Using Your Phone for Learning Languages

I recently upgraded to an iPhone specifically for using it to help me learn languages. I kept
seeing the new phones other people had (mine was a few years old already) and I was
amazed at how far they had come and how practical they could be. I found that I had time
between classes, before work, while waiting for the menu at restaurants etc., and any
creative language learner knows that those are very valuable bits of time. This is where that
iPhone (or any smart phone) can come in real handy.
Apps
There are now tons of apps available for learning languages on your phone. Some are for free
and many more offer expanded features and content for a fee, usually pretty reasonable.
Some are from well-known reputable publishers of language learning products, like BYKI from
Transparent Language or phrasebooks from Lonely Planet. Other apps can be produced by
individuals, but may be just as helpful or cool. Some apps are offered as part of a
subscription or account on a website, such as apps for Lingq or Anki.
Translators/Dictionaries
There are plenty of dictionary apps that are available for free. Some have more features for a
fee, like native speaker audio. Some apps have just a few thousand words but for dozens of
languages. Having a dictionary of some kind is a no-brainer.
News
One of the ways phones are most useful is for news. You can get news from all over the
world, for just about any language you are learning. This is mostly for intermediate or
advanced learners, but there are a few news organizations that have news in simplified
language. I have a few news apps for Spanish, and Le Monde for French. I can be reading the
latest headlines from New York or Mexico City in Spanish, or Paris in French within seconds.
Radio
Just as the internet is a portal to the world, so is your phone. Searching for stations that are
playing the kind of music or all-talk in the language you are looking for can be a pain (only
because there are often so many choices!), but once you have found what you want, it is at
your fingertips and your earbuds at will.
Videos
You can download movies and videos, of course, but YouTube is such an awesome source of
material in such a wide variety of languages, that it is a must on any smart phone.
Music/Audiobooks/Podcasts
You can download lots of listenable content in the language you're learning, but you can also
upload it from your computer or MP3 player. Spend a little time preparing some casual
listening material and you will never be short of something to do in your new language.
Texting
Some people would think that spending fifteen minutes texting your friends in a foreign
language is just goofing off and not very productive, but it's just the opposite. That's real life
communicating in a foreign language, not verb charts and grammar rules and vocabulary
lists. It is a training ground for proficiency and fluency. Hopefully, you can find some friends
who speak or are learning the same language you are!
Browser
If your phone has a browser, you have access to internet sites either for learning languages,
or in the language you are learning. This is especially helpful for intermediate and advanced
learners, as you have an unending source of material to use.
There are plenty more ideas and uses for smart phones when it comes to learning languages.
Just spend some time to set up your phone with a few apps, videos, music, news and
whatever else you can think of. Think you don't have time to learn a language? Think again!
Once you've prepared your phone, those few minutes you find here and there can become an
indispensable part of your learning regimen!
 Language Learning Demos
Try Before You Buy!

Buying a quality language learning method is the most important first step in learning a new language. But
be careful. Too many people spend too much money on a language learning product without even realizing
what it does or how it works. Be sure to try many language learning demos, free lessons or free trial offers
before you commit to a purchase. It can make a very big difference in the long run.

One common mistake many language learners make, especially new ones, is to buy the wrong kind of
language method for themselves. There are tons of language learning products out there, and they all sound
so great,but with a little foresight and some research, you can be sure to get a language learning method
that's right for you. I highly recommend to any language learner who is contemplating a new purchase to
first try out as many products as possible. Do a little research into each method and look for a demo or free
lessons. Many language publishers, especially the most popular ones, offer a free demo or first lesson or
two to try out their product before you buy it. If they don't, you should think twice about committing to
something if it is a big purchase for you.

Why should you try out the product first?

You need to be confident that the language method is teaching you what you need or want to learn.

Does it cover the kind of material you want? Is it for travelers or is it much more comprehensive?
A course for travelers may have a greater focus on asking for directions, hotel, airport, buying things,
restaurants etc. If this is what you are looking for, make sure the course you buy has this kind of material as
its focus.
Or perhaps you are looking for something much more comprehensive. Does the course cover lots of
grammar, verb conjugations, tenses etc.
Do you want to learn to speak only or do you also need to know how to read the language? This will have a
big effect on which kind of course you want and what material it covers.
By trying out the product first, you will have a much better understanding of what kinds of material it
teaches.
Is the learning style and format of the lessons appropriate for you?
The learning style of how the material is presented and in what format can have a big impact on how useful
it is for you. Is the type of language method what you are looking for audio-based, book, computer-based
etc
For example, suppose you just want some basic conversation skills in the language, greetings, asking basic
questions etc. So, you are not yet interested in reading and writing the language.
And let's say you are going to be studying in your car, listening to audio while you are driving to work.
Pimsleurs all-audio course would be ideal. But if you needed to learn how to read and write for business,
Pimsleur would not be a very good choice for you. Pimsleur is a great course, but in this case, it wouldn't
be providing what you need and how you need it. By listening to the first Pimsleur lesson that you can get
for free, you would quickly realize whether the material presented was right for you and what you need.

