In language learning, the most important input comes through your ears, not your eyes. Visual input is supplemental to the auditory input your brain is primarily using to try to match patterns with known meaning. DynEd uses simple, iconic graphics because they convey meaning more quickly using less cognitive load than other, more distracting types of images, such as photos, animations, or video, thus allowing greater focus on the sound.

Practice is the key to building skill – any skill – including language. Practice can sometimes seem repetitive or boring, so keeping study sessions relatively short can help. Generally, an intensive hour is more than enough, and even as little as one or two 15 minutes each day can be very beneficial. Variety is also a key; change your study focus frequently. Most DynEd lessons take 5 minutes or less. After doing a lesson once in a study session, it is best to move on to studying something else rather than re-doing the same lesson immediately, or even the same kind of lesson. If you are studying several courses in your program, it’s also good to change to a different course. Another way to change focus and minimize boredom is to spend time in each study session reviewing earlier lessons. This helps consolidate what you have learned and is generally more relaxing than new material. Reviewing can serve as a refreshing mid-study-session “break” before returning to the core lessons you are primarily working on. It’s also important to change your focus each time you go through a Presentation Lesson, using the 5-Step Program:
Step 1: Gist Listening
Step 2: Detailed Listening
Step 3: Confirmation Listening/Checking
Step 4: Simultaneous Speaking
Step 5: Record, Listen, Compare
For additional details on how to do each of these steps, please watch the DynEd Student Orientation Video, “Learning“.

There is no firm answer to this question. It depends on how efficient your study is. Follow the advice from your coach and DynEd’s built-in Intelligent Tutor in order to advance as quickly as possible.  If you maintain a Study Score of 6 or higher, then the following general timeline applies for most people:

• Beginner to A1  :   40 hours
• A1 to A2             :   70 hours
• A2 to B1             : 100 hours
• B1 to B2             : 150 hours
• B2 to C1             : 300 hours

DynEd’s Placement Test is based on the US Foreign Service Institute scale, which correlates to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), see below.  DynEd scores above 3.0 (CEFR C1) are considered to be at near native speaker level.

• DynEd  0.5  – CEFR A1
• DynEd  1.5   – CEFR A2
• DynEd  2.0  – CEFR B1
• DynEd  2.5  – CEFR B2
• DynEd  3.0  – CEFR C1
• DynEd  3.5  – CEFR C2

There are several reasons DynEd has chosen not to require students to be on-line to study. First, high-quality, reliable, affordable broadband Internet is still not accessible in many parts of the world. Requiring students to be tethered while studying can be frustrating and distracting in an increasingly mobile world. Second, when rich multimedia content resides locally as DynEd’s does – on a LAN, lap-top, tablet or smart phone – interactive responses are guaranteed to be fast and smooth, even with full-motion video and high-end speech recognition exercises. Not being worried about, slowed down, or interrupted by connectivity issues allows students to concentrate on studying English, not on technology.

DynEd does sometimes cost more than other English programs, but it’s also true that DynEd delivers a much better value for customers looking for consistent, proven, measurable results. DynEd coaches provide personalized individual support to help students achieve maximum efficiency during self study. DynEd students will learn and retain more language in a shorter period of time than with any other English instructional system. For schools, companies and individuals serious about results, DynEd is by far the better choice.

Yes. DynEd offers a range of content which includes English for Academic Purposes, for the language of numbers, charts, graphs and logical relationships, for Business, for the Aviation sector, and for the Hospitality industry. Each of these targeted English for Specific Purposes modules is designed to work in conjunction with the development of a general English foundation.

Unfortunately, just memorizing job-related phrases or word lists doesn’t work well. Without the ability to clearly communicate common language ideas and functions, such as asking a question, clarifying, or making a request, specialized vocabulary and phrases are often hard to use effectively and are easily forgotten. DynEd concentrates first on building up the learner’s core foundation of English, developing the ability to fluently exchange information. Then onto this basic framework the learner can add an increasingly broad variety of vocabulary and linguistic concepts, including a focus on immediately useful work-related language. DynEd enables workers to use English at work with confidence – even when they have to “go off the script.”

DynEd’s Aviation English for Pilots, Controllers and Cabin Crew is organized using the same flight stages familiar to aviation professionals, beginning with tasks and events that occur during Pre-flight, and continuing through Departure, In Flight, Approach and Landing, and Taxi and Postflight. DynEd presents the language associated with each stage and provides plenty of realistic listening and speaking practice in each context. Module 6 presents case studies of actual aviation emergencies and accidents to spur conversation about safety and best practices.

