Rocket French Reviewer's Comments

Rocket French is a little different than many of the programs in this review. Rocket French is based almost entirely on an audio course instead of using interactive software. While Rocket French does include a few flashcard software programs, they are only for practicing what you’ve learned and creating a picture-word association for your vocabulary.

As an audio course, Rocket French is a pretty good way to learn French. The reason it ranks so low is that Rocket French doesn’t take advantage of the benefits of interactive software has on learning a language. It is also pretty expensive for an audio course.

Rocket French Screenshots. Click for more
       


Features:  

Since Rocket French is based on audio lessons, there isn’t much in the way of progress tracking or personalized learning paths, although the flashcard programs do keep track of correct answers. The real advantage of Rocket French is portability. It can be used on a mobile device or an MP3 player, making it possible to learn French anywhere. The Rocket Languages website also has some great content to supplement your study of French.

Fundamentals:  

While the audio course itself can only help with pronunciation, vocabulary and listening comprehension, the flashcard programs can help with reading and grammar. One of the programs MegaVerbs is great for practicing verb conjugations.

Ease of Use:  

Rocket French is easy to use because you simply sit back and listen. The flashcard programs are also simple and easy to use, although it’s a little bothersome to have to switch back and forth between them.

Teaching Tools:  

The majority of teaching in Rocket French is done through audio. However, the flashcards are useful word recognition activities because they can help you create a picture-word association and improve your vocabulary. There aren’t really any other teaching tools in Rocket French, though the audio course and the resources on the Rocket French website have informative culture lessons.

The most obvious problem with Rocket French is the lack of speech recognition to help with pronunciation.

Word Tools:  

Rocket French includes e-books that contain French texts and dictionaries. It also comes with other flashcards that you can print out and use manually.

Tech Support/Help:  

Rocket French is backed up by good customer support. Email support is both prompt and helpful, while you can also find a lot of important information in the user manual and the FAQ.

Summary:  

Rocket French is a good audio course with a lot of good texts, but it’s not a good choice if you want speech recognition and an interactive environment in which to learn French.