Is it cost-effective for you?

In some cases, a $15 book and 2 cd course might ideal for you. It would be a shame if you found this out
only after you had spent $500 on a software program that you didn't like. The opposite can also be true.
Many language learners have spent hundreds of dollars on inexpensive course after inexpensive course,
only to find later that 1 $200 software method was perfect for them. Money and aggravation could have
been saved if they had only had a better understanding of how each course worked and what they really
needed to learn properly. These are the questions you need to begin to answer before you commit what
could be hundreds of dollars and hundreds of hours of study time on a language method. Do some research.
Refrain from making an impulse buy. In the long run, you will be more confident in your language method
and in yourself. This will translate into a much more effective and rewarding language learning experience.

Learn Spanish: Why Americans Don't

Xenoglossophobia : the plague that affects Americans more than anyone else. I have fought long
and hard to avoid it. I expect to fight harder. In this article, two American expatriates living in
Mexico give their take on this all-too-common disorder and how they successfully avoided it
when they moved to Mexico and did the unthinkable - they learned Spanish!

I just bet you had absolutely no idea that the U.S. Senate, on February 17, 2005,
declared this the "Year of the Foreign Language Study". You didn't know, did you? Ah
ha! I knew it! It is true. The year, 2005, was the official Year of Foreign Language
Study. And it is about bloody time, I would like to add. In case you are wondering why
your elected officials bothered with passing this resolution, on taxpayer's time and
money, it is because most of America is afflicted with a dreadful and painful lack of
foreign language ability.

This, my foreign-language-illiterate fellow American, is because we have this disorder

(and this is true) called, xenoglossophobia—the fear of foreign languages. Moreover, in
America it is, and always has been, a chronic case! Before 1923, 22 states in America
had laws prohibiting the teaching of foreign languages. Is that xenophobic (having
abnormal fear or hatred of the strange or foreign) or what! It was in 1923 when the
Supreme Court overturned this silliness

However, by 1954, 56% of the U.S. high schools did not even have foreign language
courses available to their students. Of those who did, only 14.2% students enrolled in
foreign language study. This was all due to America's abnormal fear of the strange or
foreign as applied to foreign languages—xenoglossophobia! Tell me if you have ever, in
your life, heard this one: "When those Mexicans come to American they should have to
learn how to speak English." I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard this. I know
you have heard it too, so don't deny it! Well folks, many Americans who move to (or
even just visit Mexico) do not bother to learn Spanish. One could make the case that if
you were just a tourist that you could squeak by with pointing, grunting, and making
loud gaseous sounds. However, if you are going to move here, why in God's name
don't you learn Spanish?

Excuse: xenoglossophobia! Now you have this real excuse to blame for your total lack
of linguistic skills in Spanish. But know that it not only hurts the feelings of the locals
that you come to their country and don't learn their language but the Mexicans see the
hypocrisy in that you expect something out of them, when they expatriate to America,
that you are not yourself willing to even try when you move to Mexico.

The solution?

You should not dismiss this issue of Xenoglossophobia. There is a real and
unacknowledged fear of foreigners in American culture. I see this all the time in the
people I talk to. I am a syndicated columnist and book author and am constantly being
deluged with reader's comments. Some are not so nice. I get a sense from the
hundreds of column reader's responses I receive that not just Xenoglossophobia is a
real problem, but Xenophobia in general is alive and well in America. At the writing of
this article, the Minuteman Project Movement is growing leaps and bounds that will, in
my view, cause an even large isolationism from Mexico. I do not know but maybe it
will even go back to the days when learning a foreign language will be outlawed or at
least dropped from the school's curriculum all together. Anything is possible and
stranger things have happened.
The main reasons I think people who would really like to learn Spanish, but who do
not, are those who suffer from Xenoglossophobia. These are people who would love to
learn Spanish but do not because of their fear of second language acquisition. They are
just plainly and simply afraid. I think that fear works out in some of the following
ways:

·They think that they will not be able to master the thousands of vocabulary words
required for communicating in the language.

·They are terrified at the thought of having to learn grammar rules. I mean, who
wouldn't be? Can you imagine anything more boring?

·They are afraid that they are too old. They are convinced that had they started as a
child they would have had a fair shot at mastering Spanish. They think their learning
curve is retarded because of their age.

·Here is the BIG ONE: They are scared to death of making a fool of themselves.

