Chinese Language Learners: "Don't Forget About Us!"

Chinese Language Learners: "Don't Forget About Us!!!"

Image found on Google Images.
Representing the confusion that Chinese speaking students feel when it learning in an English-speaking classroom

Oftentimes, the American Education System is ridiculed for lacking in its care for English Language Learners.For perspective, “19 million Americans do not” speak English as their first language. Most times however, we tend to set focus on Spanish speaking students, which is understandable being that their population is on the rise in schools. Prospective teachers are being encouraged to study ELL students and develop a sense of understanding in transitioning from Spanish to English. The population that tends to be forgotten about is Chinese. Students who speak primarily Chinese at home may struggle in Language Arts in the classroom because of the little similarities between the languages. For instance, when students are taught to write formal essays, Chinese-speaking children may struggle because, according to The Atlantic’s “How Chinese Students Struggle to Apply to U.S. Colleges”, “Chinese written language is often spare and indirect using vague, often poetic and soaring words and phrases to get meaning across”. So, Chinese students tend to struggle with transitioning their thoughts from Chinese into English writing.

 

            The reason for this lack of attention to the Chinese-speaking learners could most likely be due to the fact that America struggles with the ability to understand other languages. According to Amelia Friedman’s article, “America’s Lacking Language Skills,” “Less than 1 percent of American adults today are proficient in a foreign language that they studied in a U.S. classroom” This is very alarming because if the students aren’t proficient in other languages outside of English, the future teachers of America will not be able to accommodate to Chinese speaking students. The idea of lacking multiple language skills is exemplified in today’s teachers who are not bilingual and therefore lack resources for those students in the school. That same article also points out that language is a key component to every aspect of learning subjects. So, without language understanding, students will struggle in progressions of learning and knowledge.

            There is a multitude of options in attempting to fix this problem and shed some much needed attention on the struggling Chinese-speaking learners. One option is to work in a dual-language program. This basically means that instruction textbooks could be published in specific languages so that students are still increasing their content level while they also learn to become more English proficient. Another option would be to group the students of similar dialect together to work as a team. In James Fallows article, “On Speaking Second Languages (or: Why All Esperantists Understand One Another),” “…Because of the speed at which the language is spoken and the level of the vocabulary; moreover, for low-level students of English, the grammar that a native speaker uses can be baffling, whereas the adulterated English of other students is more comprehensible”. That is, students learn and comprehend better when they practice social speaking with each other rather than a native English-speaking teacher attempting to speak a broken version of a foreign language. Students communicate better when they feel most comfortable.

Overall, we need to move forward in the education system and remember that not all English Language Learners are necessarily coming from Spanish origin.    

Scrabble and Neologisms

                Over the last five years in particular, the younger generation alongside those in positions of literary and publishing clout have been at odds when faced with words that the latter would argue are strange, trendy and aesthetically dubious.  Some examples include the more common “selfie” as well as “lolz” or even “thang” among many other neologisms which plugged-in millennials herald and utilize which leads to influencing the work of lexicographers.  One particular forum where all generations can join in on the controversy that many of these new terms stir up can occur at the dining room table with your grandparents or youngest cousins during a rousing game of that old linguistic standby: Scrabble. 

Various journalists, critics and writers have reflected on the meaning behind the yearly events when Hasbro Inc., through the North American Scrabble Players Association, choose to allow anywhere from one to ten thousand new words into the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary.  Sarah Churchwell’s work in the Guardian considers how to react when the Scrabble Dictionary in 2011 admitted words including “innit” and “grrl”.  This event led Churchwell to assert that in the scope of lexicographical history, embracing simplified, mispronounced slang terms has been a consistent pattern.  In her article she states that these contemporary allowances within the game of Scrabble recalls the ironic nature of Daniel Webster establishing the first American dictionary which led to the English traditionalist in Great Britain defending the French spellings in words which Webster was proactively modifying.  The outrage many have shown within the changes of language in a board game may be relatively inconsequential in comparison to Webster's contribution.  However, the reflection of the same patterns of addition and alternation that have occurred since Samuel Johnson’s efforts to create his dictionary in the 18^th century still resonate today in the intricate inner workings of a tepid word based toy.

