LRC How-To: Smart.fm
Background:
Smart.fm is one of many "Web 2.0" websites focusing on vocabulary study, especially for languages. It was originally developed in Japan for learners of English and Japanese, so it has a lot of built-in features that are helpful for Japanese and Chinese study (like stroke diagrams, options for kana vs. kanji, etc.). Now it is available for any language. When you practice vocabulary with Smart.fm, it uses a "spaced repetition" algorithm, which is based on research about how the human brain functions: when you study a vocab list in one sitting, you will experience a sharp "forgetting curve." In other words, you "know" all the words tonight, but when it's time for the quiz in class the next morning, you have forgotten a majority of them. In order to firmly affix them in your long-term memory, you need to study the words again and again over a period of time. Smart.fm is not the only site offering a spaced repetition algorithm; some of the features that set it apart from similar sites are the Dictation study application, and the ease with which you can search for and re-use content from other users, include words, definitions, images, audio, and sentences.
Getting Started:
You can visit Smart.fm and search for a list, or you can study one of the lists that the LRC has provided to accompany your language course. The LRC lists are linked from the LRC resources page for your language, or at Smart.fm, you can search users for "mhc_lrc" to see all of our lists. (Note: if the LRC hasn't developed any lists for your course, but you wish we would, please let us know. We'd be glad to work with your professor to create lists to match your textbook, vocab quizzes, etc.)
When you are on a list page that you'd like to study, just click on the "Start" menu towards the right of the screen:
You'll see two or three options (depending on the list type): iKnow (vocabulary study), Dictation (listen and type sentences), and BrainSpeed (fast-paced vocab recognition game).
Here are introductions to each of the Smart.fm applications:
If you choose "iKnow" from the Start menu, a separate window will open with the iKnow application. You can choose to study either 5 items or 10 items during this study session.
For Japanese language learners, when you first start to study a new list, you'll see a screen like this, which gives you an important choice of study mode. When you are starting to learn hiragana/katakana, you should choose "Kana Mode," or if you're not even ready to learn the kana, then choose "Romaji Mode." Later on, you can change your settings to "Kanji Focus" or "Full Mode," so that you're getting practice with the kanji at the same time that you're drilling vocabulary.
When you click the "Start" button, your iKnow study session will begin with a preview of the vocabulary you're going to study. In this preview list, you can click on each one to see and hear it before you start studying.
In order to take full advantage of the spaced-repetition algorithm that helps you review items you've studied over time to successfully retain the vocab in your long-term memory, you need to sign up for an account at Smart.fm.
You can either create a new username and password with Smart.fm, or you can use a log-in that you already have (works with Yahoo, Google, OpenID, Twitter, and Facebook). To use one of those accounts to log in to Smart.fm, just click on the corresponding link on to the right of the log-in box.
Another big advantage of logging in to study is that you can change the iKnow settings to "Goal Mode." This lets you set a target date for when you need to learn the items (say, a week before your big test). This option isn't available if you're not logged in.
After you change the settings to "Goal Mode," then you'll be able to select a target date. Just click on your chosen date in the calendar, and then click "Save target date."
With an account, Smart.fm will also track your progress. This may help you to stay motivated in your vocabulary study.
As a Smart.fm users, you can subscribe to lists created by other users (such as lrc.mhc), you can create your own lists, or you can start from someone else's list, copy the items to your own new list, and then revise them to your liking.
Smart.fm promises that a fully-featured iPhone app will be coming soon!
If you have any questions about or trouble with Smart.fm, don't hesitate to stop in the LRC for help. You can also find a lot of answers online:
Podcast of Your iKnow Vocabulary:
Another feature that you can take advantage of after creating a Smart.fm account is the ability to download the words you've just studied to your mp3 player in podcast format. Oddly, your podcast settings are not located in your user profile. Instead, you go to the Podcast information page to set up your podcast. (You can find it by scrolling to the very bottom of any Smart.fm page, under the Apps heading:)
The podcast page includes an explanation of what to do, but here's the summary version. Scroll to the bottom of the page, to where you see "iKnow Podcast Settings." Click the checkbox under Step 1, which is labeled "Activate iKnow! Podcasting." (Note: if it says "Your iKnow podcast is already enabled," then you can go on to the next step.)
Then, click on the link under Step 2, which says "Learn more about subscribing to your podcast here." This page gives you step-by-step instructions for subscribing to your podcast in iTunes. (Note: you could also use another podcast software of your choice to subscribe; the process would be similar.) Even quicker than following those instructions, you can just scroll to the bottom of the page and you'll find a button to automatically open iTunes and subscribe to your podcast:
