tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30258929123002943852024-03-05T23:12:53.864+00:00LLAS News BlogNews articles of interest to the higher education languages, linguistics and area studies.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger660125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-52889956329984417972013-03-21T09:38:00.000+00:002013-03-21T09:38:42.057+00:00New language trends survey sets demanding agenda for primary and secondary schools<br />
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CfBT Education Trust today published the results of national surveys of primary and secondary schools, revealing the multiple challenges for languages within the new English National Curriculum.</div>
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The ‘Language Trends’ report shows that while foreign language teaching is already a reality in most primary schools, there is a very wide spectrum of practice and a lack of consistency in both approach and outcomes. Teachers need further training and support as the subject becomes statutory in September 2014, particularly in those schools where provision is currently least developed.</div>
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<a href="http://www.cfbt.com/idoc.ashx?docid=09548f03-761c-4565-8939-868491bdf0f3&version=-1">Download the report</a></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-28382901740853249962013-03-15T12:00:00.003+00:002013-03-15T12:07:54.328+00:00Do you engage with iTunesU?<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">iTunesU is an area within Apple iTunes which allows
institutions to create accounts and publish their own, branded educational
content. It is a place to showcase excellence in education through the open publication
of teaching resources. We, at LLAS, have recently been involved in the HEA-funded ‘iTunes
and You’ project, where we have taken existing open educational materials
published for research and teaching by humanities staff at the University of
Southampton, and worked with the university marketing department to repackage
them as learning modules in the form of iTunesU course packages. This is a new
way of presenting content through the University’s iTunes site and offers a
model of engagement for academics to showcase and package their research and
teaching work in appealing ways to a broad, global audience.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">iTunesU is often seen as exclusively for high-quality video
or audio recordings and it can be an intimidating place for researchers and
teachers to consider when wishing to publish their work openly. The iTunes and
You project has clarified and demystified the process for staff and provided
clear guidance material to assist them in understanding how to publish their
work in this way. In addition, the project has created an exemplar model of how
nuggets of related research and teaching materials can be packaged as mini,
bite-sized modules of learning and published with coherence through the iTunesU
site (and other OER-sharing platforms).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A key aspect of the project has been to demonstrate that
materials created for one particular discipline and educational context
(Spanish language, migration studies) has wide applicability across the
humanities and to a range of audiences in different parts of the world. OERs
used for this project have been published by Southampton as part of the
JISC-funded OpenLIVES project. The material consists of oral testimonies
collected from Spanish migrants, and includes images, learning objects, and
various teaching materials. Materials are in Spanish and English. Click on the
link below to see the materials on iTunes:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/itunes-u/incredible-people-incredible/id606259255?mt=10">Incredible
people, incredible stories</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/itunes-u/research-skills-for-oral-history/id606317744?mt=10">Research
Skills for oral history</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of our key findings are:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Engagement with iTunesU can be effective if part of a
‘holistic approach’ to publishing open content</b>. Our analysis of iTunesU
content and site management revealed that it has advantages and limitations as
a site for publishing open content. Its advantages include its reach to an
international audience, its high production values (as a website), its value as
a promotional site, and its reputation and requirement for high quality
materials. It also has limitations as a site for publishing open content: there
is limited facility for the addition and display of metadata on each file;
iTunesU is hidden from principal search engines; use of the site is dependent
on installation of Apple iTunes (this is possible at the University of
Southampton only on request from our central IT services); management of the
site requires staff dedicated to this purpose; there are perceptions amongst
staff that iTunes is for audio and video material only, and that the site is
only for hosting material of exceptionally high quality (which puts-off
potential depositors). This mix of advantages and limitations means that
iTunesU is perhaps best used as part of a ‘holistic’ OER approach, which would
include promotion and use of other sharing sites, such as public social
networking sites like YouTube and Flickr, as well as academic repositories like
Jorum or HumBox. The high quality and promotional aspects of iTunes are
important ways of raising awareness internationally about UK HE and UK HE
resources and staff, and therefore should be part of any ‘open access toolkit’
in an institution.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Publishing on iTunesU offers a more supported way of
engaging with open practice</b> because users can make use of established
university systems to help them navigate their way through issues around
publishing open content. For example, most institutions have lecture-recording
software widely available which facilitates the easy capture of content
suitable for publication on iTunes. From our experience, material intended to
go on to an iTunesU site is moderated for quality and copyright issues by
another university staff member before being shared on the site, which offers
reassurance to depositors fearful of infringing copyright, or doubtful over the
