Vietnamese [ABRIDGED] [AUDIOBOOK] (Audio Cassette)

by Pimsleur (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

With Pimsleur Language Programs you don't just study a language, you learn it -- the same way you mastered English! And because the technique relies on interactive spoken language training, the Pimsleur Language Programs are totally audio -- no book is needed!

The Pimsleur programs provide a method of self-practice with an expert teacher and native speakers in lessons specially designed to work with the way the mind naturally acquires language information. The various components of language -- vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar -- are all learned together without rote memorization and drills. Using a unique method of memory recall developed by renowned linguist, Dr. Paul Pimsleur, the programs teach listeners to combine words and phrases to express themselves the way native speakers do. By listening and responding to thirty minute recorded lessons, students easily and effectively achieve spoken proficiency.

No other language program or school is as quick, convenient, and effective as the Pimsleur Language Programs.

The Comprehensive Program is the ultimate in spoken language learning. For those who want to become proficient in the language of their choice, the Comprehensive programs go beyond the Basic Programs to offer spoken-language fluency. Using the same simple method of interactive self-practice with native speakers, these comprehensive programs provide a complete language learning course. The Comprehensive Program is available in a wide variety of languages and runs through three levels (thirty lessons each) in French, German, Italian, Japanese, Russian and Spanish. At the end of a full Comprehensive Program listeners will be conducting complete conversations and be well on their way to mastering the language. The Comprehensive Programs are all available on cassettes and are also on CD in the six languages in which we offer the Basic Program on CD.

About the Author
Dr. Pimsleur devoted his life to language teaching and was one of the world's leading experts in applied linguistics. After obtaining his Ph.D. in French from Columbia University, he taught French Phonetics and Phonemics, and supervised the language laboratory at UCLA. He went on to become Professor of Romance Languages and Language Education, and Director of The Listening Center at Ohio State University; Professor of Education and Romance Languages at the State University of New York at Albany; and a Fulbright lecturer at the University of Heidelberg. Dr. Pimsleur was a member of the American Association of Teachers of French (AATF), American Educational Research Association (AERA), Modern Language Association (MLA), and a founding member of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). His many books and articles revolutionized theories of language learning and teaching. After years of experience and research, Dr. Pimsleur developed a new method that is based on two key principles: the Principle of Anticipation and a scientific principle of memory that he called Graduated Interval Recall. This program incorporates both of these principles to provide you with the most simple and effective learning method possible. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Pimsleur; Abridged edition (September 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671579576
• ISBN-13: 978-0671579579
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.6 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,973,648 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At last a language program that works, November 26, 1998

By	[e-mail] (Bangkok, Thailand) - See all my reviews

If your like me and have struggled to master strange foreign tounges, look no further, this is mother of all language teaching systems. Over the years i've spent thousands of dollars trying to learn Japanese & Thai, the only thing i can say is that i wish i had discovered the Pimsleur system sooner. Amazon shipped the product within 2 days of my order and three weeks later I have a vocabulary of about 150 words that i can mix and match to form coherant sentences, that my Vietnamese freinds can actually understand. The only problem is that only the compact verson is availiable, and i want more.The company doesnt have a web site that i can find and only gives an 800 number (useless to international callers) if you want to find out when the FULL course becomes availiable. You may say that compared to other programs this is expensive, but with the amazon discount and the awesome results, its worth every penny. I am even considering buying the Full Pimsleur Thai course even though i'm fairly fluent in Thai as if's as good at the Vietnamese then it will improve my accent and grammar.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Starts you actually speaking, September 17, 2005

By	Carl Kenner (Adelaide, Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Vietnamese: Learn to Speak and Understand Vietnamese with Pimsleur Language Programs (Audio CD)

This is by far the easiest and most painless way to get started speaking in Vietnamese sentences and understanding dialog. I've been lending these lessons to everyone in my Vietnamese class, because they are so good.

