Q: I am looking for lanaguage english schools for my parents in Vancouver, does anybody knows what is the best and cheeapest one in vancouver? I had heard that there is one which is only 10$ per month, please let me know if you know the name of any school or any cheap ones?
A: I am an English teacher and work at (what I think) is the best, if not one of the best, English schools in Vancouver - it's called Immigrant Services Society of B.C. It's at 333 Terminal Avenue (they have a website). It's definitely one of the cheapest in Vancouver (I've never heard of a school for only $10 a month - and if there is one, I'm sure it's terrible and the teachers and/or facilities are awful). You have to be really careful with schools - some are awful and the owners only want money. ISS is NOT like that - all the teachers are qualified (university degrees and are TESOL certified), the facilities are great and it is one of the cheapest - I'm not exactly sure of the costs, but I think full-time (Monday to Thursday, 9:30 to 3pm) is about $650. Most other schools in Vancouver are more than $1,000 a month and the teachers are often not even certified. The only downside to my school are that classes are large - we have a maximum of 24 students to a class, but most of our students are okay with that because the tuition is much cheaper. The teachers at my school are really excellent, I'm sure your parents would enjoy it. If you decide on another school, make sure it is certified by PCTIA (Private Career and Training Institute Association) - that's the only way to make sure a school is good. If it's not certified by them (you can ask), then either the teachers or facilties are not very good. Good luck!