Kids like to use computers and mobile devices. The pastel colors used in DynEd’s children’s courses have been carefully selected to be both attractive and easy on the eyes. By limiting computer study sessions to 20-40 minutes per day, eye strain should not be a problem even for very young children.

It depends. A self-motivated child probably doesn’t need a parent’s company most of the time. Younger and/or less disciplined children, however, will benefit greatly if a parent monitors study or even studies with them. Moreover, kids often learn language faster than parents, so it may be the child who ends up teaching the parent. And as we all know, teaching is one of the best ways to learn!

Teacher turnover is a problem in English training centers; kids seem to have new teachers all the time. DynEd helps ease this concern by providing a standardized study system using familiar, engaging characters with patient, native-speaker voices to create a consistent, friendly learning environment.

The best way to learn a skill like English is to study often and in short periods of time. A successful study pattern example is to study twenty minutes twice one day, then thirty minutes the next day. You should work to accumulate 6 000 study points every week and meet with one of our coaches at least 10 times per certificate level. If you meet these requirements, we are confident that you will pass your exit test and receive your English Certificate in the estimated amount of time for each level!

The CEFR refers to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, which is the most important global framework used to describe language ability. This standard is being used more and more often in secondary schools, universities, governments as well as private businesses around the world.

It depends on how well you study. neo requires that you earn at least 6 000 points per week, and the following total number of study points per certificate level:

• A1   130 000 points
• A2   130 000 points
• B1   140 000 points
• B2   155 000 points
• C1   190 000 points

DynEd coaches are committed to seeing you achieve your goals and are trained to use the Artificial Intelligence System to know exactly what you are studying and how you are progressing.  Since the System tracks your progress over time, if you change coaches, your new coach will continue from where your last coach left off.  Their common goal is to encourage and enrich your English learning experience.

After each session learners are asked to rate their coaching experience on a scale of 1 to 5 stars. neo LIVE displays the average rating under the coaches’ names to assist you in choosing the coach that is right for you.

Coaching sessions cost two tokens each. To reserve a session go to the LIVE coaching interface and choose the coach that is most appropriate for you. You must have at least 10 coaching session (use your 20 tokens) per CEFR level to maintain your guarantee.

You can join your session at any time during the session’s 15 minutes; your coach will be waiting for you.

Yes, you can reschedule a coaching session up to one day before the date of the session. Go into your LIVE coaching interface and look for the ‘Reschedule’ option on the dashboard.

If your coach arrives at your scheduled session more than 5 minutes late, neo refunds your session’s tokens automatically.

Tokens are not refunded when you arrive late or if you don’t attend a scheduled coaching session. Tokens are also not refunded if the connection between you and your coach fails. Our coaches work from centers with high-quality, redundant broadband connectivity, so we don’t expect Internet failures from the coach. We suggest you log on from a location that has a good Internet connection for all of your coaching sessions.

We are confident that our solutions will provide you with the expected results, so much so, that if you study according to our guidelines, we guarantee that you will reach your English goal in the allotted time for each level. To keep your guarantee, you must earn 6 000 study points per week and attend at least 10 coaching sessions per level. If you meet these criteria, but do not pass your exit exam, you can continue to study for free until you pass your exit test. As part of your guarantee, we will also give you 4 free coaching tokens to prepare to retake the exit test.

If you are unable to study every week for five months, for example, you may not qualify for neo’s guarantee, but we will allow you access to the neo app and the coaches for up to one year.  Our goal is for you to pass your exit exam whenever you are ready.

Most people pass the exit test the first time. However, if you are having difficulty, you can take a CEFR level’s exit test up to three times. Once you pass the exam, you will have fulfilled the level’s requirements.

Tech support is available via the neo’s support email. Feel free to write to us in your native language and our worldwide staff will try to respond within 24 hours, and in your own language if possible. Our neo support email is: [email protected]

After passing a level’s exit test, neo will automatically generate your English certificate. It will have your name, the photo that was taken when you started the program, your CEFR level, the date the level was earned and a unique ID number that will confirm that you are the certificate holder. This ID number can be verified at www.dyned.com/certverify.

neo’s advanced artificial intelligence technology is constantly analyzing your study efforts. It uses this information to make decisions regarding the course of your study within the neo Study App. It also helps you improve your pronunciation through adaptive Speech Recognition exercises, awards you points and guides you and your coach through every step of your journey.