In relation to the scope of Scrabble history and its particular decisions on language usage, the writing of Stefan Fatsis goes further into the origins of the Scrabble Dictionary in 1978 as well as recent efforts by Scrabble to allow fans to vote for a single addition in 2014 for the first time in the game’s history.  Fatsis also makes a distinct point about this event noting that each new wave of accepted words is traditionally presided over by hundreds of committee members for thousands of hours utilizing Merriam-Webster’s dictionary primarily before allowing new playable words into the game since the goal is to choose enduring and enduring language additions.  One of the most crucial points that comes from Fatsis’s recognition about Scrabble’s crowd sourced voting on language, as well as the idea of validating neologisms in English at large, is the question of shaking the “integrity” of those words we acknowledge in our dictionaries. 

Another more recent perspective on linguistics within the game of Scrabble comes from Sam Eifling.  He sees the dual value in Scrabble’s acceptance of new terminology as well as its stricture of rules against punning, hyphenation and other aspects that counteract what some argue is a boundless fluidity of language especially on the internet.  Much like Fatsis, he also realizes how Scrabble is not in the least bit static especially when in 2014 the North American Scrabble Players Association added 9,000 small and large new words which a Canadian Scrabble champion called “the amino acids of Scrabble”.  This debate on allowing words like “twerk” or even the 2014 winner “Geocache” into society’s classic family game night option adds another dimension to our contemporary and historical grappling with generational language, neologisms and how we face the changing currents of linguistic usage.  

Illustration By Kelsey Dake, Courtesy of fivethirtyeight.com

What's In a Name?: The Problem with "Feminism"

The least binaristic representation of gender equality I could find. (Source)

As you've probably noticed, the "F-word" has quite the sordid reputation. "Feminism" can mean so many different things that the concept to which it refers is often misinterpreted, misrepresented, and misappropriated, to the detriment of all genders. Among contemporary feminists, the generally agreed upon definition of feminism  - quoted so eloquently by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in her book and her TEDx Talk - is the belief in "the social, political, and economic equality of the [genders]” (I've replaced “sexes” with “genders” to align my work with theories distinguishing between the two). The popular perception of feminism, however, ranges from minor confusion to downright ignorance: that feminists hate men, that we think we are better than men, that we willfully ignore intersectional concerns, and even that gender equality should no longer be an issue because it has supposedly been achieved, are all allegations that stem not only from mislabeling certain people (like those who unequivocally hate all men) as feminists, but also from a misconception of feminism itself.

Clearly this is just one of many cases in which the connotative and denotative meanings of a word are so disconnected that they indicate the need for serious reassessment of certain aspects of our language. I propose that the backlash against feminism is partially a function of the word "feminism" itself: it not only excludes genders other than feminine, it also represents the concept as monolithic, as if all feminists and non-feminists agree on a single definition (which they clearly don't) and as if it has always meant the same thing. Arguments against this idea are varied, coming from feminists and non-feminists alike, although there are definitely proponents on both sides as well (as evidenced by this Debate.org page).

One of the main arguments against my position (found in articles like these) is that changing the word will do little to assuage the resistance against gender equality, that the word we use is irrelevant when confronting a population in denial about the persistent systemic and institutional gender inequality historically entrenched in some of "Western" culture's most basic values and assumptions. Aside from the disturbing pessimism inherent in this argument, it also makes little sense from a contemporary sociolinguistic perspective. Another argument is that using umbrella terms (like gender equality or equalism) further marginalizes already marginalized groups, like women, and focuses attention only on the dominant population. I'd respond (with just one of the many possible counter-arguments) that reactionary ideologies like men's rights activism, which has been steadily gaining traction (much to the dismay of people who actually understand gender issues), do even more to marginalize, silence, and erase non-dominant groups than an inclusive, catch-all term would.

Suffice it to say that this is an issue that requires more redress than space currently permits. The "F-word" creates more barriers than it opens opportunities for frank, productive conversations about gender issues. It is practically as alienating as that other ubiquitous f-word, and alienation is the exact opposite of what feminism is supposed to be promoting. This is by no means an original or unique position; I would simply like to examine this issue from a more analytical and theoretically-grounded perspective than I see public intellectuals engaging with.

