Fluenz Vs. Rosetta Stone
Like Sonia Gil who has traveled to Germany, I have been traveling to Austria with my wife on a yearly basis since 1993. The Austrians in Vienna use a dialect of German all their own, which is very difficult to learn unless one is able to live there.
I have been studying German for nearly as long (though I have taken quite a number of months off from my studies this past year) using a variety of course styles and techniques. Unfortunately in the US there are not many public offerings that allow one to attend a class in German studies that can assist in bringing a student to fluency. As a result, I have found quite a number interesting details about learning the German language.
Learning a new language well depends very much on where you are in life and your personal preferences in style. Thus, comparing Fluenz to Rosetta Stone is somewhat like comparing Apples to Oranges. Simply put, they are both excellent courses for what they attempt to accomplish.
It is quite true that as an adult, it is very difficult to learn a new language by repetition without a corresponding context. This is why the Berlitz Language Schools often failed to achieve satisfactory results as their students attempted to move beyond basic fluency. And this is exactly the model that is incorporated into Rosetta Stone but in a far superior manner. It should also be noted that this model was what was most often available as we go back in time even until recently when Fluenz made its debut on the language scene.
The only course available prior to the Fleunz training that attempted to teach grammar as well as the spoken language was the "Living Language" series from Random House Publishing (a course that was also used by the US Foreign Service), which was completely based on audio and a workbook. It did its job well as long as you put a lot of time and effort into it, something most working people simply do not have.
Fluenz offers a similar model but in a much more comfortable format and lighter approach to simply hard-core studying. And because adults use a different part of their brain to learn new languages, Fluenz is probably the best choice to begin with. And I specifically chose it over Rosetta Stone because it does concentrate on grammar as much as it does towards speaking a language. This is my preference.
However, there are adults who have an ability to pick up languages much like children and can use the Rosetta Stone software quite successfully. However, most often Rosetta Stone will most likely have its greatest successes with younger people still in school where languages are learned in a different by the brain than that of adults.
It is true that Fluenz training provides a greater sense of hand-holding for learning a language but that is what is required by most adults, including myself though I taught myself basic fluency in German over the years. My problem is that I have been unable to move beyond this level until I found Fleunz so I bought the entire 5 level series for my studies.
Where Fluenz starts to weaken at some point is when a person has successfully completed all of the course material and has achieved a satisfactory level of fluency. At that point you either "use it or lose it" and repeating Fluenz training will most likely not aid in retention. This is where Rosetta Stone can shine for most adults because of the fact that it does offer an immersive experience. People who use Fluenz successfully will find Rosetta Stone to be an excellent reinforcement endeavor since they will not need to worry about understanding the grammar and\or context but will be able to simply enjoy just the language itself. And Rosetta Stone does work. You find that you do remember the training you have used with the course possibly even longer than you may with Fluenz since you are only dealing with the language itself and not its foundations. However, remember that when I used Rosetta Stone I had many years of studying behind me.
As Sonia Gil states in her introduction to Fluenz German course, learning a new language takes work. However, it has been found over the years in research that for adults, more 15 minute bursts in language training often accomplishes more than one or two long sessions. Yet again, this is also subject to personal preference and abilities. No matter how one studies a language, one thing must be accomplished and that is consistency with the course material. Studying randomly simply will not succeed for most adults so setting up a study schedule on a daily basis, even if it is for a few minutes will help one accomplish their language goals over the long term.
Hopefully, I will be able to do just that in the coming months as I delve into my Fluenz German training...
Steve Naidamast
Sr. Software Engineer
Status:
Open Sep 08, 2012 - 02:34 PM
German, German > Culture