report on second-year textbooks and mini-review of the new edition of V puti

[Michael Denner]

Dear SEELANGSers,

 

A quick synopsis of the handful of responses I received regarding a text for second-year Russian. Most instructors out there recommended В пути, which is available in a new edition. Other respondents replied that they used materials cobbled together from various sources. No one expressed much satisfaction with the current choices. 

 

One respondent did point me to a couple of useful web pages that contained brief reviews of the materials that are available for Russian instruction:

 

http://www.slavica.com/teaching/Rifkin.html

http://www.slavica.com/teaching/Robblee.html

 

***

 

Apropos of the new В пути: I taught from the first edition of the book for a couple of years a decade ago as a graduate student at Northwestern, and remember it as awkward in the classroom - it required a lot of re-ordering of material, planning for each day, some things were far too difficult for language level or unworkable in class, etc. But I've continued to use bits and pieces of the book (like, for instance, the chapter Дом, в котором мы живем) where I thought Welcome Back was weak. It also had  very good, concise lists (like verbs that share conjugational patterns, irregular nouns, etc.) and excellent grammar exercises - elements that I have continued to use while teaching Welcome Back. 

 

I ordered the new edition of В пути, and there have been substantial changes that, at least at first glance, are improvements. Though parts of the old edition are incorporated, I don't think it would be unfair to call it a new textbook, not merely a new edition. Whole chapters have been added and deleted. The workbook won't be available until mid-September, but the publisher has made fine copies of it (in Acrobat format) available on the website, so that shouldn't prove too much of a hindrance. It appears that they'll also digitally post the video and audio materials in the coming weeks for students and instructors alike.

 

I've written a review of the new edition - if anyone would like to read it, drop me a line & I'll forward it to you. I'm not a specialist in pedagogy, but I've taught college Russian for a good while, so the review is more of a "from the trenches" analysis.

 

Best,

mad

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Dr. Michael A. Denner
Editor, Tolstoy Studies Journal
Director, University Honors Program

Contact Information:
Russian Studies Program
Stetson University
Campus Box 8361
DeLand, FL 32720-3756
386.822.7381 (department)
386.822.7265 (direct line)
386.822.7380 (fax)
http://www.stetson.edu/~mdenner <http://www.stetson.edu/~mdenner> 

 

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