anyone ever used rosetta stone?

Question

ok, my boyfriend doesn't know a lot of english so i want to learn spanish. i have seen rosetta stone advertised on TV and i have heard people talk about it, but other than that, i know nothing. i was just wondering if any of you people have used it and does it work... thanx

Answer 1

I wouldn't recommend it. I tried to use the Farsi version, but returned it...
They claim it's "immersion," but having no explanations and no structure (no quizes, no dictionary, no search function), makes it really hard to learn with. Especially when you forget how to say one thing (you can't look anything up) it becomes pretty frustrating.

If you're looking for a great program and willing to spend a little money, I'd go with the Pimsleur method. I've used it for Japanese and Farsi, and it works great.

Answer 2

I have never used the Rosetta Stone software but I have tried some of the other programs and I have found that some of the FSI programs work better. The difference in these programs and the Pimsleur is the Pimsleur is totally audio with no book. So you might be able to speak some but definately won't be able to read or write it, not to mention Pimsleur is about the most expensive program you can buy. You can order the Barron's Mastering Spanish for around $50 per level through amazon. Both FSI Programmatic Spanish (Remastered) and Barron's' Mastering Spanish were developed by the Foreign Service Institute of the U.S. Department of State. And,in my opinion, the FSI method is one of the most effective ways to learn Spanish. But it certainly is not one of the most fun ways to learn Spanish. If you are looking for a solid approach to learning Spanish, I highly recommend the FSI course. It will require you to read a textbook. So if reading a textbook while you are learning Spanish is something you don't have time for, then look elsewhere for a Spanish course.

Now I will quickly attempt to compare FSI Programmatic Spanish (Remastered) and Barron's' Mastering Spanish.
Both courses use native Speakers which is a big plus.

Baron's' calls its teaching method the Guided Imitation method. The Guided Imitation method is built upon two premises. One is that one of the most effective models to learning Spanish requires the student to study a small body of material until the material is thoroughly mastered. And the second is that language mastery depends on effectively manipulating the sounds, sequences, and patterns of a language until the learner sounds authentic. In Baron's', each Unit in the course starts with a basic dialog that's a re-creation of a real situation that the student is likely to encounter in "Surlandia." Surlandia is a mythical country in Latin America.

In FSI Programmatic Spanish (Remastered) a typical unit covers a cycle of work that requires about 3 to 5 hours of study for the average to above-average learner. The learning that takes place during a typical unit is sequenced as follows:

1. OBSERVATION of the language.
2. PRACTICE with what has been learned.
3. VARIATION of what has been practiced.
4. APPLICATION of what has been taught in the first three stages.

According to one of the authors of FSI Programmatic Spanish, the principal difference in approach between FSI Spanish Basic (Barron's' Mastering Spanish) and FSI Programmatic Spanish is that the latter was intended to be supplemented with classroom instruction. FSI Programmatic Spanish includes an instructor's manual for those that do not have a classroom instructor or those who wish to rely entirely on self-study.

Oddly, you get the complete Barrons Mastering Spanish 3 and 4 audio courses (i.e. FSI Spanish 3 and 4) as bonus downloads when you order FSI Programmatic 1 or 2 at Amazon.

I would be doing everyone a disservice if I recommended one course over the other. Since the material covered in the two courses do not overlap and both courses are relatively inexpensive compared to many popular Spanish courses, I encourage you to buy both courses.

But however, keep in mind if you are not really dedicated to learning Spanish these types of programs are not for you. Also I recommend buying a vocabulary workbook which can find on Amazon to help build your vocabulary. I don't know if you know any spanish at all, but if your boyfriend speaks spanish you should really try to practice with him. When he says something in spanish that you don't understand, make him show you what it is and then repeat the phrase. I found that learning in sentences works better rather than just learning lists of words. There is also an easy phrase book available at Amazon that has some pretty basic phrases that might help you. And your boyfriend can help you with the pronounciation.
However, keep in mind that what these programs teach you is not slang spanish. You will have to learn that from your boyfriend. And it is necessary that you learn the slang or it is very difficult to understand what is being said. Believe me I know my boyfriend also speaks spanish.

I hope this information will be valuable to you

Answer 3

I'm a language person and tried the introduction to arabic -- something totally different for me (since I speak French, a bit of Spanish, Italian, and German). I was able to pick up words and phrases relatively easily. So, yea, I'd recommend it if you were serious about learning a foreign language

Answer 4

It is an excellent system!

I am not good with languages, but learned to speak Swahili quite fluently in a few months.

Highly recommended

Answer 5

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