School NOVA

The NOVA brand delivers high-quality instruction and other language services to those who wish to improve their communicative proficiency in foreign languages. Students of a wide range of ages and ability levels, from complete beginner to very advanced, can choose to take small group or private lessons face-to-face in one of the many NOVA school branches throughout Japan, over a video-conferencing system or online from the comfort of their own homes, or a combination.

In addition to conversation skills-based lessons, test preparation courses are offered to students studying for specific English tests such as TOEIC or TOEFL. Also popular is our range of NOVA Plus courses. Some of these courses focus on specific skills (such as grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, etc.,) and some are geared towards specific purposes (such as business or travel).

As an additional supplement to classroom-style lessons, many branches also offer a conversation practice style of lesson known as Voice. Voice provides students with an opportunity to practice what they have learned in their lessons in a supervised, but self-directed forum to help them become more accustomed to and confident communicating naturally in a second language.

For younger learners, we offer NOVA Bilingual Kids, a program developed specifically for children aged 3 to 15. Through our NOVA Bilingual Kids program, students learn to read, write and communicate confidently in English in a fun and supportive environment. The program is designed to complement what they learn in school and prepare them for future studies.

For students who are interested in languages other than English, French, German, Chinese and Korean face-to-face lessons are also taught in selected branches across Japan. Online lessons in all nine languages offered by NOVA (including English) are available through the Multimedia Center, based in Osaka.

The Multimedia Center offers both small group and private online lessons, both online and through a video conferencing system. The curriculum mirrors the classroom curriculum with the added appeal of extra audio and visuals.

NOVA students on free-booking plans can take lessons at any NOVA branch within Japan, whenever seats are available in lessons of their ability level(s). NOVA branch schools are generally open seven days a week. On regular weekdays, schools are typically open from around 1:00 p.m. until 10:30 p.m., and on weekends and national holidays from 10:00 a.m. until 10:00 p.m. Larger schools may be open from 10:00 a.m. through to 10:20 p.m. every day of the week. The Multimedia Center offers lessons up to 24 hours a day (depending on the language). This provides students who want to take lessons outside of regular branch opening hours, and also those who live in remote areas, extra scheduling options.

All textbooks used in NOVA's conversation lessons were created in-house and were designed specifically for developing communicative ability. NOVA textbooks feature full-color units with attractive pictures and drawings. The topics and situations are varied and therefore relevant to many different areas of student interest and study needs. At the lower levels, units cover a range of situations commonly encountered in daily life and when traveling (on business or vacation) and topics frequently discussed between family, friends, and acquaintances. At the higher levels, units introduce more complex and involved topics such as politics, environmental issues, and formal and less familiar situations requiring differing levels of tact and politeness. In all levels, phrases and vocabulary commonly used when discussing the given topic are presented on the unit page for the students to study and use in the lesson.