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BRAVE Blog

Big Brother Did My Homework: How Governments help Language Learners

London Sunset You’d normally think that your government is only there to collect your taxes and spy on you from time to time. Well, it turns out that other countries’ officials are actually useful from time to time: they have means of helping you learn the language of their country! Take a look at a handful of ways to approach this polyglot goodness.

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BRAVE Blog

Fire Your Teachers If They Don’t Ask This Question

Why Tintin44 via Compfight

It’s customary to exaggerate a little in the post headline. But not this time. I would find it hard to think of a more important question for learners. Here’s where I heard it.

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BRAVE Blog

Language Learning as Investment: Five Starting Points

Stock options. Gold. Real Estate. These are the things people usually associate with investing. In reality, you can invest in almost anything (there’s apparently a fortune to be made in cigar and wine investments!). Today, I’ll look at learning a foreign language from an investor’s perspective – and give you five questions worth asking if you’re planning to start a new language course (or re-examine your involvement in the current one).

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BRAVE Blog

“What Level Is This?” Thoughts on Levels In Language Learning

The Welsh word “ysgol” means two things: “school,” but also “ladder.” I found this out on a trip recently and was surprised at how accurate this is.

There’s a lot to be said about the way schools are organised – plenty of good things and some horrible things can be witnessed there as a result. When it comes to language schools, here’s what it boils down to. Prepare for an unceremonious, frank inside story of a language school manager – and how you can beat the system if you really want to.

 

The Ladder Benefits

Just about every language school in the world has levels. This is one thing that nobody dares to question, and everybody assumes to work with. Levels are the bread and butter of language learning.

You finished one level, on to another one. You’re having problems, tough – repeat this level. You’re brilliant and gifted – great! Skip a level.

Levels are how language schools deal with their teachers, learners, courses, course materials, prices, requirements, publicity – almost everything revolves around this idea.

And it’s great, effective and simple. I have lots of genuinely awesome things to say about the idea of having levels in a language school. I’m going to give you a quick list – only limiting myself to the benefits that relate to learners:

– It gives a sense of progression. If you’ve finished one level and progressed to the next one, you feel that you’ve achieved something. So it is with video games and foreign languages 🙂

– It’s pretty well thought-out. Predictably enough, the folks at various European commissions have liked the idea of proficiency levels for language learners. The result is a framework which outlines what learners should be able to do as a result of completing each level. I like the idea of measuring proficiency in terms of what you can do with your language – who cares how many words you remember, if you’re unable to write a simple email?

– It makes learning manageable. Low levels learn basic things. High levels learn advanced stuff. This is how you avoid stressed-out, unhappy learners. This is how learners can actually make progress.

– It introduces order into some pretty shambolic circumstances. When you sign up for a language course, you’re in for role-plays, tests, listenings, dialogues, games, homework and who knows what else. It’s pretty intense, even in small-sized classes. So it feels good to know that “this is my level, and the next one is that.”

 

Cutting up the river: the absurd of levels

The disadvantages of levels in language learning may not be so numerous – and they’re definitely more abstract. But I feel that it’s just as important to mention them – as a person responsible for managing how people teach and learn, I have frequently faced their absurd nature. So I’m venting a bit, but also giving you a fair warning. Here goes:

– Levels are arbitrary, abstract structures. Changing the label on you classroom door from “elementary” to “intermediate” does absolutely nothing to your language. You still know what you know, you still learn what you want to learn.

– They tend to be too restrictive. “We won’t learn the passive voice until intermediate.” “Don’t waste time on that graded reader, the level’s too low for you!” Many schools, teachers and managers will refuse to look beyond the level. You’re here, the thinking goes, so you will learn the things your level allows you. No more, no less.

– They introduce competition into a non-competitive field. If a language school tells you that it will allow you to cover twice as many levels in five years – they’re doing two bad things. Firstly, the school makes you believe that going through levels fast is a good thing. Secondly, it makes the other, more thorough schools look bad in comparison. If your goal is to beat the world record in memorising vocabulary, be my guest – but if you want to learn a language really well, then my first advice would be to take your time. Yours, not someone else’s.

 

Level Up: how to beat the level-crazed system

The most important piece of advice for learners in a level-based language school?

Hold the school to its word. A level is something that should work for you as well.

[checklist]

  • Find out how long it takes to complete each level.
  • Learn about the whole level range the school can offer – and if anything is missing (what happens at the top?)
  • Find out if there are any exams available after each level.
  • Request a framework of key skills and competences for each level.
  • Ask for a non-level class, offering authentic language practice (works mainly for advanced classes – but always worth a try.)
  • Demand that all tests be marked in references to the syllabus and skills framework for the level.

[/checklist]

What are your thoughts on levels in language learning? Don’t be afraid to comment!

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BRAVE Blog

Ninjas and Negotiators: 4 Ideals Of Language Teachers

The nutty professor
The style not described below: No. 5, Nutcase.

It’s a curious thing: you probably don’t remember any of your mediocre teachers. People tend to remember the good ones (gratefully) and the horrible ones (in their nightmares). In language learning, teachers not only need to teach you about their subject, but also serve as a model for how to use the knowledge – somebody to communicate with. Choosing your teacher wisely can make or break your study – fortunately, there are ways of knowing what kind of teacher you need, and how to get one. Read on to find them out!

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Language Learning and The Myth of Sustainable Immigration

20%
What goes up, must come down.

What happens when your country becomes to popular for its own good? What would you do if your language turned out to be a huge crowd puller? Would you try to make the most of it, and get through the hard economic times by playing to your strengths?
Or…would you do what the British Government so triumphantly announced on Wednesday, and start systematically shooting yourself in the foot?