System and method of matching teachers with students to facilitate conducting online private instruction over a global network

• US 7,031,651 B2
• Filed: 07/19/2001
• Issued: 04/18/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/21/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Signum International AG
• Original Assignee: Englishtown Incorporated
• Inventors: McCormick, Christopher, Lim, Molly, Sollom, Richard, Shtessel, Alena
• Primary Examiner(s): Banks, Derris H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Suhol, Dmitry
• Application Number:
  US09/908,966
• Publication Number:
  US 20020064767A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,734 Days
• Field of Search: 434/323, 434/365, 434/350, 434/336, 434/156, 434/157, 434/322, 705/8, 709/223, 715751-759, 704/8, 706/927
• US Class Current: 434/350
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/14 with provision for individual teacher-student communication
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/02 of the type wherein the student is expected to construct an answer to the question which is presented or wherein the machine gives an answer to the question presented by a student
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 706/927 Education or instruction

Abstract

Described are a system and method for facilitating private instruction over a network between a teacher and a student. Profile information is received from each student who registers for a private course. Each student who registers for a private course is included in a list of students who are unassigned to a teacher. Each teacher who is able to teach a private course has access over the network to the list of students and the profile information of the students. One of the teachers who is able to teach a given private course is assigned to one of the students in the list of students enrolled in that given private course based upon the profile information of that student.

Claims

1. A method of facilitating private instruction over a network between a teacher and a student, the method comprising:

receiving profile information associated with a student from a first client system;

transmitting, by a server system, a placement test to the first client system via a network;

registering, by the server system, the student in a course based, at least in part, on responses to the placement test received from the first client system;

arranging at least some of the profile information associated with the registered student in a queue of the server system, the queue further including different profile information associated with at least one other student;

removing the arranged profile information associated with the registered student from the queue in response to selection indicia received from a second client system, the selection indicia being associated with a teacher of the course initiating a discussion session, wherein the first and second client systems exchange at least some messages during the discussion session pertaining to the course independently of the server system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second client systems are located in different time zones.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the responses to the placement test are indicative of the student'"'"'s proficiency in subject matter associated with the course.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the second client system is operated by the teacher of the course.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the second client system is operated by an administrator who matches the student with the teacher.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the profile information of the registered student identifies a preferred time of day and a preferred day of the week for exchanging messages between the first and second client systems.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the profile information arranged within the queue of the server system corresponds to students awaiting teacher assignments to the course.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the messages exchanged between the first and second client systems correspond to at least one of electronic mail messages, voice messages, and text messages.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the course is intended to teach a language that is not native to the student.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

forming, by the server system, an electronic mail account for the student, wherein the electronic mail account is used to exchange messages between the first and second client systems.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

transmitting, by the server system, information associated with the course to the first client system using the electronic mail account.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting, by the server system, web page information associated with the course to the first client system.