There are two main elements that are inseparable from our daily lives the moment we wake up every morning.
The first thing is decision-making.
The second thing is the exchange of transactions (whether it is in terms of money, information or attention).
Likewise, when it comes to learning a new language as an absolute beginner, you don’t just “decide” to learn it. There’s a commitment and a cost to it.
Depending on your preferred learning language, learning pace, language learning motivation and budget, the figure can differ greatly.
Now the million dollar arises: How much should you expect to pay to become fluent in Italian?
And how will you find the perfect Italian tutor?
In this article, we will be looking at the ways to master Italian in an affordable way and the price range of Italian lessons in Malaysia.
Familiarising Yourself with Italian through The World of Music
If you have learnt the piano and studied for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) music theory, you may have noticed that many musical terminologies have roots in the Italian language.
Phrases like adagio, mezzo-forte, allegro, andante are all Italian.
Here are some tips to expand your Italian vocabulary while developing your musicality.
Tip 1: List down the Italian words and their meaning according to their functions.
Most musical terminologies are either adjectives or verbs. You’ll normally see the terms throughout a piece which requires different forms of interpretation in terms of the mood, dynamics or sound.
Here is a list of examples of how you can compile the musical terminologies:
- Allegro: Cheerful
- Amabile: Lovable
- Dolce: Sweet
- Doloroso: Painful
- Forte: Loud
- Lento: Slow
- Crescendo: Growing
- Diminuendo: Diminishing
Photo by Miguel Alcântara on Unsplash
Tip 2: Make simple sentences according to the vocabulary
After you have memorized the words and their respective meanings, you can start constructing simple sentences with the word.
Tip 3: Listen to the audio recordings of the words for the most accurate pronunciation.
As you note down the words, remember to listen repeatedly to the audio recordings. When you are more confident, you can also record yourself pronouncing the word and check for comparison.
What Are The Requirements To Consider Before You Hire An Italian Teacher?
No language learner is the same.
Even though you and your best friend are learning Italian simultaneously, what may work for you may not work for them.
This could explain why there is a wide range of language learning apps, language tutors and language learning platforms across the globe.
To find the perfect Italian tutor, you have to ask yourself these important questions.
Question 1: Are you learning Italian as a hobby or are you learning Italian for a professional purpose?
The answer to this question will set the whole direction of your Italian learning course.
For instance, if you are determined to master Italian for a future job opportunity, it would make sense to take a systematic and long-term Italian lesson from an experienced native teacher.
That’s because you might need to prepare for Italian language proficiency tests and be equipped equally for all the language components: listening, speaking, reading and writing.
On the other hand, if you are learning Italian as a hobby, you can opt for a more laid-back tutoring experience. You can learn from a student tutor, or a native Italian friend or take flexible Italian online courses at your own pace.
Question 2: How much time can you commit to learning Italian within a fixed time frame?
Remember what we mentioned earlier about cost and commitment when we are learning a new language?
If you are currently a student, you might have more flexibility in terms of your schedule as compared to those who have a full-time day job. It is important to set a feasible commitment goal for your Italian language learning journey.
List down how many hours you can commit per week or per month so that you can arrange your lessons accordingly with your Italian teacher. Let’s say you are planning to work in Italy next year, you might want to discuss the lesson structure of a monthly language learning schedule with your Italy tutor.
Question 3: What is the range of your budget for language learning?
This is the part where you need to be super honest.
You need to make sure you can afford your lessons in the long run without feeling the pinch.
Ask yourself if you prefer to pay for your lessons per hour or pay for your lessons per month or by package.
Come with a maximum budget and search for Italian tutors that offer their services within that range.
Check out these amazing free Italian learning resources.
What Are The Types of Italian Teachers That You Can Choose From?
After looking at the questions, let’s look at the tutoring options that are available in the market.
