Reviewing Spanish--Some New Twists with Favorite Authors

For the last few days I have been reviewing my Spanish and preparing to do some translation from English to Spanish as part of a battery of tests I will be taking.  I visited the St Charles Public Library and picked-up a lot of good material to use in my review.

What I have experienced very good results with are two novels,  The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown and Zorro, a Novel by Isabel Allende.  I have been listening to the unabridged audiobook on CD in English and reading the unabridged companion book in Spanish as I listen to English.  In addition, for The Da Vinci Code, I have been listening to the unabridged audiobook on CD in Spanish in my car.

The combination is easy to follow though I'm not sure if my approach by listening to the English and reading the Spanish may be to passive.  I know that the key to working any language is to use it--a lot.  I also know that the best writers in English read--a lot.  By reading Spanish I hope to improve my Spanish writing.  By listening to English and reading the translation into Spanish (or, in the case of Isabel Allende, the original was in Spanish and it has been translated into English), I am becoming more familiar with how to use phrases and idioms in Spanish to replace those in English.

This is certainly a challenging way to review.  I am also watching DVD movies in Spanish (often with Spanish subtitles).  This, too, keeps me involved and engaged in my participation in my review of Spanish.  I am delighted I have had several days to prepare before I have to face any Spanish-language tests.

Life and Art--Blind Side Movie--Life Embedded in Art

Sandra Bullock is one of my favorite actresses.  She is very versatile and normally plays authentic parts.  I recently watch her in The Proposal in English and in Spanish and thoroughly enjoyed the movie.  Recently I saw her take on a new role in The Blind Side, a movie based on real life.

In The Blind Side,  Bullock plays Leigh Anne Tuohy, a no-nonsense southern Mom who sees Michael Oher and brings into her family.  At the conclusion of the movie, the still pictures are all about the real Michael Oher and the Tuohys.

The movie is compelling and brings home the plight of young people facing the same challenges Michael Oher did before getting into high school.  Sandra Bullock's portrayal is moving and feels authentic.

Finding Quality Professional Connections around the world--LinkedIn Social Networking

I need to find quality professional connections around the world.  Looking to social networking for a solution, LinkedIn.com seems to be a very good solution.  There are millions of people connected via the site.  Many of the discussion groups put me in touch with professionals in the areas I am looking for.  Alumni networks put me in touch with professionals who share a corporate history with me from the global workplace.

LinkedIn offered me the opportunity to start my own discussion groups.  I created three to gather together people interested in three different projects I am currently working on.  I've just dissolved one of these groups due to apparent lack of interest (at the moment) and have sent an announcment to members of the Audio eBooks for Learning to see if people want that group to continue.  My newest group is DrM-Language-Network so that people who choose to work with me on my latest project, making affordable online language learning programs available to learners throughout the world, can join with me to share ideas and to celebrate sucesses.

I've joined several pre-existing LinkedIn discussion groups so that I can invite people to work with me or to refer me to others who may want to be involved in my current project(s).  Some of these people have also joined my "primary" LinkedIn network.

Many of the people who are already in my primary LinkedIn network are the type of professionals I enjoy working with.  LinkedIn is one place to find quality professional connections.  Presently this seems to be the most direct and effective means, though I am open to learning about more.

Helping Others Learn Language--Sources of Income for Teachers and Not-for-Profit Organizations

As a teacher of English language learners (ELLs) for the past six years, I came across many students and parents who needed to learn English.  Schools sometimes offer English as a second language for parents, though parents rarely have time to come to classes.

An affordable online English language learning program that parents and students can access on their own at home could go a long way to help both improve English skills.  As students build their skills in written and spoken English, academic performance can be expected to improve.

 Students who improve their English on their own using an online English language learning program can more more quickly through classes in English as a second language.  They can also engage more in English conversations related to the vocabulary and grammar they build in the basic English class online.

Some native English speakers can also benefit from an online English language learning program.  Any learner whose home or work environment is not used to standard English usage may benefit from a basic study of English language vocabulary and grammar.

The affordable online language program can benefit students learning English and can help students learning French, Spanish, German, Chinese, or Japanese (and three other languages) improve their communication skills in those languages.

In 2009, thousands of teachers in the USA were forced out of their teaching positions due to the availability of funds for education at local, state, and federal levels.  Many of these teachers need to find ways to make ends meet as they search for new jobs or careers. 

There is a business side to the online language learning programs.  This business side can allow teachers to generate some positive income flow while they pursue their job and career search.

Not-for-profit organizations also face a reduction in funding.  501(c)(3) organizations can get a free website and can receive commissions on the subscriptions of the members who sign-up for the program.  This becomes another source of income to help the not-for-profit organization achieve its mission and goals.

I spoke about signing-up for this program to review my French in a previous post in this blog.  I feel strongly that this will be a real help to students and their families and I am actively looking for people  to help me share this program with others.  It's available globally, not just in the USA.  The business opportunity is also available in most countries.

Online Language Learning and Global Business Opportunities

My research into an online language learning system to review my French language skills has led me to a new global business opportunity.  The online system allows subscribers to learn as many as nine languages during the period of their subscription (normaly six months or one year at a time).  One subscription is for an entire family and all of the course materials are online.  They are even interactive and you can record your voice and match it to native speakers.

