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 Language Learning Forum : Advice Center |  | |
| leroc Senior Member United States Joined 4300 days ago 114 posts - 167 votes  Speaks: English* Studies: German | Message 1 of 3 18 January 2015 at 8:28pm | IP Logged |
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I've been learning German in an Academic environment since September, but I really started picking up the pace a
few weeks ago and have been entirely self-studying now. If I maintain this schedule, what level do you think I can achieve by the end of the year? German Schedule: 1 lesson of Pimsleur Memrise for 30 minutes 1 lesson of Assimil (until I'm in active phase then 2 lessons) 3-4 movies a week Read up on Grammar for 10-20 minutes Edited by leroc on 18 January 2015 at 8:31pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Xenops Senior Member United States thexenops.deviantart Joined 3814 days ago 112 posts - 158 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish, Japanese | Message 2 of 3 19 January 2015 at 5:53am | IP Logged |
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I think it depends on how quickly and effectly you can retain information; for me, I prefer to repeat a Pimsleur 2-3
times over a week so that it actually sticks. But your plan could very well work for you. :) 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Speakeasy Senior Member Canada Joined 4041 days ago 507 posts - 1098 votes Studies: German | Message 3 of 3 19 January 2015 at 6:39pm | IP Logged |
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Pimsleur German
The complete Pimsleur German series I, II, III, IV covers most of the grammatical structures up to, roughly, the A2 level. However, I disagree with the publisher’s assertion that each level contains 500 words of vocabulary. Rather, my count would be somewhere between 250 and 300 words per level. Thus, in my opinion, while Pimsleur would take you in the neighbourhood of A2 in terms of your ability to manipulate the language, you would not have learned the vocabulary of even the A1 level with this programme (despite the publisher’s claims to the contrary, vocabulary DOES matter). Assimil German Although the publisher markets their introductory course as taking the student up to the B2 level, many users report that a level somewhere between A2 and B1 would be a more realistic achievement. However, you will have to cover each lesson thoroughly (practice, practice, practice)! Movies I am assuming that you mean that you will be watching German-language movies without subtitles. Bear in mind that movies and other native materials such as novels, newspapers, magazines, etcetera require C1-C2 level for comprehension. If you are presently at the pre-A1 level, is it realistic to include such material in your programme at this time? Grammar None of the above materials (Pimsleur, Assimil, Movies, etcetera) provide adequate explanations of the structure of the language. So, yes, you should study the basics of German grammar. The Balance in Your Programme While we all take different approaches to the independent study of languages, I find that your particular combination somewhat imbalanced. While I truly enjoyed studying Pimsleur German, you should be aware that it moves along at a snail’s pace. In my view, you would have to complete at least Pimsleur German I and II (and perhaps III) just to be able to appreciate the first fourteen lessons of Assimil. So, if you’re going to study Assimil anyway, why bother combining them? My advice would be to discard Pimsleur and concentrate on Assimil (or complete Pimsleur and begin start Assimil). However, since the latter is quite weak on grammar, you should try to keep pace by reading a simple Grammar. I recommend that you gain an initial overall (and somewhat superficial) understanding of the Case system, the Prepositions, Word Order, and the initial Verb Tenses (Present, Present Perfect, Preterit, Future) before embarking on your studies with Assimil. Then, as these and other issues come up in Assimil, return to the Grammar for more in-depth study. As to the inclusion of native materials, I suspect that movies would be too much of a stretch at this stage and I suggest that you replace them with “slow” news casts and similar material. Edited by Speakeasy on 19 January 2015 at 6:42pm 2 persons have voted this message useful |
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