DynEd’s instructional system combines one-on-one computer-based self-study with regular meetings with a DynEd-trained teacher or coach. These classroom or distance-based coaching sessions are an essential component of DynEd’s success. No matter how good a technology-assisted program is, only a teacher or coach can personalize or localize lesson content for his or her individual classes or students, and then extend that lesson beyond just the language from the program. This “blending” of computer time with teacher time uses the strengths of both to maximize results.

DynEd students begin by taking a Placement Test, a computer-adaptive tool that adjusts to each individual. DynEd’s Path Manager then uses the student’s test results to automatically open units at the right level of difficulty, and monitors progress to unlock new material.  DynEd’s patented Shuffler mechanism automatically adjusts the difficulty and variety of language being presented to each student depending on their performance. Learning material that is too difficult may become frustrating, and material that is too easy quickly becomes boring; the Shuffler keeps each individual working at their optimal learning level. Working together, these software devices help ensure that each learner is studying at his/her own pace and is constantly challenged with new language material targeted at exactly the right level.

Language is a skill. Learning English is similar to learning to play a musical instrument, or drive a car, or play a sport like football. Developing any skill takes time and lots of effective practice. To become really good at it, the skill must become automatic. This means it can be done by the unconscious mind, i.e., without thinking. For language skill, this is called fluency. Getting to the point of fluency in English requires focused practice over an extended period of time. It is difficult, however, to maintain good concentration if study sessions are too long. DynEd recommends that students study frequently, but in relatively short sessions of less than one hour at a time. Learning a new skill involves changes in the brain — the growing and strengthening of new synapses and nerve connections. These are organic structures that take time to develop. Just like building muscles in the gym, there is a limit to what can be done in a day. Muscles need periods of rest to re-build after being worked hard. Brains also need periods away from studying so that there is enough time for the newly reinforced connections to grow. It is much more effective, therefore, to study in shorter sessions distributed throughout the week (3-5 times per week) than in long, intensive sessions on just one or two days. When study is distributed, learning English actually takes less total time, and much less is forgotten.

It’s common to use DynEd alongside other teaching materials, such as course books, extensive reading series, or test prep materials. Good teachers will take advantage of a variety of materials to engage and re-focus students frequently. To optimize student progress, however, we recommend that DynEd serve as the program core, if possible. It’s also critical to follow the basic pedagogic principles of DynEd’s blended learning approach: that students study DynEd frequently (3 to 5 times per week), and that teachers devote class time each week to personalizing and extending the language students are studying in the DynEd courseware. Using DynEd only as an occasional self-access practice supplement without classroom support is much less effective and not recommended.

The natural way to learn language is first through listening and then struggling to speak, just as a baby does. When we finally learn to read and write, either at home or at school, we are already a native speaker of our first language. The ability to speak a language greatly facilitates development of reading and writing skills. DynEd introduces literacy skills after a foundation in aural/oral skills is well established, and we reinforce reading and writing with practice exercises through the remainder of a student’s learning path.

DynEd introduces letter recognition and phonemic awareness early for children, but not at the expense of focusing on aural/oral fluency skills. As fluency grows, simple word reading, spelling, and sentence-building tasks are used in exercises to reinforce target vocabulary and grammar patterns. As both younger and older learners progress, DynEd has an increasing emphasis on literacy skill development. Reading and writing tasks both within the courseware itself, and in accompanying worksheets, provide coordinated practice using language already studied orally. Extensive reading narratives and writing activities grow in complexity along with the student’s oral fluency level to include dictations, sentence and paragraph summary exercises, and short essays. Higher level learners have practice with identifying main ideas, recognizing transitional phrases, logical sequencing, and pronoun references common in multiple sentence discourse. Finally, DynEd’s Reading for Success course provides a comprehensive introduction to both academic reading and writing in English. With units leveraging school subject areas like math, science, and social studies, RFS includes exercises focused on reading for main ideas and important details, skimming and scanning, understanding vocabulary in context, recognizing grammar and language chunks, increasing reading fluency, rapid word recognition and decoding, using context clues to meaning, oral reading and pronunciation, and crucial practice in understanding and using dictionary definitions.