Principles:
There are two key principles that will make your language learning partnership easier. The principle of reciprocity (principle of learning in a partnership) means that both language partners benefit equally from their work together. Both have skills the other wishes to acquire, and both support each other in their learning. The principle of autonomy (principle of self-regulated learning) means that each learner is responsible for their own learning goals. In other words, each partner decides on learning objectives and methods, what to learn and when, and what kind of assistance they expect from their language partner.

Please note:
You can avoid disappointment and keep your expectations of your partner realistic by remembering that your partner is a native speaker of your chosen language and in most cases not a qualified language teacher. A native speaker can usually tell you whether you are using a phrase correctly or not, but may not be able to explain exactly why. Patience and mutual understanding are therefore two of the basic requirements for both learners in a tandem pair.

Time:
Neither learner should feel neglected in the partnership, so the available time must be divided up fairly.

Organisation:
Experience of many other tandem projects shows that tandem learning is more successful if both partners consider their sessions to be as binding as any other class. It is generally best to agree on fixed times - a particular day of the week and a specific time of the day - which you can work into your schedule well in advance.