The online system has been available for about five years and a different online English program is being released for use in China on November 1, 2009.

For the past six years I have been teaching English language learners (ELLs) in public schools in Illinois.  The English program could be of great benefit for almost 100% of the parents of these students.  While many of my former students did not have computers at home, some did and more purchased computers when it became clear that a computer with Internet access would help the students do better in school.

The even better news about the English language programs are that they can help students move ahead in their English skills and in their other academic subjects while allowing their parents to become more fluent in English to bring in more income for their families.

As you will see on my new website, http://www.drm-language.com, there are even programs to build business English and to prepare for the U.S. Citizenship exam and for college entrance exams.

I was excited about having a year's subscription to build up my French fluency and to review my Spanish grammar.  If I end up working with more people from the other six countries that have language courses in this online system, I can begin picking up even more languages.

I like the idea of having something affordable to share with non-native English speakers who are struggling to learn English.  I use audiobooks and eAudiobooks a lot with them and these online courses can focus on building essential vocabulary and basic grammar.  All of the courses focus on practical communication in the various languages.

What's more, I spoke today with Dr. Ivan Dulik who began with this program almost five years ago and who has spoken to about 1,200 people about the program.  Of the 1,200, about 300 decided to enroll in the program and of the 300, about 80 decided to focus on sharing the program.  The program offers free websites to subscribers.  When someone subscribes to the program by using a website of a subscriber, the subscriber earns a commission for each new subscription.  Of the 80 people who decided to share, 35 became really focused on sharing the business and, over five years, have generated almost one million US dollars for Dr. Dulik--see the link for "Two EN101 Success Stories" and remember that the date on Dr. Dulik's story is from 2007.

I don't expect to generate one million dollars anytime soon--though I wouldn't turn it down.  What I do see is that it is a worthwhile, affordable program that lots of people I know in the USA and outside the USA can benefit from.  As they learn, they can also help their families by sharing the program and earning commissions from the people who also decide to learn English.

English language learning is a major global market at this point and I don't know of any program that includes all the values and benefits of this new one at a very affordable price.

Second Language Learning via the Internet

The Internet has made some things much more accessible.  Second language learning (the learning of any language beyond a person's native language [mother tongue]) can be accomplished with the support of the personal computer and the Internet.

One of the best ways to learn a second language is to start young.  French and English schools in Canada have been offering dual-language programs for years and can serve as a model for best practices.  Some Spanish and English dual-language programs in the USA have also served as the model and as the research platform to improve teaching.

We naturally learn language through the process of listening (or observing if we are deaf), thinking, then speaking (or practicing hand signs if we are deaf), thinking some more to make sure that we are understood.  Later we move to the area of reading (best approached by listening to "native speakers" read to us while we read something interesting) and finally beginning to use our favorite readings as models for writing.

This approach works well for both first language learning and second language learning (SLL).  Once we have acquired a solid foundation in the communication centers in our brain for language, we can begin to add multiple languages.  I have found that an ear for language is similar to an ear for vocal music--listening to variations of tone and pitch and pronunciation.  Some people say that you need an initial base for a language before the age of 15.  I was exposed to most of the languages I know before then, though I began studying Italian in college.

I loved communicating in multiple languages and, when I took the Army language exams, tested fluent in Spanish, French, and Italian.  I lived in Italy for three-and-one-half years and was considered (by the Italians I worked with) fluent.  I have been speaking Spanish for much of my life and am certified by the state of Illinois as a bilingual (Spanish) teacher.  My French is my least-used language.  While once fluent, I haven't had the need to speak it daily.  Yesterday I signed up for a year's subscription to EN101--an online language program for English language learners (ELLs) with supplementary programs in multiple languages.  I've started my review of French and will probably review the grammar for both Spanish and Italian throughout the year to bring back my fluency in all three languages.  My native language is English and am certainly fluent in that.  I am also certified in the state of Illinois as a Teacher of English as a Second Language and have been working in that field with adults overseas in Europe, Asia, and South America.  In the USA, I was an ELL teacher (K-12) for six years.

I was recently approached by the founders of two language programs, focused primarily on teaching English as a second language.  The first of these was EN101--which I have already subscribed to as a student of languages other than English.  The second has a full release date set for November 1, 2009, and is the English language program of Excel Global University (XLGU).  The initial focus of the XLGU program is to make a conversational English program available online at a modest tuition to English language learners in China.

My undergraduate major was Humanities--with more than 55 credits in English courses.  My certification as a teacher in Illinois includes a "highly qualified" area of English and Language Arts and Reading at the K-9 level.  I have also taught English as a second language at the high school level. 

I believe strongly in second language learning and have written several research articles about English language learning and second language learning.

As I begin to work with both EN101 and XLGU, I believe that becoming conversationally fluent in English will be a big help for immigrants to the USA and to people wanting to develop business relationships with organizations based in the USA with connections outside of the USA.  The second language learning offerings can help people fluent in English to pick-up conversational fluency in other languages to help make communication of better quality and easier in dealing with non-native English speakers.

Beyond all of this, there are some business opportunities in helping to expand the reach of both EN101 and XLGU.  It's great to have a chance to help someone grow and to earn some money while doing it.