Disney has broken into almost every corner in the world with various products and merchandise and one of the latest endeavors the giant company has delved into may still be unknown to some people in other parts of the planet. Walt Disney Co. has English language learning schools in Shanghai, China and young children are benefiting from this project.

The company says that the program is primarily about teaching English language skills to children and not to extend its brand in the most populous nation in the world. However, the company’s flagship school in Shanghai is filled with Disney references thanks to the massive Mickey Mouse sculpture in the school’s foyer and to the diction lessons offered which star Lilo and Stitch.

Children as young as two years old can have joined the English language program of the school and their attention are held by memorable names and settings form Disney films; and the Disney Magic Theater which is the main teaching tool in the school with combined functions of a television, computer and chalkboard.

The language learning industry in China is booming and as what Premier Wen Jiabao said in his speech last January, more than three hundred million Chinese are studying the English language. Disney is extending its brand in China through its English schools and it has produced two films in the country which are due for release soon. The company has recently asked permission to build a Shanghai Disneyland that could open in 2014.

Teaching English to Chinese children is one of the ways Disney uses to expand its reach. The company plans to have four Shanghai English language centers by June from the current two and it plans to launch in Beijing within a year. The executives of the company say that if their endeavors in China are successful, they will most likely create English schools in other countries around the world. However, they stress that their goal is authentic English language learning, not a marketing push. They are set to teach Chinese kids the English language.

The students in Disney’s language schools are introduced to as few as four words a week and the language is presented through Disney TV shows, books, and movies. Students get Disney merchandise such as Mickey Mouse book bags, pens, hats, CDs, bilingual books, and flashcards which are otherwise unavailable in China. Aside form the activities in the English school, the children’s supplemental learning materials can be used at home with their parents. Parents can check their children’s progress online with the children’s teacher since they are not allowed to enter the classrooms. Disney English is a hit with people from China’s growing middle class and it may spread out to other members of society soon.

Are you among those who are interested in learning foreign languages, and are you aware that you don’t need to go far, far away in order to achieve your goal? The computer is one of the most powerful tools in learning languages considering that there are many courses and methods available online which you can avail of at your own pace and at your own way. However, do you want to learn a language online in a more interactive way?

If you are interested in learning a language in a more focused approach and interactive way, better try out using Skype. Through Skype you can connect with people who know how to properly speak and communicate with your target language and learn the right pronunciations and grammatical usage; you will also have a chance to be updated with the local slang words of the language.

Skype is an application on the computer which allows its users to make phone calls over the internet. Calls to fellow Skype users are free of charge while calls to mobile phones and landlines have fees. What is interesting about Skype is that it includes instant messaging, video conferencing and file transfer among its features.

You can learn a foreign language through Skype by connecting with fellow Skype users form different parts of the world without having to worry about international call fees. You can connect with people who speak your target language natively by searching through Skype forums on the web. You can arrange for language exchange with native speakers by teaching them your language too and make it a more fruitful experience! There are also language learning sites which offer lessons in text, image, and video formats and they have the additional offer of language tutors you could connect with through Skype!

Why is Skype a good way to learn a foreign language? The application offers you the major benefit of allowing you to communicate with someone who is a native speaker of your target language thus giving you the chance to learn how to speak like a native too! A real person who will teach you how to use and pronounce words in their natural way is better than listening to recorded audio exercises!

The downside with learning a foreign language through Skype is that not everyone is capable of availing online language learning not only due to lack of equipment (a good quality computer and a stable internet connection is needed in order for Skype to work properly) and monetary budget but also some people don’t think this language learning method fits them.

So, if you are among those who are interested to learn a foreign language through online correspondence, check out Skype-related online language courses and pave the way to a multilingual new you.

Summer is fast approaching and you might wonder what you are better of to do during that season. Going on a vacation and having fun will be most probably the top things on your mind, however, have you ever thought of going away on vacation, having fun and learning something new at the same time? How about planning to go to a summer camp and learn languages?

