Glossika Language Program Review: Learning Korean Online
Do you want to learn Korean? There are some great programs to learn Korean online out there and Glossika is one of them. Whether you’re planning to visit Korea or just want to understand those Korean dramas you’re watching better, learning Korean is a good idea.
When trying to learn Korean or any new language, it’s important to focus on listening and speaking just as much as reading and writing. There are a lot of programs and websites that will help you with memorizing vocabulary and learning grammar, but fewer that focus on listening and speaking. Glossika is one really good website to practice your listening skills. Check out my Glossika review to learn more.
Are you ready to learn Korean online?
- What is Glossika?
- Glossika’s Learning Flow
- Features of Glossika
- How much does Glossika cost?
- My Review
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What is Glossika?
Glossika is a website and an iPhone app (an android app is in the works) that uses flashcards to help one learn new sentences. Features include native audio and a recording button for comparison, along with level tests. They have Korean along with 60+ other languages. Although not free, there is a free trial and a discount for students so you can try it out first and see if you like it.
Glossika’s Learning Flow
Glossika has two modes for learning new materials: full-practice (includes typing, dictation, listening, recall, and recording exercises) and listening-only (includes listening and recording). Glossika also has a review mode which allows you to repeat the items you’ve already learned.
In general, they recommend using full-practice mode to learn new items and also to do at least one review session each day before learning new sentences. If you’re commuting or exercising, they recommend switching to listening-only mode.
Features of Glossika
Full Sentence Flashcards
Most language-learning programs have flashcards where you memorize a single word at a time. I’m sure you remember that from your days in primary school. Glossika takes a different approach by having you memorize and recall full sentences. This is especially helpful for travel when you need to learn how to say necessary and emergency phrases.
You hear the phrase in English, then in Korean, and then you record and type the sentence out. Writing and speaking at the same time help to form a connection in your brain between the sounds and what they mean.
Native Speaker/Recording Comparison
Another benefit of Glossika which doesn’t exist in other places is that you have the ability to record your pronunciation during a practice session. I hope you like the sound of your own voice. Later, on the dashboard, you can compare your recording to the audio. This helps you improve your pronunciation to sound more like a native speaker.
Spaced Repetition
Much like other flashcard sites, Glossika uses a method called “spaced repetition” to determine when you should review old terms. Basically, there’s an algorithm that will wait until it thinks you’re just about to forget a term to introduce it again to see how well you remember it.
If you remember, the time until you see it again will get longer. If you forget it, you’ll see it the next day, and the time will start over. On Glossika’s dashboard, you can see the strength of each term and decide if you want to review it yourself, even if the program doesn’t think you need to yet.
Advanced Topics
Glossika gives you the ability to choose which topics you want to study. Most of them are on by default, but you can shut off the ones you aren’t interested in. If you’re like me and don’t want to learn about electrical engineering, you can disable it. If you’re going to Korea for business, it might be helpful to keep all the business topics on, and so forth. You can decide though.
Sentence Mining
Sentence mining focuses on entire sentences, rather than individual words and their definitions. By doing a large number of sentences on Glossika, you start to identify the patterns in the sentences by yourself, eventually figuring out which words are which and what grammar points do what. However, this cannot occur with a small number of sentences: it requires a massive amount of them. This process and the experience of discovering a language will make new information remain in your physical memory for much longer.
Lots of Languages
When you subscribe to Glossika, notice that you aren’t just getting access to the Korean part of the program. They actually have 64 languages to choose from. They even have some languages for free that are endangered, like Welsh and Wenzhounese.
How much does Glossika cost?
Glossika has a 7-day free trial when you first make an account. After that, it’s $30.99 a month, or they have an annual plan for $299 a year. They also have a student plan for more than half that at $13.95 per month.
My Review
So far in my Korean learning journey, I haven’t had a lot of experience with listening and speaking. I visited Korea thinking I was confident with just my book learning, and it didn’t work out well for me. There are a lot of great books for studying Korean out there, but it is definitely important to supplement book study with programs like Glossika.
I wish I had known about Glossika before I went so I could have worked on my listening skills. With Glossika, it’s been a lot of fun to learn new sentences and how to say them. I definitely think Glossika is a good program for someone who already knows a little Korean vocabulary and grammar which is exactly why I think it’s a great supplement to my book study. I would have been really confused using this when I was a complete beginner I think though.
As a college student, I appreciate that there is a student discount that’s 55% off. Glossika feels like it would be really effective if you use it for an extended time. It’s a great program, and a unique way to learn a new language. I think this is a great option for learning Korean online if you’re looking for a program.
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