value of the material (fears which are often noted as barriers to sharing). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>iTunesU would benefit from more readily accessible web
statistics.</b> The key argument in promoting use of iTunes to staff and senior
management is that it has impact demonstrable by web statistics. If Apple were
to create an ‘administrator interface’ which gave access to a variety of download statistics, along the lines of Google Analytics, this would
improve its take-up and impact with potential users. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Use of
iTunesU has advantages and disadvantages for the sharing of open content;
however, it is an important tool for publishing a range of different OERs and
promoting the excellence of UK HE internationally. Effective use of the site
requires active institutional support, encouragement and guidance, and we
suggest that it is best used as part of a range of methods of engagement with
OERs. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We would like to hear from you and your experience of
iTunesU. Leave a comment below or contact us at <a href="mailto:llas@soton.ac.uk">llas@soton.ac.uk</a>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kate Borthwick<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">LLAS Centre for languages, linguistics and area studies</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Laurence Georginhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15832145556973165416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-77089731119688454272013-03-07T16:04:00.001+00:002013-03-07T16:04:26.797+00:00Polyglots required if we want a place in the global academyEnglish cannot be the only acceptable language of scholarship, says Toby
Miller. It’s arrogant, impractical and anti-intellectual<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/comment/opinion/polyglots-required-if-we-want-a-place-in-the-global-academy/2002326.article">Times Higher Education </a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-91787336435511339252013-02-25T17:37:00.000+00:002013-02-25T17:37:10.276+00:00Why I'm glad I gave languages a second chanceLooking at my track record it's fair to say that I was an unlikely candidate for a <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/modernlanguages" title="More from guardian.co.uk on Modern languages">modern languages</a>
degree. I achieved a B in French GCSE, and plummeted spectacularly when
I received a D at AS-level. At parents evening my tutor said that I
simply wasn't cut out for studying languages at an academic level.<br />
Skip
forwards four years and you'll find me writing from my desk in the
University of Rosario in Bogota, Colombia. I'm on a placement year as
part of my language degree which I am studying at the University of
Leeds.<br />
<br />
Full article in the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/mortarboard/2013/feb/18/why-students-should-study-languages">Guardian </a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-13595226122813013002013-02-14T14:09:00.000+00:002013-02-14T14:09:21.405+00:00Languages: the State of the Nation: new publication from the British Academy<br />
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<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Languages: the State of the Nation</span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<i>Demand and Supply
of Language Skills in the UK</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The British Academy has today launched <b><i>Languages: the
State of the Nation</i></b>. The report, prepared by Teresa Tinsley, outlines
the baseline data on foreign language use and deficits in England, Northern
Ireland, Scotland and Wales. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Key findings from the report include:</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span>·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span dir="LTR"></span>There is strong evidence
that the UK is suffering from a <b>growing deficit</b> in foreign language
skills at a time when globally demand for language skills is expanding.</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span>·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span dir="LTR"></span>The <b>range</b> and nature
of languages being taught is <b>insufficient</b> to meet current and future
demand</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span>·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span dir="LTR"></span>Language skills are needed <b>at
all levels</b> in the workforce, and not simply by an internationally-mobile
elite</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span>·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span dir="LTR"></span>A weak supply of language
skills is pushing down demand and creating a<b> vicious circle of
monolingualism</b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span>·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span dir="LTR"></span>Languages spoken by British
school children, in addition to English, represent a valuable <b>future source
of supply</b> – if these skills can be developed appropriately.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
These findings present us with cause for both cautious
optimism and rising concern. Our diverse demographics and world-class higher
education system provide us with the tools to respond to the challenges and
opportunities of the future. But, too often, education policies are operating
in isolation of demand. The report concludes that without action from
government, employment and education sectors, we will be unable to meet our
aspirations for growth and global influence.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.britac.ac.uk/policy/State_of_the_Nation_2013.cfm">Click here</a>
to download the Summary and Full Reports.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-66476780834067628062012-12-07T15:24:00.002+00:002012-12-07T15:26:55.851+00:00Islamic Studies Network project draws to a close<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXA0wRbnbIMVPKhzgUiNhj7yvdWefSqgv240SZHmWK2VSxoaX3Z0F3ZsGNb43J2xi7diq_dxE6Ph-ikfOnekGm-ZixFYaZpJMQZxsQtGRrg5s8xwF-tMmWFY4Bgp-4Bf4UAGaTf0CahLPX/s1600/BRAIS-logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="68" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXA0wRbnbIMVPKhzgUiNhj7yvdWefSqgv240SZHmWK2VSxoaX3Z0F3ZsGNb43J2xi7diq_dxE6Ph-ikfOnekGm-ZixFYaZpJMQZxsQtGRrg5s8xwF-tMmWFY4Bgp-4Bf4UAGaTf0CahLPX/s200/BRAIS-logo.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since 2009 staff at LLAS have been working on the </span><a href="http://www.islamicstudiesnetwork.ac.uk/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Islamic Studies Network</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, a