Summer camps nowadays are not limited only to arts and crafts activities. Specialty summer camps offer a wide range of activities from counseling to sports to music to language immersion. Language immersion is one of the most popular ways for young ones to learn foreign languages since they will be given the opportunity to live and experience the language everyday for a period of time.

Language immersion language summer camps teach various languages from English, to Spanish, French, among some. The other activities in the summer camp for example, music, dance, cooking, arts, and field trips are also presented in the language the camper wants to be immersed in.

Most language immersion summer camps start their days with language classes in the morning and then in the afternoons they offer a range of activities which may help the campers improve their language skills more.

The summer camps which offer language immersion for young children and teenagers are typically secure places where you can spend your summer. Most summer camps are designed to guarantee that it meets the expectations of the campers and their parents and that includes security, quality language courses, clean accommodations, healthy food, and interesting activities.

Then why should you rather spend your summer in a language immersion summer camp than a regular summer camp?
• You will be learning a new language! You will be able to speak a new language by the end of your immersion period and if your target language will be offered in the next school year you will be prepared to tackle the language!
• You will have a chance to travel to a different place and experience a different culture and language!
• You will be able to meet new friends form different parts of the world who are also interested to learn your target language.
• You will have the opportunity to enhance your skills in other fields such as art and music, at the same time learn a foreign language!

So what are you waiting for? Better plan your summer ahead and try to spend it meaningfully in a language immersion summer camp!

We have already introduced Automatic Language Growth or ALG in our article How to Learn Languages Like Children and we believe, through the reactions and comments we have received from the public that we have only skimmed the surface about the program.

What is ALG? ALG or Automatic Language Growth was developed by Dr. J, Marvin Brown, an American linguist who based his theory on a much earlier theory called the Silent Way which was later called the Natural Way. The common ground between Dr. Brown’s theory and the older theory is that they are based in listening and that they started by observing the way children learn a language. Dr. Brown has noticed that when learning a language, children tend to focus on listening and often do not speak the language for up to a year while adults tend to force themselves to speak the language immediately.

There are three myths that ALG wants to dispute: 1, adults can’t learn languages like children do; 2, practice makes perfect; and 3, languages must be studied.

1. Adults can’t learn languages like children do. There are studies that say that as children grow older, they lose the ability to learn languages easily and that once children grow up into adults they will have a hard time acquiring new languages. With ALG, they believe that adults have already gained the ability to reason, to translate, to analyze and to memorize and they use these abilities as their primary conscious method of learning. Children are more open to new things and don’t “fight against” what is being exposed to them. The unconscious mind does better in learning languages and if adults just let the natural process take its course, the process of analysis will come later on.
2. Practice makes perfect. Maybe almost every adult will agree with this statement however, ALG, believes that children do not practice their language! Children either know what they want to say and say it right away or that they don’t know what they want to say and just keep quiet. Young children tend to mimicry with physiological development but as they learn a second language, mimicry is largely absent. Children “know” when to speak or not speak based on their experiences in the language they are learning. Comparing the practice that adults do, they still can’t match the language abilities of children!
3. Language must be “studied”. If it is obvious that adults “study” foreign languages, children do not study them but learn them through the natural way. Children live, look, listen and learn; they gather up experiences and simply try to understand what’s going on around them. ALG believes that whatever your age or language is, if there are understandable things happening around you, you learn. Language develops automatically and naturally in an understandable environment.

There was a lot of criticism to the ALG method in our previous article, such as one made by, Rosemary Lyndall Wemm said that “children learn language from parents, care-takers, school teachers and other children, all of whom interact with the child. The child is expected to respond in some way, even if this is just to nod, stand up, sit down or take out their books. They follow the lead of other children and note the supporting gesticulations and facial expressions of the person talking to them. It is all very action orientated.”

There were many readers that emphasized and agreed that babies try to talk, when learning languages, while other readers agreed that the method could be helpful when learning new languages.

The automatic language growth method was developed around the 80′s, and it has gone through a lot of modifications and improvements up until now. David Long, the head of the Thai language program at AUA Ratchadamri in Thailand studied under Dr. Brown. He stated that experience is the best teacher and that to learn something; we have to have meaningful and transportable experience.

