[nabs-l] Foreign language

[Ben J. Bloomgren]

Jason,

Do you know anyone with whom you can speak Spanish daily or as close to 
daily as possible? You and your girlfriend can take as many courses as there 
are ants, and you won't get far sans native intuitions. I've had a passion 
for languages since middle school, so coming in from scratch at college is 
totally beyond foreign to me. Remember that if you don't use it, you shall 
lose it! If you know someone who speaks Farsi, learn Farsi. Believe me, it's 
easier just to take Spanish and try to hack through it with a book and a 
teacher, but native speakers will be able to give you wise council on what 
you're saying. I'm very passionate about this, so please forgive me if I 
sound preachy. I have known too many unsuspecting people who've been thrown 
into the grinder of our education system, and they can't speak the language 
even after ten years of courses throughout their education.

Sincerely,

Ben Bloomgren


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jason Mandarino" <blind.subscriber at gmail.com>
To: "'National Association of Blind Students mailing list'" 
<nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Monday, March 30, 2009 09:03
Subject: [nabs-l] Foreign language


>
> I am curious if any blind students have learned a second language in
> college, with no previous experience of middle school or high school
> courses. I am interested in learning Spanish, and would like some
> suggestions on how to do this from scratch. I have contemplated the idea 
> of
> having my girlfriend take an entry course, as she is also interested, and
> meanwhile auditing the course in order to get a feel of what it will be
> like.
>
> There is also the topic of Spanish Braille, and then additional resources 
> of
> tutoring and audio materials. I would love any feed back you guys might
> have, and if necessary you can feel free to reply to the following address
> and I can post a digest version of the responses if it gets too cluttered.
>
> j.mandarino1 at comcast.net
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Mandarino
>
>
>
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