I believe there are other reasons that I haven't thought of but these are some of the
top ones that give the adult learner fits. I talk to people all the time who voice these
concerns. They are genuine. They would love to live in Mexico and to take advantage
of all its benefits but these objections loom so largely in their brains that they cannot
move past them.
 New Year's Resolution
Language Learning Goals
I have never really been in the habit of making a New Year's Resolution. In fact, last year was
the first time I made one in all seriousness, and I'm happy to say that I fulfilled it. So, this year
I thought to continue with that success and make another language-related New Year's
Resolution. How about you?

What's Your New Year's Resolution?

Have you made a New Years Resolution and is it related to learning a language? If you are
preparing for a trip, have a life-long dream to learn a language or are just looking to define
some goals for yourself, have you ever thought of using your New Year's Resolution as your
motivator? I didn't until I tried it last year, and it worked so well I'm going to do it again.

Last Year's Resolution

My New Years Resolution going into 2009 was to go back to school to finish my undergraduate
degree, specifically something related to languages. While I haven't completely decided what
that degree will be yet, I enrolled in September and I have made studying languages (and
anything language-related) a priority. I am between semesters at the moment but I now have 1
semester of Spanish and French behind me and I am a few days away from my next semester.
Ok, so that goal was accomplished and I have set the wheels in motion to complete the larger
and more important goal of finishing my degree and moving on to a post-graduate degree. So
how about this New Year?

This Years New Year's Resolution

Going into 2010 I'll continue in the same vein as what worked for last year, which happens to be
related to language learning. But this years resolution will be a little different. At the forum on
How to Learn Any Language.com (the best online forum for serious language learners) there is
something called the Total Annihilation Challenge in the Language Learning Log section. The
members of that forum have created this as a way to challenge themselves to greater levels of
language study. By declaring my goals there (and here) I hope I will have greater determination
to achieve them. Here goes :

Spanish - My goal in 2010 is to finally 'activate' my Spanish. I have studied Spanish casually
(and mostly passively) for a long time and it's just itching to get out of my mouth in a more
fluent fashion.
French - I am still scraping 20 years of rust off of my French, but class is bringing it back
nicely. If I continue working diligently, I see no reason why it shouldn't be roughly the same
level as Spanish by the end of the year, in a freely-flowing conversational fashion.
Dutch - I have started a few courses in Dutch and I just want to finish them. Assimil Dutch With
Ease and Michel Thomas Foundation Dutch. I also have Pimsleur Dutch Comprehensive (only 1
level available) and a few books like Teach Yourself Dutch. When I finish those I will start
working through Harry Potter as I have the audiobooks and pdfs. Dutch is not a priority for me
but I just want to feel some progress.
There are lots of other languages screaming at me for attention, but this is what I've settled on
for the next year. Now, it's your turn.

Make Your New Year's Resolution!

I've defined my goals for this year and made them public, it's great for motivation!
Why don't you try it? Introduce yourself and declare your goals for 2010.
 Using Popular Songs to Improve Language Listening Comprehension Skills
By Larry M. Lynch

Are you students sometimes bored in spite of your best efforts? Are you looking for
some new and different techniques? Could you use a learning activity that would really
wake them up? Would you like to get and keep the students’ interest? Even have them
helping you? Then try this classroom-tested technique by using student-selected songs
to teach listening comprehension.

Almost everyone loves music. It is a part of our language and life from before birth
onwards. As babies, we hear lullabies. As young children we play, sing and dance to a
myriad of nursery rhymes. As adolescents, we are consumed by the beat of popular
music artists worldwide. As adults, every form of advertising we hear, every special
event we experience, is in part, music. Music pervades television, movies, theater, and
even the nightly news. When we exercise, when we work, when we play, when we
worship and even when we die, music is there to reinforce or alter or every mood and
emotion. A catchy tune is played, hummed or sung, at times in our head, as we go
about our everyday lives. So, why not include music and songs in language learning as
well?

Factors Contributing to Listening Comprehension of Song

• Use of new vocabulary, idioms and expressions – You’ll need to address the new
material offered in each song. This includes grammar, vocabulary and usage.

• Pronunciation and accent of the singer – Every native speaker doesn’t pronounce or
sing with the same accent. Students may be exposed to an accent which is outside the
realm of what they might normally hear in context.

• Use of new grammar and structure Song writers and singers are notoriously “loose”
when it comes to use of grammar, structure, pronunciation, stress and other language
factors applied to songs. The teacher must prepare for this.

Three Principal Song Selection Criteria

1. Use songs that are popular with the students whenever possible. Unfortunately,
students frequently select songs for classroom use which are objectionable in some
way making the song unusable.

2. Songs MUST have clear and understandable lyrics. Nothing is worse than a song
almost nobody can understand. If you have trouble understanding the lyrics by
listening, then another song needs to be selected.

3. Songs should have an appropriate theme. There’s enough bad news, negativity and
violence in the world already. Songs with any type of negative theme should be
avoided. There are plenty of positive, upbeat, even humorous songs available. Use
these.