The ALG program believes that something taught through experience is infinitely better remembered than something taught through school. Homework, tests, and dialogues are absent in the ALG program since they are all school concepts not life concepts. The program creates experience through teacher-student interactions where teachers stand at the front of the classroom, acting out stories. The teachers speak to the students so that they can be exposed only to the perfect model. If the students were permitted to speak the language even if they are not fluent yet, they and the other students will be hearing an improper model.

Hearing a word once or twice will not help a language learner to pronounce it correctly that is why ALG promotes hearing words in context and in memorable and meaningful ways many times. Children learn the words they need when they are ready to learn them and with ALG, adults learn the same way, the learner will decide when he or she learns something.

The ALG programs require thousands of hours (two thousand hours for Thai programs) before students are allowed to speak and reason with the language. This is one of the reasons why some people are skeptical about the program—it consumes quite some time. David Long was asked why are some people resistant to a method that requires them to listen without speaking, and he answered that there are pride issues involved. People want to speak and get positive reinforcement right away that is why they tend to be skeptical of the program.

ALG puts emphasis on input (through listening) and not on speech, and on understandable experiences. These methods may reduce student anxiety to zero however, the downside pointed out by most who doubt this program is the period of time to be spent on the program. Persons who are not patient to learn through ALG will definitely have a hard time however; those who can stand the test of time will most probably gain excellent results!

Sources:

http://www.algworld.com/common_myths.php
http://www.asiantribune.com/index.php?q=node/7910

To those who love to learn languages, there are so many methods and ways to learn a language to choose from yet the effectiveness of the method one chooses depends on how it works for the learner. One of the effective ways to help strengthen a language learner’s skills in his or her newly-acquired language is to use it frequently in order to assimilate it in his or her system.

In the small library of the Dunning Elementary School in Framingham, Massachusetts, about twenty-five young students have been introduced to the French language through the volunteer work of local high school students. One of the activities the high school students do is to speak French with the elementary students as much as they can.

The program which involves high school students teaching the younger elementary students a foreign language started when the members of the high school’s French Club thought of a way to encourage youngsters to study a second language. The club’s members thought of introducing the program when the school administrators made a proposal to cut the middle school modern language programs as a cost-cutting move a year ago. The goal of the club was to give the elementary students a chance to learn a second language so that they will be prepared for it by the time they reach middle school.

The elementary school children are lucky that the French Club created workbooks for them which were patterned from their teachers’ materials in their high school classes. The children are into their language lessons especially with the songs and the games that they play which involve the use of French. The younger students were designated to groups of five or six and their high school tutors moved from table to table teaching them French throughout their afternoon lessons. They go through French vocabulary and are learning French terms for common phrases. Teachers from the high school oversee the activities as their contribution for the elementary students too.

The French teachers who supervise the program say that the program gives the high school students more exposure to the French language and learn more about it. It also gives them the opportunity to do community service by teaching elementary students for free. The young ones who are learning French are having fun because they have the chance to speak a new language and the means that they are learning it are done in enjoyable ways too.

A research done in London back in 2004 has found that the brains of people who learn other language develop denser and more advanced gray matter compared to the brains of those who are monolingual. There had also been reports that students who are introduced to languages at an earlier age develop the growth of their intellect better, have a better command of their first language, and have increased awareness of other cultures.

If older language students in communities across the globe help younger students in creating interest in learning languages and help them improve themselves by learning another skill.

Time and again we have heard of or read about the many advantages of learning foreign languages and with that information we base our decisions on whether we should make a move on learning languages or not. Studies and interesting information have motivated people to try learning other languages and many have succeeded in meeting their purposes.

A new discovery was made when researchers found out that learning Chinese languages can make a language learner more musical, and perhaps achieve perfect pitch. The scientists made the discovery after testing two hundred three music students for perfect pitch by asking them to identify all the thirty-six notes from three octaves played in random order.

Among those tested were twenty-seven ethnic Chinese and Vietnamese students who had various levels of fluency in the tonal languages they learned from their parents. The Asian students who were not fluent in their parents’ language scored no better than the Caucasian students, yet those who were very fluent with their parents’ language had an average of ninety percent of the notes correct.

