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 Language Learning Forum : Language Programs, Books & Tapes |  | |
| stelingo Hexaglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 5627 days ago 722 posts - 1076 votes  Speaks: English*, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian Studies: Russian, Czech, Polish, Greek, Mandarin | Message 9 of 31 17 April 2010 at 4:48pm | IP Logged | |||||
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The new Arabic version is just the same as the previous one with a different cover. I don't think there is anything wrong with the phrasebook like course as long as you balance it with another more grammar based course. A complaint about the more traditional type of courses was that students were able to translate quite technical or literary passages but didn't have the language to perform everyday essential tasks such as buying train tickets.
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| Aquila Triglot Senior Member Netherlands Joined 5276 days ago 104 posts - 128 votes Speaks: Dutch*, English, German Studies: French | Message 10 of 31 08 May 2010 at 11:54pm | IP Logged | |||||
Are they really all the same? TY Prefect Your French (2010) has 400 pages. On Amazon I can find two versions of the previous version from 2004 (I assume it is TY Improve Your French). One has 192 pages and the other one 256. Is there somebody who knows the difference between these two (the older ones)? The covers from both books are the same. Edited by Aquila on 09 May 2010 at 10:58am 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| BartoG Diglot Senior Member United States confession Joined 5242 days ago 292 posts - 818 votes Speaks: English*, French Studies: Italian, Spanish, Latin, Uzbek | Message 11 of 31 09 May 2010 at 4:09am | IP Logged | |||||
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I got the Complete Italian out of curiosity. I didn't have the old one, so can't speak to the similarities or differences. However, the course is definitely driven by dialogs, not grammar points. However, it feels a little better to me than other recent TY courses I have. The book is sturdier and prettier. But I also have a sense that they've gotten a step closer to producing a real multimedia course. The downside is that the book is useless without the CDs. The upside is that if you put the CDs on your iPod you can do half a lesson while waiting for the bus or whatever and get some practice with reading, listening and, if you don't mind funny looks, speaking.
I think Michel Thomas followed by Assimil is a better bet for learning Italian, but if you want to do some easy review, this isn't bad for $25 bucks. And even if it's not my first choice, I'd certainly feel better recommending to a beginner than I would, say, my TY Turkish course (I will buy the Complete Turkish if it becomes available). 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| Aquila Triglot Senior Member Netherlands Joined 5276 days ago 104 posts - 128 votes Speaks: Dutch*, English, German Studies: French | Message 12 of 31 09 May 2010 at 9:56pm | IP Logged | |||||
I was thinking to buy one of the new TY courses for French, to give it a try, but without the audio. Why do you think they are useless without the CD's? Edited by Aquila on 10 May 2010 at 12:53pm 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| stelingo Hexaglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 5627 days ago 722 posts - 1076 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian Studies: Russian, Czech, Polish, Greek, Mandarin | Message 13 of 31 10 May 2010 at 12:25am | IP Logged | |||||
Did I write they were all the same? I was refering specifically to the Arabic TY course. The French, German, Spanish and Italian versions have been rewritten and printed on glossy paper. They seem quite similar to each other in format. The new versions of the other languages which have come out so far are exactly the same as the old versions, apart from the cover and title in some cases. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| tracker465 Senior Member United States Joined 5147 days ago 355 posts - 496 votes Speaks: English* Studies: German, Spanish, Dutch | Message 14 of 31 10 May 2010 at 4:57am | IP Logged | |||||
I agree with this notion. I own a few of the TY books, from the current (now previous) generation, and did not particularly like how there was not as much grammar to them as other courses. On the other hand, I feel that for every day situations and the basic fundamentals of a language, it is almost better to learn how to speak a few of the common phrases without getting bogged down initially with the grammar points, and this is where the TY-style books comes in handy. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| newstylles Newbie Philippines Joined 5505 days ago 3 posts - 5 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Portuguese, Tagalog | Message 15 of 31 10 May 2010 at 6:43am | IP Logged | |||||
A video review of the German Complete course : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XX-Yb2s_8k 3 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Aras Groupie United States Joined 6553 days ago 76 posts - 83 votes Speaks: English* Studies: German, Ancient Greek | Message 16 of 31 10 May 2010 at 10:25am | IP Logged | |||||
Perhaps you should differentiate between the old TY courses and the new ones. The old are of such quality that it's hard to understand why you would be puzzled at their use as a method of self-instruction for popular languages. 1 person has voted this message useful |
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