Policies & Procedures

Online Lessons Policies

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Upon registration, a student agrees to the following Policies and Procedures:

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General Information

Language Links is committed to maintaining a safe and positive online learning environment for all students. We’ve experienced so many wonderful moments with our students and staff online! We are excited to continue the learning in this format and to be able to support our students in their continued language learning goals.

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Language Links runs online lessons 7 days a week from 6am to 12am (midnight) Eastern Time.

 

Lessons are available all year round, except on Canadian statutory holidays.

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Liability

Students, parents and guardians agree to release, indemnify and hold harmless Language Links, its employees and contractors, from and against all claims of injury, damage or loss of any kind whatsoever arising out of the participation in any activities held at Language Links.  

Language Links cannot at any time be held responsible for any inconveniences caused by the performance or inadequacy of the services of any third party (e.g.: an internet service provider, Google Meet, Zoom, etc.)

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Privacy Policy

By submitting the application form to Language Links the student agrees to the storage of their personal details in the administrative systems, whether on paper, computer or any other medium and to the usage of that information for Language Links education and administrative purposes.

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Students’ photographic images, quotes and details of achievements may be used for promotional purposes (printed and online). Students agree that when they incidentally appear in photographs of which they are not the main focus (e.g. pictures of social activities), such photographs can be used by Language Links for promotional purposes without further written consent or notification. If students do not wish to have their details published for marketing purposes, then they are advised to give Language Links a formal notice in writing.

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​Photos and Recording

All online lessons are recorded and stored in the student’s file. Language Links reserves the right to use photographs/video material of the students for the safety and security of our students. All students must sign our Social Media Consent and Release form upon registration.  Photographs and recordings are used for promotional purposes such as website, brochures, displays and student school files. There is no compensation or royalties arising from or relating to the use of this material. All personal information collected will be used for Language Links’ purposes only.

 

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During Online Lessons

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Appropriate Language and Behaviour

Language Links has a zero-tolerance policy for inappropriate language and behaviour, included but not limited to swearing, inappropriate gestures, discriminatory language, discriminatory images, or any other conduct deemed inappropriate for both the student and instructor.  Any such conduct may result in the student’s removal from their online lesson or their online program completely.

 

Food

Students may drink water, or a non-alcoholic beverage, during their lessons, but food is not permitted.

 

Dress Code

The purpose of our Student Dress Code Policy is to define acceptable student attire.  The objective of the policy is to promote an atmosphere for academic success while recognizing significant freedom of student choice and expression.

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1. Hats, hoods and sunglasses should not be worn during the online lesson.

2. All clothing must conceal undergarments.

3. Any article of clothing with a printed message, word, phrase or image may not contain profanity, obscenity, or the promotion of any illegal activity or violence.

4. No pyjamas or sleepwear may be worn.

Students wearing any article of clothing that is deemed inappropriate, offensive or a distraction to the online learning environment by a staff member may be required to change. 

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Communication and Homework

The student agrees to exchange communication only through the platform or tools provided by the Language Links. Communication includes, but is not limited to, email correspondence, any social media platform, telephone conversation or mailing correspondence, etc.

Students are expected to complete their homework when assigned. Homework sent to and from students is delivered through our Homework Centre only.

 

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Demo Lesson and Registration

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Demo Lessons

Students who wish to enroll in any of our Private Lessons are entitled to one 30-minute demo lesson.

Demo Lesson requests are submitted through our website at www.languagelinks.ca/admissions/demo

After a demo lesson, this timeslot will be held for one week, after which all registration and payments must be received or the timeslot will be reopened.

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The instructor will wait for the student up to 15-minutes for the student to log on. If the student does not log on, the demo lesson is cancelled and can be re-schedule at a later date.

 

If the student needs to cancel a demo lesson, they must contact the respective school staff or send an email to academics@languagelinks.ca or chat@languagelinks.ca

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Registration and Payment for Private Lessons or Group Lessons

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A regular student is fully registered once the following is complete and submitted:

1) Signed Registration Form;
2) One-time Non-refundable Registration Fee ($85 per student);
3) Required to provide tuition fee for the program(s) applicable

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Private Lessons: Adult students

Students may schedule their lessons for 1-hour, 1.5 hour or 2-hour sessions on the days of their choice.

 

Private Lessons: Young Learners

Students ages 4 to 12 have 30-minute lessons. 

 

Language Links reserves the right to change the lesson length of a student for any reason. The student will be notified of such changes.

 

Programs purchased at Promotional Prices

Language Links runs promotions monthly. If a student purchases and enrolls in any program with a promotional price, the student must attend those lessons within a six-month period from the date of purchase. Failure to do so will result in forfeiting the lessons. Programs purchased on a promotional price are non-refundable.