Sexist Language

It is interesting to look at the ways in which sexism is embedded and/or revealed linguistically, in both formal and informal speech. The general public has become increasingly conscious of this, but there are still some very common incidents of sexist language that are not hard to come across in daily life. In The Guardian, David Marsh mentions some ways language use has assimilated to feminist activism over the past several decades. One sign of the decrease in sexism in language is the gender-neutralization of job titles: “policemen and woman police constables have become police officers, firemen are now firefighters, male nurses are nurses, postmen are postal workers, air hostesses have become cabin crew.” Because women have gained more power in the professional world, the language associated with these once male-dominated careers has had a corresponding effect. However, there is still evidence of sexism in language, particularly in the lack of a gender-neutral way of referring to a man or a woman in writing or speech. Marsh points out that the generic masculine pronoun “he” is used frequently to refer to anyone, male or female. Therefore, he recommends using the singular “they” to avoid using sexist language.

photo from the blog "crunchings and munchings"

Jennifer Klein of Hamilton College says that although many people try not to be sexist in their writing, it is sometimes difficult not to be because of the lack of this gender-neutral pronoun. One tip that she recommends is, instead of using language which is unnecessarily singular, writers or speakers should make their subject plural. Using the aforementioned singular “they” is a way of doing so. For example, instead of saying “When a student writes a blog post, he should use correct grammar,” say “When students write a blog post, they should use correct grammar.” Klein also states that certain words such as “mankind” are sexist. “Mankind denotes the entirety of the human species, which obviously includes both men and women. Instead, she suggests using inclusive words like “humanity or “humankind” in its place.

Linguist Dennis Baron points out the historical point that people have been confronting the absence of a gender-neutral pronoun for over 150 years, and without any lasting or widespread success. He gives several examples of newspaper articles from the nineteenth-century which address this issue. What is interesting is that the lack of gender-neutrality is not only a bother to people concerned with the ethical issues of sexism, but it has been an annoyance to writers of all persuasions who simply think that the lack makes for awkward sentence-structure. So, as Baron writes, this is a "semantic black hole" into which all attempts at coining neutral pronouns get sucked and disappear forever. Some attempts include "per," "ons," "ith."

Learning Language: The Effect Public Speaking Has on Language

             There are many different forms of language, whether it's being bilingual, using slang, or any of the other variants. However, the one constant about learning language is public speaking. What is public speaking? According to teachingenglish.org, public speaking is the act of speaking or teaching in front of an audience. The audience could be people that you know (wedding, funeral, formal dinner, etc.) or it could be in front of acquaintances (classroom). Public speaking involves some level of preparation in which the speaker has become an expert in the subject he or she is presenting.

            Almost everyone in their lifetime will need to speak in front of a large group of people, and if that person did not learn language or how to speak publicly, it will effect them negatively. Think about it; if you want to become a teacher, lawyer, doctor, professional athlete, president, or anything, then learning language through public speaking is essential for success.

              Public speaking is one of the most important tools to teach language because it shows people the proper way to speak, act, and carry themselves. Think of Martin Luther King Jr. who used his public speaking as a tool to to impact the nation. If it weren't for his great use of language that he used during his speech, he would not have changed or impacted society in the same manner. The reason his message was well received was due to his strong language and his ability to get his message across by using language.

             How does public speaking help learn language? If students begin speaking publicly in high school or college it teaches them how to speak in a formal setting. This gives the students the opportunities to understand how become teachers themselves, or how to present in a job setting. In the article for teachhub.com, Jordan Catapano explains that it is important to have the opportunity to practice public speaking is for your benefit as a student. If a student is not given the chance to use public speaking as an essential tool to prepare yourself to learn how to speak correctly, then later in in their lives these students will fail in their careers.

             For students, public speaking is something they are fear. But, according to Indiana Jen in her article that she based off of her own personal experience, public speaking is one of those skills that can only be improved in practice. It is impossible for students to learn language completely without introducing them to public speaking. Even if it is just for a few minutes a semester, in the long run, it will help the student develop effective language skills.

             Although public speaking is often forgotten, it is imperative that this practice should be used on a consistent basis. Speaking publicly helps students, and others learn effective language. Effective language can help you motivate people and get your point across. It's just like that saying "practice makes perfect", and with that practice you can become the next Martin Luther King Jr. and change the nation.

         

How We Say What We Think May Not Be All There is To Know!

Language and How You Think

All humans communicate through a language, either vocally or through sign. Over the past sixty to seventy years, researchers have been studying what our brains actually do with spoken words. A recent study found that the sounds of languages are identified in the brain in much smaller scale than features. Dr. Edward Chang and his peers at the University of California, San Francisco and Berkeley unraveled a bit of the mystery. “It’s about how small or microscopic neural responses can be recorded” Scientists Map Your Brain. In the process of watching the brain listen to sounds in English, they were able to measure in more finite terms how the superior temporal gyrus translates “auditory signals into something the brain ‘hears’” by putting electrodes directly onto the participants' brains Scientists Map Your Brain.

