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Cartlann
: Eagrán 10 : Leathanach 5
L
É I R M H E A S :
IrishNow! New CD offers a murky introduction
to the Irish language
by
Brian Ó Dubhghaill
A
new interactive CD, developed by the company Transparent Language,
Inc., in conjunction with Bord na Gaeilge, is a multimedia
instructional course for beginners that claims to provide
"a more effective learning experience than books, tapes
and even classroom methods." The product, called IrishNow!,
utilizes a teaching method that relies on a simulated immersion
approach. Video and audio files, together with word puzzles,
vocabulary games and Irish reading selections, instruct the
learner by example and repetition, rather than structured
lessons.
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The
"reading screen" is the primary tool of the
LanguageNow! system. A reading selection, in Irish,
is displayed in the large upper window. Translations
of both full sentances and individual words or phrases
are shown below, with grammatical notes in the lower
right window.
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Unfortunately,
I found the LanguageNow! system to be anything but transparent.
For instance, a button called "Getting Started"
leads to a page explaining that users can choose between one
of two options: the "successful immersion approach"
or the "step-by-step approach." Clicking on the
first option gives you a convoluted and confusing set of directions
for using the features of the "reading screen" The
second option suggests a structured grammatical approach (e.g.,
lessons). In fact, it it is only a longer and more confounding
set of directions on how to use the reading screen and other
features of the program, such as the "Irish Alphabet
Reference" and the "Irish Grammar Basics."
In other words, there's really only one approach: immersion.
The
problems don't stop there. Consider, for example, the first
sentence of the reading selection entitled "Discovering
Ireland":
Tá
sé chontae is fiche i bPoblacht Éireann [sic]
agus sé chontae i dTuaisceart Éireann atá
fós ina pháirt den Ríocht Aontaithe.
IrishNow!
translation:
Twenty-six counties in the south form the Republic of Ireland
and six counties in the north are still a part of the United
Kingdom.
There
problem here is that the translation is only approximate.
A more accurate translation would be "there are twenty-six
counties in the Republic of Ireland and six counties in Northern
Ireland, which is still a part of the United Kingdom."
The translation and recorded reading of "ina pháirt"
is particularly problematic, for the sound file pronounces
it "ina bpáirt" (i.e., with an eclipsing
'b' rather than an aspirated 'p'). The translation for "ina"
(given as "in its") is insufficient to explain to
learners why "ina," referring to "Tuaisceart
Éireann" (masc. sing.), aspirates a following
noun, but in reference to "sé chontae" (plural)
it eclipses the following noun. Even the "Irish Grammar
Basics," essentially a poorly composed grammar book,
does not offer an adequate explanation.
For
beginners who are grappling with the difficult grammatical
and phonetic systems of Irish, oversights and ambiguities
of this sort can only hinder the learning process. The "Irish
Alphabet Reference" doesn't help either. Not only does
it not give a description of the Irish phonetic system, but
the alphabet it provides is nothing more than the 26-character
English alphabet, complete with English pronunciations (e.g.,
a soft "see" and "gee," rather than "kay"
and "gay"). There's no mention in this section of
accent marks, eclipsis, aspiration, or the difference between
broad and slender sounds. (The Grammar Basics provides the
standard, written approximations but without spoken examples.)
As
for merits of the IrishNow! program, the word puzzles and
vocabulary games are useful exercises. The audio features
of the reading selections, despite the problems already mentioned,
are also good practice for intermediate or advanced learners
wanting to perfect their pronunciation or improve their aural
comprehension of the language. However, the "Focal ar
Fhocal" book-and-cassette series published by Raidió
na Gaeltachta provides the same thing, using well-known and
classic literature from the Gaelic tradition rather than Transparent
Language's generic reading selections or the short excerpt
from Frank McCourt's Pulitzer Prize-winning (English) novel
Angeles Ashes.
In
conclusion, this CD falls short of providing a comprehensive
(and comprehensible) introductory course for beginners. Our
advice is to wait and see what Fios Feasa (see pg
4) turns out later this year.
For
more information on IrishNow!, contact Transparent Language
at 1-800-752-1767 or www.transparent.com.
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