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Am I the only one who feels that these English-teaching websites are just a way for teachers to make a few bucks here and there?

It seems that the majority don't really focus on the intricacies of human communication, or for that matter, the student. The focus is always on grammar rules, new expressions, or them being a human translator. Teaching online has now become a friendly chat with someone and striving not to have those awkward silences because you absolutely have nothing in common with your student.

I've tried different websites like Italki, British Council, Preply, Cambly, etc. These websites seem more fitting for someone who's somewhat of a beginner and can understand English on a basic level. Progression, however, is not guaranteed, and you have to do a lot of work on your end to actually get a grasp on the language. Maybe you could use them to ask questions, fill some knowledge gaps, or practice speaking. But, from my experience, teachers would never give you clear and practical answers. It's always some vague and ambiguous instructions. And don't let me even get started on the "Conversation Practice".

With that out of the way, is there a platform that provides actual education and puts a huge emphasis on students' improvement?

My main objectives are to reduce accent, produce sounds naturally, and have more fluidity and easiness to my speech. I would prefer if this was done in sort of a program so that it's more methodological and not just a couple of lessons here and there.

Also, I would like to speak English more frequently. Are there sort of out-of-the-box ways to achieve that as effectively as possible?

Just a little bit of a disclaimer: This is merely me describing my experience with language websites. I'm sure they've helped a lot of people around the world and they sure did help me back when I started. And yes, I'm sure that there are so many competent teachers. Being nitpicky or judgemental was never my intention. It's just that at this point, I'm stuck in a rut and some guidance on this matter would be really helpful.

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    Read books by native speakers, short stories and novels, read quality online newspapers, watch YouTube videos on those topics you have a passion for. Study a subject that interests you in English. You have evolved past the teaching English websites stage. You should be proud of yourself. As for speaking practice, do private lessons with someone who is a native speaker but doesn't teach English for a living. You'll probably pick up more with someone like that than with a teacher who has 20 years of experience.
    – Mari-Lou A
    Nov 27, 2022 at 2:53
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    Agreed with Mari-Lou. Your English is excellent and there's only so much the average teacher or program can do for you. (The only clues in your question that you're not a native speaker -- and even these are not definite proof -- are "would never" instead of "will never" or just "never", and "easiness" instead of "ease".) When I got my French to the level your English seems to be at, I began choosing my own materials to read, listen to, and watch. And I began tutoring French format, including to French natives, which forced me to learn conversation rapidly. (And they were paying me to learn!)
    – Luke Sawczak
    Nov 27, 2022 at 4:21
  • Does this answer your question? Resources for learning English
    – MarcInManhattan
    Dec 4, 2022 at 20:47

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