Download or read book Achieving Native like Second language Proficiency Speaking written by Betty Lou Leaver and published by Msi Press. This book was released on 2003 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is the first in a planned series (speaking, reading, listening, and writing) that reports on a research project to discover what the critical factors are for reaching near-native levels of second language proficiency, based on in-depth interviews with individuals who have formally tested at those levels.
Download or read book Becoming Fluent written by Richard Roberts and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2017-02-03 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Forget everything you’ve heard about adult language learning: evidence from cognitive science and psychology prove we can learn foreign languages just as easily as children. An eye-opening study on how adult learners can master a foreign lanugage by drawing on skills and knowledge honed over a lifetime. Adults who want to learn a foreign language are often discouraged because they believe they cannot acquire a language as easily as children. Once they begin to learn a language, adults may be further discouraged when they find the methods used to teach children don't seem to work for them. What is an adult language learner to do? In this book, Richard Roberts and Roger Kreuz draw on insights from psychology and cognitive science to show that adults can master a foreign language if they bring to bear the skills and knowledge they have honed over a lifetime. Adults shouldn't try to learn as children do; they should learn like adults. Roberts and Kreuz report evidence that adults can learn new languages even more easily than children. Children appear to have only two advantages over adults in learning a language: they acquire a native accent more easily, and they do not suffer from self-defeating anxiety about learning a language. Adults, on the other hand, have the greater advantages—gained from experience—of an understanding of their own mental processes and knowing how to use language to do things. Adults have an especially advantageous grasp of pragmatics, the social use of language, and Roberts and Kreuz show how to leverage this metalinguistic ability in learning a new language. Learning a language takes effort. But if adult learners apply the tools acquired over a lifetime, it can be enjoyable and rewarding.
Download or read book How to Improve Your Foreign Language Immediately written by Boris Shekhtman and published by M S I Press. This book was released on 2003 with total page 104 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a unique set of tools designed to enhance an individual's success in communicati0n in a foreign language environment. The devices presented allow the speaker of a foreign language to demonstrate the level of his/her language more impressively. These techniques were developed and tested by the author with adult professionals in such varied fields as journalism, diplomacy, government, and international business.
Download or read book The Way of the Linguist written by Steve Kaufmann and published by AuthorHouse. This book was released on 2005-11 with total page 142 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Way of The Linguist, A language learning odyssey. It is now a cliché that the world is a smaller place. We think nothing of jumping on a plane to travel to another country or continent. The most exotic locations are now destinations for mass tourism. Small business people are dealing across frontiers and language barriers like never before. The Internet brings different languages and cultures to our finger-tips. English, the hybrid language of an island at the western extremity of Europe seems to have an unrivalled position as an international medium of communication. But historically periods of cultural and economic domination have never lasted forever. Do we not lose something by relying on the wide spread use of English rather than discovering other languages and cultures? As citizens of this shrunken world, would we not be better off if we were able to speak a few languages other than our own? The answer is obviously yes. Certainly Steve Kaufmann thinks so, and in his busy life as a diplomat and businessman he managed to learn to speak nine languages fluently and observe first hand some of the dominant cultures of Europe and Asia. Why do not more people do the same? In his book The Way of The Linguist, A language learning odyssey, Steve offers some answers. Steve feels anyone can learn a language if they want to. He points out some of the obstacles that hold people back. Drawing on his adventures in Europe and Asia, as a student and businessman, he describes the rewards that come from knowing languages. He relates his evolution as a language learner, abroad and back in his native Canada and explains the kind of attitude that will enable others to achieve second language fluency. Many people have taken on the challenge of language learning but have been frustrated by their lack of success. This book offers detailed advice on the kind of study practices that will achieve language breakthroughs. Steve has developed a language learning system available online at: www.thelinguist.com.
Download or read book Fluent Forever written by Gabriel Wyner and published by Harmony. This book was released on 2014-08-05 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NATIONAL BESTSELLER • For anyone who wants to learn a foreign language, this is the method that will finally make the words stick. “A brilliant and thoroughly modern guide to learning new languages.”—Gary Marcus, cognitive psychologist and author of the New York Times bestseller Guitar Zero At thirty years old, Gabriel Wyner speaks six languages fluently. He didn’t learn them in school—who does? Rather, he learned them in the past few years, working on his own and practicing on the subway, using simple techniques and free online resources—and here he wants to show others what he’s discovered. Starting with pronunciation, you’ll learn how to rewire your ears and turn foreign sounds into familiar sounds. You’ll retrain your tongue to produce those sounds accurately, using tricks from opera singers and actors. Next, you’ll begin to tackle words, and connect sounds and spellings to imagery rather than translations, which will enable you to think in a foreign language. And with the help of sophisticated spaced-repetition techniques, you’ll be able to memorize hundreds of words a month in minutes every day. This is brain hacking at its most exciting, taking what we know about neuroscience and linguistics and using it to create the most efficient and enjoyable way to learn a foreign language in the spare minutes of your day.
