Grammar Book versus Online Learning

Grammar book versus online course:  Pickett and Black’s Gramática Popular del Zapoteco del Istmo (http://www-01.sil.org/mexico/zapoteca/istmo/G023b-GramaticaZapIstmo-zai.pdf) has become my primary language-learning resource since completing the Memrise course.  I regret that I did not use this resource much earlier on.  (As I mentioned earlier, I delayed using this source because I wanted a printed version of the 135 page electronic book, but did not want to print that many pages.  One might say to just print what you need, but I felt that I would need all of it and wanted to be able to make notes on the pages and use tags to mark the material that I thought I might reference frequently.)  Memrise inadvertently became my daily language-learning source.  It was easy to be drawn in to because it is fun, visual and auditory, and gives instant feedback and learning gratification.  It was also easy to develop a habit of doing daily because it did not require any preparation and I never had to be in the ‘mood’ to do it.  In fact, I often used it to get me in the mood for language study.  The grammar book, however, (obviously) has a much more thorough description of the grammar, also in an easy to follow way.  The book has a lot of IZ vocabulary that I can add to my word bank, and I can observe many of these words used in example sentences.  Some of the grammar examples use colloquial expressions that expose the reader to everyday spoken language.  I am not going to go into all the details of what I have learned through this resource now, but one of the most interesting language features I learned was the number system.  After 1 through 10, numbers are added or multiplied to equate the desired amount.  This method of expressing numbers seems to me like verbalizing large numbers in this language developed in later times.  In summary, I believe I would be further along in my language learning today if I had incorporated reading this book in addition to using Memrise.  I am already comparing grammatical features that I have learned in both for consistency, which is another great way to learn through verification.  Sometimes I think that I have found a mistake in the grammar book based on what I learned in Memrise; but after consulting my notes, I have found that there are subtle differences in use that make the difference.  Compared with a grammar book, Memrise might seem like it was just fun and games, and perhaps not serious language learning.  On the contrary, the online course was able to offer what a book cannot, which is audio samples of the language, songs, and recited poetry.  The online learning is more interactive and engaging than a book.  But I would not say one is better than the other, just different.       

After thought:  I was just thinking that it may seem to the reader of this blog that it is a contradiction that I will not use an electronic grammar book but will use an online language course daily with no apprehension.  These learning tools in my mind are in different categories of use.  And actually, I may not have mentioned that I have written everything I have learned from Memrise into my notebook so that I can reference it at will.  Typically, I am a book learner and like the tactile control I have over materials on paper.  Materials that I plan to reference while engaged in other learning activities are more convenient for me in print.