Reviews

With a steady stream of relevant dialogues, a series of pithy passages of reading material, glimpses of Persian culture and literature, and plenty of engaging exercises, all creatively conceptualized and methodically presented, Persian in Use is bound to find a prominent place in the increasingly professionalized field of Persian language pedagogy. 

Dr. Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak, Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, University of Maryland

To be forthright, teaching Persian as a second language is still far from an established field. Among the impediments to creating the field’s foundation is the lack of a continuous production of varied textbooks for the instruction of this language. Anousha Sedighi’s Persian in Use with its fresh approach, tasteful design, and engaging methodology is a welcome publication in response to this perpetual need. The book indeed is designed to improve students’ language and cultural fluency, delightfully and systematically. 

Dr. Kamran Talattof, Professor of Near Eastern Studies, University of Arizona

Persian in Use has outstanding features that make it not only suitable, but timely for publication as a valuable Persian textbook. It is visually pleasant and has a very learner-friendly layout. Another highlight is the inclusion of an excellent alphabet guide clearly developed by a linguist with an understanding of the best way to approach orthography and phonetics in a concise and easy to follow manner. The challenge of teaching spoken and written Persian simultaneously is addressed successfully. Informed by ACTFL proficiency guidelines, the book offers the most common situations, themes, and functions that beginner and low intermediate language learners are typically expected to be familiar with. One of the great features of Persian in Use is the “Common Mistake” notes included in each lesson. All of these are clearly based on teaching experience and they resonate with both teachers and learners of this level of Persian in terms of sequence and frequency of occurrence.

Dr. Nahal Akbari, Director of the Persian Language Program, Roshan Institute for Persian Studies, University of Maryland

Persian in Use has been adopted as part of the first-year curriculum at the following institutions:

United States:

Georgetown University, George Washington University, George Mason University, University of Maryland, University of Virginia, Johns Hopkins University, James Madison University, American University, Emory University, Brown University, Indiana University-Bloomington,  University of Oklahoma, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, University of Kansas, University of California-Los Angeles, University of California-Berkley, University of California-Davis, University of California-Santa Barbara, University of California-Santa Cruz, University of California-Irvine, Ohio State University, Michigan State University, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Indiana State University, Portland State University, San Francisco State University, Arizona State University, University of Connecticut, Santa Monica College, West Point Academy, Orange County High School

Netherlands:

Leiden University, Utrecht University

Italy:

Sapienza University of Rome

Germany:

University of Bamberg

Norway:

University of Oslo

Canada:

York University