You are now part of Kabinata. Thanks to your ambitions and the skills of our wonderful teachers, you are building your knowledge of negative tense.
To make the process as easy as possible, we have created a manual that you can use at any time when you have difficulties navigating the Platform.
Here you will find (described – step by step) answers to many questions that may arise.
Step 1 – Profile:
At the moment you complete your registration – you already have a profile created in Kabinata.
To see what it looks like, you need to log into the platform with your username and password, click in the top right corner on "Profile" and select the field with your name.
Here, if you wish, you have the opportunity to change your profile picture, change your password or the name you use in the classroom. The classroom name is the name by which your teachers and classmates will address you.
Step 2 – Choose a course, subject and teacher:
In the same place, all subscriptions for courses in the subjects you will have appear. To be visible, you need to subscribe.
For this purpose, scroll to the bottom of the page, where you will see several sections: "Courses, Teachers, Subjects".
When you click on "Subjects" you will see everything that is taught in Kabinata.
Choose a subject. Now, what appears before your eyes are all courses in the subject, all teachers who teach this subject individually, and the most recent hours they have announced for booking.
You can click on each of them to read what they have described in their profiles (experience, teaching level, price per hour and reviews from other students) to make your choice.
(What you will read in the next paragraph applies to Foreign Language Courses)
Once you have made your choice, return to the "Courses" section, where you will find the teacher you have chosen (by clicking on the dropdown menu "Choose teacher") and you will be able to view his entire schedule with inserted teaching hours and lesson topics, so you will be able to plan when to attend, according to your available time.
If you click on each announced hour, a window will pop up where you will find information about – the name of the lesson, how long it will last, how many students will attend and what level is being taught at that moment.
If you wish to study another subject that is not a foreign language – IT or Science:
Click on "Subjects" and choose what you want to improve your knowledge in.
There you will find all teachers associated with that subject. Review their profiles and decide who you want to teach you. If there are no announced hours in the profile, you can write to the teacher, indicating your preferred day and time and wait for a quick response.
Step 3 – Kabinata Virtual Classroom
The virtual classroom is the place where our live lessons with teachers are conducted.
In the classroom you can:
– Speak with the teacher and other lesson participants.
– Listen and participate in the lesson – only as a listener.
– Write in the general chat of the lesson or in a separate chat with the teacher.
– Watch recordings of all past lessons and levels.
– Save materials from the classroom.
– Adjust the screen size so it is most convenient for your device screen.
The virtual classroom can be used from a desktop computer, phone or tablet. Practice shows that the most effective way to study and attend lessons is through a desktop computer (PC).
Entering the room:
When you click on a link to enter a live lesson, you will be redirected to a page with a button to enter the classroom:
If you have already attended a live lesson, click on the "Start" button and you will enter the virtual classroom.
If you are here for the first time:
You need to download a file and install the program before entering the lesson. Click on Download and the file will appear on your screen.
Important: The program is installed only once. For all subsequent entries from the same browser, simply press the button and you will enter the classroom.
The virtual classroom is a universal application that works with all browsers and operating systems.
If you still have a problem logging in, make sure you are following all the instructions on this page. Work with the virtual classroom can be disrupted in any of the following situations:
– Internet connection problems – standard internet (mobile or optical) connection is sufficient to use the classroom. If the speed is slow, this may prevent you from logging in or affect the quality of the sound you receive and when you speak.
– Problem with audio devices – if you have no sound or you hear but are not heard, it is likely that your headphones and microphone are not connected correctly or you have more than one speaking or listening device.
Go to Menu (the three horizontal dots), select Audio Test and check your devices. If there is more than one device in the dropdown menu, try each one until you figure out which one is connected to the classroom.
Do not hesitate to contact us if you have a problem.
You can do so – through our chat, by phone or email.
Step 4 – Learning with a course
Learning in a course consists of a group whose subscription lasts – 1, 2, 4, 8 or 12 months. During this period, you will have the opportunity to take advantage of the unlimited resources of our virtual learning platform.
You can learn faster with additional live lessons, self-study materials and recordings of past lessons and levels. This way you will move through a given level in less time.
And vice versa – if you don't feel ready to move to the next level, you can repeat the level as many times as you want or even study – two or three levels at the same time.
We provide you with a schedule tailored to your individual pace of progress.
Courses are conducted entirely online with teachers who offer live lessons up to 8 hours a day, which you can attend from anywhere. You have access to thousands of multimedia and recorded video lessons.
You have the option to pause the course or postpone its start. The flexible, pre-made curriculum offers evening and daytime lessons, and personalized guidance from teachers, reviews and ratings of your texts and classroom participation.
If you are a complete beginner, you can use our Kabinata Fast Start option – our special program for first steps in learning your chosen subject, where a test or consultation with a teacher will determine your level.
All of this you will do through your virtual Portfolio, with which you can book additional lessons or a monthly subscription with selected teachers at a time convenient for you. Each subscription also adds funds to your portfolio, giving you access to all levels and teachers.
If you are unsure how to do any of the options listed above, you will always receive assistance from our support department.
And remember, there are discounts when registering more than one person.
