If you want to learn Thai, have no previous knowledge of the language, and decide that speaking is the way to go forward, then you might want to consider using the audio and book combination. Spoken World Thai might be for you.
If you have absolutely no knowledge of a language, but decide you want to learn it, then it can be a little tricky to know where to start. Do you focus on reading and writing, speaking, or grammar? There’s no right answer and a lot of variables can impact your decision. But, if you want to learn Thai, have no previous knowledge of the language, and decide that speaking is the way to go forward, then you might want to consider using the audio and book combination. Spoken World Thai might be for you.
The book does provide some basic writing skills by introducing the Thai alphabet at the beginning. The book also gives writing instruction so as to help you learn how to write each letter correctly. But it is important to remember the main point of the book is to learn how to speak.
"As a teacher, you can have your student listen to the audio sections at home and then try to recreate the dialogue. You can also try to build off of each dialogue, using the key phrases and vocabulary learned in other situations and conversations."
The book and audio offer dialogues by chapter. Each dialogue is presented to the student in Thai script followed by Romanized Thai and English. After the audio and dialogue, the student is given comprehension questions to see how much they understood. The questions are mostly multiple choice or yes/no. Then, the student is presented with a list of vocabulary words, key phrases, and a cultural topic. The cultural topic is usually related to the use of language. For example, it may be about the level of politeness of speech to use in certain situations or various forms of greeting.
After the cultural topic, there is a short reading section. This reading section is presented in Thai, Romanized Thai, and English. Then, there are some more exercises which are fill in the blank. Later in the book, these exercises are all in written Thai, which makes it complicated or impossible unless you have focused on learning how to read on your own.
Following the exercises is an “Independent Challenge” which gives you something of a “homework assignment” such as telling you to write a journal, practice the consonants, or drawing your family tree. The book and audio set is pretty well-rounded, offering the student a number of different things to focus on and practice, while still keeping spoken Thai as the focus.
The issue of grammar is largely neglected, but other than that the set fulfills most of the major points of studying a language. Though Spoken World Thai is intended for independent students, it can also be used by a classroom teacher or tutor. As a teacher, you can have your student listen to the audio sections at home and then try to recreate the dialogue. You can also try to build off of each dialogue, using the key phrases and vocabulary learned in other situations and conversations. Overall, this audio and book set is a good place to start learning Thai – and it comes at a reasonable price.
