All Language Resources

In-Depth Reviews And Recommendations - Without The BS

Michel Thomas Method Review – Avoid At All Costs

by Leave a Comment

Quick Review
Summary: One of the most famous language teaching courses out there, Michel Thomas is a household name and his audio lessons aim to teach you your language of choice, naturally, intuitively and without any memorization involved. With 18 languages for you to choose from, the courses are aimed at absolute beginners and at the end you should be able to understand and speak to a basic level. I tried out the French foundation course and found it to be severely lacking and as such cannot recommend it at all. You may, however, have more luck with the other language courses that they offer.

Quality
Very easy to use, the audios are decent quality but Michel Thomas’ discouraging manner means that students get flustered and this detracts from the content’s quality.
Thoroughness
Michel Thomas doesn’t go into much depth and any explanations he offers up are just at a surface level.
Value
I wouldn’t use these even if they were free due to Michel Thomas’ teaching style which ruins the material.
I Like
Um…in all honesty I’m not sure if I enjoyed any of it!

I Don’t Like
Michel Thomas never praises the students, often interrupts them and creates a negative learning environment.

The pacing of the lessons often seems off to me and in certain places they feel very hurried.

All of the lessons are almost identical and so it does get quite monotonous working through them.

Languages: Arabic (Egyptian), Arabic (Modern Standard), Dutch, French, Greek, German, Hindi, Italian, Irish, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Swedish.

Price: There are several different courses available with prices ranging from $11.99 to $100.

Visit Michel Thomas
[Read more…]

The 15 Best Podcasts for Studying Japanese in 2019

by Leave a Comment

People often assume that to study a language, you need to be working with a tutor, sitting in a classroom, or locked away in your room.

And while there are lots of good resources for studying Japanese, podcasts can serve a vital role in your studies. They can be an extremely effective way to improve your listening comprehension, along with other aspects of the language.

Better yet, they’re often more fun, free (or cheap), and more convenient than a lot of other resources. Though you may want to look for some more structure elsewhere.

This list will highlight some of the best podcasts for learning Japanese whether you’re at a beginner, intermediate, or advanced level.
[Read more…]

JapanesePod101 Review – Better As A Supplemental Resource To Genki

by 1 Comment

Quick Review
Summary: JapanesePod101 has thousands of lessons going back over a decade. It’s best used as a supplemental resource to improve your listening comprehension, grammar, and vocabulary. I wouldn’t advise trying to use it as a standalone course because the lessons don’t always follow a clear and suitable path. While very much imperfect, it’s a useful resource and available at an affordable price.

Quality 
Some lessons are great and others leave a lot to be desired.
Thoroughness 
A lot of content but it’s not always structured well.
Value 
One of the more affordable tools around.
I Like
 Probably the best tool to improve your Japanese listening comprehension.

 Tons of content for everyone from the absolute beginner level up to the intermediate level, though advanced learners would be disappointed.

Very detailed lesson notes give lots of good information.

I Don’t Like
 The chaotic course structure makes it hard to rely on as your only resource.

Many of the extra features aren’t useful or very well-made.

The older lessons can be a lot lower quality.

Price: There are three subscription plans with lengths available from 1 month to 2 years, with many options in between.

Basic – $8/mo, $4/mo if you sign up for 2 years.
Premium – $25/mo, $10/mo if you sign up for 2 years.
Premium Plus – $47/mo, $23/mo if you sign up for 2 years.

Use the coupon code “ALLLANGUAGERESOURCES” to save 25% on a subscription.
Visit JapanesePod101
[Read more…]

There’s No Babbel Japanese Course – Try These Alternatives Instead!

by Leave a Comment

For the most part, I like Babbel’s courses. They teach languages in a straightforward manner that’s a bit more comprehensive than popular free alternatives, such as Duolingo or Memrise.

However, Babbel doesn’t have a Japanese course.

This is probably for the best as a lot of popular language learning courses really struggle with teaching languages that have a unique writing system. I found this to be especially true with the aforementioned Duolingo.

Since starting this website, I’ve tested out tons of language learning courses, some of which teach Japanese exclusively.

So, although Babbel doesn’t have a Japanese course, there are actually some alternatives that are just as good, and honestly, quite a bit better.
[Read more…]

In-Depth Review of Nihongo Shark’s Hacking Japanese Supercourse

by Leave a Comment

Quick Review
Summary: Nihongo Shark’s Hacking Japanese Supercourse is a bundle of twenty-nine courses. Over the thousand+ lessons you learn to read and write Japanese as well as gain an in-depth understanding of the grammar and how the language is spoken. Despite the huge number of lessons, they all look very similar and so students need to be very serious and diligent to make the most of the material. Due to the lack of exercises, you would need to use other resources to practice what you’ve learned from the course.

Quality 
Overwhelming in the beginning, you quickly get used to the course layout and the content quality is good without setting the world alight.
Thoroughness 
For Japanese grammar and how the language is used in day-to-day life, you can’t beat this course. A lot of other stuff is missing though.
Value 
It’s not very expensive but learners will need to utilize additional resources to study Japanese.
I Like
The course goes into an amazing amount of detail when it comes to Japanese grammar and how it is used in the real world.

Niko obviously cares a lot about the product, is continuing to improve it and writes in an engaging and humorous manner.

I Don’t Like
I came away feeling very disappointed as all of the courses and lessons are very similar in look and format. As such it got quite monotonous and boring.

 There are barely any exercises or quizzes for students to work through so you’re basically asked to read endless pages without engaging with the material.

Some of the courses don’t amount to much and are more just tips and tricks on how to learn a part of the language after which you’re told to work through endless flashcards.

Price: For the basic subscription, Nihongo Shark costs $12/month if you sign up for a year and $14 if you sign up per month. For the premium package, it is $20/month if you sign up for a whole year and $22 if you sign up per month.

Visit The Hacking Japanese Supercourse
[Read more…]

Privacy Policy

Affiliate Disclaimer