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Rosetta Stone


Norjak71

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Has anyone in here tried the Rosetta Stone language learning software and how efficient is it at picking up a new language? I dabbled in it for Spanish and it helped a little bit; however, I'm wondering if more complex languages will be harder to learn using this method. Has anyone had any experience in this? 

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  • 1 month later...
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I once tried Rosetta Stone many years ago and found it very good, however I found progress to be a bit slow for my taste. There are many good apps on Android/Iphone that you could try for example duolingo and memrise are both great options. You could complement any of these programs with aditional reading and watching videos in the language that you're trying to learn, in this case Spanish

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I think that this program is frankly obsolete. It used to be great, no doubt of that, but now there are far better resources, honestly, not to say that you have to pay for the program (or be a rebel an pirate it), while some other better ones can be used for free.

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I used Rosetta stone twice -once with German and another time with Russian. The newer version with online tutoring is far superior to what they've had before, but there are still various issues with the program (no alphabet training for non-Latin languages, lack of grammar instruction, etc) and I find it overpriced. For Russian, I was lucky that I knew some basic words and the alphabet beforehand, otherwise I would have been lost. I can't imagine using it for Japanese or any other non-Latin script.

It's not bad, but it's a luxury item. There are more effective resources you can find at a lower cost.

If you are learning Spanish, I would suggest Memrise, WordBrewery, Anki, BBC Spanish, or 50 Languages. For any language I would also suggest picking up a comprehensive grammar guide and using a free online dictionary. Even if you buy a textbook or purchase the premium of one of the above (or other) programs, it will still be less expensive than Rosetta Stone.

Now I'm not sure where you are located, but in the US, it's fairly easy to find someplace to practice your Spanish skills. This can include finding Spanish-speaking church services, Spanish-speaker owned restaurants and stores, or finding a Spanish group on Meetup.com.

These are just some alternatives to paying 200+ for a beginners language program. :) Good luck!

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In my experience, I have found a lot of programs that cost lots of money tend to be scams. Even methods like Rosetta Stone tend to substitute practical learning with things that aren't very helpful – you don't really have a grasp of the language, a true understanding of it. I believe that there are better and cheaper products. I think for beginners, Duolingo has a wide variety of languages to choose from and requires you to manipulate sentences even though they might be nonsensical. Also, nothing is better than practicing with fluent speakers, there is really nothing better for a learner than practical application.

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