Cambridge University Press Webinar: Getting them to talk in English, January 20

[ELTWeekly Volume 7, Issue 3 | January 19, 2015 | ISSN 0975-3036]

Cambridge University Press team says, “Getting learners to talk in English is one of the most difficult challenges facing the teacher. One of the major reasons for this is that speaking – unlike listening, reading and writing – can only normally take place directly in interaction with an audience, in real time: so if you express yourself badly, hesitate, make mistakes – such failings are immediately exposed to the listener(s). Many learners feel uncomfortable and stressed in such a situation, even within a supportive classroom, and often prefer to keep quiet or use their mother tongue. (more…)

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OUP ELT Article: Factors affecting the success of young L2/FL learners

[ELTWeekly Volume 7, Issue 3 | January 19, 2015 | ISSN 0975-3036]

Victoria Murphy says, “For the past few decades there has been a growing interest in child second language (L2) learning, particularly evidenced by the fact that increasingly around the world children are required to learn a second language in the primary school classroom.  For example, Qiang (2002) reports that as of 2001 English language became a formal taught subject in the Chinese primary curriculum beginning at age 8 (grade 3) in order to increase the English language skills of China’s population.  Similarly in the UK, Modern Foreign Language (MFL) learning has been re-introduced into the English primary curriculum after a long absence.   As of 2014, native English-speaking children at Key Stage 2 (starting at 7 years old) are entitled to learn a MFL.   These two examples illustrate that governments are showing a greater commitment to learning a (second) language during the primary school years.  What has led to this decision?

(more…)

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Wired: A Clever Plan to Teach Schoolkids New Languages With a Free App

[ELTWeekly Volume 7, Issue 3 | January 19, 2015 | ISSN 0975-3036]

Wired magazine has published an article about a free app that helps teaching new languages to kids.

Issie Lapowsky says, “In developing countries like Ethiopia, Malaysia, and Mozambique, the market for English language learning is red hot. These are places where, often, English proficiency is seen as a stepping stone to a better job and a one-way ticket out of poverty. But one major kink in that plan is the fact that in many cases, the English teachers within these countries don’t speak English either. And so, the cycle continues.

But Luis von Ahn believes his app could play a key role in breaking that cycle. Von Ahn is the co-founder of Duolingo, a free language learning app that launched two and a half years ago and has since amassed a whopping 60 million users worldwide. (more…)

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