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Portuguese

Glossika Review – Not Cheap But Useful

Glossika

Rating 3.6

Summary

Glossika has learning resources for over fifty languages that impressively range from Armenian and Czech to Icelandic and Tagalog. While not suitable for absolute beginners, lower intermediates could use the resource to familiarise themselves with sentences in their language of choice using Glossika´s intuitive approach. Listening to native speakers and repeating what they say can help learners to improve their comprehension skills and spoken fluency. While it is amazing that so many languages are included, learners would have to use numerous other resources alongside it. The cost is unjustifiably high.


Quality 3.8

The audio recordings are well made but other aspects could be improved

Thoroughness 3.8

Glossika covers an impressive number of languages but their method requires you to intuitively learn

Value 3.5

Polyglots may find the price to be fair but for most language learners it’s not

I Like
  • There are lots of languages available, including many that are rarely covered by other resources.
  • The subscription gives you access to all of the languages making it possible to study one language and review another at the same time.
  • It will force you to speak the language which will improve your confidence and prosody.
I Don’t Like
  • As all of the languages cover the exact same material, the diversity of the languages and cultures are reduced to a simple formula with no cultural context involved in their teaching.
  • There are a fair amount of errors in the materials.
  • The cost is excessively high compared to other resources.
  • There are no explanations of grammar.
Price

You can try out Glossika´s learning method for free with their week-long trial. Their basic subscription is $16.99 a month. The monthly subscription costs $30.99 a month. The annual subscription costs $24.99 a month and will set you back 299.88$ in total.

Click the link below to save $5 on a subscription to Glossika.

Few resources cover as many different languages as Glossika does. Because of this, I was excited to try it out and see what it’s like to use.

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Earworms Review – A Unique Idea But Lacks Substance

Earworms

Rating 2.5

Summary

Earworms is a unique language resource that relies on audio lessons mixed into music. The theory is that you will find the music catchy and thus remember your lessons easily.  The whole idea behind Earworms is the psychological theory of memory association. You would associate some information with the music and thus remember it easily. However, the music used in these lessons will not appeal to everyone, at least it didn’t for me. Moreover, the lack of visual aid and no exercises to assess your skills make it harder.  I would only recommend this for people who have failed to learn through other online resources or perhaps someone looking to learn a few phrases before a trip.


Quality 2.0

With a lack of exercises and visual aids, I can’t really say that it will prove to be a useful resource.

Thoroughness 2.0

All the lessons are comprised of various phrases that they think will be useful for anyone willing to learn French. Unfortunately, they’re too shallow and poorly structured.

Value 3.5

With such low utility, it is important to have a low-price tag. Fortunately, they have followed this idea and thus you won’t be losing out too much if you opt for this.

I Like
  • The repetition of the phrases
  • Some of the tracks aren’t half bad
I Don’t Like
  • Tracks aren’t as catchy as I expected
  • Lack of visual aids
  • Complete absence of a testing system
Price

Each volume can be purchased as an mp3 download for £10.42 or £31.26.

When I first heard of Earworms, I was quite intrigued mostly because I know what it’s like to get a song stuck in my head. Compared to annoying lyrics, getting a new language stuck in there sounds pretty appealing.

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An Honest Review of Semantica Portuguese With Image of Portugese Architecture

Semantica Portuguese Review – The Most Authentic Brazilian Portuguese Resource

Semantica Portuguese

Rating 4.2

Summary

Semantica is an amazing resource for visual and aural learners looking to learn Portuguese by immersing themselves in Brazilian culture. Through their unique video lessons, Semantica does a great job in providing its users with real life scenarios that they will come across in Brazil. While some beginners may find it a challenge, those that respond well to this style of teaching will surely enjoy the lessons. There is a wealth of material to explore and a lot of room for students to progress.


Quality 4.5

The videos are very well produced and entertaining. The accompanying lesson materials, though useful, are not as good.

Thoroughness 3.5

Their coverage of real life situations is great but the grammar explanations are lacking.

Value 4.5

This is a unique product and definitely worth considering spending your time and money on.

I Like
  • The video lessons were great and on the whole were very entertaining. They really immersed you in Brazilian life.
  • It is great that the vast majority of the resources and dialogue are in Portuguese.
  • The lessons progressed in difficulty with the last lessons being very hard.
  • The Semantica staff seem very helpful. They react well to users’ feedback and use it to improve the product.
I Don’t Like
  • I think it could have done with much better grammar analysis.
  • While you can practice your pronunciation, you never get to actually speak.
Price

Semantica has a number of different subscription plans. Regardless of what plan you choose, all of the videos are accessible to you. The shortest option is to sign up and pay on a month-by-month basis which costs $19/month. $199 for a whole year. Past that there is the option of paying $399 for lifetime access.

Semantica teaches Portuguese in a way that keeps you truly engaged

When I heard about the idea behind Semantica, I was immediately intrigued. I really enjoyed using it and found the video lessons to be very entertaining; I was soon happily going from lesson to lesson following the protagonists’ storylines!

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