What do you need for an online course?

This is a checklist of what you need for taking an online German lesson.

Please go through it before connecting for your online lesson.

✔️ A computer 💻

You can use any device: Windows PC, Mac, Linux, Android tablet or iPad. Almost any modern computer will work.

✔️ Software

We use Microsoft Teams for our online lessons — it’s free, reliable, and works on any device.

You can use Teams directly in your browser (no installation needed) or download the desktop app from the official Microsoft Teams website.

Creating an account is free, and Teams-to-Teams calls are free. Any Microsoft account (Outlook.com, OneDrive, etc.) will work to sign in.

✔️ Webcam

For the online lesson, a webcam is not strictly necessary, but I prefer to have the opportunity to see my students face-to-face. This contributes to better interactivity of the lesson.

✔️ Headset and Microphone 🎧 🎙️

You need a headset and a microphone to listen and speak.

It is better to have a headset instead of using a PC’s loudspeakers. With the loudspeakers, the voice enter back into the microphone, resulting in an annoying echo during the lesson.

A classical call-center headset will do the work.

✔️ Internet connection

The bandwidth required for a video call in standard quality is 300Kbit/s in download and upload.

✔️ The book 📖

We will follow a book throughout the course.

And I’ll give you other copies during the course.