Golosa: A Basic Course in Russian, Book 1 (3rd Edition) [Hardcover]

Richard M. Robin (Author), Karen Evans-Romaine (Author), Galina Shatalina (Author), Joanna M. Robin (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0130494569 | ISBN-13: 978-0130494566 | Publication Date: August 9, 2002 | Edition: 3

For courses in First-year Russian - Introductory Russian. Golosa is a two-volume, introductory Russian-language program that strikes a balance between communication and structure. It is designed to help students reach the Intermediate range in speaking and listening plus reading and writing. Each volume of Golosa includes a textbook, a student workbook with audio drills and written exercises, and an audio program that includes listening comprehension exercises, dialogs, conversations, and rapid-pace oral drills. The robust Companion Website offers additional lexical and grammatical exercises, links to authentic Russian websites, and the entire Golosa audio program. Each unit in the program revolves around a theme (university, family, etc.), and follows the same basic format: introduction of basic vocabulary for the chapter theme, listening to introductory conversations, short dialogs with activities and role-play practice, practice in listening and reading with emphasis on strategies, grammar study and practice in both oral and written form, and written workbook exercises that go from mechanical skill-building to creative skill-using.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Russian

From the Back Cover

With its careful balance of communication and structure, Golosa has been the pathway to contemporary Russian for English-speaking students throughout the post-Soviet era. Students learning with Golosa work towards functional competence in all four skills while building a solid grammatical base. This foundation enables them to increase their proficiency through additional study.

The Golosa program consists of two texts (Book 1 and Book 2), two student workbooks, a Web-based audio and video program, and additional Web-based exercises. Each book offers realistic communicative activities (in listening, speaking, reading, and writing) that are designed for use in a learner-centered classroom. Students acquire personalized vocabulary to express individual needs and practice strategies that promote the balanced development of productive and receptive skills. The problem-solving approach in Golosa leads students to become independent, confident speakers of Russian.

The third edition of Golosa, Book 1, has been revised to provide a complete grammatical base. In addition, the third edition web site www.prenhall.com/golosa features a complete video program with authentic interviews appropriate for the students' level of comprehension. The web site also provides a regularly updated set of additional resources for teachers and students that further promotes independent, individualized work with the Russian language and realia. The entire audio program — nearly 20 hours of recordings — is available on the Golosa web site as well as on CD.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 398 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall; 3 edition (August 9, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0130494569
• ISBN-13: 978-0130494566
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 8.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #388,894 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #50 in Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Language Nonfiction > Russian

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Limited Use, April 21, 2006

By 

Paul Haynes (Silver Spring, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Golosa: A Basic Course in Russian, Book 1 (3rd Edition) (Hardcover)

After two semesters of using this book it is my opinion that it is only useful for students who already speak the language but need grammar reinforcement. Even though there are many exercises in the manual and a workbook to accompany the material, there are no answers in either the manual or the workbook to verify that you have done the exercises correctly. In many cases, when I developed answers from examples in the dialogs in the book and tried to verify them with Russian friends, the typical response was "well, technically, its correct ... but we don't talk that way".
The book also seems to have no organized structure. It is very possible that it is organized to suit the needs of the professors who wrote it to fit the curriculum at George Washington University ... but I don't attend GW and it seemed like the information was just thrown at me and left to me to sort it out.
While the vocabulary presented in the book seems to be well suited to the material covered, five months of school lasted about 5 minutes in conversations with native Russians on a recent visit to St. Petersburg. There are a large number of words that just are not used in everyday conversations.
I suggest that if you know that you are going to be using this book because it is a college requirement, you should try to prepare yourself by taking a conversational Russian course prior to using the book.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A voice for The Voice, December 9, 2003

By 

Papa T aka "Old Man" "neeneetwotits" (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Golosa: A Basic Course in Russian, Book 1 (3rd Edition) (Hardcover)

I recently finished an accelerated Russian "101" course. We went through the whole book this past semester. Wow! I speak French and Spanish, so I understand more than the average student. I had never studied Russian before. By the end of the course, my Russian was good. This book/course work, in conjunction with constant conversation practice, allowed me to develop an impressive level of Russian. I surprised several Russian exchange students with my abilities. Not knowing all of the rammifications of the language, please consider that my review is from a STUDENT'S standpoint. I am not a linguistic scholar. Book 1 covers all of the cases, while enforcing basic vocabulary and common expressions. Book 2 I will see next semester! I am aware of two other modern Russian college texts: "Nachalo" and "Troika." I hope that my review has helped!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good introduction, February 7, 2007

By 

Russell R. Savela "rsavela" (St Petersburg, FL) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Golosa: A Basic Course in Russian, Book 1 (3rd Edition) (Hardcover)

I have used this book in a two semester series in Russian language. Overall, the book is very good. I find that the grammar could be explained in more detail - this book would be difficult to use for self-study, and is not a very good reference. Plan on using the accompanying workbook as well - there are far too few exercises in the book.