Download or read book Lessons from Exceptional Language Learners Who Have Achieved Nativelike Proficiency written by Zoltán Dörnyei and published by Channel View Publications. This book was released on 2022-10-25 with total page 161 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How do some language learners triumph against all odds, despite not having obvious heritage links or spending extended periods of time in the L2 environment pre-adulthood? This book delves into the autobiographical stories of learners who achieve nativelike proficiency, opening a narrative window into their experiences and offering insights into their pathways to success. The in-depth analysis ties together a wide range of potentially relevant topics, from motivational vision and international posture to issues of identity, endurance and even musical ability, among other themes. The authors explore whether these successes can be repeated by others and the book will be of use to language teachers interested in learner motivation and the antecedents to high-level ultimate attainment. The book will also be of great interest to researchers working in the areas of language learner psychology, especially in topics concerning language learning motivation, identity and narrative inquiry.
Download or read book The Acquisition of Heritage Languages written by Silvina Montrul and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2016 with total page 381 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An authoritative overview of research into heritage language acquisition, covering key terminological and empirical issues, theoretical approaches, and research methodologies.
Download or read book Por Qu 101 Questions About Spanish written by Judy Hochberg and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2016-10-20 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ¿Por qué? 101 Questions about Spanish is for anyone who wants to understand how Spanish really works. Standard textbooks and grammars describe the "what" of Spanish - its vocabulary, grammar, spelling, and pronunciation - but ¿Por qué? explains the "why". Judy Hochberg draws on linguistic principles, Hispanic culture, and language history to answer questions such as: Why are so many Spanish verbs irregular? - Why does Spanish have different ways to say "you"? - Why is h silent? - Why doesn't Spanish use apostrophes? - Why does Castilian Spanish have the th sound? Packed with information, guidance, and links to further research, ¿Por qué? is an accessible study guide that is suitable for Spanish students, instructors, native speakers, and the general reader. It is a valuable supplementary text for serious students of Spanish at all levels, from beginning to advanced. ¿Por qué? also covers topics usually left to specialized books, including the evolution of Spanish, how children and adults learn Spanish, and the status of languages that co-exist with Spanish, from Catalan to Spanish sign language to the indigenous languages of Latin America.
Download or read book The Cambridge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition written by Julia Herschensohn and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2018-09-06 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What is language and how can we investigate its acquisition by children or adults? What perspectives exist from which to view acquisition? What internal constraints and external factors shape acquisition? What are the properties of interlanguage systems? This comprehensive 31-chapter handbook is an authoritative survey of second language acquisition (SLA). Its multi-perspective synopsis on recent developments in SLA research provides significant contributions by established experts and widely recognized younger talent. It covers cutting edge and emerging areas of enquiry not treated elsewhere in a single handbook, including third language acquisition, electronic communication, incomplete first language acquisition, alphabetic literacy and SLA, affect and the brain, discourse and identity. Written to be accessible to newcomers as well as experienced scholars of SLA, the Handbook is organised into six thematic sections, each with an editor-written introduction.
Download or read book To Advanced Proficiency and Beyond written by Newel Anthony Brown and published by Georgetown University Press. This book was released on 2015-01-02 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Due to the pressures of globalization, American society increasingly needs citizens who can carry out Superior level functions in languages other than English. Instructors, researchers, and students of second language acquisition seek scholarly resources to help satisfy this demand. In this volume, leading experts in second language acquisition and language planning supply cutting-edge research on working memory and cognition and empirical studies of effective teaching. The theoretical and empirical work in these pages is complemented by descriptions of successful pedagogical practices that take students from the Advanced to the Superior levels and beyond. With examples ranging across a number of languages, including Russian, Chinese, and Arabic, the volume will serve a broad audience. This practical handbook will help seasoned instructors improve outcomes, while it can also be used for training new instructors in methods courses.
