Is Pimsleur worth it? |
See the review on YouTube |
For a simple answer: yes, Pimsleur is definitely worth it. Just know it's not an easy go. It reqires time. I might spend a week on a single lesson, and each level has 30 lessons. If you stick it out, you will train your brain to hear your target language. Your "real world" comprehension--that is, ability to communicate with native speakers on daily life activities--will dramatically increase.
As stated above, Pimsleur is not a standard beginner's booklet with a CD or two. Each lesson is 30 minutes, and each level has thirty lessons. That's about 15 hours right off the bat. I often listen to each lesson three, four, or even five times through before progressing to the next. So, one complete course is actually more like 45 hours.
How does one find time for something like this? Well, for me, it's the car. I actually don't listen to it if I am driving somewhere new or looking for a location. You will be too distracted. Pimsleur requires concentration, so switch it off if you're in a new place or in rough weather. Those caveats aside, Pimsleur is a great car companion. The typical American like me spends incredible amount of time driving to and from work. Or to the store. Or to the recycling center. This time, which had previously been essentially "wasted" or spent listening to music, can be harnessed and become incredibly productive. It is so refreshing to arrive at work in the morning, having successfully completed a lesson. It's a great way to start the day ahead of the game.
In addition to the length of the Pimsleur program, the essential unique feature of the program is its focus on auditory learning. If you think about it, language is primarily auditory. Though much of languge is now printed (like this article), when we communicate with other people in person, it's our ears and mouths that are doing the heavy lifting. So many language programs focus on vocabulary lists, grammar rules, and drills. Pimsleur, however, acts more like a personal tutor, showing you through spoken examples how to turn a phrase or form a sentence in your target language. This progresses the learning at a rapid clip. I did so much language learning in school. Four years of Latin in high school, and three years of Greek in college. I could progress to a strong level of language learning with respect to verb forms and vocabulary. I could even translate print. However, I could not speak. Pimsleur gets you speaking. If you take your time, listen to each lesson until you are confident in your ability to progress, you will notice your communication improve dramatically. You will learn to think in the language. This is so much more effective than workbooks and drills.
Updated February 2020 Back to the top of the page