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There are quite a few self study language programs on offer at the moment. Some seem to be reasonable in price whilst others tend to look expensive. However they should really be judged on how easy they made it to learn to speak Spanish. Can you learn to speak Spanish using an MP3 or CD audio course ? This article will detail the benefits of using an audio language course to learn Spanish and some things that are not so good.

A definite advantage of an audio course is that it is a good simulation of the method we used to learn our native language. As a baby you learn your native language by listening and eventually repeating what you hear. This is the same method that is used with a Spanish CD or MP3. The words and phrases are listened to and repeated. There is a dialog that you take part in much like the dialog a baby has with it’s mother.

This is opposed to the standard method of learning a second language, where you learn to read, write and understand grammar at the same time as learning to comprehend and speak. This method is not instinctive but I think people want fast results and by jumping in at the deep end they feel that this is the way to go. Some people get the language but many people languish because they are lost in the grammar or overwhelmed by the information they have to take in.

Secondly, learning from an audio CD can help your pronunciation. In many ways pronunciation is more important than grammar when you first start learning a language. If you want to speak to people to practice what you have learned (and you should), they will forgive your grammatical mistakes and get the meaning of your words. However if your pronunciation is bad they will simply not understand you no matter how sympathetic they are to you. This can really dent your confidence when first starting out. Believe me, talking to Spanish speaking people is the key to improving your skills so you don’t want to shy away from this because of poor pronunciation or a bruised ego.

Finally, a major advantage of learning Spanish from an audio CD or MP3 is the ease of use. You can listen to it in the car or doing the housework. You can repeat the words as you jog round the block or do the grocery shopping (even though people might think you are mad talking to yourself).

To some extent this is true. However, in my experience you can’t devote your full attention to more than one thing, especially when it comes to a new language. Michel Thomas has many audio only courses and he advises (in the introduction to the courses) that you don’t do anything else but listen to the audio. I tend to agree with him, especially on the first few listens.

Having said this, once you have listened to the course repeatedly then it does get easier to multi task because you have learned much of the course already. You are just topping up your knowledge and don’t have to concentrate as hard.

So can you learn Spanish from a CD or MP3 ? I think they can give you a grasp of the language but you have to learn a lot more before you will be considered fluent. Being fluent requires a fair degree of confidence too. And you can only have this confidence if you use the language regularly and have made a few mistakes along the way. Even so an audio course is a good starting point and is convenient for many people that have busy lives.

Tags: Education

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