Music pervades virtually every aspect of our lives

Music pervades virtually every aspect of our lives. Students adore it. It contains
numerous useful elements for language teaching and it’s fun for both the teacher and
students. So, why not include music and songs in your language learning classes as
well?
 How Christmas Saved the Music
Industry
Both Mariah Carey and Susan Boyle have new holiday albums. Which
diva would you rather kiss under the mistletoe?

What do Jessica Simpson, the Indigo Girls, Annie Lennox, the Puppini Sisters, Justin Bieber and the TV
show Glee all have in common? Very little, really—aside from the fact they all have Christmas albums due
out this year. They are but a handful of the dozens of artists who are cashing in on Yule-time cheer. A
market that at one time seemed cornered by the likes of Burl Ives and Bing Crosby is now wide open to
anyone who can string the words “Santa” and “Claus” together. Case in point—one of the top-selling
Christmas albums of the past decade belongs to Kenny G. No wonder some folks find the holidays
depressing. 

Amid the deluge of holiday music that comes in November and December, Mariah Carey’s Merry
Christmas II You and Susan Boyle’s The Gift are poised to make all those other seasonal crooners sound
like off-key carolers. Mariah’s album is already out, and Susan’s arrives Nov. 9, just in time to unseat her
competitor's. But whose album will dominate this holiday season, and infuse the ailing music industry with
a much-needed Christmas miracle?

“Christmas albums are a guaranteed seller every year, going back to Elvis,” says Keith Caulfield, associate
director of charts at Billboard magazine. “And it does seem like we’re seeing more of them because some
recent Christmas albums, specifically Groban’s, have made such a show in the marketplace.”

“Seasonal CDs,” as more serious artists like to refer to them, require very little original material (if any) and
the songs are instantly familiar, regardless of whether the listener pitches a tree or lights a menorah each
December. Age doesn’t seem to be much of an issue either, since Christmas CDs are aimed at the
Nickelodeon crowd as well as eggnog sippers. Still, Caulfield says that “acts who skew older, like Sting,
Enya and those Celtic Thunder-type groups, tend to do better because they appeal to a demographic who
still buy full albums.”

But, as holiday music goes, which one of these divine voices will come up with the better Christmas record?
Mariah certainly makes it all seem a lot more fun. Produced by Antonio L.A. Reid, her album includes five
new songs as well as classics like "Here Comes Santa Claus" and Vince Guaraldi’s "Charlie Brown
Christmas." Carey takes a lot of liberties here with traditional fare, opening her CD with an instrumental
interlude of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” and later singing a “O Little Town of Bethlehem/Drummer
Boy” medley.

The traditional numbers work, thanks to her still-quite-amazing voice, and the fact that she now infuses a lot
of her personality into her singing—a soul and depth that was absent on a lot of her early work. Her own hip
hop/R&B number, “Oh Santa,” is so catchy and joyous, it could become a new standard, just as “All I Want
For Christmas is You” was for her in 1994. Sample lyric from “Oh Santa”:  “Santa come and make him
mine this Christmas,” she sings. “I promise I won’t forget the milk and cookies. I’ve been really good this
year, except for those pretzels and that can of beer.”

Sure there are some cheesy moments (it’s a Christmas album, after all), but they are few and far between.
The mix of traditional Christmas songs with high-energy R&B, orchestral arrangements and even gospel,
keep the CD feeling fresh and diverse. As for spiritual content, she sings the “First Noel" with reverence
and soul and even includes Bible verses on her album booklet. Like any urban artist worth her salt, she also
thanks God on her CD sleeve.

Who does the devoutly Catholic Susan Boyle thank first in her liner notes? Simon Cowell (who might be
more powerful than God). But clearly, Boyle’s faith played a big role in the imagery and songs she chose
forThe Gift. Her album cover is a head shot of her staring off longingly toward the Northern Star, except her
gaze is a little off so it looks like she’s squinting into headlights instead. The holiday numbers here include
“Hallelujah,” “O Holy Night” and “Away in a Manger” while the inspirational numbers are Lou Reed’s
“Perfect Day” and Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over.” Interestingly though, all boast the same
ambience—lofty, pristine and pure, backed often by an angelic-sounding choir.

Boyle’s voice is of course, stellar, if not a little too perfect. The album lacks a personality of its own,
making it pleasant but often boring background music for tempered holiday parties or shopping at the
upscale mall. It’s so placid, in fact, it almost feels sad in spots, perhaps to cater to all the people who feel
blue over the holidays. Or maybe listeners can project whatever emotion they would like onto it and make it
their own (clearly I need antidepressants), because after all, isn’t that what Susan Boyle is all about?

Though Mariah delivers a much more jolly, and joyous, Christmas album, thankfully there is more than one
talented diva to pick from this year. All we can ask Santa for now is: please, no more Kenny G albums.