Learning what and how the brain hears may have tremendous effect on what and how we think the world over. Benjamin Lee Whorf's infamous notions in his 1940 article said "that talking is merely an incidental process concerned strictly with communication, not with formulation of ideas” Science and Linguistics. As we grow, humans become unconscious of what Whorf calls natural logic due to the confines of their language. Each language creates a parameter of sorts with how we think, not just how we hear. “Talking, or the use of language, is supposed only to “express” what is essentially already formulated nonlinguistically. Formulation is an independent process, called thought or thinking, and is supposed to be largely indifferent to the nature of particular languages” Science and Linguistics.

Language confines the natural space of a culture according to Whorf. If we were to really analyze the language of Native American tribes or African groups we would see that their form of communication and grammatical sense varies tremendously. This led Whorf to the idea that we do not all think alike. It is the language and the structure of sounds and words that formulate our thoughts. “The Hopi actually call insect, airplane, and aviator all by the same word, and feel no difficulty about it” Science and Linguistics.

Whorf was eventually debunked as there was no factual evidence to support his claims. The New York Times Magazine in 2010 revisited the ideas Whorf wrote about and stated that the question remains how we actually do view life with our separate languages. “The renowned linguist Roman Jakobson pointed out a crucial fact about differences between languages…‘Languages differ essentially in what they must convey and not in what they may convey” Language and How You Think.

How we say what we think may influence us perhaps to pay attention to specific details in one language over another. For example, “When I speak English, I may say about a bed that ‘it’ is too soft, but as a native Hebrew speaker, I actually feel ‘she’ is too soft. ‘She stays feminine all the way from the lungs up to the glottis and is neutered only when she reaches the tip of the tongue” Language and How You Think. Perhaps one day soon we will be able to put it all together and be able to communicate no matter the language!

The Importance of Learning Language: Foreign Languages

Think back to your childhood and early adulthood. What did a “normal” or typical day in elementary, middle or high-school consist of? For most elementary school students, one educator was provided for daily instruction in regards to the core subjects: language arts, reading, social studies and science. For most middle school students, upon changing classes, a separate educator was provided for daily instruction in regards to their mastered topic/subject: language arts, reading, social studies and science. In high school, however, things seemed to change. Well, at least it did for me! In high school, I found myself still switching classes and having separate educators for each subject, however, my classes were not limited to language arts, reading, social studies and science. I was provided the opportunity to take classes such as psychology, sociology, anatomy, Spanish and etc. The most rewarding class I took throughout my pre-collegiate educational experience, was a foreign language class. For a native English speaker and an individual who did not encounter foreign language outside of the educational setting, it may seem surprising that a foreign language such as Spanish grabbed my attention; but it did! For those who have neglected to explore/learn a foreign language throughout their lifetime, I offer you a piece of information: there is much importance behind learning a foreign language as it can benefit many other aspects/areas of your life.

This image, shows a young student standing before a blackboard, with various foreign languages being expressed.

So, you enroll in a foreign language course during your collegiate years in the hopes of enhancing your skills and competence in a language, such as: Spanish, French, Italian, Irish and etc. You are a part of the seven percent of college or university students in America who are enrolled in a language course, according to an article published by The Atlantic. It is evident, as the The Atlantic  illustrates in this small percentage, that many individuals have negative feelings toward learning a foreign language, due to the “fear of the unknown, unfamiliar”. These negative feelings may be as a result of the debated importance of learning language. According to the Atlantic, language is a subject area whose importance is greatly debated, as many advocates and educators disagree about whether investing in language and foreign language classes are "worthwhile" investments. However, NEA Research argues that investing in language and foreign language classes are a worthwhile investment.
According to “Regarding World Language Education” providing NEA Research in 2007, a study found that there are numerous benefits to second language study such as: “academic progress in other subjects, narrows achievement gaps, basic skills development, high order/abstract and creative thinking, cognitive development, a student's sense of achievement, higher test scores on standardized tests, cultural awareness and competency, chances of college acceptance/achievement/ attainment, career opportunities, understanding and security in community and society, and etc. Learning a foreign language can help foster an individual's development in educational, cognitive, social and emotional ways. As stated by NEA Research and supported by The Guardian, there are many cognitive benefits of language learning, as well as the benefit of performing better than others across school subjects. I hope that individuals may be more open-minded to learning a foreign language; something that will benefit them in numerous ways, such as the ways it has profited me.

