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Thanks for reading the Multilingual Books newsletter, your source for foreign language news, information, and product information and specials from Multilingual Books. This is also available as a web page at our website, www.multilingualbooks.com. In this issue:
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Multilingual Books Multimedia Gallery
By Tom Renouf
In our continuing effort to offer our customers the most complete and up-to-date information on the products we sell, we would like to take a moment to call your attention to our Multimedia Gallery - http://www.multilingualbooks.com/avgallery.html - on www.multilingualbooks.com.
Containing preview clips from a wide variety of our course offerings, the Multimedia Gallery is a great way to find the language-learning course that is right for you. The MBT Multimedia Gallery offers both audio and video samples from our most popular and engaging language learning courses including Pimsleur audio-only language courses, Speak To Me ESL video course, and Foreign Service Institute (FSI) language courses.
The samples are all in a downloadable format for easy access to our
customers. We use the popular RealAudio and RealVideo formats (included in many browser installations; the free RealPlayer software is available at
So, check out our site and begin exploring the possibilities of language learning today!
Dutch Links
Dutch is officially spoken in Belgium, Suriname, Aruba, and of course The Netherlands and Netherlands Antilles. If you'd like to visit any of these places, you can make great inroads to experience local culture by picking up even a little of the language. Here are some great sites that can help:
TravLang.com Dutch - http://travlang.com/languages/cgi-bin/langchoice.cgi?page=main&lang1=english&lang2=dutch
Vocabulary in audio, translating dictionaries, links, and more!
Integral Dutch Course - http://www.sr.net/srnet/InfoSurinam/dutch.html
Guide to pronunciation, introduction to Dutch grammar, etc. Very long and in-depth as free web courses go. No sound.
Learn Dutch - http://www.learndutch.org/
Good free lessons, cultural materials.
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Exclusive Q & A with Don Casteel, Creator of Platiquemos Spanish Course
How did your background affect your language interest?
Don: I had never heard another language spoken until I was 20 years old and had an opportunity to be an exchange student in The Netherlands. I was overwhelmed at first, but discovered to my amazement that I could learn to speak Dutch (several years later I still managed a "3", which is full professional competence, on the examination given by the Department of State). This experience also changed my career goal from the law to diplomacy. In my subsequent career involving living and working in seven countries where six different languages are spoken, I found that making the effort to learn the language increased my effectiveness manyfold; and made living in different cultures vastly more fun.
When and how did you develop such a strong interest in languages?
Don: Starting with my experience as an exchange student, I became convinced that real, meaningful communication with people from other cultures is greatly facilitated by some knowledge of their language--and their culture. The successful experience I had learning Dutch gave me the confidence to attack other languages; fortunately successfully learning one language makes learning others--even very different ones--much easier. Once one has learned a couple of languages, and had the experiences such knowledge brings, it becomes unthinkable to go back to being monolingual.
Why do you think Americans are so pro-monolinguistic?
Don: The geographical vastness of the United States and Canada... the emergence of English as the second language of choice for most of the world's peoples, are obviously advantageous. They also, though, make it easy to think that learning other languages isn't very important. After all, you can "get by" almost anywhere with English; this is true today of no other language. Just "getting by", though, not only impoverishes the experience of travel or dealing with non-Americans, it is also a great handicap in business as well as diplomacy. Americans have also accepted the myth that they are somehow handicapped when it comes to learning other languages, and the experiences of many with language teaching as practiced in most of our schools and colleges reinforces that myth.
What can Americans do to change their monolingualism?
Don: The answer seems so obvious I suspect it's a trick question. They can learn another language. The need for knowledge of other languages and cultures that is beginning to be acknowledged is fortunately matched by greater ease than ever in using other languages, whether by travel, watching tv or movies, or interacting with other language speakers at home. The two things that Americans need to internalize deeply in their consciousness are a) that they CAN learn other languages, and b) that the rewards far outweigh the investment.
What do you think needs to be done in the educations system to change this?
Don: The first thing is focus on what people primarily need language for: to communicate with others. While I disagree in many ways with the "natural approach", i.e., that other languages are learned the same way one learned her mother tongue, I think it is clear that learning to understand and speak are of primordial importance. Once you can do this, the way is open to reading, writing, the study of literature and grammar, etc. Without learning to speak and understand, however, the other aspects of language are of little use in the real world. Simply recognizing what is the essential first step in language learning would help a great deal.
