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959 of 974 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Start Here Before Spending the Big $$$, July 10, 2003
There is little doubt that The Pimsleur CDs for Spanish I will get you off the ground and learning Spanish painlessly (if not exactly rapidly). If the thought of learning Spanish while being stuck in rush hour traffic, or driving across country, is appealing to you, then Pimsleur is the good stuff. Having said that, I think it pays to be aware of a few things before making the Big Purchase. Because the price tag for these CDs is high, you might find it helpful, as I did, to try Pimsleur's "Quick and Simple" set of CDs for Spanish first. Those CDs duplicate (with minor differences) the first 8 lessons of the Spanish I collection. So if you wish to be cautious, that is probably the best way to get started with Pimsleur products, rather than buying the more expensive, more comprehensive products right away. You'll get a sense of whether this is the route you want to go if you want to learn more Spanish. Whether you start with the Spanish I package, or the Quick and Easy CDs, you will be exposed you to the heart of what makes the Pimsleur method unique and painless. The approach is based on (1) The Principle of Anticipation (a mastery technique that is different than rote recall), (2) Graduated Interval Recall (an approach that provides new stuff to memorize at optimal intervals), (3) Core Vocabulary (an efficient, optimal selection of a small number of key words that you need to know, as opposed to an extensive vocabulary), (4) and "Organic Learning" (learn speech, eg sound, rhythm, intonations, as opposed to a bunch of textbook gramatical rules). I should add that there's something subtly humorous about the content of the CDs, so if you have a sarcastic or wicked sense of humor, you won't be totally bored. Like many, I found the approach efficient and useful, and I had lots of fun with the CDs as I drove around town blathering away in Spanish. But it is worth emphasizing that Pimsler is not the only game in town. There are other very high-quality competing approaches (e.g. Platiquemos Spanish), that are generally less expensive. On Platequemos, for instance, the speakers sound like they are from Central and South America, and one gets the impression that they are teaching a version of Spanish that is useful in the Americas. I think it pays to be aware that with Pimsleur you are learning a very general form of Spanish that does not always play well in some Spanish-speaking counries. In the lessons, for instance, you are quickly instructed to say "Encantado" (pleased to meet you) after meeting someone. When I mentioned this to some Mexican friends, they just laughed and said "you probably won't get killed for saying that, but from know on just say 'mucho gusto' and nobody will get hurt!" A little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing! The culture-specific meaning of some words is a big issue. Take words like "familia," "confianza," "amigo," "amor," and "tu." We may think we understand the implications of these familiar words, especially after learning a little Spanish, but newcomers are unlikely to understand their deep and subtle meanings within the context of (for example) Mexican culture. So, I think it pays to learn phrases and code words from a specific culture or country that most strongly interests you (something you'll never get from plodding through the simple and general Pimsleur approach). To this end, there are books that often discuss a specific country's idiomatic expressions or slang. For instance, I've been interested in learning more about Mexico's version of Spanish, as well as its culture. I benefitted greatly from Boye Lafayette De Mente's book, "There's a Word For It In Mexico" (also marketed as "The NTC's Dictionary of Mexican Cultural Code Words"). In the case of Mexican Spanish and culture, Octavio Paz' "The Labyrinth of Solitude" is excellent, too. Travel guides for specific countries, such as the Insight Guides, often provide a few words of slang that are unique to specific regions. It pays to have a fluent spanish speaker as a co-worker, friend and/or lover while you are learning from the CDs, as they might, on a good day, rescue you from whatever linguistic cliff Pimsleur sends you over. If you don't yet have a Spanish speaking lover, you may need to purchase some additional resourses, e.g. "Wicked Spanish", "The Lover's Dictionary," or "Hot International Phrases" to help you get into/out of trouble. And don't forget to buy every Shakira CD that has ever been recorded! Don't be fooled by the $$ coupon that comes with the Pimsleur CDs. In my experience, a much better price can be found using Amazon.com.
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101 of 104 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
How Does Pimsleur Rate Against the Competition?, June 29, 2005
I have completed all of the three main levels of Pimsleur Spanish as well as Pimsleur Spanish plus. I have been studying
Spanish on my own since early 2002. I would consider myself somewhat proficient but far from fluent. I am going to attempt to compare Pimsluer Spanish with some of the other courses that I have used and that are available here on Amazon.