The downsides are: they only teach you the Hanoi accent, which is the official dialect. People from Hanoi pronounce a bunch of different letters the same (r, d, and gi are all pronounced z) when they really should have different pronounciations. There is no reading or writing practice. And of course this is only the short and cheap introduction package which only has the first week's worth of lessons.

This is just the first 8 lessons (not 10 like someone else said) of Pimsleur's 30 lesson Vietnamese I. There is also a 10 lesson "compact" version, a 16 lesson version, and the full 30 lesson "comprehensive" version. The other versions are much more expensive. The 30 lesson version has finally been made now, so the complaint about it not being available is out of date.

Pimsleur language lessons use the same lesson plan for every language. Some other languages have level II and level III packages with another 30 lessons each, but Vietnamese currently only goes up to level I.

This is an audio-only system. Unlike other CD systems, you are only expected to listen to each CD once and then go on to the next CD. Each CD is a carefully designed lesson which incorporates revision into it. You are expected to listen to one half hour lesson each day. So this package will only last you a week. You will not learn a huge amount in one week, but you will be able to confidently use what you do know, and you will learn it very easily.

Paul Pimsleur was a great and famous linguist who has written many academic papers on language learning. So he knows how to teach. This is nothing like the CDs you get with other packages like Colloquial Vietnamese or Teach Yourself Vietnamese, it is far more like attending a one-on-one vietnamese lesson each day with a professional teacher.

Each half-hour lesson includes a dialog, practice of what you learned yesterday and new material. You have to answer all the questions out loud if you want to actually learn it properly.

The other great thing about lessons like these is that you will get a lot more housework done, since the audio-only lessons go well with boring physical tasks.

If you go to the [...] website you can listen to the first lesson of any language in real-audio, wma or mp3 so that you know what to expect.

43 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Vietnamese for dummies: Easy to learn, but waaaaay to little, December 11, 2002

By	D. Woei (Netherlands) - See all my reviews

I rated this with 1 star only to counter all the positive reviews a bit. It is actually not that bad, but it is definitely not worth 4 or 5 stars, maybe 3 at best.

So what do we get with this course? 5 cassettes with 10 lessons (1 on each side) featuring 5 hours of course material. There is a lot of repetition, which I guess is one of the strengths of the Pimsleur method, but on the other hand, it is also one of the biggest weaknesses: After 10 lessons you have almost learned nothing! The other strong point of the pimsleur method is the emphasis on pronounciation. Your vietnamese friends will probably understand you quite well.
So what can you say after 10 leasons?
------------
excuse me
may I ask you something?
Yes, no
I/you (don't) understand (English/Vietnamese)
I am American/Vietnamese
I (don't) know
How are you?
I am (not) fine
and, but, or, at, here, there, now, later, not yet, definitely not
ah (meaning: that's interesting)
when?
Where is .... street?
I want to eat (lunch)
I want to drink/shop/do what/something
What time is it?
It is 1/2/3/4/5/8/9 o'clock
never mind (this is only mentioned once)
hotel, restaurant, your/my place
wine, beer
---------
You can combine above into questions and other sentences, but that is about everything you learn from this course (I may have forgotten to mention some of the words you learn, but it is not much more than what I already mentioned).
I still can't count to 10, and I can hardly say anything interesting to any of my Vietnamese friends.
Also note the course teaches Hanoi dialect, while most Vietnamese outside Vietnam speak Saigon dialect.

Summarizing: you get 5 hours course material (which you probably only have to listen once), good pronounciation, fluency in the sentences you learn, the ability to combine the words you learn in different sentences, but very few words.
Personally I think the level of this course is far too low. There is lot of repetition and you can move on to the next cassette quickly so you get the feeling of progression, but at the end of the course you have learned very little. Other courses with comparable prices offer a lot more vocabulary. Yes you have to work harder and stick to a single cassette longer, but for the same money you learn a lot more.