19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Superb book for learning Dutch, May 16, 2009
This review is from: Routledge Intensive Dutch Course (Routledge Intensive Language Courses) (Paperback)
As a native speaker of English, and a learner of English's cousin (German) for 3 years, I began to notice the similarities between German, Dutch and English in terms of vocabulary and grammar. After enjoying the music of so many Dutch musicians (which are not popular here in America-even when they do sing in English), I decided that I wanted to study Dutch. I ran into a few problems over the several months of self study, and this product has helped me overcome these problems.
As the book states, Routledge Intensive Dutch Course is an intensive course designed to develop one's language capability from nothing to the European standard, B2, within the time frame of a year. Those people who are looking to spend a week or two touring in the Netherlands or Belgium will probably find the contents of this book to be a little bit too much. However, if one is a language fanatic or has moved to a Dutch-speaking country, this book provides enough information so that one can be decently conversational, while not being totally fluent with the language.
Routledg Intensive Dutch Course is broken down into 11 different units. The first 8 units provide information on a variety of topics, while the last three units focus on the Netherlands and Belgium. Cultural tidbits about the Netherlands and Belgium are also sprinkled throughout the book, which helps the learners, in reality, learn a little bit more about the language they are learning.
Each unit is further divided into several sections. There are structure sections, which focus on Dutch grammar, communication sections, which focus on speaking appropriately/differently in different contexts, cultural sections and listening exercises. The listening exercises are fewer and farther between than I would personally like, but then again, the authors suggest that this book is to be used within an actual classroom setting, and with the aid of a professor, more listening would obviously be incorporated into the course.
Each unit also contains a nice selection of vocabulary. Several vocabulary lists are scattered throughout each unit. This is nice, as it allows one to easily memorize the words as he or she proceeds through the unit as opposed to having one large/comprehensive list of vocabulary at the end of each unit, which leads the reader feeling ultimately overwhelmed. I was also impressed by the variety and arrangement of vocabulary in this book. Previously, I had worked about half way through the "Teach Yourself Dutch" book, and I felt that the vocabulary selection was not good for someone who already speaks both English and German. I would rarely work through the exercises in that book because I could easily understand 80-90% without actually doing the exercise. With the Routledge book, however, there is a nice variety (and a larger amount) of Dutch vocabulary from the start. This allows one to easily get into the swing of sitting down and memorizing vocabulary.
Using this book as a self study tool, I find that some of the exercises are not useful to me, since I am the only person in my town who speaks/is learning Dutch. For a classroom setting, these exercises seem to be right on. The other exercises (grammar and written) are all appropriate, even for someone who is learning independently.
My only complaints about the book are that there are not enough listening exercises for one who is not in an area where he or she can expose him or herself to Dutch, and also that the audio CDs were more costly than the book itself. I cannot understand why the book is listed at $50, while the CDs are $90. The CDs do not contain any frills, and neither does the packaging. It seems like the book would be more costly to produce, but then again, who am I to judge. Overall, this set is a nice program for learning Dutch. If one wants to "get by" while in the Netherlands, then this book is too much, but if one wants to learn a nice amount of Dutch, than this seems like a good way of learning.
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25 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Niet te slecht maar ook niet te goed, January 22, 2007
This review is from: Routledge Intensive Dutch Course (Routledge Intensive Language Courses) (Paperback)
Don't purchase this as your first book on the Dutch language. It overemphasizes the colloquial, spoken language, with all its slang and grammatical complexities without laying a solid foundation in the basics of communication. The subjects presented concentrate on day to day situations so it's very interesting, but I would have been completely overwhelmed had this been my first book on Nederlands. Although I know only een beetje (a little) from the other boeken that ik heb gekocht (I bought), I know genoeg (enough) to get through the first few lessons without too much difficulty.
In a stunning demonstration of crudity, the book doesn't shy away from quoting passages containing foul language, which certainly has no place in any textbook, IMHO.
So, first look for a book that's makkelijk (easy) and then when you've mastered some of the elements of the language, you'll be ready for this one.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best for learning Dutch - but as whole course pack, May 19, 2010
This review is from: Routledge Intensive Dutch Course (Routledge Intensive Language Courses) (Paperback)
It appears that Routledge intends to discontinue the sale of the language courses as packs with CDs. That's a shame if it's true! I bought the book and CDs separate, but together they make a most powerful learning program.
The coursebook is intended for a college classroom setting. The Unit lessons are broken up and emphasis for each "bite" is either on reading, listening (with CDs), writing or work with a partner/class. There are some exercises that are intended for classroom and/or with a partner, but can be fun when you study by yourself. The full course with CDs has a pronunciation guide in Appendix 2 and there is also an extensive and meaningful vocabulary list.
I want to achieve a Dutch language proficiently level that is fluent and at an intermediate level. It is true that this is probably not the best choice for someone just starting out with no Dutch learning experience. Last year, I worked though another popular program, but, like other programs, that one was centered around "tourist talk" (where's hotel, take me to the airport). With this course, I am busy working toward my final goal of being fluent in the Dutch language. Yes, with this program, that goal is now within reach.
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