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Language Planning

Language is one of our world’s most powerful tools, and throughout history, governments and large organizations have used different forms of language planning as a way to control that power. In a broad sense, language planning is an organized effort by a major entity to change a society’s language. These efforts can be, and usually are, done for the [...]

2023-03-23T11:14:14-04:00March 23rd, 2023|Communication, Culture, History|

Language Teaching Methodologies and Strategies

As students, many of us took part in some type of foreign language instruction at school, and depending on your age and country, this could have ranged from incomprehensible teacher lectures to singing songs, to intense grammar drilling. In the world of education, second language acquisition philosophies and practices change at a rapid clip, and the new breakthrough methodology [...]

2023-03-15T17:21:16-04:00March 15th, 2023|Communication, Education, Languages|

How Long Does It Take for a Child to Become Literate in Other Languages

From the moment we learn to control our mouths, lungs, and vocal cords as infants, we yearn to speak. As babies, we babble and attempt to copy words, and with no formal instruction at all, we can typically grasp the basics of speaking in under a year and begin to communicate. Neurolinguists have shown that our brain’s superior temporal [...]

How to Type in Chinese on a QWERTY Keyboard

One of modern civilization’s most commonly used tools sits just beneath our fingertips, as our keyboards provide us with an arsenal of approximately 80 numbers, letters, and commands, all ready to do our bidding. For those of us who utilize the Roman alphabet (approximately 70% of all major languages), we press these keys in various combinations and assemble the [...]

2023-03-21T11:42:55-04:00March 1st, 2023|Asia, Chinese, Education, Mandarin, Technology|

Top Ten U.S. Universities for a Foreign Language Degree

Learning a foreign language has well-known social and even cognitive benefits, but people often underestimate the professional value of multilingualism. For starters, bilingualism equates to an average of 10-15% higher pay in the US job market. Specialized careers pay even more, but require a high level of language proficiency and possibly a foreign language degree for entry. Types of [...]

2023-02-23T12:29:01-05:00February 23rd, 2023|Education, French, Korean, Mandarin, Spanish|

Tips for Preparing for an Online Interview in Another Language

The company of your dreams emails you to set up an online interview. It’s going to be held in a foreign language, but that’s okay. You've spent your entire life studying, getting job experience, and preparing for this moment that will give you financial freedom, a new career trajectory, and an adventure in a new land. And now you’re [...]

2023-03-23T11:40:31-04:00February 15th, 2023|Communication, Education, English, Work|

Naming Traditions Across Cultures and Languages

“What’s in a name?” Shakespeare’s Juliet famously asked, and the answer depends on what culture you are talking about and what language you are speaking. Our names are uniquely personal and individual identifiers, yet they often represent the lives, aspirations and beliefs of an incredibly large group of people. In some cultures, names are steeped in tradition and passed [...]

High-Context and Low-Context Cultures

Picture this scenario: A young German executive from a semiconductor manufacturer is sent to pitch a proposal to a high-level business partner in Japan. The German executive knows his company’s products are superior, and he spends days preparing different documents, case studies, graphs, etc. as evidence. At the meeting he gives these mountains of handouts to the Japanese businessman, [...]

2023-03-23T11:45:48-04:00February 1st, 2023|Communication, Culture, Languages|

Why Is It Difficult for a Spanish Speaker to Learn English

People make it seem like it’s easy to learn English these days – watch some Marvel movies on Netflix, play around on the Duolingo app, and boom! You’re ready to hit New York City. Except, it never really works like that. The English acquisition process is a long and difficult one, and for learners in Spain and Latin America? [...]

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