Booking a lesson for a course:
Log into your personal Portfolio, then go to the profile of the teacher you have chosen. If the teacher has announced hours, you can book directly: click on the boxes with start and end time and then on "Proceed to Booking".
Your Portfolio will be charged, and the booked hours will be visible in the "Booked" menu. The teacher will receive an email and will wait for you in the virtual classroom shortly before the start of the booked hour.
You can also choose the time and propose hours for the teacher to accept, if possible. To do this, click on "Propose an hour" and specify a date and start time at a time convenient for you. If the teacher accepts, your Portfolio will be charged and the lessons will appear in "Booked".
If the teacher has to decline your request, you will receive an email and have the opportunity to propose a new hour or write to the teacher through the platform to agree on a time convenient for both parties. The status of all lessons you have proposed is visible in the "Proposed" section.
How to study in Kabinata?
Levels:
Each language course includes 7 levels, divided into two modules – Beginner and Advanced.
Beginner Module includes 3 levels – Level 1 (A1-1), Level 2 (A1-2), Level 3 (A2-1)
Advanced Module includes 4 levels – Level 4 (A2-2), Level 5 (B1-1), Level 6 (B1-2), Level 7 (B2)
Levels are aligned with the European Language Framework.
Each level lasts 4 weeks. After it ends, the level starts over and then you have the opportunity to move to the next level or repeat the current one.
Your access gives you the right to participate in both modules and all levels. You can switch between the Beginner and Advanced modules at any time, without restrictions.
Learning:
The curriculum and structure of learning follow predetermined learning paths that include:
– Live lessons with teachers in a virtual classroom
– Weekly learning materials, tests and video lessons
– Weekly writing assignments
– Grades, reviews and guidance from teachers
Follow lessons in one or two levels. All lessons in one level have similar difficulty and grammar.
Attend specialized lessons as well as daily, review and conversation lessons.
In the "Homework" section select the level for which you want to receive written assignments and reviews from teachers (you can change it at any time).
Additionally, you can work with recordings of past lessons and levels, as well as with learning materials.
Invite a friend:
In any lesson you can include other students and study together with a teacher of your choice at a time convenient for everyone. To include another student, you need to have their personal key.
Each student's personal key is found in "Profile". Click on "Add Students" and enter the key in the field. After you add a friend, they will receive an email and see the booked lesson on the "Booked" page. The lesson is paid by the student who books it (added students participate for free). You can also invite additional participants from your list of classmates, which you can see in the booking window "Add classmates".
Certificate issuance:
You must have fully completed levels and participation in live lessons to receive a certificate after the course ends. We issue a certificate according to the European Language Framework, based on the course material taken for a given level, attendance at classrooms and results from a final test.
Measuring progress:
We measure the total time spent in the course, time spent in the virtual classroom, and progress on learning materials and weekly homework.
We advise you to spend as much time as possible in live learning, do homework, and go through more learning materials.
In Kabinata we follow the progress of users in the four main language skills – Speaking, Writing, Reading, Listening.
How is the grade determined?
Speaking - when you participate in lessons in virtual classrooms, teachers have the opportunity to grade you.
Based on these grades, your overall grade for the "Speaking" section is formed.
Keep in mind that not every participation you make is graded. Teachers themselves judge when and under what circumstances to give grades to speakers.
Listeners and students who only participate in writing in the lesson are not graded.
Writing – the grade is formed based on – weekly written assignments (Homework) that you send through the platform. These written assignments, in practice, represent a writing course and are graded on a ten-point scale by our teachers. For each submitted text, you receive – a review and recommendations from a teacher.
Reading/Listening – the grade is formed based on – the tests solved in the learning materials for your course in Kabinata, as well as on – all initial, intermediate and final tests that you complete.
Step 5 – Booking individual lessons:
In addition to group work, some of the teachers also conduct additional individual online lessons. The platform allows you to choose a teacher and book a time for a private lesson.
Learning is conducted entirely individually, giving you the opportunity to choose a teacher according to your preferences at a time convenient for you. Payment occurs through your portfolio, per teaching hour, according to Kabinata standards – 60 min.
You can book a lesson from 1 to 6 days in advance, according to both parties' schedules.
To do this, choose a time from the teacher's schedule, and then check the recorded lessons in yours, whether the time is free. It is not possible to book a lesson from one day for the same day.
Once you book a lesson, the teacher will be notified and will wait for you in the virtual classroom at the appropriate time.
In a private lesson, the teacher's attention is entirely focused on you and it is much easier to fill in gaps in understanding the material.
Another advantage of private lessons is that they allow work on a specialized topic or language problem.
In personal work with a teacher, you also get the opportunity to correct any inaccuracies in communication and pronunciation of words.
Still, keep in mind that the price for an individual hour-long lesson is much higher than that for a course.
Keep in mind that not every technical problem can be resolved remotely.
You may need to consult with your computer specialist or network administrator.
As a last resort, we could try to help you from our office, using the remote access program TeamViewer.
Download the program and send us your ID and login password.
One of our staff will remotely enter your computer.
We sincerely hope that this information has been helpful.
The Kabinata team wishes you happy learning!