The first step of the program is to determine your current English level. A teacher will assess your English skills via either Zoom or Skype. This will take 20 minutes. Here you will find a step-by-step instruction on how to schedule this Level Test.

Once you have performed your Online (Zoom or Skype) Level Test, we will upload your results after we did extra quality and consistency checks. It can take us around 3 working days to process the checking of your Online Level Test score. We will e-mail you once we've uploaded the results to your my.spotonlearning.eu account.

After you have done your level test you will receive your Level Test score. Your level test results will be expressed as an EnglishCentral (EC) level (1 - 7). In the table below you can see how that EC level can be mapped to a CEFR score (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2) and a range on a 1 - 100 point scale used by Spot On Learning (SOL) in your scorecards.

At Spot On Learning, we work with two English Tests to estimate the overall English level: a 20-minute Zoom or Skype conversation with an English tutor and a separate multiple-choice test. The combination makes the Spot On Learning testing methodology both comprehensive and practical. 

In case you have scheduled your Level Test or Level Up Test but somehow cannot make it to the requested time, you can always reschedule your Level Test anytime up to 1 hour prior to the scheduled time.
If you miss your Level Test without rescheduling or you were unable to connect with the teacher on time, your session will be marked as missed and noted in your account.

When it comes to learning, gaining new knowledge, faster isn’t always better. If you need to learn something that is important (or can be life saving) keep in mind that the average person only retains 10% of what they learn in one year*. We have some tips for you to learn effectively and remember more than 10%. And yes, when you apply them your course will take some time to finish...

You can change your email address on MySOL and EnglishCentral yourself. To have a step-by-step overview of this process, please see the instructions.

If you, as a Spot On Learning participant, are asked to pay on EnglishCentral, something is wrong. Our participants get the Academic Premium seats which allow them to watch videos, learn words and speak lines for free. If you see a message on EnglishCentral that asks for payment, contact us.

At Spot On Learning we work hard to provide quality testing. One important aspect of this is the accuracy of the results in reflecting the participant’s true level of English.

All courses that are assigned to you will be displayed on your personal my.spotonlearning.eu homepage. Often courses, or course-elements form a program that should be followed in a specific order. In that case you can start at the top of the list. Next courses or course-elements will be made available later, when you have finished the ones that should be done first.

Spot On Learning strives to have the tests carried out as consistently as possible with the same quality. The tests we offer and the associated quality control are designed in such a way that all participants and applicants are tested in an equal manner. If you feel your test score is not correct, please let us know. In this article we explain more about tests, quality checks, what you can do if you feel a test result is not correct and what procedures we follow if that happens.

We are sorry to hear you are experiencing problems. We are going to help you and fix whatever needs to be fixed as soon as possible. We do need some information from you in order to be able to help. Check the information we need in this article and send it to support@spotonlearning.nl, we are happy to help!

All test options that Spot On Learning provides consist of a 20 minute Zoom/Skype conversation with an English teacher and an optional separate multiple-choice test. 

After the coordinator adds you to my.spotonlearning.eu, we register your account, set up some things and invite you to start the program. Are you expecting an email from us, but haven't received it yet? Read this article to see what you can do. 

If you follow our English Language Program you will be assigned video courses that match your level and learning goals. These courses can be found on the  EnglishCentral platform.

Have you received an invitation to complete a Learning Path or test, but you can't find it on my.spotonlearning.eu? Follow this step-by-step plan on where to find the exams, scans, Learning Paths or tests. 

The Level Up Test (LUT) is a one-on-one 20-minute Skype/Zoom call with a teacher, just like the Level Test. You can schedule a LUT when you have completed all your courses. Click 'continued' to see how you can check if you have completed all courses and find a form to request for a LUT.

GoLive! Is a 1-on-1 live session with a private tutor from EnglishCentral. The session takes around 20-25 minutes. The live lessons are great for motivated students who want to improve their pronunciation and become more fluent. The sessions can be booked via EnglishCentral.

We are sorry to hear you are experiencing problems. We are going to help you and fix whatever needs to be fixed as soon as possible. There are a few things you can do to check if you can resolve the issue. 

