The first portion of the Book of Devarim (Deuteronomy) introduces us to Moshe's plan of providing an educational background for the new generation of Israelites, who on the one hand will enter the Promised Land but on the other hand did not have the personal witness of leaving Egypt and receiving the Torah at Sinai.  As he prepares to offer a summary of the journey to this point, we note the narrator's description of Moshe's bearings:  On the other side of the Jordan, in the land of Moab, Moses undertook to expound this teaching … (1:5)

According to the Sefat Emet, Moses  interpreted the Torah in many languages, so that future generations of Jews in many lands would have access to the Torah in a language and in terms that they could understand.

It is interesting to see how Onkelos the Proselyte, in his Aramaic translation, adds an interesting inflection to the object of Moshe's endeavor:  “On this side Jordan in the land of Moab began Mosheh to explain the doctrine of this law.” The word used in Aramaic for doctrine is ūlpān (אולפן), from Mishnaic Aramaic (bēth) ūlpānā (house) of study, from Aramaic root alaph to teach, train

The word ulpan is used in modern the modern State of Israel as the name of an institute or school for the intensive study of Hebrew. Its inferred, literal meaning in Hebrew is “studio” or “teaching, instruction.” The ulpan model is designed to teach adult immigrants to Israel the basic language skills of conversation, writing and comprehension. Most ulpanim also provide instruction in the fundamentals of Israeli culture, history, and geography. The primary purpose of the ulpan is to help new citizens to be integrated as quickly and as easily as possible into the social, cultural and economic life of their new country.

As we connect Moshe's acculturation plan with the aims of the modern ulpan, we get a potent glimpse of the task at hand:  it was incumbent upon the people's leader to bring them up to speed on all of the important details, values, and procedures that would be necessary in their forthcoming expedition, and it required a powerful, pungent format.  In order to get it right, he employed rhetoric, testimony, and (most of all) love.