Professor Diana Deutsch, the psychologist who led the research said that those students who speak fluent tonal languages did incredibly well with the test and the results were overwhelming. She has also stated that based on her experience, the musicians in China don’t regard perfect pitch as anything remarkable because it is very common. However, in Europe and the United States, musicians who have perfect pitch is quite rare with only one in every ten thousand possess this gift.

Perfect pitch, which is also known as absolute pitch, is the ability to name or reproduce a tone without reference to an external standard. Perfect pitch can be demonstrated not only verbally but also by other codes such as sensor motor responses or auditory imagery. Perfect pitch is said to be more common among speakers of tonal languages such as most dialects of Chinese or Vietnamese which depend heavily on the pitch variations across single words for lexical meaning.

Tonal languages use tone to distinguish or emphasize words. Mandarin has four possible pitch variations, Cantonese has six, while Minnan has seven depending on dialect, and Vietnamese has six. The brains of tonal language speakers do not naturally process musical sound as language but there is a possibility that such individuals may be more likely to acquire perfect pitch for musical tones when they later receive musical training.

The study conducted by Professor Deutsch suggests that learning a tonal language plays a far greater role in perfect pitch than genes. She has said that it looks like infants should acquire perfect pitch if they are given the opportunity to attach verbal labels to musical notes at the age when they learn speech.
Learning Chinese or other tonal languages may not be the exact solution to achieve perfect pitch however, you will be gaining something if you opt to learn a new language-you will have the opportunity to communicate with more people, have doors opened to several options due to knowledge in another language, and perhaps become better with your musical skills!

Learning languages has a lot of advantages and there are various researches which reveal the benefits of speaking more than a single language. There had been studies that show that children who speak more than one language may have an unexpected advantage later in life. There is also a study which shows that knowing and speaking many languages may slow down the aging process of the brain.

Dr. Gitit Kavé of Tel Aviv University and her colleagues have discovered that senior citizens who speak many languages test for better cognitive functioning and the results of her study are published in the journal of Psychology and Aging.

Kavé has however stated that the results of the research should be approached with cautions since there is no sure way to avoid mental aging. However, speaking a second or third language may help prolong the good years. A person who speaks more than one language is more likely to be clear-minded at an older age since he or she will be exercising his or her brain more often than monolingual persons. Using different languages may create new links in the brain, which may contribute to the strengthening effect.

The research was based on a survey conducted in 1989 on people who were aged between seventy-five and ninety-five. Each of the respondents of the survey was asked how many languages he or she knew, what his or her mother tongue was, and which language he or she spoke best. The researchers then compared the bilingual speakers to trilingual and multilingual speakers.

The results were analyzed and the researchers found that the more languages the person spoke, the better his or her cognitive state was. The level of education of a person was also strongly associated with his or her cognitive state but the number of languages contributed to the prediction of cognitive fitness further than the effect of education alone.

The relationship of education and number of languages would have been an easy pointer to acknowledge as contributors to strengthened cognitive functioning but that is not the case with the research. The researchers found out that more languages were most significantly correlated with cognitive state in those people who took the survey who had no education at all.

According to Kavé, a future question for research is whether languages reflect an initial potential for prolonged mental fitness or that learning and speaking more languages actually do something to the brain over time. She stated that learning a new language is a good thing even of it is not intended to ward off mental decline in old age. She believes that learning language are good for people at any age since they allow for a flexibility of thought and a channel for understanding another culture better as well as one’s own.

Future research should be done in other parts of the world regarding this topic so that results can be compared and to know if it holds true with other cultures. However, we should take into account that whatever our purposes of learning and speaking many languages may be, we can be assured that languages will do us something good in various aspects of our lives.

Thanks to researchers at the University of East Anglia in England, you may not be able to get away with cursing at those security cameras in the break room anymore.

Recent breakthroughs in the technology of lip reading have led to the development of software that can translate facial and lip movements directly into text. For those of us who used to take out our silent frustrations on the security cameras in hallways or elevators, this may come as a bit of bad news.

