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Ten Burning Questions Language teaching is as much an art as it is a science. Effective educators excel at the art of language teaching, and we at CASLS understand the science behind second language acquisition research. With help from practicing teachers, we have identified the top ten burning questions of those who matter the most: language teachers themselves. CASLS is leading a team of researchers to investigate these questions and then publish the results in a variety of formats.

For the first thirteen years of my career, I did not know what the difference between language acquisition and language learning was. In fact, I'd dare say that I didn't really even know that there was a thing called "language acquisition" and I certainly had never heard of Dr. Stephen Krashen. I taught my students Spanish and French in a way where acquisition was unheard of. I used the textbook and taught long lists of thematic vocabulary. They were successful, yes. However, I'm afraid that most of them are destined to become one of those people who say "I forgot everything I learned in language class." I have heard this statement from dozens, possibly a hundred or more people who usually say this once they learn I'm a language teacher.

"The research refers to children raised with a language at home that differs from the dominant language outside the home, such as in school. Compared to monolinguals, the bilingual children develop greater attention focus, distraction resistance, decision-making judgment and responsiveness to feedback. The correlated fMRI scans of these children reveal more activity in the prefrontal cortex networks that control these executive functions. "

Good articles on language acquisition and phonological considerations for L2 courses.

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What do you think of when you think of your Target Language country/countries? While you may have spent some time there - and traveled to various spots - your students may have not. As a Japanese teacher it seems that Tokyo is the number 1 'want to go to' place for my students. However, as I spent my first 2 years in Japan in smaller more out of the way places, I want my students to learn that there's more to Japan than the big urban areas. And so the Year4 travel fair - a summative activity at the end of a 2-week unit - was born. It allows students to utilize key words they will need if/when they visit Japan - and also allows them to research and introduce key areas to their classmates during an interactive oral. For me the fair takes a week - with time spent planning/preparing for the 'fair', running the fair and then using the information for a written 'summative' evaluation. (My handout - for my Yr4 Japanese class including is here) The premise: Design an optional tour for a visitor to Japan - one that is outside major urban areas (I list the 'no go' places). This can be a 2 or 3 day tour.