Superlearning: Maximize Your Memory

Rating:
Summary: Don't be taken in!
Review: Before reading this review I will give you some idea of my background so you can judge my review on the basis of my experience. I am a multilingual language teacher and writer with a keen interest in accelerated learning techniques, and have been such for several years. I first became interested in Superlearning several years ago as a possible method for increaing both my own language learning rate, which is considerable, and that of my students. Superleaning looked like something really new and innovative, and, having read the original Superlearning book, I decided to buy several Superlearning products from their website, including the audio course, special learning cassettes and a language course produced by the authors and based on the exact procedures laid out in their books. I wanted to be sure I was doing it properly. I also wish to point out that the products are not cheap by any means, well, not in price anyway. In terms of quality of the materials, recording and presentatiom, I have never encountered anything so cheap and shoddy!

Five years later, and after even more extensive research and experimentation with the system, both personally and in my classes, I can only say that almost all of this system is a sham. It doesn't work. I used a language course produce by them, and found no benefit whatsoever in it. The only benefit I got was to use the course, which I would also like to point out is nothing more than 3 tapes and a very thin and cheaply produced pamphlet of words and phrases and, on occasion the recording did not match the transcript, was to use the tapes without the highly distracting breathing exercises and do it the old-fashioned way. I made my own tapes too, as per the instructiosn in the course, which was a vastly time-consuming process, and had the same lack of result as the "professionally" produced languages tapes by the authors themselves!

There is no doubt that proper relaxation, relaxed breathing, positive suggestions and classical music can have varying degrees of benefit on the students, but the method you will find in ALL the books and programmes produced by Superlearning leaves a great deal to be desired!

I was interested by another reviewer's reference to a researcher from Monash univerity and her work into Lozanov and Superlearning. As I don't think a text link is allowed ina review, you might like to do a web search for "The personal website of Uschi Felix" at Monash University for a lot more information about Superleaning and the validity of some of the claims made before you are tempted to part with your hard earned and get a disappointment.

Having tried to contact Superlearning with questions and complaints, I can only attribute the lack of service and, indeed, acknowledgement I encountered to the fact that they must get a lot of commenst from some very dissatisfied people! I urge you not to buy into this scam. You are being taken for a ride.

To those reviewers who are getting so excited by the promises in the Superlearning products, all I can say is try it and see. Remember - I was just like you a few years ago!