Option 1: Student Tutor
- You wish to have a more informal learning experience
- You prefer a peer-like learning environment without too many formalities
- You want to speak in a more natural way
- You want to explore the Italian culture and in-phrases
- You prefer a more cost-effective and flexible lesson
Having an Italian student tutor can be fun and enriching at the same time. Think of it as meeting a new friend who can teach you interesting things about their language and culture. The lessons are generally cheaper and you get to practice your conversations in a more relevant manner.
Option 2: Bilingual Language Teacher (Could be Malaysian who has been abroad to Italy)
If you are planning to sit for any Italian exams, including comprehensive ones such as CILS or PLIDA, you may want to learn from someone who has actually experienced the whole language learning course.
This will help you to set a strong foundation (throughout your learning level) and give you the upper hand when it comes to transitioning to a new life in Italy one day. You will also feel less burdened to communicate 100% in Italian if there are things that you need further clarification on.
As you are most likely more advanced in your studies, and probably only need a boost to your Italian speaking abilities, this would be the ideal teacher for you.
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Option 3: Online Native Italian Teacher
If you are a fan of online learning and open to the idea of meeting a native speaker, this is the perfect tutoring option for you!
This type of tutor would provide an immersive and flexible atmosphere to his or her lessons, weaving together language and culture, peppering speech with native expressions and rich Italian slang.
Having said that, Italian language courses with a native speaker are more likely to refine your Italian pronunciation and, while you're at it... why not incorporate gastronomy or art appreciation into your learning experience?
You can talk about kinds of pasta, gelatos, tiramisus and even football with your online tutor! When learning a new language, it is always best to expand topics of discussion beyond what is offered in textbooks.
Having online Italian lessons also mean that you can learn anytime and anywhere, including from the comfort of your home. Also, online lessons are generally cheaper than physical lessons.
Isn’t that killing two birds with a stone?
How Much Does It Cost To Hire A Superprof Italian Tutor?
We understand that some of you may prefer to hire a home tutor or an online tutor for your Italian lessons.
Not sure which platform to go about? Rest assured, we got you covered.
Introducing Superprof!
Superprof is an amazing platform that connects you with passionate tutors across the globe in just a few clicks.
At Superprof, you can find the perfect tutor and choose from 21 million tutors and 1001 subjects to explore.
Currently, there are 6300 Italian tutors on this platform. As of this time of writing, the average lesson cost for Italian is RM89 an hour. Isn’t that super affordable?
Not only that, 95% of Superprof tutors offer their first lesson for free!
Learning Italian has never been this simple! All you need to do is just follow these three steps.
- Find your perfect Italian tutor
Review and compare the tutors’ profiles freely anytime and anywhere. Take your time to read up on their basic information such as their hourly rate, qualifications, past students’ reviews, their preferred location, teaching mode and so on.
Once you have confirmed that you want to connect with them, you can contact them via their profile.
- Organise your lessons
You can directly communicate with your desired tutor about your lesson expectations and the direction of your learning scope. Feel free to discuss your schedule, tutoring availabilities and payment methods through the inbox feature.
- Discover new experiences
Subscribe to the Student Pass at only RM25 and gain unlimited access to all the tutors across Superprof. Who knows, you might want to pick up a new language after mastering Italian.
Having said that, Superprof Italian tutors are ever ready to tutor you on:
- The entire Italian alphabet
- Italian grammar and vocabulary
- Accurate pronunciation and listening comprehension
- How to read and understand Italian texts
- Effective translation from Italian
You could even specify your learning preferences from conversational Italian to Business Italian, or study for your A levels or International Baccalaureate with a Superprof teacher!
Rest assured, each of our language tutors has been certified and their credentials examined before profile approval.
Where Can You Take Italian Lessons In A Language School in Kuala Lumpur And How Much Should You Prepare For The Lessons Cost?
Apart from hiring an Italian teacher, some language learners do prefer to enrol in a proper language institution to kickstart their Italian language journey.
If you are currently based in Kuala Lumpur, here are three language institutions that you can check out.