What made you want to revise the Foreign Service Institute Course?
Don: The general lack of language/culture competence on the part of my fellow citizens had always been a concern to me. Retiring in my 40's faced me with the challenge of trying to do something instead of just complaining. Spanish is an obvious choice for a first foreign language for Americans, and I knew that not only had thousands of government employees (mostly diplomats) successfully learned with the Foreign Service Institute Basic Course (as I had), but that it had also been sold for decades in copied versions as a self-study program. Unfortunately, both because it was published in the 1950's and because it is a government-training manual, many aspects of its presentation made it extremely difficult to use. Without going into detail, I felt that serious revision was necessary if the program, generally accepted as the best ever produced, were to be used successfully by large numbers of people outside the government. Also, the program was never intended to be "self-study", and a good deal of supplementation seemed to me to be advisable to make it suitable for that purpose. That's why I started working on substantially revising the original program.
What elements of Platiquemos are you most proud of?
Don: Well, the most fun for me was including illustrations, and brief cultural "factoids" to accompany them. Also, the illustrations and the pithy (and, hopefully, insightful) captions fill a void in the original program. They also make the program a little bit more interesting. I also completely re-wrote the program to make it non-sexist, remove much of the irrelevant military references, and provide a much greater variety of voices in the audio. Some of the changes I made were little, some big, but I thought they were all necessary.
What are your thoughts on other leading language courses?
Don: I've looked into some of them, and some of them appear quite attractive. Unfortunately, few if any are intended to take a student all the way to real, serious communicative proficiency--although many of them make that claim. Suffice it to say that I believe the FSI program, and by extension Platiquemos, is the only one that has been proven to achieve serious proficiency for large numbers of students. While there are many ways to successfully learn a language, I believe that the multi-faceted, structured and complete course of study pioneered by the Foreign Service Institute provides the most efficient route to proficiency for the most students.
What can a serious language learner hope to achieve with the Platiquemos course?
Don: A student who devotes the time and effort to complete the entire program should be at or very close to a level of proficiency to use the language in all aspects of her or his professional as well as personal life. I believe that experience where the language is spoken is important, and we've developed a network of providers in Spanish-speaking countries to provide that opportunity to students while they can remain in the same framework of structured learning. Language learning is a journey, not a destination, though. The student who completes the Platiquemos program should be able to use the language successfully in every aspect of their lives, and to continue on their own to move toward the elusive goal of complete bilinguality.
Learn more about Platequemos on our site at: http://www.multilingualbooks.com/fsi-platiquemos.html And don't miss our newsletter special - $10 off on any level, or save even more with $50 off all four levels!
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$50 Off Complete Platequemos Spanish Course The world's best Spanish course just got even better - Platiquemos Spanish course, based on the FSI Spanish course, is now on sale! Don Casteel, fluent in several languages and a former Foreign Service Officer, is well trained in the FSI method, and has completely revised and improved "the course that works." This 2002 Edition has improved audio with both male and female voices and over 200 illustrations with factoids, and the content is more contemporary than ever. This new version has retained the same grammatical and language content that has made this the most widely sold course on the language market. Save $50 when you order all four levels for only $289! Or, order any single level for $89 - a savings of $10! Please use promo code PLAT-801 to receive your special. For ordering and more information, please visit our Platiquemos page. |
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PCC Deluxe Language Courses |
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Save 30% on Talk Now CD-ROM courses - Now only $45! The Talk Now! series is for any language beginner who wants an entertaining self-study course to learn basic phrases, such as colors, numbers, food, shopping, and time. We have been selling this European-produced CD-ROM for a few years and find that it is highly praised by people from all over the world. Designed by language experts, Talk Now! includes great features like speak and repeat, interactive games, and digital recordings with native speakers. Interactive and fun, it is ideal for beginners and travelers. Test your knowledge with easy and hard quizzes and play a challenging memory game. Monitor your progress: keep your total score and print your own awards. You can also print your own picture dictionary for handy reference. On-screen help is available at all times in over 50 languages. Talk Now! runs on both Macintosh and Windows. Shipping weight 1 lb. Save $24 with promo code TNC-801! More about Talk Now CD-ROM courses... |
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