths and weaknesses in the cognitive skills involved in learning. That information can help parents better understand why learning may be difficult and what kind of intervention may be appropriate.
Lincoln Brain Lab uses internationally established cognitive-testing and BrainRx training methodologies. Training is individualized and designed to strengthen specific cognitive skills through intensive, targeted exercises.
It is important to understand the distinction between a cognitive assessment and a medical diagnosis. Cognitive testing can provide valuable information about learning skills, but it is not a substitute for an evaluation by a qualified physician, psychologist, or other clinical professional when a medical or psychological diagnosis is needed.
For some children, the question is not simply:
“How can we help them study harder?”
The better question may be:
“What is making learning so hard in the first place?”
That is the question a good assessment should help answer.
These are some of the questions we hear most often, but every learner is different.
If you are choosing an English course, looking for Albanian lessons, arranging training for your organization, or trying to understand why your child is struggling to learn, talk with us.
You do not need to know which Lincoln program you need before contacting us.
Tell us what you are trying to accomplish. We will help you determine the next step.
Lincoln Centers of Albania
Trusted education in Tirana since 1997.