But researchers and engineers say the new technology has a world of applications, including use by those who have problems writing, or are physically incapable of typing or holding a pen. Not only can the software determine what you’re saying based on the movements of your mouth, but it has also been designed to take different languages into account.

Creators say the programs can decipher up to nine languages currently, including English, Polish, Arabic, German, Russian, Mandarin, Cantonese, Italian, and French, with more languages on the way.

What may seem like bad news for those in the translation business could be a huge breakthrough for the rest of us. Conceivably, this could mean that the software could be paired with translation software to allow real time communication between two parties that speak different languages.

The program uses a map of an individual’s face to recognize signature movements that are made when certain words are pronounced. This could mean a future breakthrough in the way we learn languages, by way of demonstrations on computers to pronounce certain words. Imagine sitting down in front of a computer screen that has an image of your face, pronouncing difficult to speak words. You could then mimic the movements in an effort to improve your accent and fluidity.

Though researchers say there are still numerous bugs to fix before a perfected version is available, they are also quick to point out the many potential uses, including security applications and use by the military.

As the new software is still in preliminary stages of development, no release date for any public version is expected any time soon.

This post was contributed by Claire Webber, who writes about the best online schools. She welcomes your feedback at Claire.Webber1223 at gmail.com

Let’s face it; a lot of people spend a lot of time in front of the computer and on the internet. Well it may not count half of the world’s population or a number near to it but let’s consider the reality that even people from third-world countries can access the internet through computer shops. People who are online tend to communicate with people from various parts of the world and there seems to be no bounds to exploring different things through the internet.

Learning a foreign language is one of the interesting things an average person who goes online can involve himself or herself into. If one knows how to communicate in more than one language, he or she will be able to accomplish more things perhaps engage in educational and business endeavors. How would you like it if your computer browser has tools which can help you learn a foreign language?

One of the most popular web browsers nowadays is Mozilla Firefox. It has a lot of easy to use features that is why it has attracted a lot of users. The add-ons which deliver various functions are very useful and can be customized according to the users’ needs.

If you are interested in translating and learning foreign languages, here are some of the many available Firefox add-ons you can download for free and use to your heart’s content:

• Backword. This Firefox add-on can help learn and translate languages. Its features include translating English words into German, French, Russian, Spanish, Korean, Italian, Japanese, and Traditional or Simplified Chinese when a mouse cursor is hovered over the word. With just a single click, the add-on remembers all context of the word and it also lets you know how the word is pronounced. You can also search for the meaning of the word with just one click and it lets you review all words and context collected on a build-in page.
• FoxLingo. Considered to be the ultimate language tool, FoxLingo allows web page translation in over a thousand and five hundred different language pairs. Its features also include searching foreign pages using terms written in your own language, automatically translating websites by recognizing their domain, and it has access to more than ninety language resources. This add-on also has more than a hundred links to language learning sites of different languages and it also allows its users to use it in complete privacy. It supports fifty languages including Afrikaans, Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, English, Esperanto, Filipino, French, German, Italian, Korean, Latin, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese, and a lot more! It also uses thirty-six web page translator services including Google, Ask, Live Translator, Yahoo, and FreeTranslation.
• LanguageBob. This Firefox add-on helps its users by revising and learning languages effortlessly. It uses the Smart Word Replacement format for no hassle learning and helps you learn languages naturally. You can browse the internet while LanguageBob will drip-feed you the language, you will be able to surf the net as you learn a language! If you browse in the English language, you have the option to learn Chinese, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian or German. If you browse in either of those languages, you also have the option to improve your English skills!
• Firelang. Firelang is a language support tool that helps users learn foreign languages while surfing the internet. It includes noun colorization according to the noun’s gender and it replaces articles with interactive placeholders and fully customizable context-menu translation with a context logging feature.

The add-ons presented above are just few samples. The Firefox browser runs on various versions of Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac OS and other Unix-like operating systems.

So what are you waiting for? Download these add-ons on your browser now and start learning a new language!

For further reading about tools learning languages read the article that describes several free online tools for learning languages.