Capstone English Mastery Center is a unique school. There is no course or inflexible class schedule.

New Students

New students are tested to determine their present English skills. Based upon the test results, our talks with the student, and what each individual's goals and interests are, we will choose the books and materials that we believe will be most helpful to them. Therefore, two students could score nearly the same on tests, but be assigned different books because their goals are different, or their conversational abilities are different, or simply because they made different kinds of mistakes in testing.

Independent Study

Each student will be assigned a supervising instructor, with whom they will have several private meetings scheduled each week.

Students study independently much of the time, but the most important point is that they work privately with an instructor whenever they need help. When students have a question or a problem there is always an instructor with whom they can work.

Small Conversation and Study Groups

All students, in both Academic and Fluency programs participate in several conversation and study groups each week as well.

Because much instruction is available on CDs, in MP3 format for download, or on cassette tapes, students may take lessons home to study thoroughly, at their convenience, and to review as much as necessary, in order to master the material.

Most students in both the Academic and Fluency programs participate in these Tuesday/Thursday study groups, but a small number of students not on F-1 status attend only one or more of these groups, at a cost of $15 per group per day. (If you want to attend more than 3 groups per day for more than just one month it will be more economical to enroll on an "Independent Study" basis. See our Tuition page at left.)

As of September 21, 2009 our current Tuesday & Thursday conversation schedule is:

Time	Group	Room	Teacher
10:05 - 11:00	Pronunciation 1 Pronunciation 2 Pronunciation 3	323 306 308	Jasmin Mick Erika
11:05 - 12:00	Grammar 1a Grammar 1b Grammar2a Grammar2b Grammar3a Grammar3b	319 303 310 323 306 308	Erika Jennifer Jasmin Mick Todd Sandra
1:05 - 2:00	Conversation 1a Conversation 1b Conversation 2a Conversation 2b Conversation 3 TOEFL Speaking & Listening	319 303 310 306 308 323	Erika Jennifer Jasmin Todd Chelsea Sandra
2:05 - 3:00	Vocab & Reading 1a Vocab & Reading 1b Vocab & Reading 2a Vocab & Reading 2b Vocab & Reading 3a Vocab & Reading 3b TOEFL Reading & Writing	303 321 323 319 306 310 308	Mick Todd Sandra Erika Jasmin Jennifer Chelsea

Tuesdays ONLY

3:05 - 4:00

Basic Fluency TOEIC

308 319

Chelsea Todd

Thursdays ONLY

3:05 - 4:00

Basic Academic TOEIC

308 319

Chelsea Todd

Personal Attention

Because there are no classes, teachers are available to tutor students privately according to individual needs and abilities.  When not working with an instructor, students can study grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, conversation, composition, or prepare to pass TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or IELTS to qualify for entrance to a college or university. Some students also might study for the GED (high school equivalency), GRE (graduate school) or even business or vocational subjects such as bookkeeping and accounting, typing, word processing, business law, mathematics, etc. (Beyond additional books, there is no additional charge for any of these subjects.)

It is organized on an Individualized Mastery Learning basis to serve each student to his or her greatest advantage.

This educational approach serves students of all abilities, equally well.  It is particularly helpful for students who are trying to master English-as-a-Second-Language, as it enables them to train their ears for listening skills and it helps them to practice pronunciation skills, also.

Because it is individualized, students may enroll on any school day, for full or part-time study and they may progress as quickly or slowly as they need.  It encourages the student to effectively manage his/her energy, time, and money, and rewards the student with immediate advancement upon mastery.

Finally, Capstone is the lowest-cost private ESL school in the Portland area.  For full-time students, our tuition is just $580 per month, compared to most other schools in the $700 to $800 range (some charge $1000 or more).

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To learn what is necessary for us to issue an I-20 form that can be used to apply for a student visa, see here.

Copyright © 2010 Capstone English Mastery Center