project funded by HEFCE and overseen by the Higher Education Academy. The
Network was established following on from a series of consultation meetings and
research commissioned by HEFCE on Islamic Studies in Higher Education,
including two reports by LLAS staff and colleagues at the then-Subject Centre
for Philosophical and Religious Studies. The Network brought together academics
working in Islamic Studies from a wide range of disciplines, and provided
practice-sharing and networking opportunities through events, project grants
and publications. A full range of resources developed through the project,
including teaching materials, research reports, event reports, case studies and
model module outlines are available on the </span><a href="http://www.islamicstudiesnetwork.ac.uk/islamicstudiesnetwork/resources/display?id=/resources/alldetails/islamicstudies/Approaches_to_Learning_and_Teaching_Islamic_Law" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Network
website</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the main aims of the Islamic Studies Network was to
create a sustainable network of Islamic Studies practitioners to continue
building on the work of the Network once the project funding period was over. We
are therefore pleased to announce that planning is underway for the formal
establishment of a British Association for Islamic Studies (BRAIS). The
association will be a learned society and professional organisation focused on
enhancing research and teaching about Islam and Muslim cultures and societies
in UK higher education. It will provide a forum for academic exchange for
scholars with an interest in any aspect of Islam and the Muslim world
(including non-Muslim majority societies), and will act as an umbrella
organisation for members working in a wide range of disciplines and
geographical interest areas. To read more about the association please visit <a href="http://www.brais.ac.uk/">http://www.brais.ac.uk</a>. The association is
planning an inaugural conference in Edinburgh on 5-6 September 2013.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lisa Bernasek, Academic Coordinator for the Islamic Studies
Network</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Laurence Georginhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15832145556973165416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-16680732732532786802012-11-15T13:22:00.001+00:002012-11-15T13:22:41.864+00:00Modern languages lost for words over low intake<br />
<div class="standfirst">
Two UK language departments may be forced to
close their degree programmes because they recruited too few students
for 2012-13, a lecturers' association has claimed.</div>
James Coleman, chair of the University Council of Modern Languages,
said that preliminary figures obtained from the Universities and
Colleges Admissions Service show that acceptances to language degrees
have dropped by more than 7 per cent compared with last year.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=421835&c=1">Full article:Times Higher Education</a><br />
<br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-19079310811532337462012-11-13T13:30:00.000+00:002012-11-13T13:30:43.996+00:00Cheaper lessons and US accent attract English language learners to the Philippines <div class="caption">
Much cheaper lessons and a
convincing US accent are bringing an increasing number of students to
learn English in the Philippines.</div>
<div class="embedded-hyper">
<a class="hidden" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-20066890#story_continues_1"></a></div>
<div class="introduction" id="story_continues_1">
The
Philippines is fast becoming the world's low-cost English language
teacher - with rapid increases in overseas students coming to learn
English or study in English-speaking universities.</div>
There might be other countries that people think about as a
classic place to learn English, such as the UK, the US or Australia. <br />
But there is one key reason that they are switching to the
Philippines. It's much cheaper. And in the competitive market for
language students, it means the Philippines is attracting people from
countries such as Iran, Libya, Brazil and Russia.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-20066890">Full story on BBC website </a><br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-8414260606775930762012-11-08T15:17:00.000+00:002012-11-13T13:34:32.071+00:00The SPEAQ project – where has this first year gone?<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What is SPEAQ? <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">SPEAQ is a project funded by the European Commission to
address issues related to quality assurance in HE. It stands for ‘Sharing
Practice in Enhancing and Assuring Quality’. It is managed by Alison Dickens,
Laurence Georgin and John Canning at the LLAS Centre and involves 9 partners
across Europe.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What is it for?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We aim to connect three key quality circles, i.e. teacher,
student and quality manager in order to share and enhance quality assurance
practice in HE. We want to address a real concern that quality assurance can
become ritualised rather than embedded in learning and teaching practice. We
are hoping to develop new ideas on how to approach quality assurance within the
institution providing evidence of how bringing together stakeholders in the
quality process can lead to a wider and more meaningful interpretation of
quality assurance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What have we done so far?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the first year of the project we have collected data
through interactive workshops and focus groups involving students, teachers,
administrators and quality managers in all partner institutions. The workshop
model has been developed by two of the partners (Universities of Jyväskylä
& Deusto) and has been used by all partners. It will be also run at the
European Quality Assurance Forum conference in Estonia in November 2012.
