"always".  *ack*.  Why can't we edit our posts here?

I usually find myself a good text book and use that as a basis for my personal curriculum.  I don't follow it slavishly, but it informs my forays into the foreign grammar.  You have teachers -- I presume they have lesson plans?  Ask to get a copy, so you know what's up.  You could take that as your basis, and practice what they give you more, and in greater detail.  Conjugate more verbs, practice writing more sentences.  Listen to appropriate audio, think about it, write about it, talk about it with native speakers here.

I learn the writing system right from the start because listening, speaking, reading, and writing reinforce each other.  I study the writing system like I later study vocabulary, with spaced repetition.

I am a visual and kinetic learner, so I use a lot of visual mnemonics for vocabulary.  I make them myself because that anchors them better in my mind than if I use those somebody else made.  I use Anki for spaced repetition (I am currently exploring Memrise which has the potential to replace Anki).  To create my decks I use a frequency dictionary, so I am learning the most common words first -- the sooner I learn words I need to read normal texts, the better.

I stick flashcards to every item in my home, and then I talk to myself while I walk around and do things.  I constantly engage in describing the world around me, and incorporate whatever grammatical subject I am learning into those talks.

You need to ask "where", not "when".  "When" is used for questions about time, "where" for questions about place.  And "inhabitants" needs to be in the plural.

I prefer to live in a small town near a bigger city.  I like the peace and quiet of smaller towns.  I like knowing my neighbours, the people on my town council.  But I also like the cultural opportunities larger cities offer -- theatre, museums, a music scene.

Try to find native speakers with whom to do an exchange.

Do you have a library locally?  Use that.  Ask a librarian for advice.

Search the web for teaching materials in your native language.  Once you are past the first, say, 20 hours it will become easier because then you can use English materials to learn English, and the web is full of those -- for free.  Try Youtube.

Buy second-hand language materials.  Pimsleur makes an English course for Arabic speakers.

I am relatively new here, but have been part of a gift culture for many years.  And this is just how it is.  Yes, I think it is rude for people not to thank somebody who has helped them, regardless of whether the person is a professional teacher or not -- that person has expended effort for them that they didn't have to, and thanking them is the least one can do.  I do count thumbs up as thanks, people don't need to write me a long screed.

But I also think it's better not to expect it.  That way every time somebody thanks me, it's a nice little surprise.  While if I expected it, every time somebody doesn't thank me would rankle.  Fact is most people won't thank.  It's better for my mental health to adjust my attitude. 

That said, I would dislike it a lot if italki prepared some automatic message; it would take all the joy out of people actually thanking me.

Maybe you need to take a break?  Helping others should be fun for you, and if it isn't, you need to take care of your own well-being first.