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| Impresiones (Hardcover)
Hardcover
Author: Rafael Salaberry, Catherine M. Barrette, Phillip Elliott, Marisol Fernndez-Garca
Publisher: Prentice Hall
Release Date: 2003-11-20
ISBN-10: 013092914X
ISBN-13: 9780130929143
List Price: $126.40
Average Customer Rating:
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Diccionario español/inglés - inglés/español: The Oxford New Spanish
ISBN-10: 042517090X
ISBN-13: 9780425170908
List Price:$5.99
Student Activities Manual for Impresiones
ISBN-10: 0130929166
ISBN-13: 9780130929167
List Price:$66.67
Answer key to Student Activities Manual for Impresiones
ISBN-10: 0130483850
ISBN-13: 9780130483850
List Price:$8.40
Quick Guide to Spanish Grammar
ISBN-10: 0132207508
ISBN-13: 9780132207508
List Price:$7.00
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Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com
Impresiones presents readers with a new approach to learning a second language. Readers think and learn about Hispanic cultures and the Spanish language through activities that integrate cultural information and communication strategies. Two central themes are the cultural and dialectical contrasts among Spanish-speaking regions; these themes are used to analyze the vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, and practical functions of Spanish. This truly culture-oriented Spanish book can serve as an excellent reference tool to those who wish to learn Spanish as a second language, or who require the use of Spanish at their places of employment.
Soooo Many Possibilities....Soooo Much Wrong
| Customer Rating: | I just finished taking Spanish classes at one of the author's universities using this book to its completion. This book has the potential to be a very good Spanish textbook.
Reading the introduction, the goal of the book is stated and that's to teach it pretty much as you'd learn any language as a child; by total immersion. And that makes sense in that the only way you're going to truly learn it is to practice, use it, more practice and more use. That's wonderful except those using this book are not children, they're often busy adults. The book ignores other teaching methods that have been used for years with non-native speakers with great success. There is a reason they sell many books and language tapes using these methods and that's because they work. No method is perfect for everyone, but the approach this book uses is very frustrating and very intimidating.
The first seven chapters deal with basic Spanish language introduction. Unfortunately, the first two chapters just throw you into the language without much detail. You're simply expected to pick it up, hang on, suck it up and come back for more. The problem here is that the exercises in the book are woefully inadequate in scope and number. The authors and your instructor will state that much practice is required, but you don't get that with this book.
The same holds true for the Student Activities Manual. The SAM does a wonderful job of helping you navigate dialects during listening and the learning of Hispanic and Spanish culture, but it does nothing to reinforce the grammar. Nothing. Let me restate that a third time, nothing but woefully inadequate practice sets.
This series of books needs to admit that there are merits to other teaching methods. As a student, I worked exceptionally hard for my good grades in Spanish, which I would not have been able to do without help from "The Ultimate Spanish Review and Practice" and Dorothy Richmond's series "Practice Makes Perfect". Why? Because there simply isn't enough practice and practical grammar explanation.
The complete book set comes with a very well produced audio and video series. "The Impresiones of Guadelupe" details a Mexican college student working at a university radio station. It is quite good and helps with listening, sentence structure and a bit about the differences in Spanish between various cultures.
Even though I will never see any other editions of this book, it's my hope that they provide better practice sets, adopt the best of other teaching methods and take this book to its fullest potential.
If you are looking for a book to learn Spanish on your own, do not consider this book. |
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