Following this, a final version will be translated and uploaded to the SPEAQ
website. These workshops have been very interactive and have proven to be a
useful way of encouraging discussion among staff and/or students. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have also completed an initial data collection exercise
through a series of student focus groups (facilitated by the European Students
Union), meetings with institutional quality managers in the partner
institutions and discussions with subject teachers in a range of disciplines,
using a set of questions devised by the project team. Three synthesis reports,
summarising the results from all partners, have been prepared and some key
emerging themes have been identified: a need for better communication around quality
issues, improvements in the collection and use of feedback, more engagement of
students in quality enhancement, increased opportunities for sharing good
practice, professional development for teachers, applied learning (including
employability), balancing teaching with research agendas, sharing and
collaborating with others outside the institution. It has been encouraging to
see that some of the core aims of this project are reflected in this data,
these being to connect the three quality circles and to give voice to the views
of all stakeholders in the quality process.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have also been busy disseminating our findings at
international conferences (Belgrade, Istanbul, Cluj-Napoca) with two more
scheduled in November 2012 (Tallinn, Malta). Once the project activities have
been completed and the results of the institutional projects evaluated, an
academic article will be written and submitted to an international journal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What next?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Based on our findings, each partner institution will
undertake a small project which will explore ways in which a more shared vision
of quality assurance can be fostered at institutional and disciplinary level.
This has already started and will end in June 2013.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Where can I find out more?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Go to our project blog: <a href="http://speaqproject.wordpress.com/">http://speaqproject.wordpress.com/</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Alison Dickens, SPEAQ project director & Laurence Georgin, SPEAQ project manager</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Laurence Georginhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15832145556973165416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-56999202640694445752012-11-01T13:22:00.001+00:002012-11-01T13:22:41.911+00:00Over half of young Britons wish they had worked/ studied abroad<h2>
<span style="font-weight: normal;">Fifty-four per cent of 18-24 year-olds feel their career prospects would have
been better if they had studied or worked abroad, a British Council survey
has found. </span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/universityeducation/student-life/9643660/Over-half-of-young-Britons-wish-they-had-moved-abroad.html">Daily Telegraph </a></span></h2>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-50821065131395683492012-10-17T10:17:00.000+01:002012-10-17T10:18:35.957+01:0030 Britishisms used by AmericansThe BBC Magazine's recent article about <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19670686" title="The Britishisation of American English">the Britishisation of American English</a>
prompted readers to respond with examples of their own - here are 30
British words and phrases that you've noticed being used in the US and
Canada. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19929249">Full story on BBC news website</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-18763997145485317732012-10-14T11:52:00.001+01:002012-10-14T11:52:15.054+01:00The West must start learning Chinese, says economistChina's growing importance on the world stage means that the West needs
to start speaking its language, says economist Martin Jacques.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19929620">BBC News </a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-44776059545408856922012-10-12T15:02:00.000+01:002012-10-12T15:02:37.172+01:00Brazilian government uses indigenous language for the first time in anti-AIDS campaign<br />
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.5em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 22px; padding: 0px;">
Brazil is using an indigenous language for the first in a campaign aimed at curbing violence against women and the spread of HIV.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.5em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 22px; padding: 0px;">
The program includes folders warning that “violence or fear of violence increase women’s vulnerability to HIV infection and other sexually transmitted diseases” because women who fear violence can be forced to have unprotected sex.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.5em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 22px; padding: 0px;">
