Have you used Rosetta Stone to learn a language – especially Spanish?

8 Comments

1. Mike K says:

   October 14, 2009 at 3:37 am

   Hello,

   The big complaint about the Rosetta Stone is that the complexities of grammar and syntax needed to effectively learn or master a language are completely watered down. You may therefore be ok at ordering a drink, a hotel room, saying some niceties about the country and so on but you will hardly be able to carry on an intelligent conversation, give a 30 minute oration on the country’s history let alone defend yourself in a court of law.

   Like it or not, classes are essential in learning a language properly and efficiently. I suggest you go to a school like Berlitz and take private classes to fit your own schedule. This can be costly I know but it is 100% tax deductible. I did this with Spanish and it worked well for me.

   Glober above me is correct in his assessment.

   Cheers,

   Michael Kelly
2. lordrandal@ymail.com says:

   October 14, 2009 at 3:37 am

   Rosetta stone is one of the best language learning software. Check this auction;

   http://www.free-auctions.ca/auction_details.php?auction_id=139455
3. Trevor says:

   October 14, 2009 at 3:37 am

   No but I heard it is one of the best ways to learn a language, even better than formal classes. It is used by NASA, the State Department, the US Military, and many other organizations.
4. Louie the linguist says:

   October 14, 2009 at 3:37 am

   no, but most language teachers who know about RS find it lacking severely in all aspects of learning a language except learning vocabulary.

   Their ad campaign is more effective than their language pedagogy.

   I think RS would be good for parrots, but not humans. Plus it’s way overpriced for what you get. Better to spend the money on some cds and books and on a tutor with whom you can SPEAK the language.
5. Glober says:

   October 14, 2009 at 3:37 am

   Be very careful of the learning method you use. Linguists, and people with vast experience in learning languages will almost always agree on the fact that most language learning methods out there are 50-70 percent fluff! It’s pretty easy to get away with telling you that you’ll be able to speak a language when for example, someone says "hello", they’re speaking English, and it doesn’t mean they can actually communicate. Being semi-fluent means you have a functional comprehension of at least 65% in the conventional range of that language, while fluent would be anything greater than 80%. If you don’t have the time to learn Spanish properly, and you’re after something quick and easy, then you’re probably headed towards disappointment. The best method to getting as far as you can get in the shortest period of time is called the “3 step”. The first step is to complete a FULL Pimsleur (MUST BE PIMSLEUR) course. Listen to each lesson at least 2 times, taking notes the first time with new vocabulary and studying before listening the second time. The 2nd step is to form a list of the 3,000 most common/frequently used words/vocabulary in English, to also include the eight parts of speech (verbs, nouns, pronouns, adverbs, adjectives, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections), which you can search the web for. Once you’ve formed the list, you need to find accurate generic-translations, which you can apply to most common case scenarios of Spanish (definatley the most challenging part of all this). Once that’s done, make flash cards or whichever method works best for you in memorizing vocabulary, but try to include each word in a sentence, in addition to just the new word and it’s meaning. Repetition is the key here, so this would also be a good time to solidify your pronunciation. After you’ve memorized all that, the 3rd step is to locate 4 movies that are preferably some kind of Disney movie, or anything of a slower pace. Childrens movies seem to work best for this. Watch ONLY these same 4 movies in Spanish, with good, quality English subtitles, continuously, to the point where you know what’s going to be said next. Try to plan completing each step in this order, exactly as described within a time-frame of about 10-12 months. When you’re done, you should be somewhere in the range of “semi-fluency”, at the point where learning after the “3 step” is quick and easy, and being close to fluent after 2 years of using it everyday, and learning at least an additional 100 new vocabulary words a month during that time. The downside to the 3-step method, is that when you’re finished, you still may not be grammatically up to par, but will know more than enough to get there easily, which is what makes this the best and most efficient “fast” method, but not necessarily a good substitute for formal education. Either way, it can’t hurt to try! Good luck!
6. Peter says:

   October 14, 2009 at 3:37 am

   hi,
   Try this new method in order to improve your Spanish fast.

   http://www.LearnSpanishFluently.com

   bye,
7. jb says:

   October 14, 2009 at 3:37 am

   Let me preface my answer by saying this: there is no method out there that will make you fluent on its own. Hopefully no one is that naive to believe that. Secondly, Rosetta Stone is a half decent program if you know what you are getting. Most people have no idea what they are actually buying. Yes, Rosetta has an amazing marketing machine yet most people know little about the product. Rosetta doesn’t teach you the language. It teaches vocabulary. There’s a big distinction. Rosetta is certainly not the method I would recommend to a beginner that hopes to SPEAK the language. Rosetta Stone, like other flashcard based methods (digital or not), helps expand your vocabulary base but they will not teach you the core of the language or conversational skills. Knowing many words doesn’t mean you can speak the language. I usually recommend Pimsleur to beginner students. If you want a method that focuses on conversational skills (and reading skills), Pimsleur is the reference imo. It’s a real confidence builder, which is essential for new students. You will learn to train your ear to understand natives (an essential part of early learning often overlooked by other methods), develop very good pronunciation and acquire the core structures and grammar of your new language (exactly what RS fails to do.) It’s also almost half the price of RS (check Amazon.) Pimsleur is all audio so you can do it on the go, while you commute, on your iPod, in your car, etc. Once you are finished with Pimsleur, that’s when a vocabulary builder method such as Rosetta (there are cheaper alternatives though like BYKI, Babble, etc.) has its place. Daily conversation in the language after completing Pimsleur is really ideal. Good luck.

   Also note that Glober recommends you take notes while doing Pimsleur! DO NOT DO THIS! This really goes against the scientific method developed by Dr. Pimsleur. That is expressly explained in the user’s guide and on the audio. You want to actively participate orally. Pimsleur is a not a passive memorization method. It’s important not to be distracted by taking notes, opening a dictionary, etc.
8. G G says:

   October 14, 2009 at 3:37 am

   I have Rosetta Stone and do not like it one bit. For the price and the high ratings that it’s been given, you’d think that it’s good. The only stuff I have learned from Rosetta Stone is new vocab. Don’t buy it.