 

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How to create an ideal study space for studying online

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Wherever you live, wherever you tend to study, consider these tips for creating the best study space out of your environment.

 

1. Pick one place in your home

Designate one room or area as your study space. This will help you concentrate.

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2. Get comfortable—but not too comfortable.

Sit in a comfortable chair and wear comfortable clothes. Avoid lying in bed or wearing pyjamas.

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3. Look for natural light

Natural light helps bring warmth and vitality to a room, which is necessary for making the best study space… and avoid headaches.

 

4. Don’t look into the light

Positioning a bright light directly in your eyes is distracting, sometimes painful. Instead, place a lamp behind the computer to illuminate the space. 

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5. Quiet learning environment

Place the computer in a quiet place to avoid distractions during the online lessons.

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6. Your cellphone

We suggest turning off your phone during your lesson. Your cellphone can be the biggest distraction.

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7. Keep it positive

Learning is important and your study area can help bring this positivity into your online lesson. If you’ve created the best study space, you’re going to love being there and enjoy your online lessons with us.

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How we connect

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All our Live Virtual Lessons will be held over Google Meet or Zoom. Each class has a unique link and password to keep your meetings private. Language Links reserves the right to select the platform for the students’ lessons.

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For Google Meet

• Google Meet works on any device. Join a meeting from your desktop/laptop, Android, or iPhone/iPad.

• Please use Google Chrome to connect to your lesson.

• Simply click on the link provided by the school and your browser will automatically open.

• If the link does not open, copy and paste the link into Google Chrome.

For Zoom

• For you to join a meeting in Zoom, Language Links will first have to set up the meeting. Once the host opens the classroom, the student(s) can join.

• Language Links will send you an invitation by email. Click on the “Join Zoom Meeting” link.

• You can join on your desktop, laptop, iPad, iOS or Android phone.

• You will be taken to the meeting.

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Technological Issues

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Broadband internet access is required to ensure the quality of the sound and video of your lesson.

If you have technical difficulties to log into your online classroom, please contact us at chat@languagelinks.ca

Our staff work hard to ensure that all the links are set up so our students and instructors do not have any difficulties to log into their online classroom. However, please note that there is reduced support staff available after 8pm Eastern Time.

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In case of a slow internet connection (poor audio/video quality) our instructor may ask the student to log out and back in again to improve the video and/or audio quality. If there is a disruption of the Internet service on the instructor’s side, the lesson will be rescheduled.

 

If there is a disruption of the Internet services on the student’s side, we ask that the student provide a screenshot (displaying the relevant information including the date and time) of the occurrence. This will help us resolve the problem faster. The student will be permitted to reschedule 50% of their lesson time only.

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In case of any unforeseen circumstance, if more than 50% of the lesson has been delivered, the entire lesson will be considered as completed.

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Attendance

We ask that the students and instructors alike respect each other's time. Attendance is an important factor in all of our lessons – private and group programs. 

 

Students should arrive ready to start class on time as per their schedule.

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If a student will be late for a class, we request that the student notify the school prior to the lesson to inform the instructor.

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If a student will be away from a lesson, please see the section below “Cancelling a Lesson and Make-up Lessons”
 

Tardiness

The instructor will wait for the student up to 15-minutes after the originally scheduled lesson time for the student to log on. No lesson time will be made up for students who arrive late for a lesson.

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If the student does not log on, the student forfeits their lesson and this is considered a missed lesson.

 

If a student is having technical difficulties, the student is encouraged to contact us a chat@languagelinks.ca for assistance.

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Students who have confirmed their lesson schedule and do not log on for 3 consecutive lessons without notice, lessons will be forfeited effective immediately.  Exceptions are Lesson Cancellations and Vacation requests.

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Instructor Absence 

In the event that an instructor is ill, Language Links reserves the right to provide a supply instructor to teach a lesson. If a lesson is cancelled due to an instructor’s absence, the student will receive a make-up lesson for each lesson an instructor is absent. If an instructor cancels any lessons, the instructor is obliged to make up those lessons. If an instructor plans to be away for an extended period of time, a supply teacher will be arranged by Language Links.

 

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Cancelling a Lesson and Make-up Lessons

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Private Lessons: Cancelling a lesson with more than 24-hour notice

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The student must cancel their lesson on our website with more than 24-hour notice to be entitled to a make-up lesson. A make – up lesson can come in the form of additional time added to the following lesson or a full make-up lesson scheduled at the end of the student’s program. Make-up lessons are arranged in accordance with the instructor and student. If the student misses a scheduled make-up lesson, another one will not be rescheduled. Students can receive a maximum of six make-up lessons per year with more than 24 hours' notice for any reason.