Full article in <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/brazilian-government-uses-indigenous-language-for-the-first-time-in-anti-aids-campaign/2012/10/11/e756f500-13ed-11e2-9a39-1f5a7f6fe945_story.html">Washington Post</a></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-69754819047161618492012-10-12T10:05:00.001+01:002012-10-12T10:07:04.485+01:00Baroness Coussins speaks about MFL and Erasmus scheme in House of LordsMy Lords, I shall focus on what the report says about student mobility in
relation to the Erasmus scheme and the teaching and learning of modern
foreign languages. I declare an interest as chair of the All-Party Group
on Modern Languages and vice-president of the Chartered Institute of
Linguists. <br />
<br />
Read full speech on <a href="http://www.theyworkforyou.com/lords/?gid=2012-10-11a.1223.0">Hansard</a><br />
<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-69995752190997146052012-10-11T18:49:00.001+01:002012-10-11T19:19:40.954+01:00Seven-year-olds 'should learn Chinese' The British Council calls for primary school children to learn non-European languages.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/sevenyearolds-should-learn-chinese-8201332.html">The Independent </a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-27792335549096904322012-10-11T18:46:00.000+01:002012-10-11T18:46:50.096+01:00 The British Council: friend or foe?Educators working overseas complain that the venerable quango's business interests have turned it into a rival.<br />
<br />
A few years ago, when the CfBT Education Trust, a non-profit
organisation that runs schools and education services, was looking to
expand its operations in Malaysia, its chief executive, Neil McIntosh,
arranged a meeting with the local high commissioner. When he got there,
though, he was disappointed to see that the commissioner had brought
along a representative of one of CfBT's main competitors. "He was a bit
put out that I should see the British Council in that light," says
McIntosh.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div id="main-article-info">
</div>
Read the rest at <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2012/oct/08/british-council-education-training">The Guardian</a><br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-69130665751750657402012-10-04T11:12:00.005+01:002012-10-04T11:12:54.939+01:00New open resources published as part of FAVOR project<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The LLAS-led FAVOR project is drawing to a close this month
and is celebrating the publication of over 340 new open educational resources
for language teaching and transition on </span><a href="http://www.languagebox.ac.uk/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">www.languagebox.ac.uk</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The JISC-funded project worked with part-time and
hourly-paid language tutors to get them to publish a selection of their
teaching resources as open, adaptable content. It also got them to create *NEW*
resources to help explain and describe how languages are taught at HE, and give
prospective students a ‘taste of’ language-learning at university.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There were about 25 tutors working on the project and
materials cover at least 17 different languages: English, Chinese, Japanese,
French, German, Spanish, Italian, Slovak, Latvian, Ukrainian, Estonian, Arabic,
Swahili, Tigrinyan, Amharic, Finnish, Hungarian.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">• Check out the online activities shared by University of
Southampton tutors: Katy Heady for <a href="http://languagebox.ac.uk/profile/1261">German</a> and Bianca Belgiorno
for <a href="http://languagebox.ac.uk/profile/1246">Italian</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">• Admire the beautiful kanga fabrics and <a href="http://languagebox.ac.uk/profile/1303">proverbs for Swahili</a> shared by
Wambui from the School of Oriental and African Studies<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">• Study the examples of effective student feedback from <a href="http://languagebox.ac.uk/profile/1239">Richard Galletly</a> at Aston
University<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">• Get into learning <a href="http://languagebox.ac.uk/profile/1289">Finnish</a> from Riitta-Liisa
Valijarvi at UCL – I’ve already wiled away an enjoyable half hour on the <a href="http://languagebox.ac.uk/3039/">loanwords quiz</a>!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">• Admire these beautiful and fascinating pictures of a <a href="http://languagebox.ac.uk/2997/">Chinese market in Beijing</a> from Dan Li
at Newcastle University – they make me want to fill my house with giant
calligraphy brushes and statues! Or learn some a <a href="http://languagebox.ac.uk/2989/">Chinese song</a> from Linda Cheng, also
at Newcastle.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tutors report that they have really enjoyed creating