Inter Cultural Language School
Located across a few locations in Kuala Lumpur, Subang and Damansara, Inter Cultural Language School is one of the oldest language institutions in Malaysia.
Established in 1990, it offers an extensive range of foreign language lessons such as Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, German, French, Spanish and of course, Italian.
For part-time beginner Italian lessons, students will learn over the duration of three months. They will take a total of 12 lessons (2 hours per session).
Here’s the breakdown of the total cost of the Italian lessons:
- Registration fee: RM50
- Tuition fee: RM510
- Textbook fee: RM135
- Total fee: RM695
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My Teacher Languages and Cultures Training Center
Another language school that offers Italian lessons in Kuala Lumpur is My Teacher Languages and Cultures Training Center.
You can enrol in a wide series of courses such as private and semi private classes, group classes, corporate classes, online classes, examination preparation classes as well as kids programs.
For Italian private and semi-private lessons, here’s the breakdown of the fee structure.
- Physical Italian lessons per hour: RM125
- Physical Italian lessons per hour (10 hours package): RM120
- Online Italian lessons per hour (10 hours package): RM100
On the other hand, the fee structure for Italian online group lessons is a bit different.
For Italian Beginners Level 1,
- Tuition fees: RM600
- Material fees: RM70
- Registration fees: RM20
- Material delivery fees: RM 15
- Total fees: RM705 (10 weeks lessons, total lesson duration: 20 hours)
For Italian Upper Beginners Level 1 Part 2.
- Total fee: RM900 (15 weeks lessons, total lesson duration: 30 hours)
Ace Education
Under Ace Education, you can enrol in a standard Italian Language Course which consists of 12 lessons.
One-to-one lessons cost RM120 per hour while group lessons are RM60 per hour.
This tutorial centre is located at Mont Kiara, Kuala Lumpur.
How Much Does It Cost To Pursue An Italian Degree In Malaysia?
Do you know that you can study Italian for your undergraduate degree in Malaysia?
The University of Malaya offers the Bachelor of Italian Language and Linguistics degree.
And it’s pretty affordable too! Malaysian students only need to pay a total of RM7,900 for 7 semesters (tuition fee).
You can even apply for the National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) should you need extra financial assistance.
Here’s a breakdown of the course structure of this degree.
Year 1:
- Falsafah dan Isu Semasa
- Pengantar Linguistik
- Kemahiran Bahasa Itali Peringkat I
- Kemahiran Bahasa Itali Peringkat II
- Penghayatan Etika dan Peradaban
- Kaedah Penyelidikan
- Kemahiran Bahasa Itali Peringkat III
- Kemahiran Bahasa Itali Peringkat IV
Year 2:
- Bahasa Inggeris Kominikasi
- Pengantar Sosiolinguistik
- Asas Pembudayaan Keushawanan
- Pemerolehan Bahasa
- Bahasa dalam Teknologi dan Media Baharu
- Kemahiran Bahasa Itali Peringkat V
- Kemahiran Bahasa Itali Peringkat VI
- Kemahiran Membaca Bahasa Itali
- Kemahiran Mendengar dan Bertutur Bahasa Itali
- Fonetik dan Fonologi Bahasa Itali
- Bahasa dan Tamadun Itali
- Kemahiran Menulis Bahasa Itali I
Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash
Year 3:
- Pengantar Semantik dan Pragmatik
- Bahasa Inggeris Komunikasi
- Morfosintaksis Bahasa Itali
- Bahasa dan Kesusateraan Itali
- Kemahiran Menulis Bahasa Itali II
- Analisis Teks dalam Bahasa Itali
- Pengajaran Kemahiran Bahasa Itali
- Penterjemahan Dua Hala Bahasa Itali
- Bahasa Itali Komunikasi dan Pelancongan
- Bahasa Itali Pentadbiran dan Perniagaan
You can enjoy a comprehensive and affordable Italian tertiary education in Malaysia itself!
We hope this article will help you make the right decision to invest in the right Italian learning transaction. Remember, it’s never too early or too late to master a foreign language!
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