The Development of Language in Infants

Jane E Brody explains in "Child development: language takes on new significance" that scientists are discovering new ways of finding out if the child's language skills are developing normally or abnormally. She believes in encouraging the infants to smile and getting them to make sounds is a very good stimulation, in order for them to avoid problems with language later on in their school years. After years of talking about and explaining how great motor skills is for the development of a child, she has found out that language skills is the top factor of a child's (cognitive ability). But she believes in giving a lot more attention to the child's motor skills, like turning on their side, crawling and walking. Researchers are working and developing tests to help physicians detect language problems before the child even says their first word.

Janet Hopson's demonstrates in "Can babies read"?, the language of children. She recognized that the expressions and signs people were showing them, helped the children learn. She was questioned whether a young child should be able to read. Neurologists have discovered that a baby's brain is stimulated by the shaping of (neural circuits). By depriving a child from birth to age 6 without language, they will have problems that last a long time in their vocabulary, reading and writing. Some educators believe in reading programs and ways to motivate and learn at an early age. But reading experts give great advice to read out loud to them daily from as early as an infant. She believes getting into nice talks with children and while reading to them, avoid pressuring or pushing them and they will soon discover that reading is a wonderful world that they will want to explore.

This image shows that reading out loud to infants will help them learn at an early age. [source]

According to an article called "what infants know and what they have to learn about language" by Jacques Mehler, he analyzes the beginning stage of a baby's introduction of language and communication. He explains that some forms of communication are shown such as, sounds in babies. Jacques argues that the parent or caretaker of the baby is allowing the baby to perceive some form of structure in small amounts of information. He believes the babies process what is being said to them and after repetition, there is memorization. Jacques claims that these practices are very much important in the first year of life in learning language. 

Gaming subculture and slang

Photo courtesy of Google Images. Thanks Google!

It’s no secret that video games have transformed into more than just a mere child’s hobby. When there are legitimate competitions where money and careers are on the line, I think it’s safe to say that gaming has carved a place in today’s culture. Heck, we even have advertisements for certain games with some pretty big celebrity endorsements, like Liam Neeson and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Of course, when there is a new entry in the culture, it brings with it a new set of slang.

Some of the terms are fairly straightforward and easy to recognize, even if you haven’t played video games before. For example, if someone says they got a “1Up” or an “extra life”, they mean that they got an extra chance to play a level in case they lose.

The gaming culture has come under a lot of fire, especially recently, for the gender issues. Not only are several games receiving intense criticism  for the unbalanced gender portrayals, but the gamers themselves are being criticized for their sexist outlook (gaming is still considered a predominantly masculine hobby, both by the community and the game developers). The issue exploded in 2014 with the Gamergate scandal, and if you haven't heard of it, well, that would be impressive, since even people who don't play video games heard of the massive controversy surrounding Gamergate. 

If you're unfamiliar with the events that transpired, here's a quick summary. A former boyfriend of female video game developer Zoe Quinn wrote a disparaging blog post about her, with numerous others accusing her of entering a relationship with a journalist to get more coverage. Basically the whole thing blew up with numerous other notable female figures in the gaming industry receiving numerous online harassment, from threats of assault to rape and murder. If you want a more in depth summary, here's what the Washington Post had to say on the matter. Sure it's a little opinionated, but with something as intense as the scandal, it's impossible to discuss it without including your own two cents. 

Thankfully, this incredibly dark controversy has, more or less, come to a close. According to Venturebeat, the hashtag of Gamergate has seen a considerable drop in Googletrends, and they've shown that many large developers, like Intel, have started very large movements to help defend the progressive gaming culture and the people within.

So this whole Gamergate and gender controversy has more or less blown over, right? It was a mostly self contained issue, and it was found out that most of the online harassers were a small minority of the gaming community. It's not like this sort of thing is going to repeat itself on a much larger scale, right? Well, I already posted a link in that last sentence, so, uh, spoiler, it did in fact repeat itself.

This brings up a different question that at the moment, I don't have the answer for. Why does this keep happening? Why is it that anytime gender is introduced into a cultural movement or debate, the whole thing explodes in a frenzy of sexist and hateful posts? Grab a shovel, because we're going to have to dig deeper.