Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Ryzn]

I have 3 months until I head off to Korea, and I'm eager to buy a language program so that I can arrive with atleast a small vocabulary and a few phrases. And I would like to get conversational eventually.

What programs have you used and did you find them succussful?

Has Rosetta Stone worked for anyone? (I'm thinking of making the investment in cash if it's a better/more efficient way)

Thanks for any and all help

[el_magico]

Rosetta Stone is not practical as the form of the language used is too polite, however it's decent for learning vocabulary and it's not too difficult to conjugate the verbs later on.

The rumor around the campfire is that Rosetta Stone can be downloaded somewhere in the dark corners of internet.

I'm not sure that there are any other Korean language programs on the market today... But if you just want to learn vocab/phrases you'd be just as well off watching "Let's Speak Korean" on Youtube as using Rosetta.

[Omkara]

I'm almost finished with the Rosetta Stone disk. If you are serious about the language and are willing to do the work, Rosetta Stone is very good. If you tend to bore easily and let things drop once the newness has dropped off, don't get it.

I work in a public school, and using Rosetta Stone between classes has been a major part of my success. I stress, however, that it was a part.

Nearing the end of the program, I get complimented often on my ability to speak, and especially upon my pronunciation. Rosetta Stone is especially strong in pronunciation, and in building a basic grammar in the context of basic sentence forms.

[Gaber]

Yeah, it's good as long you repeat every thing before answering. If you just click through trying to get a good score as fast as it's not going to help much. Also, don't worry about it all being in the Imnida form - Once you know something in it it's easy to shift it down to a less formal suffix.

[IAMAROBOT]

I use spaced repetition flashcard software to help memorize vocab. I use Anki, but there's also Mnemosyne and Super Memo.

[Omkara]

During the click and drag sentence formation, I actually copy the sentences out by hand, and write each one down many, many times. Then, on paper, I break down the grammar and try to find the English equivalent.

To repeat the sentence out loud isn't something I can do in the teachers office! But, being here, I can easily find a language teacher to answer my questions. I've made some good friendships this way.

[jkelly80]

Pick up the KLEAR Integrated Korean book (amazon will have it) and download the audio here: http://www.hawaii.edu/uhpress/mp3/klear/

Personally I like the Sogang books but those are hard to come by stateside.

If you can download Pimsleur Korean, do that too. It's not worth paying for, however.

[samd]

Rosetta Stone is terrible. Avoid it like the plague. There's already been a millon threads about why this is, and a quick search should help you to find some of them.

[Omkara]

Terrible?! I've done quite well with it. . . can hold conversations now. . .

As much, if not more, depends on the student's ability to stay focused and deal with ambiguity.

No, Rosetta Stone is not for everyone. Still less is it for people who have not learned how to learn language.

If you know how to learn language, have had success learning a language, then use Rosetta Stone as a tool. Don't expect the tool to do the work for you.

It is slow going, Rosetta Stone, but effective. Your pronunciation will be clear, you will have a fine base vocabulary, and you will master basic grammar.

It does help to have Koreans near by to help you though some of the tougher sentences. But this is one more opportunity to learn language.

I am convinced that no one who has become fluent in another language would so quickly dismiss Rosetta Stone.

Not to toot my own horn, but rather to give the OP a basic idea of where I come from, I have become fluent in both Russian and in Korean. I do not think I could have done is so well here, in Korea, given the culture and my work conditions, had I not had Rosetta Stone.

There are other programs which I'm sure work well. But I have been working with this one disk now for almost two years. I have about one more month before I finish it.

Yes, it can be boring. But, language learning has many points of frustration. You get passed this, and one day you'll find yourself chatting away and proud of what you've done. It is not small achievement to become fluent in another language, especially in a language such as Korean. You'd better have tenacity, or you'll learn little more than the 98% of the waygooks who come here.

Most learn little more than basic expressions, which is far from being able to use a language to express thoughts.

No, it's not easy. But nothing worth while is.

If you really want to learn, then you will make a basic schedule, and sit down with whatever program you choose, and bury your nose regularly.

[diver]

I haven't really gotteninto this yet, but it looks like a good basic/beginner program.


http://www.declan-software.com/korean.htm

[Hyeon Een]

I recommend Koreanclass101.com. You can download lots of lessons for free there. The beginner and newbie lessons seem to very focused on useful everyday vocabulary and simple grammar structures.

The lower intermediate and intermediate classes are also great when you get to that level.

[crossmr]

I've tried many pieces of software and here is my view:
I used Declan's read/write program to teach myself hangeul. Worked very well, and the first korean I met for language exchange was impressed with my ability to both read and write the letters. For $16 its a steal.

The rest of their korean software is so-so.

I've tried Rosetta stone, but I remember the first time I tried it I was a bit overwhelmed. There isn't much explanation just shotgun style images and vocabulary. Sometimes the pictures are not that great. I remember the one particularly about learning the word for girls and boys..the two children both looked like girls (both had short hair and were wearing pink or something like that) I always got that one wrong the first time through even though I knew what the word meant having previously learned it. Its also not for beginners because it assumes you read hangeul. So if you want to use rosetta stone, learn the alphabet first.

I have also tried "Before you know it" I really like this particular software. Its cheap $40, and the flashcard software is really nice. It works on a level system and as you get a word right it keeps increasing it. If you get it wrong it drops it down and you see it more often. You can go back later and review those lessons.

The grammar book I picked up is a brown/beige one called "Easy Korean Grammar" I highly recommend it.

With anything you have to keep up with it. I have an up/down relationship with learning korean. I focus hard on it for a while, then take a break and forget a bunch of stuff then focus again.. I could probably be much further ahead than I am

[Maka]

I'm using rosetta stone at the moment for learning Mandarin chinese. I bought the 6 month subscription so i can use all three levels. I'm doing about 45mins a day and it's been going brilliantly so far. Cost was 200 dollars for 6month subscription, which is about 33 dollars a month.

I'm really happy with my progress so far and would definately recommend it for anybody interested in learning chinese. Don't know about the korean version but if it was anything similar then i think it would be good purchase. I tried using rosetta stone version 2 (the old one) last year and it was awful but version 3 is miles better.

It really depends on the person though, for me i can't stand learning a language from books and relying on translations so this system works for my learning habit. Everybody learns in different ways though so maybe it won't suit other people.

[i4NI]

[samd]