(19) Secret Business English (Behind the Scenes of English Coaching)>

■Nowadays, coaching in English is at its peak.

I think all business people are familiar with the term "coaching." Unlike traditional teaching, it began to attract attention in Japan around 2000 as an educational method in which a coach helps one's own growth. It was initially popularized for the purpose of training the mental aspects of corporate executives and entrepreneurs, but it is now being applied to general learning, including English learning.

In the world of coaching, students are called "clients." This means that coaching is a highly specialized profession, just like being a doctor or lawyer. The International Coach Federation (IDF) is an international authority that supports this, and in Japan, the Japan Coach Federation and Lifelong Education Foundation train and certify coach talent.

To become a certified coach, you must acquire techniques such as education, psychology, and design thinking in a designated training course, and only after passing the certification exam will you be certified as a "professional coach."

■The origin of English coaching

Coaching has been introduced in English education relatively recently. Speaking of the English industry, major English conversation schools with large-scale schools located in prime locations in front of train stations have long led the industry in the style in which students attend classes. Due to the declining birthrate and aging population, the major English conversation schools were saturated at the time, and competition for students was intensifying.

It was in 2007 that ``NOVA'', the largest company that was once all the rage with ``Station Square Study Abroad'', went bankrupt. Since then, ``online English conversation'' has been on the rise. Among them, low-cost courses taught by inexpensive instructors from the Philippines also appeared, posing a major threat to major English conversation schools.

Under such circumstances, major English conversation schools tried to differentiate themselves through various concepts such as "one-on-one" and "dialogue skills." One of the extensions of this is ``English coaching''. At that time, the image of ``coaching'' was gaining attention as a new human resource development method for nurturing entrepreneurs and businessmen, and English coaching grew steadily. Since then, various forms of "English coaching" have coexisted, with people with business experience and private English teachers starting their own businesses.

■An overview of current English coaching

Coaching English can be said to be in its prime now. A variety of business types and industries have entered the English coaching business, which has its own characteristics, but recently it seems that it has largely been concentrated into three types.

English lesson + coaching type

A common feature is that we have realistic classrooms and emphasize face-to-face lessons. However, recently, we are also offering online lessons instead of face-to-face lessons. In most cases, the period is 6 months to 1 year, and this type requires 3 to 4 hours of home study every day. It is sometimes called "counseling" or "consultation" instead of "coaching," but they are basically the same thing.

There are various types of services, such as English conversation schools and individual businesses, but in general, "coaching" is an added bonus, and there are many cases where the daily follow-up of home learning is called "coaching." Specifically, apart from the lesson instructor, there is a staff member specializing in coaching who will follow up with you via Zoom, etc. (or via email, LINE, etc.) at a set time each day. If you consult with us, we can give you advice. However, I have heard that there is a difference in level of understanding from the instructor who is actually watching the lesson, and it is often difficult to receive accurate advice. In general, it seems that there are not many cases where coaching professionals are used.

Coaching specialized type

This is a format that has become particularly popular recently, and we do not offer English lessons, but only coaching. The period is short, about 2 months. Since they specialize in coaching, they also have professional coaches. It seems that there are a small number of high TOEIC scorers who are also professional coaches.

The content varies, such as ``teaching you how to study English'' and ``lifestyle guidance to incorporate English study time into your daily life,'' but the aim is to improve your English by taking the 2-month course. It's not a thing. This is a place where you can learn the basics of learning so that you can improve your English skills by studying at home (or taking lessons at other schools) after taking the course.

Online complete type

This is also a recent trend. Online English conversation lessons are popular among working adults due to their low lesson fees and the ease of joining immediately (and stopping at any time), but more and more are adding a coaching element to them.

Both the above-mentioned "English lesson type" and "coaching type" allow for online courses, but the major difference is that the "online type" is based on the premise that the course can be completed only online and does not have a fixed classroom. The main feature is that the cost is significantly reduced and the tuition fee is low. When it comes to coaching, most students follow up on their home learning via email or SNS, and you don't often see coaching professionals.

■What determines the price of English coaching?

Traditionally, at English conversation schools, the "lesson unit price" was the guideline for costs. One-on-one lessons are close to 10,000 yen per hour at major schools, and around 5,000 to 7,000 yen at middle and elementary schools. Group lessons are divided by number of people, and the average price is around 1,000 to 3,000 yen for one hour per person. There are also low-cost lessons that cost around 1,000 yen for online-only schools, and even a few hundred yen for Filipino instructors.

Compared to those, English coaching is generally more expensive and the basis of the fees is difficult to understand. For English coaching, in addition to the regular lesson fee, high nominal fees such as consultation fees and coaching fees are added. This is partly unavoidable because they have to hire coaches in addition to English lesson instructors, but there are also times when it is difficult to judge whether the price is appropriate for the service.

Recently, there are coaching services that do not include lessons. This is a new form in which only coaching is provided, with the premise that English lessons will be conducted at home or at other schools. It is difficult to objectively judge the appropriateness of the price of such services.

Compared to this, complete online English coaching feels cheap. However, I have some doubts about whether the price is reasonable compared to interactive computer English teaching materials.

In the end, the price of English coaching does not have a fixed price like traditional lesson prices, and it can be said that it depends on the student's satisfaction level. In that case, it is important for each participant to have a discerning eye for ball selection, determining their own values and needs.