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Language Learning Resources You can minimise the discomfort of culture shock by preparing yourself for living in your new home. One of the most effective ways of alleviating culture shock and ensuring that you will enjoy your experience teaching overseas from Day One, is to learn the language.
for International Teachers
Rocket Spanish
Do you want to learn to speak Spanish confidently and naturally in less than 3 months?
Rocket Spanish will teach you to speak Spanish naturally in an easy way from beginner through to advanced.
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Rocket German
Do you really want to learn to speak German rapidly, effectively, and easily?
Rocket German as a superb way to learn German quickly... Speak German from the very first lesson!
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You can't underestimate the benefits of being able to communicate with people in their own language. You'll be able to break out of the expatriate community and truly experience the personality of the country that is hosting you...
My own personal experience of the benefits of speaking Thai...
When you buy something at a market in Thailand, you get to bargain the price down. To me, this isn’t just about the money. I love bargaining. I consider it a challenge to get the vendor to come down on his/her asking price. Often in the past I have paid the vendor their original asking price, if it was a reasonable one. I just enjoy the experience of bargaining.
I find it especially rewarding if I can do it in the language of the vendor. Here in Thailand learning to say the numbers in Thai was a priority for me. I can now bargain quite successfully in Thai. When friends come to visit they usually tell me what they want to pay for something and get me to do the bargaining for them, they like the price I get for them and I have some fun with the vendors.
I remember being at a night market looking at some cushion covers that I wanted for my mother. It took me about 15 minutes to bargain the vendor down to my price, she was great fun. She made no allowance for the fact that I didn’t speak very much Thai, I had to guess what she was talking about from her body language. When we had settled on the price, I paid her the original asking price. It was well worth it for the entertainment she’d given me.
On another occasion I went to the floating market with some friends. The driver we'd hired came on the boat with us and said he'd let us know if the price we'd been quoted was a good one or not. His code words were 'it's up to you,' which is what he'd say if he thought the price was too high.
So, armed with the knowledge that our driver would prevent us from paying too much for our purchases, we went on a mini shopping spree. Only, each time I asked, 'what do you think?' he'd tell me to buy it and maybe go into bargaining for a living. I had a great day!!!
Beginning your language learning journey prior to going abroad makes great sense, especially when there are so many opportunities to do so with recent innovations in technology.
Hello! Mandarin
Learn Chinese with video based Mandarin classes over the internet from Chinese teachers based in Beijing.
Read more...Pimsleur Foreign Language CDs
Learn at your own pace, in your own space with high-quality Pimsleur Foreign Language CDs available in over 30 languages.
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Page updated: 20 July 2008 © 2008 KB Information Services Terms of Use