 

 

Private Lessons: Cancelling a lesson with less than 24-hour notice

Students cancelling lessons less than 24-hours notice forfeit the lesson resulting in the student losing a lesson toward their total lesson count.

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**Please note that if your lesson is less than 24 hours away, you will not be able to select the correct date through the website. Please include a note with the correct date and inform the school immediately as a courtesy to the instructor. Keep in mind, lessons that are cancelled with less than 24 hours' notice are marked as Missed Lessons and will not entitle you to a make-up lesson.

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Students are entitled to a full make-up lesson in the following situations:

1. Student cancels a lesson with more than 24-hour notice

2. There is a technological difficulty from the instructor’s side and less than 50% of the lesson was delivered

 

Group program

Students who are not able to participate in their group lesson cannot arrange for a make-up lesson. However, the instructor may send any relevant class material to the student for homework.

 

Statutory Holidays and School Closure

Lessons falling on a Canadian statutory holiday will be made-up and scheduled at the end of the student’s program. All statutory holidays and school closures are listed on the school’s website.

 

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Break Requests

Students may choose to take a break from their private lessons for up to 2 weeks. Their schedule will remain the same upon the student’s return. To request for a break please submit your request on our website.

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Group Programs

Language Links reserves the right to discontinue or rearrange group classes. A group class will be canceled if enrollment proves insufficient. In such cases, students may request a transfer to another class or wait for the start date of the next session.

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Group Program Withdrawal Policies

Written notice is required for all group program withdrawals. Tuition fee policy applies.

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Lesson Schedule Change

A great deal of time is invested in both the registration and scheduling process of our students. The basis for building a master school schedule are the requests made by our students during registration. Each individual course request made upon registration affects the final schedule for the following months. Staffing, unique online classroom links and the number of courses available are all determined by these choices. Therefore, when students make their schedule selection, it is understood that their new schedule will reflect these choices.

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*Language Links hold the right to move the schedules of lessons for any reason. Proper notice will be given.

 

Private Lessons

After the first request, there is a $20 administration fee for lesson schedule change request. Requests for lesson scheduled change must be received in writing through our website.  Emails, Text messages or phone calls are not considered formal requests and will not be processed. Please note that the student’s lessons remain on the previous schedule until the new schedule takes effect.  

Language Links holds the right to change the instructor of the student based on the instructor’s availability and the student’s new schedule. Once a new instructor has been assigned, changing instructor is subject to an administration fee.

 

Lesson Schedule Change Requests are reset every year from the student’s start date.

 

Group Lessons

Group Lesson are held on a fixed schedule and cannot be modified. Lesson Schedule Change Requests are not applicable.

 

 

Program Withdrawal, Cancellation and Transfers

 

Withdrawal from Private Lessons

One-week written notice is required if a student decides to terminate lessons for any reason. All makeup lessons must be made up before withdrawing from a program or the lessons will be forfeited. There is no cash value for any make-up lesson. The Tuition Fee Refund Policy will apply. Refunds will be sent through the same method of payment as the original transaction. Any fees incurred with be the responsibility of the student. Please allow 4 – 6 weeks for processing from the date of written notice of withdrawal.

 

Withdrawal from Group Lessons

One-week written notice is required if a student decides to withdraw from group lessons for any reason. All makeup group lessons are forfeited. There is no cash value for any make-up lesson. Refunds will be sent through the same method of payment as the original transaction. Any fees incurred with be the responsibility of the student. Please allow 4 – 6 weeks for processing from the date of written notice of withdrawal.

 

Lessons purchased at Promotional Prices

Language Links runs promotions monthly. Lesson packages purchased at a promotional price are non-refundable. If a student withdraws from a program purchased at a promotional price, the student forfeits their fees. Private Lessons and Group lessons both apply.

 

Transferring Lessons

Each student purchases their own lesson package. Lesson packages are non-transferrable.  No exceptions made.

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Tuition fee Refund Policy

1. All cancellation or postponement must be made in writing via email or request sent through our website.

2. All withdrawals or cancellations must be supported with a Program Withdrawal Form, signed and dated by the student or parents/ guardians.

3. Registration fees and service fees are non-refundable. Note: If the registration fee was waived as part of a promotion, the value of the registration fee will be deducted. Value $85.00 CAD.

4. Tuition refunds are paid within four to six weeks of tuition fee refund request.

5. Lesson packages purchased at a promotional price are non-refundable. If a student withdraws from a program purchased at a promotional price, the student forfeits their fees. Private Lessons and Group lessons both apply.

 

The following chart outlines circumstances and tuition refunds entitlements as described:

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If you have any questions, please contact us at chat@languagelinks.ca or info@languagelinks.ca

 

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