resources and making them available to the world. They will continue with open
practice in their work and if you are keen to find out more, the project blog
is at: <a href="http://www.thefavorproject.wordpress.com/">www.thefavorproject.wordpress.com</a>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There are still new FAVOR resources appearing on LanguageBox
every day and all of them give a fascinating taste of language study in Higher
Education. Have a browse and see what grabs your interest…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kate Borthwick</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Academic Coordinator, LLAS</span></div>
Laurence Georginhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15832145556973165416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-4793198263006487522012-10-03T17:10:00.002+01:002012-10-03T17:11:12.549+01:00New Zealand teachers visit Wales for Maori class tips<div class="introduction" id="story_continues_1">
Four teachers from New Zealand have arrived in Wales to learn more about bilingual education in a two-week tour.</div>
The visitors will take tips on how to boost Maori language lessons in their home country's schools.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-19757643">BBC website </a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-85343289634830831932012-08-28T16:11:00.000+01:002012-08-28T16:11:33.334+01:00Mapping the Origins and Expansion of the Indo-European Language Family<div class="csl-bib-body" style="line-height: 1.35; padding-left: 2em; text-indent: -2em;">
<div class="csl-entry">
<div id="p-3">
There are two competing hypotheses for the origin of the
Indo-European language family. The conventional view places the homeland
in the Pontic steppes about 6000 years ago. An
alternative hypothesis claims that the languages spread from Anatolia
with
the expansion of farming 8000 to 9500 years ago.
We used Bayesian phylogeographic approaches, together with basic
vocabulary
data from 103 ancient and contemporary
Indo-European languages, to explicitly model the expansion of the family
and test these
hypotheses. We found decisive support for an
Anatolian origin over a steppe origin. Both the inferred timing and root
location
of the Indo-European language trees fit with an
agricultural expansion from Anatolia beginning 8000 to 9500 years ago.
These
results highlight the critical role that
phylogeographic inference can play in resolving debates about human
prehistory.
</div>
</div>
<div class="csl-entry">
</div>
<div class="csl-entry">
Bouckaert, Remco, Philippe Lemey, Michael Dunn, Simon J. Greenhill, Alexander V. Alekseyenko, Alexei J. Drummond, Russell D. Gray, Marc A. Suchard, and Quentin D. Atkinson. ‘Mapping the Origins and Expansion of the Indo-European Language Family’. <i>Science</i> 337, no. 6097 (August 24, 2012): 957–960.<a href="http://www.blogger.com/%20http://www.sciencemag.org/content/337/6097/957.full"> http://www.sciencemag.org/content/337/6097/957.full</a></div>
<span class="Z3988" title="url_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fzotero.org%3A2&rft_id=info%3Adoi%2F10.1126%2Fscience.1219669&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Mapping%20the%20Origins%20and%20Expansion%20of%20the%20Indo-European%20Language%20Family&rft.jtitle=Science&rft.stitle=Science&rft.volume=337&rft.issue=6097&rft.aufirst=Remco&rft.aulast=Bouckaert&rft.au=Remco%20Bouckaert&rft.au=Philippe%20Lemey&rft.au=Michael%20Dunn&rft.au=Simon%20J.%20Greenhill&rft.au=Alexander%20V.%20Alekseyenko&rft.au=Alexei%20J.%20Drummond&rft.au=Russell%20D.%20Gray&rft.au=Marc%20A.%20Suchard&rft.au=Quentin%20D.%20Atkinson&rft.date=2012-08-24&rft.pages=957-960&rft.spage=957&rft.epage=960&rft.issn=0036-8075%2C%201095-9203">
</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-36185338350305879492012-08-23T10:18:00.001+01:002012-08-23T10:18:07.060+01:00English standards at universities being set below recommended levels<div class="standfirst">
Nearly two in three UK universities are
setting English language requirements below the recommended level for
undergraduate students from outside the European Union, according to a <em>Times Higher Education</em> survey.<br />
</div>
The International English Language Testing System (IELTS), which is
one of the most commonly used tests and is partly owned by the British
Council, recommends that a score of at least 6.5 is needed for any
degree course.<br />
<br />
Full article at: <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=420938&c=1">Times Higher Education</a><br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-86525633671859476852012-08-16T10:29:00.000+01:002012-08-16T10:29:03.788+01:00Entries in A-level French and German down<br />
French down 5.2%. German 7.6%<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2012/aug/16/a-level-results-2012-grades">The Guardian </a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-88637303578362306722012-07-24T17:40:00.000+01:002012-07-24T17:40:20.643+01:00Scotland: funding boost for Gaelic culture and filmFirst Minister Alex Salmond has announced £130,000 to support sound
