Personalize your Language Learning with Mango Languages
Channel: University of Alabama Libraries
Date: 2020-04-08

A walkthrough of account set up and an introduction to the features of Mango Languages, a highly-customizable language learning program available to UA students and faculty via the University of Alabama Libraries. 



The University of Alabama Libraries Home: https://libraries.ua.edu
Contact the Librarian for Linguistics, Modern, and Critical Languages: https://tinyurl.com/LangLibUA


Transcript: 

Hi my name is Russel, I'm a librarian at the University of Alabama. 
This video will show you how to start using Mango Languages. 

Specifically, you will learn 

1. How to Set Up An Account, 

2. How to Navigate the Courses, 

3. How to use the My Activity feature
4. How to use Mango to accomplish your language-learning goals. 
So what is Mango? Mango Languages is an online program that contains that contains courses for over 70 languages, from German and Portuguese to Pashto and Korean. It provides interactive tools for learning vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar all within a culturally-responsive framework. Now let's start by opening Mango. 

On the libraries' homepage - libraries.ua.edu - select the Databases link from the Quick Menu, locate Mango Languages under M on the A to Z List. When you click on Mango, a login screen appears where you can either enter as a guest or you can log in to your personal account. Because I want Mango to remember my language progress, I'm going to log in to my account. If you do not already have an account, select "Sign Up." Mango will ask you what language you want to learn. If you're unsure of your decision, you can always pick other language courses after you create your account. Enter your name, email address, and a customized password and you're all set. 

Now when you log in to Mango, the first thing you see are groups of lessons in your target language. All lessons are organized into themed chapters and each chapter belongs to a certain unit. Let's say you had a personal goal to learn basic Italian so you could navigate an airport. You can scroll through the different chapters until you find one that matches your criteria. 

After selecting a chapter you can pick whichever lesson you want in whatever order, they each have the same conversational and grammatical goals. You can take a sneak peek at these goals before embarking on the lessons. We can see here that this chapter DOES introduce vocabulary and conversational topics about airports, but it also goes over advanced grammar topics as well. With this feature, you can make a decision on whether a particular chapter is above or below your current language proficiency level. If you're not confident about your language skills, you can scroll back up to the earlier chapters. 

Let's navigate through a lesson. Each lesson focuses on a specific conversation. Mango breaks down these conversations so that you have a chance to practice vocabulary and learn the pronunciation and grammar tips. In addition, you can toggle through the lesson as quickly or as slowly as you like. There is no mandated time limit. Depending on your language goals, you may be more focused on learning a specific concept or developing reading or listening proficiencies, rather than completing an entire unit or course. Because there are no mandatory requirements, you can do just that. Mango gives you that flexibility to self-direct your language learning however you want. Another important feature to know about is "My Activity." This is where Mango has stored all of the data about the courses you have taken, what unit, chapter, or lesson you have completed, how much time you spent on that lesson, and the date and time that lesson was started. It also keeps track of your scores from placement tests and chapter quizzes. By checking these assessment logs, you can see what aspects of your language learning need to be improved. It's a great tool for keeping yourself accountable to your language learning goals. 

That's all for now, thanks for watching. If you have further questions on using Mango you can email me at RTPeterson1@ua.edu, or visit ask.lib.ua.edu to Ask A Librarian.