Download or read book Speaking and Instructed Foreign Language Acquisition written by Mirosław Pawlak and published by Multilingual Matters. This book was released on 2011-07-04 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Developing the ability to speak in a foreign language is an arduous task. This is because it involves the mastery of different language subsystems, simultaneous focus on comprehension and production, and the impact of a range of social factors. This challenge is further compounded in situations in which learners have limited access to the target language. Thus, there is a need to explore issues related to teaching, learning and testing speaking with a view to translating the guidelines based on theoretical positions and research findings into feasible and context-specific pedagogical recommendations. This is the rationale behind this book, which considers speaking from leading theoretical perspectives, investigates individual variables which affect its development, and reports the results of studies focusing on different aspects of its instructed acquisition.
Download or read book The History of English Spelling written by Christopher Upward and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2011-09-15 with total page 394 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The History of English Spelling “Fifty years ago, G. H. Vallins contributed a book on spelling to the Language Library. Since then, there have been several major surveys, and new opportunities to explore the history of English words. The time is therefore ripe for a fresh presentation, and this is what George Davidson has done, building on the huge collection of historical data amassed by Christopher Upward, and giving it narrative shape. I have been waiting for a source-book like this for a long time, and I’m delighted that it has found a place in this series.” David Crystal, Language Library series editor Few languages are riddled with as many spelling inconsistencies and irregularities as English. Why is there such dissonance between the sounds of English and the spelling used to represent them? The answer lies in the history of the language itself. The History of English Spelling reveals the rich and complex history of Modern English spelling, tracing its origins and development from Old English up to the present day. The book provides a highly detailed, letter-by-letter analysis of the Old English basis of Modern English spelling, followed by in-depth coverage of the contributions from French, Latin, Greek and the many other languages that have contributed to current orthography. Upward and Davidson also explore events in the socio-political history of England as the setting for developments in spelling, along with the works of a number of lexicographers (especially Johnson and Webster), and various proposals for spelling reform. The History of English Spelling reveals the richness of the complex and often frustrating alphabetic spelling system used in the English language. A complementary website with additional research material can be found at www.historyofenglishspelling.info
Download or read book Second Language Speech written by Allan James and published by Walter de Gruyter. This book was released on 2011-05-03 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Language acquisition is a human endeavor par excellence. As children, all human beings learn to understand and speak at least one language: their mother tongue. It is a process that seems to take place without any obvious effort. Second language learning, particularly among adults, causes more difficulty. The purpose of this series is to compile a collection of high-quality monographs on language acquisition. The series serves the needs of everyone who wants to know more about the problem of language acquisition in general and/or about language acquisition in specific contexts.
Download or read book Speaking and Instructed Foreign Language Acquisition written by Mirosław Pawlak and published by Multilingual Matters. This book was released on 2011 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book investigates various aspects of speaking in a foreign language. It is unique in considering this key skill from both psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic perspectives, and in focusing entirely on instructed foreign language contexts. The book demonstrates how theory and research can be translated into classroom practice.
Download or read book English Phonetic Transcription written by Charles James Nice Bailey and published by . This book was released on 1985 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A manual for investigators, teachers of English phonetics and theoreticians. The focus is on transcriptional procedures with an original emphasis on Southern British pronunciation, but since adapted this to the needs of a broader readership.
Download or read book To Advanced Proficiency and Beyond written by Tony Brown and published by Georgetown University Press. This book was released on 2015-02-02 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: To Advanced Proficiency and Beyond: Theory and Methods for Developing Superior Second Language Ability addresses an important issue in Second Language Acquisition—how to help learners progress from Intermediate and Advanced proficiency to Superior and beyond. Due to the pressures of globalization, American society encounters an ever-increasing demand for speakers with advanced language abilities. This volume makes available cutting edge research on working memory and cognition and empirical studies of effective teaching. In addition it can serve as a practical handbook for seasoned and pre-professional instructors alike. The bringing together of the latest in second language acquisition theory, decades of empirical research, and practical classroom application makes for an unprecedented volume examining the achievement of Superior-level foreign language proficiency.
Download or read book Why Do English Second Language Students Have Speaking Problems written by Kevin Peterson and published by Kevin Peterson. This book was released on 2021-10-28 with total page 138 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There are currently an estimated 2 billion English learners in the world. In many countries, schools now require English classes. However, after years of studying English, students still have difficulty speaking English. When speaking, proper grammar can be useless if speaking is not clear and understood by the listener. It is time to try something different because the current methods are not effectively working. Learning English grammar rules is not enough, and it is impossible to memorize every English conversation. Situations will be different, and making unique conversations is necessary in the real world.
