If you are studying a language, it’s likely you will need to know what the next step is when you complete you course. Given that there are many different methods of learning, it seems useful to compile the handy reference table below of how some of the more common courses relate to each. Luckily there is a benchmark that most of the courses share and reference to allow this comparison, called the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) although it’s nice to have it all in once place.
| CEFR | ACTFL * | UK Exams | Language Ladder |
National Curriculum |
NQF | Goethe Institut |
Rosetta Stone TotalE V4 |
Berlitz Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Novice (Low/Medium/High) | Breakthrough 1-3 | Stage 1-3 | Entry Level | Start Deutsch 1 | Level 1 | Level 1 | |
| A2 | Intermediate (Low/Medium) | Foundation GCSE | Preliminary 4-6 | Stage 4–6 | Level 1 | Start Deutsch 2 | Level 2 | Level 2-4 |
| B1 | Intermediate (High) | Higher GCSE | Intermediate 7-9 | Stage 7-EP | Level 2 | Zertificat Deutsch | Level 3-5 | Level 5-7 |
| B2 | Advanced (Low/Medium/High) | AS/A/AEA Level | Advanced 10-12 | - | Level 3 | Zertificat B2 / TestDaF / Zertificat Deutsch für den Beruf |
- | Level 8-9 |
| C1 | Superior | BA Hons | Proficient 13-15 | - | Level 4-6 | Goethe Zertificat C1 / TestDaF / Prüfung Wirtschaftsdeutsch |
- | Level 10 |
| C2 | Distinguished | Masters/Doctorate | Mastery 16-17 | - | Level 7-8 | Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom | - | Level 10 |
* ACTFL is the American Council for the Teaching of Foreign Languages Proficiency Guides
Sources
Wikipedia
The National Centre for Languages
Goethe Institut
Rosetta Stone
Berlitz
To answer the original question, specifically in relation to Rosetta Stone, i found the following information on their UK website.
Rosetta Stone and the Common European Framework for Languages (CEFR)
The content and design of Rosetta Course™ Levels 1 and 2 provide the setting for learners to produce most of the skills associated with the CEFR A1 and A2 designations.
At the completion of Level 5 of Rosetta Course™, learners have been exposed to a variety of content that should enable them to reach into, but not necessarily master, the B1 level of proficiency. With further exposure to new grammatical forms and vocabulary, learners should become more comfortable being exposed to media, ad hoc conversations, and interpersonal correspondence in their language of study
Hi
I am from bolivia and a keen learner of foreign languages. I would like to know more about rosetta stone and its effectiveness while learning. specially the cases of German and Japanese.
Thanks and best regards.
Hello Pablo
Rosetta stone is good because more than just the lessons on the DVD, they want you to practice speaking, listening and understanding the language.
For German, it is so far the most effective i have found although i have had to pause my learning as i am now working in Sweden for a period of time.
For Japanese, the Rosetta Stone system will be the same but there is one major difference which is that you may need to separate the written language from the spoken language, much the same as with Chinese. If your key aim is to be able to talk to people, focus on the spoken language first and then learn the writing separately as to do both together may be more difficult and you may make better progress by concentrating on one aspect first. I can only vouch for my experience of learning Mandarin Chinese here and others may have a different opinion.
One nice feature of Rosetta stone is the RWorld.com website where you can register for free and try to find someone who is learning your native language and who speaks your target language – this way you can participate in some games where you both get to learn from that language. You dont need to buy the CD to make use if this free resource but Rosetta Stone do arrange group days and you will only find out when these are if you are a registered user. Likely that you can also find people on some other language forums so you can arrange a time to participate.
Another feature of Rosetta Stone is a number of lessons over the internet at the end of each section where you can spend about 45 minutes talking to a teacher about the material you have just learned. They guide you and only use vocabulary you have covered but this is very helpful in ensuring feedback on each section before you proceed – this is the kind of feedback you dont get from just using a book or even in a classroom situation where there are a large number of students. The sessions are not 1-to-1 if there are several that book the same timeslot but for the ones i took, i was the only student. This works out much more cost effective than private tuition or total immersion courses like Berlitz as you are only paying for the teacher’s time when you are ready for it and spending the interim time working through the material.
Hope that helps but if you or anyone else has any questions, feel free to ask.