After you have done your level test you will receive your Level Test score. The Level Test score will be numbered between 1 and 100 and can be mapped to 7 levels on EnglishCentral. You can also deduce your CEFR level from this score.

Experience points are points you gather by working on your videos on EnglishCentral. Experience points reflect your effort in your online learning. 

Once in a while it might be good for both your browser and your computer if you delete your browsing history and the cookies.

When you start our program, your coordinator adds the CEFR level you need to achieve in order to pass the Level Test or Level Up Test. In this article, you'll find where you can view your required CEFR level. 

If you try to watch the Youtube videos in the EnglishCentral guide and you get a message that your device is not compatible, you should take action. 

To play the videos you have to have the latest version of Youtube. But sometimes the player store prevents you from downloading the newest version. Go to this link to download the newest version:

• Android: https://www.androidapksfree.com/apk/youtube-apk-latest-version-download/
• Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/youtube-watch-listen-stream/id544007664?mt=8 

The most important thing for your Skype Level Test, is a Skype account. Skype for Business is not sufficient for the Level Test. If you don't have a regular Skype account one yet, don't worry. We will explain how to make your own Skype account (for free!). 

The most important thing for your Skype Level Test, is your Skype Name. Without it, we are unable to invite you for the test. So if you already have a Skype account, and you also know what your Skype Name is, perfect!
If not, don't worry,  we will guide you along the way.

Spot On Learning will send you reminders about all sorts of English Central features, but will also remind you to reach your target. If you want to finish the program in two months, it is important to follow the weekly goals as set in EnglishCentral. 

Learning (new) words and how to use them is a large part of learning English. Let us explain how the EnglishCentral quiz functionality can help you learn words faster, remember them better and also understand how words can be used in different ways.

EnglishCentral's Intellispeech system evaluates your accent. The grade you receive when speaking the videos is a combination of three elements:

• Pronunciation: comparing how you speak versus how it should sound in English
• Fluency: listening if there are silences in the lines you speak where they should not be or if the speed is not how it should be - compared to a fluent speaker
• Completion: did you speak all words, or did you drop (or 'swallow') words?

While in speech mode, you will see:

• Real-Time Feedback (in the Player)
• Line Points
• Video Grades

You will be assigned video courses that match your English CEFR Level. Challenging enough for you to improve your English and not too difficult for you to understand. So how do the interactive video's on the video-based platform work?

An EnglishCentral teacher will assess your English level via an online conversation using Zoom or Skype. In this conversation, you will answer several personal questions and you might have to perform a couple of exercises. Read this article to prepare yourself for the Level Test. 

• Email: support@spotonlearning.nl
• Live chat: if someone is available, use the green "Chat" button on my.spotonlearning.eu

Or add us on:

• Skype: supportspotonlearning
• Whatsapp: +31 6 40 68 73 90
• Facebook: Spot On Learning

On your 'class home' page at EnglishCentral you can see the dashboard with your goals and progress for a given period. By default the dashboard shows your progress for a week. Your 'default' week runs from Monday to Sunday. We have set a 'standard' weekly goal for you, so that you keep practicing every week to improve your English.

You watch and listen to videos and will receive assignments to type, speak or get asked questions about the video. Over one million users say that EnglishCentral is very intuitive and that they understood how it worked from the first session on. When you work through the videos, the system will automatically give you feedback about your personal improvement and achievements. 

A course is professionally selected, structured series of videos and vocabulary quizzes. Videos are in topical units which the students complete by: Watching | Learning | Speaking

Courses cover topics ranging from the professional and academic to the more general: movies, commercials, famous speeches. Think of our courses as an online coursebook that students can access 24/7 and teachers can use to bring real life and context into their classroom teaching.

EnglishCentral provides content for beginners through advanced English learners.  

You can select:

• Beginner [videos and courses.]
• Intermediate [videos and courses.]
• Advanced [videos and courses.]

This depends on the level you start at and how fast you learn. To reach the next level/scale of the CEFR system, you will work on courses we arrange for you. Depending on how you work on EnglishCentral, how many hours you put in, you will either level up faster or more slowly. 

