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Pimsleur I
I've just completed the first thirty days of the Pimsleur program, while simultaneously working on grammar in textbooks. I thought I'd take a moment to record my thoughts here as I complete each segment.
First, who I am and what I am doing - I am a theatre student who spent three months in Moscow last spring with minimal (almost zero) Russian backgound. Being there immersed in the theatre culture made me want to return, and begin self-study of the language on my own. I had a tutor in the fall, but now I am on academic leave from grad school to care for my father. I am trying to make up for the tutoring I am missing by doing the Pimsleur program and studying Golosa I and II, the texts used in the first two levels at Middlebury, where I'll be studying this summer.
So - Pimsleur, Part One. I probably completed the first fifteen lessons last summer, before I got my tutor, and found them very useful for training my tongue to make the proper sounds. Since I am studying alone, I don't have hours of drill, so the patterns of repetition and the thorough approach to learning a very few patterns of speech are very helpful. Although I set the CDs aside in favor of a flesh-and-blood tutor, I did notice that she was very impressed by my pronounciation (calling it "fantastic") - though I assume it was only fantastic in comparisson to the beginning students she met in class.
The fact that I spent three months listening to Russians in Russia, then two following Russians around over the summer, may have contributed to that, though I can't say I have a natural ear for hearing and reproducing sounds without intensive drilling. If I had, I woukd have learned more easily while I was IN Russia.
Starting about three weeks ago, I recommensed the Pimsleur 1 program, repeating all the lessons I had done before (lucky, since the program I downloaded online is slightly older than the one I had at school -- more on that later) then moving forward, sometimes doing one, sometimes two per day. I just finished two days ago, and moved on to Pimsleur II.
The best things about it:
- Careful and meticulous pronouncation practice. It has helped me train my mouth to make the very different sounds of this language. I pronounce and read other words more easily than I did before, simply because I've had so much drilling. I would predict that by the time I get through 90 days of this, I will be much stronger in pronouciation and better prepared for FORMAL study this summer - at least better than your typical self-study-from-a-book student.
- Simple, functional scripts. The material has been chosen intelligently, and although the pace is slow, you end up being surprised at how many things you can say and generate with this material. It builds nicely, and by the end of the first thirty days one can say a FEW fairly complex things.
- The question-response format. Responding to another speaker who is questioning you in Russian (and the tapes use more and more instructions in russian as they advance) does help both with training the ear and the ability to create the appropriate response quickly and without much mental "translating" - this may be almost as useful as the pronounciation practice.
- Introduction to cases - it isn't taught directly as grammar, but through repetition and recognition. I wouldn't usually agree with this strategy because grammer is so important, but I *do* find that using these recordings in conjunction with textbook study has helped me "feel" what the right cases would be more quickly.
- Recognition. I listen to music and radio as much as possible, even though my comprehension is low, but it has improved with the use of the Pimsleur tapes.
Bad Things:
- The scripts are very consumer-tourist oriented. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I am not learning in order to be a better tourist. I don't particularly want to learn how to say "I want to buy something" or "Are the stores open?" - and they wouldn't be my first choices. But then, I feel that way about Golosa too - do I really have to memorize the names of every department in the university before I learn how to say more important things?
- Some simply stupid phrases. I'm sorry - but "Do you have gas in your car?" "How many rubles per litre?" - I comforted myself by saying that I was drilling the pattern for "У вас в руке / у тебя в кармане" etc, and that could be good to staple into my brain.
- Prices are out of date. As it is consumer oriented, the tapes deal with buying things in restaurants and stores. The older Pimsleur 1 tapes say wine and beer cost 2000 rubles - whereas a bottle of Baltika beer cost 17 rubles while I was in Moscow. Thus, the tapes spent a lot of time drilling numbers in the thousands when I could perhaps have used more practice with numbers in the hundreds.
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Observed differences between the older Pimsleur I (which I just completed) and the newer (which I partly listened to last summer):
The older one concentrates on a simpler construction for saying what one wants - which I assume is less polite. It is, however, easier to say as a complete beginner. Also, there is some difference in word order (if I recall correctly), and choice. So, for example, you would have:
Older Pimsleur I - Speak and Read Essential Russian I
Вы хотите пить что-нибудь?
Да, Я хочу пить кое-что.
Сколько с меня?
Newer Pimsleur I
Вы хотила бы выпить что-нибудь?
Да, Я хотила бы что-то выпить.
Сколька я должна?
Ok - this is just an example pulled from my memory - and the memory of the newer Pimsleur is six or more months old. Can't double check it, but I thought it might be useful to put down.
Ok, there you have it. My review of the Pimsleur I tapes. If anyone is interested, I'll continue to update this thread as I move through the other two sets.
demoiselle
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Originally Posted by uno 
Secondly, my being critical about the program is a form of critique and there is something constructive about it. If I had said the following would you have been upset?:
I like the Pimsleur Russian Language program. I must be a very slow learner, but I spend a week on each lesson, listening to it over and over again until I understand 100% and can say everything in the lesson. The cost is very prohibitive, but I downloaded all of Level l, and have now purchased all Levels ll and lll through e-bay for $41 (the local and state library system did not have them). Combined with the on-line Princeton lessons, my Dictionary, and a couple other books I have, I'm happy with my progress. 
I also have and like "Learn Russian the Fast and Fun Way" by Thomas Beyer, Jr. PhD. It's a good supplemental tool for me. I am both the Teacher and the Student; the student thinks the teacher knows nothing, and the teacher thinks the student is too lazy! 