Compared to Rosetta stone, I would consider Pimsleur a lot more fun. Rosetta Stone was a rather tedious course. And the more
fun a course is, the more that you will study with the course. The advantage that Rosetta Stone Spanish has over Pimsleur
is that you will learn more vocabulary. Also if you are a visual learner you will make progress quicker with Rosetta Stone because Pimsluer Spanish is all audio. Pimsluer Spanish is also a lot more "convenient" than Rosetta Stone because Pimsleur Spanish can be used in your car or even your ipod. However, Rosetta Stone Spanish requires you to sit in front of a computer. In any case, Rosetta Stone makes an excellent compliment to Pimsleur Spanish or Learning Spanish Like Crazy.
Compared to Learning Spanish Like Crazy, I would consider Pimsleur easier to master. I was able to complete the Pimsleur
materials by going through them just once or twice. On the other hand, I had to go through the Learning Spanish Like Crazy
materials as many as five times before I felt comfortable enough with the material to move on to the next lesson.
Arguably, that's because LSLC covers more vocabulary and grammar than Pimsluer Spanish. Clearly, one advantage that Learning Spanish Like crazy has over Pimsleur Spanish is that it offers much more vocabulary. The vocabulary in Pimsleur was also a bit archaic and just too formal. On the other hand, the LSLC spanish course puts a greater emphasis on everyday spoken Latin American Spanish. The major disadvantage with LSLC is that the company is new and has only completed one level while Pimsleur Spanish has at least 3 levels. According to the LSLC web site, they are still working on Level 2. The last time that I had checked the LSLC web site was only offering the CD version of the course with a package of several other FSI Spanish courses. But you can get the LSLC CD course here at Amazon.com with out the extra FSI courses for substantially less money.
In all fairness, I don't think that I should attempt to compare Michel Thomas Spanish to Pimsleur Spanish. Michel Thomas Spanish is a great Spanish course for someone looking to learn just enough Spanish to get by. But it is not a comprehensive
Spanish course and I am sure that Michel Thomas did not intend for it to be a comprehensive Spanish course. But if you are
on a budget or if you just want a crash course in Spanish (and have no desire to ever be completely fluent) then I would
strongly recommend Michel Thomas Spanish. He uses a very natural learning method that is similiar to the way we learned to speak English as a child.
So out of the comprehensive courses which one do I recommend that you buy? Actually all of them. Of course not all at once.
Unless you are naturally gifted at learning foreign languages, its just not realistic to think that you will achieve
proficiency in Spanish after going through just one Spanish course or series of Spanish courses. It takes years of effort and study (or relocation to a Spanish-speaking country). Unfortunately, I have not found a course that will give us a shortcut.
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105 of 111 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good memorization approach, January 10, 2005
I have been using a number of recorded Spanish lessons to learn Spanish on my own, including the Foreign Service Institute course (Mastering Spanish, levels 1 and 2) and lessons from learningspanishlikecrazy.com. One of the best things about the Pimsleur's Spanish series is that it has more interactivity than the other courses I've used. There are many set up situations where you interact back and forth with a recorded speaker. I have found this to be very helpful in practicing for real live speakers. Mastering Spanish, for example, has a lot more single-sentence utterances you copy, but less back-and-forth. (I understand the new Platiquemos tries to correct for this problem.)
Another good point about Pimsleur is that it uses a repetition pattern developed by Dr. Pimsleur that has worked well in helping me memorize the material. They present a word or phrase several times, go on to other things, then go back to that recently-learned phrase again. A bit later, they hit it again. I find this to be very effective in helping me remember the material.
The main drawback is that the tapes are somewhat slow, and overly formal. For example, phrases like "Encantado," "Que le vaya bien," and "Por supuesto" are taught instead of more informal equivalents (such as "Mucho gusto", "Nos vemos", and "Claro"). But whether this is good or bad may depend on what you want to get out of the language: if you're a tourist or in business, you may want to be more formal, so the more formal phrases may work well for you. For everyday communication, however, I've found less formal is better. Some people immediately tutear (use the informal 'tu') with you, and it would be nice to immediately switch into an informal mode of communication with them.
To overcome the formality trap, get a book like "Breaking out of Beginner's Spanish." I cannot say enough good things for this book. It is an indispensible companion to any self-study course, and will get you using words and phrases appropriate to the situation. You might also want to sign up at learningspanishlikecrazy.com, where you have weekly teleconferences with a native speaker.
Finally, this series is clearly very expensive. But, never fear: try your local public libraries before buying one yourself, either as a "try before you buy", or instead of buying. (I always try to borrow materials first before I buy them, so I can evaluate them myself.) I've been through most of the course now, and have borrowed everything from a local library.
In summary, there are drawbacks to the course, but I find its memorization approach to work very well for me.
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