BASIC POLISH COURSES
For native English speakers, the Slavic languages are notoriously difficult. Nevertheless, both of the POLISH courses below are known for their effectiveness. If these courses and links have already been presented elsewhere on this website, I apologize for reposting them.
METHODOLOGY
The courses below were developed in the 1960's. Although both were designed to be delivered by a qualified instructor, the underlying approach presumed that the basics of a language could be learned through imitation of, and the massive repetition of, basic sentence patterns. In both courses, lessons begin with a "conversation/dialogue" section, which is followed by a "basic sentence patterns" or "exercise" section that includes explanatory notes on the structure and pronunciation of the language. Proficiency is developed by intensive practice of the dialogues, basic sentences patterns and the accompanying drills. Extensive audio files (50 to 60 hours) were prepared for both courses and are still available (if you know where to look).
EFFECTIVENESS AND RELEVANCY
If you do not react positively to the (for some, mind-numbing) drills that are at the core of these courses, then this teaching method is not for you. As I respond well to drills, practice sets, and grammar, I like these courses. If you find yourself overwhelming irritated and irrecoverably distracted by the presence of a few Polish words that are no longer relevant in today's context, then you will find that these courses are not for you. I overlook terms that no longer have the purchase they once did and I simply concentrate on the terms that are still relevant. Here are the courses and links:
BEGINNING POLISH (Vol. I & II), (revised), by Alexander M. Schenker
Published by the Yale University Press. The Foreign Service Institute (FSI) was one of the co-sponsors of this project. Be sure that you buy BOTH VOLUMES, as the Volume II contains drills that support the lessons in Volume I, as well as an extensive explanation of grammar. The audio files are still available on the Yale University website at:
http://archive.cls.yale.edu/polish/
FIRST YEAR POLISH (2nd Edition), and INTERMEDIATE POLISH, by Oscar E. Swan
Published by Slavica Publishers. Some (but not all) of the audio files can be located on the University of Pittsburgh website. Here is the link:
http://polish.slavic.pitt.edu/CDs/FYP-CDs/
While the conversations and much of the example material are recorded, regrettably, the Exercises seem to have been only partially recorded. If you want more complete audio files, you can purchase CDs via the Ohio State University website. They are sold as "Elementary Polish 1", etcetera, and contain some additional material. You should be aware; however, that whoever converted the magnetic tapes to the CDs just ran the tapes together into one long track per CD. You can convert them to mp3 files and use a file splitter to create more manageable audio files. The complete set of CDs costs in the neighborhood of $150. The additional student and teacher texts, and the supplementary audio files, are of only marginal benefit. Here is the link to the website:
http://flpubs.osu.edu/cataloglist.cfm
6 persons have voted this message useful
|