archiving and film-making projects based on Skye. Speaking during a
visit with Education Secretary Michael Russell to Sabhal Mòr Ostaig,
Scotland’s first college to teach solely in Gaelic, Mr Salmond confirmed
the cash will support work to develop a National Sound Archive and to
help foster a new generation of young Gaelic filmmakers.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2012/07/culture-film23072012">Scottish Government</a> Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-28246687464096086122012-07-19T11:39:00.001+01:002012-07-19T11:39:27.003+01:00Why it will be starting with a KIS for 2013 undergraduates<span style="background-color: white;">Fees of up to £9000 at English universities may have dominated the news headlines in recent times but it is not the only big change in UK higher education scheduled for autumn 2012.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br />
24 September sees the launch of the new look unistats website as part of the Government’s drive to ensure that students have as much information as possible to inform their choice about what and where to study. The cornerstone of the new look website will be the Key Information Set or KIS. As far as possible each course at every university will have a KIS, a series of statistics drawn from the National Student Survey (NSS) and the First Destinations Survey on student satisfaction, graduate salaries and employment rates. Also included will be local accommodation costs, fees, the availability of bursaries and scholarships , contact hours and the proportion of the course assessed through examinations and coursework. A mock-up of what a KIS might look like is on the <a href="http://www.hefce.ac.uk/media/hefce/content/whatwedo/learningandteaching/informationabouthighereducation/keyinformationsets/kis_sample.pdf">HEFCE website</a>.<br />
<br />
This information revolution is set to gather further pace. The 2011 Higher Education White Paper <i><a href="http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/higher-education/docs/h/11-944-higher-education-students-at-heart-of-system.pdf">Higher Education: Students at the Heart of the System </a></i>recommended that Higher Education Public Information Steering Group (HEPISG) consider the possibility of a survey of taught postgraduate students similar to the NSS. It is timely therefore that the annual LLAS workshop for Heads of Department on 13 September will have a strong focus on exploring the possible implications of this data revolution on departments of languages, linguistics and area studies. <br />
<br />
The KIS will enable students, their parents, the Government, the media, our colleagues and our senior managers to make comparisons between courses on an unprecedented scale. This is not just about comparing your institution with another institution but your French course with your German course, your Spanish course with your European Studies course. Up to now differences in the outcomes and students experiences on different courses in the same department have not been easy to spot, at least to those outside your institution. From September these differences will be in full public view.<br />
<br />
Winston Churchill opined: “True genius resides in the capacity for evaluation of uncertain, hazardous, and conflicting information”. With more information than ever, easier to find than ever, we need true genius more than ever.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Thriving in an uncertain world: a workshop for heads of department and leaders in languages, linguistics and area studies </i>will be held in London on 13 September. Book online at the <a href="http://www.llas.ac.uk/events/6659">LLAS website </a>to reserve your place.<br />
<br />
John Canning<br />
Senior Academic Coordinator<br />
LLAS Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies<br />
<br />
<br />
<div>
<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-48040343330130183062012-07-12T09:53:00.000+01:002012-07-12T09:53:05.460+01:00Hobson-Jobson: The words English owes to India<div class="introduction" id="story_continues_1">
In 1872 two men began
work on a lexicon of words of Asian origin used by the British in India.
Since its publication the 1,000-page dictionary has never been out of
print and a new edition is due out early next year. What accounts for
its enduring appeal?</div>
<br />
Hobson-Jobson is the dictionary's short, and mysterious title.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-18796493">BBC website </a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3025892912300294385.post-10822700292458417872012-07-04T10:46:00.000+01:002012-07-04T10:46:21.206+01:00IRELAND: Yes, we can save Irish – but there’s no point trying to spread itIf Irish is to survive as a community language, then only preservation and not promotion must be concentrated on.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/column-yes-we-can-save-irish-%E2%80%93-but-there%E2%80%99s-no-point-trying-to-spread-it/">www.journal.ie </a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0