It started with a question about whether I confuse similar languages, which I, of course, do from time to time.I decided to do a video where I answered the question and went on to talk about errors.
The gist is that the brain can only deal with the massive amount of information and experience that it receives by sacrificing accuracy. It looks for similarities, metaphors, patterns.
I am my brain. I prefer to cover more things, more languages, more content, and sacrifice accuracy. I would rather listen and read more in the language, than try to nail down my errors. I also made a few errors in the video.
Here is a little sound file for the "th" sound. This sound is not so unique. It exists in Spanish, Galician, Arabic, and Greek to name just a few languages that I am aware of. Listen repeatedly to this jingle for a week or more and see if your control of "th" improves. After listening for a few days, you may try to imitate it, but not before you have listened a lot.
Remember to place the tip of the tongue between the teeth and try to pronounce "f". The key is the tongue between the upper and lower teeth.
Thoroughly thrifty Theo was a thoughtful soul. Theo thought about other
people. He also thought deep thoughts. That is because Theo was a
student of theology, a rather thin one at that. He was always
thinking. Most of all Theo thought about his money, because Theo was
thrifty.
Whether he liked it or not,Theo needed a new coat. His coat was
threadbare. There were holes in the elbows. Anything he put in the
pockets just fell through the pocket and onto the ground. And the
weather was bad. Therefore, something had to be done. He could not go
to the theater with that coat. And that night Theo was supposed to go
to the theater with his girl friend, the thoroughly scintillating
Cynthia.
'Let me think this through" he thought. " I do not mind my threadbare
coat, but what will Cynthia think if she sees me in a threadbare coat?"
Finally, thoroughly thrifty Theo thought the unthinkable, " I will have
to spend the money", he decided without enthusiasm, and off he went to
the clothing store.
I have a friend who is a native speaker of Cantonese. He has trouble pronouncing "V". Download Vivacious Vivan
This sound file is for him and anyone else who has a similar problem. I read it once slowly and once quickly. I am asking him to listen to both, over and over. We'll see if he improves. I am also putting this into the Pronunciation section of the English Library at LingQ.
Remember to pronounce the "v" with the lower lip pressed against the upper teeth. With "w" there is no contact with the lips or the teeth.
Vivian, a very vivacious woman, is a waitress at a very well-known
Vietnamese restaurant in Vienna. The well known one with the violet
window shades.
Vivian
usually wears a tight fitting Vietnamese dress which reveals her very
voluptuous figure. The dress shows her figure to full advantage.
Obviously I am very much attracted to vivacious Vivian.
Whenever I visit Vienna I visit the restaurant to see Vivian. I wish I could visit Vienna more often.
When
I phone to reserve a table, I invariably have to leave a voice mail
message requesting a reservation. When I call back to verify my
reservation, it is invariably vivacious Vivian who answers . Then I get
shy. "I wish to make a reservation" I usually say, although I really
want to tell her how beautiful she is. This has been going on for a
very long time.
Will I ever get the will power to tell her how I feel? I very much doubt it.
Let me begin my saying that I have never used Rosetta Stone. My son, Mark, played professional
hockey in Japan for a few years. His team gave him Rosetta Stone to
learn Japanese. He tried it and found that it was boring
and did not get him very far.
I decided to do some research on the net. Most reviews that I found
seemed to have been done by people connected with Rosetta Stone. I am not
surprised. Rosetta Stone are excellent marketers for which I salute
them. They are not only promoting their product, they are promoting an
awareness that people can learn languages on their own.
The best summary of the Rosetta Stone method I found was the following.
The most important component of the Rosetta Stone software-based method
is what I call "a four squares screen". The user is presented with a
page that shows four pictures of various objects or entities. A
prerecorded phrase or word is played back and the user must click on
the square that contains a visual answer to the question or best
illustrates the concept. If the user answers correctly a little "ding"
is heard, a check-mark appears on the screen and the program advances.
That's all folks!
So, why does the Rosetta Stone method work? At the very center of the
Rosetta Stone approach is the idea of constant encouragement. Every
step of the way the user receives positive feedback from the program.
Rosetta Stone takes you through a rapid succession of multiple choice
questions. Given that there are only four options per question it is
not difficult to answer every question even if you don't get it right
away. This process turns into a series of gratifying experiences.
This was contrasted with the usual language learning experience where the reviewer felt that we do not know how we are doing.
As a result we have uncertainty, perception of poor performance and
general lack of success. A user is much more likely to quit such a
course, and it should be known that not quitting is probably the single
most important requirement when learning a foreign language
My reaction to the reviews that I read was that I do not think I would want to use Rosetta Stone. Here are seven reasons.
1) I do not like answering multiple choice questions at the computer. It is not communicating. I might do it once or twice but would not continue. I would not do it daily. I need to connect with a language I am learning daily, in order to learn.
2) Most of my learning activity takes place during dead time. I mostly
listen while running, driving, doing the dishes, waiting line etc.. I
also read while waiting or as a relaxing activity. If I had to sit at the computer in order to learn I would not do a lot of studying. I just do not have the dedicated time.
3) I do not believe that I can permanently learn words, whether using
pictures or other techniques. I know I am going to forget them. In a
way I am not interested in learning the word for "red" or "house". I
know that I have to be exposed to so much language content, in audio
and text, that gradually it all starts to have meaning. I am not
conscious of learning and forgetting specific words, but I know I am
doing it. I know I have learned words because I can understand more and
more. I know I am forgetting because I am constantly unable to remember
the most elementary words.
4) I find it difficult to learn words and phrases that are divorced
from a larger story or context. Isolated words and phrases do not
connect with my brain. I remember words and expressions as part of
larger stories that I remember. I often remember when and where I was
listening to many of these stories.
5) When I start learning a language, the gratification that I
experience comes from the fact that I start to be able to tell when
words begin and end, and then soon after start to make sense of short
episodes that used to be just noise for me. That is all the feedback
that I need. I do not find the uncertainty a problem. It is the feeling of the "fog lifting", the uncertainty turning into more and more clarity, that is so satisfying in the study of another language.
6) I learn languages with the goal of being able to communicate, to
understand what is said, and to be able to express myself. That is a
long road. I have the impression that Rosettta Stone only takes you a
very short way. I do not see it as a useful or necessary step.
7) I feel that a lot of listening to interesting content is a better
start than doing multiple choice questions. I am in a hurry to engage
with the language, real language situations, and to let my brain get
used to it.
What has been the experience of others? I know that I am not impartial, but I have tried to be honest. I do recommend the "Teach Yourself" series and the "Colloquial" series. I would not recommend Rosetta Stone.