EnglishCentral is an effective and fun way to learn and improve your English online (web and mobile apps). The company EnglishCentral is a partner of Spot On Learning. Learning on EnglishCentral combines fun authentic videos with a sophisticated personalized coaching system that will guide you in improving your vocabulary and pronunciation. Speech technology developed by EnglishCentral makes it possible for particpants in Spot On Learning courses to improve their English pronunciation.

PC or smartphone

You can either use EnglishCentral using an internet browser on your desktop or laptop computer or choose to use the EnglishCentral app for IOS (iPhone) or Android.

If you use the EnglishCentral app you can access all regular learning activities.You only need to go to the web version to schedule your level (up) test lesson. All other things can be done using the app.

More information about the EnglishCentral apps and links to download them can be found in this FAQ article.

PC: latest versions of Chrome and Firefox are preferred

To use the desktop/web version of EnglishCentral you only need an internet browser that is ready for HTML5. That is the case for the latest versions of the Chrome and Firefox.

To see what browser and OS you are using, go to WhatIsMyBrowser.com

You can download the newest versions of the preferred browsers here:

• Google Chrome
• Mozilla Firefox

For browsers that are not ready for HTML 5 yet (at the moment: Microsoft Edge, Safari) you also need the latest version of Adobe Flash Player.

No, EnglishCentral is only usable online. In order to use EnglishCentral you need an internet connection of at least 1MB/second or faster.

For participants in Spot On Learning programs, all learning activities will take place on my.spotonlearning.eu (the place you are right now) and for all Maritime and Business English courses also on EnglishCentral.

Using my.spotonlearning.eu

All learning activities on my.spotonlearning.eu can be accessed using a PC, tablet or smartphone (mobile) using an internet browser. If you are using a recent version of any popular internet browser you will be fine. Having an internet connection of 128/64 kbps down/up should be enough to do your learning.

Using EnglishCentral

If you follow an EnglishCentral (Maritime or Business) English program you can do your learning using a PC (desktop or laptop, Windows, Mac or Chrome OS) and for most learning activities you can also use the EnglishCentral app. You need to be able to hear sound and speak using a microphone (which is nowadays often built-in into your computer and of course standard in a smartphone).

An internet speed of 1MB/second or higher is recommended to use EnglishCentral. It does work however from speeds 256/128 kbps down/up or higher*.

Computer

• Windows OS version 7 (or higher) or MacOS 10.6 (or higher).
• Internet browser. If you use the latest version of Google Chrome or Firefox you need no further plugins or extensions. If you use Safari or Microsoft Edge you need the Adobe Flashplayer plugin.
• For your level test(s): Skype account. You can install the free Skype software on your computer or use the browser version.

Tablet or smartphone

• iPad or iPhone (IOS) or Android tablet of smartphone
• When using a tablet or smartphone you need the (free EnglishCentral app, which you can download in Apple's App Store or the Google Play store.
• To schedule your level (up) test(s) you need to go to the web version of EnglishCentral (one time only). You cannot do this yet on the app. All other learning activities can be done using the EnglishCentral app.
• For your level test(s): Skype account and skype app installed.

For both computer or tablet/smartphone

• Internet connection. Videos will play flawlessly and the speech technology will work without delay if you have an internet connection speed of 1 Mb/s or more.
• Your computer or tablet computer must be able to play sound.
• You need a working microphone. This is usually built in in laptops, also webcams connected to desktop computers usually have a microphone. Many people have headphones with built-in microphone so they can call through the internet (for example, with Skype), which is also good for use with EnglishCentral. A headset is not absolutely necessary. Some people just like to talk to the computer. Other prefer a headset because it dampens ambient noise.

You can choose how much time you spend learning English with EnglishCentral, and when you exercise. However, it is easier to do something from a daily routine. On your EnglishCentral class page you can see the targets that are set for you per week. That makes it easier to get a feeling of your own progress. You can relate it to progress made by your classmates and compare it to the effort needed to finish your course(s) in a chosen period.

Yes, EnglishCentral can very well be used to cover general knowledge as well as learning English for very specific situations. EnglishCentral is widely used by people who are engaged in a specific profession, businessmen who work in certain industries or that want to prepare themselves for certain situations (sales, negotiation) or people aboard ships, aircraft or drilling platforms. Ask Spot On Learning for advice about the possibilities to customize courses or choose from the many available courses for specific purposes.