October 14, 2007
i-Pod language classes the latest thing
CNN.com reports that a number of new foreign language instruction companies are focusing on audio “conversational” lessons:
Appropriately for the iPod era, many language companies are focusing their efforts on audio. ISpeak sells "audio phrase books" that include a CD. After importing the CD to your iPod, you can scroll down to choose which topic you want to study.
Another outfit, Earworms, calls itself a Musical Brain Trainer because it uses groove-heavy music as a backdrop while teaching words and phrases.
---CNN.com
Language lessons that are i-Pod compatible seem to be all the rage right now, just as PC-based curricula received a lot of attention 5~10 years ago.
MP3 players are far more convenient than their predeccors---portable cassette and CD players. However, it is important to remember that from a language study perspective, the MP3 player is an improvement on a concept that has been around since the early 1980s---rather than a paradigm-shifting, epochal breakthrough of some sort.
Similarly, it is important not to get so focused on “conversation-based” language training that you neglect textbook study, or programs that both include both audio and text components. (These latter courses represent the most effective format, in my opinion.)
Audio-only language courses have been around for years: Pimsleur, Vocabulearn, etc. (I discuss some of these courses in my book, Why You Need a Foreign Language & How to Learn One.) Audio-only courses are valuable supplements; you should make extensive use of them. Nevertheless, you should also keep in mind that they these courses comprise a single portion of your language study program---not an alternative way to learn a foreign language.
