Pimsleur language learning system

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The Pimsleur language learning system is a language acquisition method developed by Paul Pimsleur. The system is centered around four main ideas: anticipation, graduated interval recall, core vocabulary, and organic learning.^[1]

The Pimsleur method is an audio-based system, in which the listener constructs phrases or repeats from memory out loud along with a recording. The system, as currently implemented by Simon & Schuster, is made up of multiple thirty-minute lessons, which are repeated until 80% comprehension is attained, at which point the user may continue to the next lesson. As the lessons repeat themselves and add new material, the method does not demand complete mastery of the material before moving on, since the material is reviewed at varying intervals throughout the course.^[2]

1 Methodology
2 Pimsleur learning principles
3 Effectiveness
4 Criticism
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Methodology

The student listens to a recording on which a native speaker speaks phrases in both the foreign language and the language used for teaching (usually English).
At varying intervals, the student is prompted to repeat a phrase after the speaker finishes it
The student is then introduced to a new phrase and the meaning is explained
After repeating several times, the student is asked to repeat a previous phrase, along with integrating vocabulary from the new one.
More new phrases are introduced, while old phrases are prompted at random. The random recall is designed to associate words with meanings.

[edit] Pimsleur learning principles

Pimsleur developed his system using four principles he regarded as important to forming memory associations and language recall.

Anticipation

Language courses commonly require a student to repeat after an instructor, which Pimsleur argued was a passive way of learning. Pimsleur developed a "challenge and response" technique, where a student was prompted to translate a phrase into the target language, which was then confirmed. This technique creates a more active way of learning, requiring the student to think before responding. Pimsleur pointed out that the principle of anticipation reflected real life conversations where a speaker must recall a phrase quickly.^{[citation needed]}
Graduated-interval recall

Graduated interval recall is a method of reviewing learned vocabulary at increasing longer intervals. It is a version of retention through spaced repetition. For example, if a student learns the word deux (French for two), then deux is tested every few seconds in the beginning, then every few minutes, then every few hours, and then every few days. The goal of this spaced recall is to help the student to move vocabulary into long-term memory.

Pimsleur's 1967 memory schedule was as follows: 5 seconds, 25 seconds, 2 minutes, 10 minutes, 1 hour, 5 hours, 1 day, 5 days, 25 days, 4 months, 2 years.^[3]
Core vocabulary

The Pimsleur method focuses on teaching commonly used words in order to lead to a comprehensive understanding of a "core vocabulary". In the typical Simon & Schuster 60 cassette/CD course (four modules of 15 cassette/CDs each) this does not provide a large breadth of vocabulary. However, word-frequency text analysis indicate that a relatively small core vocabulary accounts for the majority of words spoken in a particular language. For example, in English, a set of 2000 words composes about 80% of the total printed words.^[4]^[5] In other words, an understanding of these 2000 words would lead to approximately an 80% word comprehension rate.

The number of words needed to comprehend varies from language to language. For example, data for Indian languages in the CIIL corpus show the number of words required for 50% coverage varies from 199 words in Hindi to 7,699 in Malayalam, while 80% coverage for those languages is 2,874 and 126,344 respectively.^[6]

The Pimsleur method never teaches grammar explicitly, instead leaving the student to infer the grammar through common patterns and phrases repeated over and over. Pimsleur pointed out that this inductive method is precisely how native speakers learn their grammar when they are children; only in schools it's "taught" on the blackboard.
Organic learning

The program uses an audio format because Dr. Pimsleur argued that the majority of students of languages wanted first and foremost to learn to speak and understand. This auditory skill, learned through their ears and mouths, is a very different skill to the visual one of reading and writing. Pimsleur argued that these two independent skills, one auditory the other visual, should not be confused. He referred to his auditory system as "organic learning," which entails studying grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation simultaneously.^{[citation needed]} Learning by listening is also intended to teach the proper accent, which of course cannot be learned through written material.

[edit] Effectiveness

Paul Nation's comprehensive review of vocabulary learning, Learning Vocabulary in Another Language, concluded that Pimsleur's "memory schedule" has been validated by research subsequent to Pimsleur's seminal paper. According to Nation's summary of the research, "effective retention of vocabulary requires a certain amount of repetition over spaced intervals".^[7]

The Pimsleur method brings together a number of well known behavioral principles—gradual shaping of behavior, immediate reinforcement of response, stimulus (cue) control of the verbal response, systematically interlarding new and old material, focusing on the most common words in a language, and limiting the amount of new material to bite size portions—for its effectiveness. Simon & Schuster produces publicly available courses based on the Pimsleur method consisting of up to 60 audio tapes or CDs. Other language learning systems that similarly make use of prerecorded audio to prompt the user for responses include Rosetta Stone (software) and Rocket Languages (software).

[edit] Criticism

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The Pimsleur system teaches little reading and writing, although in fairness that is not its mandate. Some believe that a gradual understanding of word etymologies and how words are related to each other (which is facilitated by literacy) is key in developing beyond the beginner level in a language.^{[citation needed]} One might have difficulty in responding to any variation of the phrases taught.

The Pimsleur method never explicitly teaches grammar, instead relying on students picking up the grammar by recognizing patterns in large numbers of sentences. Some critics believe this leads to a weaker understanding of grammar, and therefore, it may be difficult to comprehend sentence structures that were not encountered in Pimsleur. Although children acquire their native languages this way, they have much more exposure to the language than 60 audio tapes/CDs provide.

Some of the Simon & Schuster Pimsleur courses are also a little out of date with currencies; for example, some of the European languages available for purchase still use the old currencies and not the euro. However the courses are being updated and the euro is now standard in most of the EU languages.