Setting the Conditions for Language Learning – Trip Over your Task Posted by bnelson on Jul 22, 2015 in Archived Posts
If you’re reading this blog, it is a pretty safe assumption that you want to learn a language, sustain a language, and/or improve a language. All of this is great. Transparent Language has created the greatest tool for language for all three objectives. Technology is a fantastic medium, but everything in life breaks down to…
Traveling Light and Language Learning Posted by Malachi Rempen on Jul 20, 2015 in Archived Posts
My first time traveling overseas all by myself, my mother gave her the advice that her mother gave her on her first time traveling all by herself: all you really need are tickets, your passport, and money. The Holy Trinity. The idea is that as long as you have a way to get there, your…
Transparent Language Online Library Subscriber Receives National Innovator Award Posted by Transparent Language on Jul 15, 2015 in Archived Posts, For Libraries, Library Success Stories
A few months ago, we spoke with the wonderful folks at Jacksonville Public Library (JPL) about how they leverage Transparent Language Online in their library, and they blew us away. Clearly, we’re not the only ones impressed with their efforts. We’re ecstatic to congratulate Jacksonville Public Library for receiving the 2015 Top Innovator Award in…
Seven Italian Hand Gestures Worth Knowing Posted by Malachi Rempen on Jul 13, 2015 in Archived Posts
Many years ago, back when my wife was just my girlfriend and I was visiting her family for the first time in rural Italy, I spoke about as much Italian as a plate of spaghetti Bolognese. Unfortunately, her family spoke as much English as a chicken pot pie, so there were plenty of hilarious misunderstandings…
Lost in Translation: Untranslatable Words and Phrases Posted by Malachi Rempen on Jul 6, 2015 in Archived Posts
Let’s face it; there are some things that language simply cannot help us express. Religious experiences, travel experiences, life experiences – really any kind of personal, subjective experience is difficult to put into words that will accurately portray the experience being had. But don’t feel bad, that’s not your job; that’s why we pay poets…
Transforming the Economics of Language Learning (Part 5) Posted by Transparent Language on Jul 1, 2015 in Archived Posts
Helping an unmotivated student limp over the finish line. Is that a distasteful or unworthy goal in language training? No, not at all. It’s important and exciting to raise your language program’s lowest outcome. Students vary from program to program, but they mostly share the same goal: to achieve a particular level of proficiency or…
Ignorant Friends: the Secret to Your Success Posted by Malachi Rempen on Jun 29, 2015 in Archived Posts
Disclaimer: everything that follows is terrible advice. If you’ve followed the Transparent Language blog for any good amount of time, you’ll know there are lots and lots and lots of articles on how to improve your language-learning, how to get over the fear of speaking new languages, and what it takes to get better. But…