Online vs In-Person Pottery Classes – A Beginners Guide

You Have Finally Decided You Want to Start Learning About Making Pottery and Create Some Cool Pieces. Perhaps You Have Thought About Online Pottery Classes but Couldn’t Decide If You Would Get More Benefit from In-Person Classes.
Follow Along and Find Out the Differences Between Live and Online Pottery Classes to Determine Which One Is Right for You.

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Online Pottery Classes: Accessibility

When it comes to pottery classes, what is better: online or in-person?
Online Pottery Classes can be a great option for people who are not able to leave their homes.

You have the freedom of being able to work on projects at any time of day and do not need to worry about scheduling around other peoples’ schedules.

In-Person Pottery Classes require you to go out into the world and interact with others; however, they provide an opportunity for socialization as well as face-to-face instruction from a teacher.

Live Pottery Classes: Equipment on Site

Check this one off as a big advantage to live pottery classes. Let’s say that you want to start pottery, but you don’t have the cash to buy a $1,000 pottery wheel and a $1000 kiln. Granted, you could buy a $200 pottery wheel and a used $300 kiln, but if you begin this class, you want to do it the right way. First, decide if you like it without dropping tons of cash.

At least at the start, pottery can cost a lot. Going to a live pottery class, you don’t need to have the equipment. They have the equipment on site. Pottery classes range from $25 to $40 (depending on where you live) for basic beginner classes. Private classes cost more but give you personalized attention.

Online Pottery Classes: Convenience

To start pottery, you will have to buy your own equipment. If you want to throw on the wheel you need your own pottery wheel and a kiln. The good news is if you stick with it, learning and making pottery will actually cost less in the long run.

Online pottery classes bring the teacher home with you. Most beginner pottery classes can take at least three hours, and when you add a commute both ways, that subtracts at least four hours from your schedule.

With a live class, you may have to travel 20 minutes to an hour away to take the class. Online pottery has an advantage because of its convenience. You don’t have to pack up any pottery supplies and go somewhere to start learning. You will have your own Pottery Studio Setup.

Live Pottery Classes: Real-Time Error Correction

Live pottery classes correct errors in real-time. You can do this with an online class, but the instructor may not have the best camera angle to make the corrections as a live pottery class. He can only see you at the wheel from one angle. In live pottery classes, he can make corrections as you go along to weed out bad habits. 

Online pottery classes may not even have a live instructor. They may have prerecorded the lessons. That makes correcting errors in real-time a bit more difficult.

Still, you can get good information from a class like this and make corrections as you go along. You also shouldn’t assume that a live pottery class will automatically correct errors in real-time. In some cases, pottery class sizes could have up to 20 students.

Classes of that size eliminate the advantage of real-time error correction because you receive the minimal level of real-time error correction from your instructor. If you want to get the most from a live pottery class, look for one that only has between six and 10 students. This reduces the cost while still receiving one-on-one time with the teacher. 

Otherwise, private lessons offer the best approach with personalized attention that improves your skill quickly.

Online Pottery Classes: Same Attention

With online pottery classes, you still receive attention. In some cases, you may even get more attention than a live class with a larger class size.

Online pottery classes allow you to see everything up close and personal. You can comment with questions or concerns to the instructor at any time. Provided you have chosen a good class and the instructor will respond promptly.

In a live class, you may have to wait until the end of the class to ask the teacher a question. Online classes don’t have the same time limitations. A prerecorded class, while it doesn’t offer real-time corrections, has the advantage of doing it when you have the time.

Live Pottery Classes: Follows a Logical Progression

You can learn from awesome classes online, but live pottery classes have a more logical progression. The teacher can tell where the students have progressed to adjust it as needed. When you take a live pottery class, a good teacher knows how far to push you.

Compare that with online pottery classes, and the instructor may have some level of disconnect from the students. He can’t necessarily gauge their understanding as easily through videos and email. This can lead to the instructor pushing ahead and not explaining certain concepts when he or she needs to slow down.

To be clear, live pottery classes can suffer the same problem if you have the wrong instructor, but it lends itself to greater flexibility because you can feel when a class is ready to move on to new material. Online classes do have an advantage where the slower students don’t slow you down. 

Online Pottery Classes: Repetition for the Most Value

Doing classes in person has one fatal flaw. You can only take the class one time. Once you leave the class, you may forget everything. A beginner usually has to make multiple passes at the same information before it becomes secondhand knowledge. Repetition makes it automatic.

Even if you do a live online class, you record the video to review later if you have questions. You can look at specific parts of the video to answer questions. Online allows you to pause and rewind the video if you have a part where you don’t understand something. With a live pottery class, you can only refer back to your notes unless the teacher recorded the class.

Live Pottery Classes: Connect with Like-Minded Potters

Through live classes, you can connect with and make friends with other like-minded people. The social aspect hands you one of the best reasons to enroll in a live class. Meeting new friends who share interests, you broaden your horizons, have great conversations, and set the memories of a lifetime even beyond the classroom.

Granted, you can connect with other people online, but it doesn’t have the same feel as a real pottery class. Many times, you don’t bond with people online as much as you do in person. You may share information but may never form a deeper friendship.

The other thing worth mentioning is that you don’t have the same type of memory in an online class as what you do with a live class. Being in a new setting, you will remember it as a unique experience. Unfortunately, online doesn’t set the same tone or create a memory like taking a live pottery class does.

Online Pottery: Classes for Your Skill

Finding beginner pottery classes can be easy, but intermediate and advanced classes may not be available in your area. You may not have a potter who knows how to teach it. Either that or you could wait months before they open the class.

Especially in rural areas, they may not even teach intermediate or advanced classes because of low demand. Through online pottery classes, you can keep learning.

You gain access to some of the best potters in the world through the online platform. Otherwise, if you wanted lessons, you would have to travel to the potter to receive training.

Let’s sum up the advantages and disadvantages of both classes.

Pros of Online Pottery Classes

• Accessible to almost everyone
• Rewind and pause the video as needed
• Ask questions beyond the class through email
• Convenient taking classes from home
• Take the classes front and center

Cons of Online Pottery Classes

• Lacks the same social interaction as live classes
• Prerecorded classes don’t offer real-time corrections
• Instructors can’t gauge the student’s understanding
• Costs more to get started

Pros of Live Pottery Classes

• Connect and bond with like-minded people
• Receive real-time corrections during the pottery course
• Don’t have to buy the equipment upfront
• Follows a more logical progression in many cases

Cons of Live Pottery Classes

• Large class sizes mean a possibility of less individualized attention
• Have to travel to the pottery class for each session
• Less flexibility than what you get with online classes
• Live classes are rarely recorded for later usefulness

Conclusion

I’m not here to tell you whether you should take the online pottery classes or do a live class. Whichever way you choose there are good reasons Why Every New Potter Should Take a Pottery Class either online or live. We hope to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of each one so that you can decide for yourself. Online classes have grown in popularity because a lot of people like the convenience. Still, some people prefer to visit a classroom setting to receive instruction. Either way, pottery is a great way to create. Let’s stay dirty!