FSI Brazilian Portuguese Fast Course

Portuguese may have originated in Portugal, but due to the country’s exploits during the colonial era, it is now spoken in all corners of the globe by around 220 million native speakers.

A further 50 million people are also thought to speak it as a second language, so with a total of around 270 million speakers, Portuguese is in-arguably a major international language.

The problem for the learner is that the Portuguese of Brazil, the country with by far the largest number of Portuguese speakers, differs significantly from the language spoken in Portugal. Although European and Brazilian Portuguese are the same language, the differences are far more pronounced than between British and American English, for example.

This means if you already speak European Portuguese and are planning to travel to Brazil – or if you are learning Portuguese specifically for South America – you will need to familiarize yourself with that version of the language.

Since Portuguese is such an important language, there is no shortage of resources for learning either version, but if you are looking for a free online Brazilian Portuguese course, this one would be a great place to start.

Course Details

What are FSI FAST courses?

The Foreign Service Institute (FSI) is the arm of the US government charged with providing the necessary training for diplomatic staff preparing for postings abroad. A large part of this involves language instruction, and the mainstay of FSI’s classes are the six-month intensive Basic courses that are designed to give students a solid foundation in their target language.

However, for those unable to commit to a half-year program of study, FSI developed the shorter FAST courses. FAST stands for Familiarization And Short-Term Training, and these courses were intended to give students a more basic grasp of the languages they needed to know, along with an introduction to the culture and customs of the countries where they were being sent.

What is FSI Brazilian Portuguese FAST?

FSI Brazilian Portuguese FAST was first published in the early 1990s and consist of two volumes and a total of 30 lessons. The lessons are based on the kind of situations you are likely to find yourself in while traveling, working or living in Brazil, and they teach you the language you will need to deal with those situations confidently.

The goal of the course is not complete mastery of the language and its grammatical structures but rather to leave you ready to get by with the Brazilian Portuguese you have picked up. At the same time, each lesson introduces different aspects of Brazilian culture to help you understand the country better before you arrive.

How can you use FSI Brazilian Portuguese FAST?

Although the FSI Brazilian Portuguese FAST course was intended to be used with an instructor, these materials can still be of great benefit to anyone studying the language. You can simply work through the coursebook, listening to the dialogs and using the drills for practice, adapting everything to your needs and learning style as you see fit.

This course could be studied alone, but you will probably find it most useful if you use it alongside another, possibly slightly more modern, Brazilian Portuguese coursebook

Taking it further

Volume 1

Student Text

Unit	Audio
Lesson 01	Tape 1 · Tape 2
Lesson 02	Tape
Lesson 03	Tape
Lesson 04	Tape
Lesson 05	Tape
Lesson 06	Tape 1 · Tape 2
Lesson 07	Tape
Lesson 08	Tape
Lesson 09	Tape
Lesson 10	Tape
Lesson 11	Tape
Lesson 12	Tape

Volume 2

Student Text

Unit	Audio
Lesson 13	Tape
Lesson 14	Tape
Lesson 15	Tape 1 · Tape 2
Lesson 16	Tape
Lesson 17	Tape
Lesson 18	Tape
Lesson 19	Tape 1 · Tape 2
Lesson 20	Tape
Lesson 21	Tape
Lesson 22	Tape
Lesson 23	Tape
Lesson 24	Tape
Lesson 25	Tape
Lesson 26	Tape
Lesson 27	Tape
Lesson 28	Tape
Lesson 29	Tape
Lesson 30	Tape