Answers
Mar 05, 2015 - 11:40 PM
I totally agree. I've done the same with the Spanish course and it worked well for me.
Mar 06, 2015 - 04:57 AM
I totally agree with the first point and have also been doing that in Spanish. I listen with eyes closed until I know what it means and then I practice the pronunciation. If Fluenz agrees that this is helpful then they may want to add something in the software to suggest doing it. It took me up to about lesson 25 before it finally occurred to me.
Mar 07, 2015 - 06:10 PM
I did this after my first experience with a language learning software (major brand x). I did fine with all the exercises and lessons, but when I got to the online interaction, I was helpless because I couldn't understand a word being said. That convinced me this is key to language learning.
Mar 10, 2015 - 11:09 PM
I do this as well, but my biggest frustration is that the speaker is speaking so fast (normal speed I'm sure) that I'm still trying to grasp the first part of the sentence when the speak is finishing the sentence. I really wish there could be a slower spoken version so that I've got time to process what I'm hearing. Right now, all the words start blending together. I'm sure there are people out there which are able to hear the words fine, I'm just not one of them.
Mar 12, 2015 - 12:35 AM
Jeff - Sometimes I have difficulty distinguishing woes, also. I replay the sentences several times and, if I still don't understand, I look at the words. Then I listen again, until I hear the distinct words. I figure that it is partly a master of getting accustomed to hearing words in context and partly a matter of individual enunciation patterns. For awhile, I had difficulty recognizing "welcher" because they pronounced the "w" less distinctly than I expected. Now I have no trouble with it.
Mar 12, 2015 - 05:54 AM
I would think the Fluenz folks have thought about adding a "slower version" facility to the software. Duolingo tablet apps have it. Pedagogically, I wonder if it is more useful to NOT allow slowing things down. As far as doing it, digital sound processing technology can slow down or speed up without introducing alterations to pitch. So Fluenz could easily add slower versions of speech without having to go back and do more voice recordings.