4 stars (More fun than class) - I've been using this software for a few months now. I think it's well designed and through repetition and association works much better than learning from a book. I am terrible at learning languages but I surprise myself by actually remembering words and phrases when I'm not actually using the software.
If you want to get anything out of the reading part you need to learn Devanagari script, which I did pretty easily using the Teach Yourself Hindi Script book. I think it would useless for this aspect if you didn't (as another review says). But if you do know the script, it really helps a lot with reading skills. Writing is another story and I try to write down the words elsewhere.
One thing I'm not sure about is if they ever get into conversation. So far I'm on the 3rd unit out of 10 so they may later on, but so far I haven't learned how to say anything about myself like "My name is..." It also doesn't force you to come up with phrases on your own. It focuses on basic vocabulary and different tenses and relationships between objects. This is usually not much fun to learn and they do a pretty good job with it.
The lessons are a good length to go through a little bit each night without being too overwhelming. You really need to speak the lines out loud though or otherwise you're not going to get the pronounciation. It helps to have a Hindi speaker handy of course although this is probably not possible for most. Also keep a dictionary around for words that aren't clear. You won't have to look at it too often though as long as you concentrate on the pictures.
5 stars (Immersive and extremely effective) - The immersive approach to building vocabulary and listening skills -- basically showing you pictures and making you associate them with spoken phrases -- is fun and works beautifully. The first time you walk through a lesson, you feel as if you're guessing and you get about 45% right ... but the second time through you're at 80%, and if you go through a third time you're geting nearly everything right. They're pretty artful about communicating subtle ideas in pictures -- they get past/present/future tense across very clearly, for instance.
I'm less sure thus far about the approach to learning reading and writing skills, which is similar to the listening drills -- you're associating images or spoken words with sets of glyphs without any drilling in the alphabet. I've made progress on recognizing many words and am starting to puzzle out the alphabet myself, but have a long way to go on this.
Overall, if you want to get quickly to the point where you can conduct a conversation with Hindi-speakers or travel in India, this software in combination with some subtitled Bollywood movies is probably the fastest and most enjoyable way to get there.
4 stars (Expensive but worth it) - If you can afford it, this is a great tool. It REALLY helps with the challenge odf mastering spoken Hindi, and is particularly useful if you are trying to teach yourself, and/or have limited opportunities to practice your speech with native speakers. It is not for the budget-conscious, but if you can find the money, do!. |
