NICHE CONTENT - LEARN A FOREIGN LANGUAGEWelcome to this set of webpages designed to provide you with comprehensive information and downloads covering the increasingly important subject of Foreign Language Study. Why Learn a Foreign Language I am sure most of us at some stage in our lives have at least once wished we were fluent in a foreign language. At that point, most people start a half-hearted attempt at learning but never really become proficient, while the minority commit themselves and really make it happen. What makes the folks who choose the latter path undertake the countless hour of study, occasional moments of embarrassment, and the uncertainty of success? Here are five reasons to why you should consider learning a foreign language: Number One: Increase your social network Studying a foreign language can provide a link and common interest with others students trying to achieve the same as you. Once you have become proficient in the language, your social network of potential contacts and acquaintances will increase by the thousands or millions as you become able to communicate with a whole new population of people. Number Two: Sense of accomplishment The sense of accomplishment that you will feel upon becoming fluent in a foreign language is directly proportional to how difficult it is to learn. You will undoubtably gain a feeling of self-confidence and satisfaction when you accomplish your challenge. Because learning any language is very demanding both mentally and emotionally, there is possibly not many better feelings than your initial conversation with a native speaker of the language you are studying. Number Three: New avenues for making money Even with the world seemingly getting smaller due to global communications, people still do not speak one language. Being able to speak another language or even better being multilingual, will create a world of opportunities both home and abroad. All types of businesses ranging from banks, technology companies, consulting firms, international trading firms, to educational institutions around the world are always on the look out for and prepared to pay very high salaries to people who are multilingual. Number Four: Expands your consciousness It is a well known phenomina when communicating in an foreign language your awareness somehow changes. As you become more proficient in the language you are studying, your awareness from within that culture will grow. You will be able to see the world in a different light. Number Five: Global Awareness Throughout your studying, you will become more familiar with the culture, history and sociology of the regions or countries of the language you are studying. With the ever increasing environmental issues, international trade and regional conflicts, becoming more globally aware may be an essential part of survival in the 21st century. The reasons for learning a foreign language or becoming multilingual are numerous be it expanding your awareness, giving you a sence of achievement or increasing your value in the marketplace, learning a foreign language may be one of the best investments you can make. So what are the easiest and most efficient ways of learning and where do I find the information required to start to learn and then improve? The following pages provide a range of suitable audio books from the SpokenSelect title range to help you learn your foreign language in simple step by step stages wherever and whenever you want.
From Audio Books To Downloadable Audio Books An audio book is the recording of a person reading aloud the content of a book. These audio books are also known as talking books or spoken books. One of the best definitions of audio books was given by William Swanson in the article "I Hear America Reading": "Audio books are one of those happy marriages of art and convenience loved by frenetic Americans. The idea ... is to enable us to enjoy books - a traditionally solitary and concentration-intensive pastime - while doing something else - mowing the lawn, cruising the interstate - often in the company of others." Audio books have been available for decades, becoming more popular in the 60's as books on tape, and more recently as books on CD. The boom of the Internet technology and high-speed Internet connections made available another breakthrough in the industry: downloadable audio books. Downloadable audio books are also known as digital audio books and that's exactly what they are: digital versions of the audio books. They can be listened to on a computer, on a CD player or on a portable Mp3 player. The best advantage of downloadable audio books, combined with the use of portable Mp3 players is convenience. You can listen to fiction and nonfiction best sellers, how-to books, biographies, children books and so on... while doing boring or repetitive tasks. This way, we can fill the "dead" moments we all have in our lives and increase our knowledge at the same time. In fact, today you can find almost anything you can think of in a digital format, including radio dramas from the first decades of the 20th century. Downloadable audio books are becoming more and more popular these days because they are also cheaper than audio books on tape or CD. And the reason is obvious: you don't need a storage medium. These files can be played on any computer that has Microsoft Windows Media Player (version 9+). Once downloaded, the files can also be transferred to selected portable devices (devices that support Windows Media Player) or burned to a CD, MP3 player or iPod. So if you always say that you don't have time to read, now you're out of excuses. Go get yourself a cheap mp3 player and buy some downloadable audio books, and start enjoying the wonderful world of books ... oh sorry... downloadable audio books... !!
|
