How to learn a new language: 7 secrets from TED Translators

In a recent post on the TED Blog, Krystian Aparta digested numerous volunteer TED Talk translators' language learning strategies "into seven basic principles" (Aparta, 2014, ¶1). The first was realistic goal-setting, the seventh was not being intimidated by the possibility of making mistakes , and there were several other goodies in between.

Reference

Aparta, Krystian. (2014, November 4). How to learn a new language: 7 secrets from TED Translators [web blog post]. Retrieved from http://blog.ted.com/2014/11/04/how-to-learn-a-new-language-7-secrets-from-ted-translators/

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Grammar Resources - University of Chicago Writing Program

The Grammar Resources page on the University of Chicago Writing Program website introduces students to "grammar and writing resources from around the web" (¶1). In addition to main sections covering various grammar, usage and style guides, there are sections explaining and pointing out resources for scientific and technical writing as well as for non-native speakers of English (see the sidebar on the site for details).

I'm so impressed with that webpage that I've bookmarked it already for the WinK Core: Weblogging in Kumamoto group on Diigo, and will add it to the Course Links list in the Writing Studio Blog sidebar right away.

Reference

The University of Chicago Writing Program. (n.d.). Grammar resources [webpage]. Retrieved from http://writing-program.uchicago.edu/resources/grammar.htm

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Writing Better Blog Posts: What You NEED to Know - The Edublogger

Though a bit dated, Writing Better Blog Posts: What You NEED to Know by Sue Waters (April 18, 2011) is ... loaded with good advice. I found out about that post in a weekly email bulletin from Edublogs entitled The Edublogger Archives: The Best of the Best (September 19, 2014), so I'm not the only person who thinks that's [still] a great post.

As you begin blogging again for fall semester, or continue–if you kept blogging during the summer recess, I urge you to review Sue's advice with an eye out for ways to improve your own posts. Then please drop back by here and post comments about what works for you!

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Don't Study Hard; Study Smart!

Tough Guy
Photo by pabeaufait
February 24, 2008, © All rights reserved
Used with permission

"Students need to understand that learning happens not only during reading and studying, but in all sorts of ways, so that they can examine their own habits to know which ones may be helping or not, and [then] make adjustments" (Chen, 2014, Experimenting with Learning Tactics, ¶4).

In a KQED Mind/Shift post, Ingfei Chen introduced a book written by a former colleague and science reporter, Benedict Carey (2014), entitled How We Learn: The Surprising Truth .... Then Chen went on to highlight and give examples of three key take-aways from the book that she['d] gleaned from an interview with the author.

The post included some wonderful tips for self-aware and self-directed learners. Moreover, the voice recording that accompanied the article was of the highest quality imaginable ("Press Play to Listen ..."). Kudos to the unnamed voice artist who made the recording!

References

Carey, Benedict. (2014). How We Learn: The Surprising Truth about When, Where, and Why It Happens. New York, NY: Random House.

Chen, Ingfei. (2014, August 25). How does the brain learn best? Smart studying strategies [web log post]. Retrieved from http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2014/08/how-does-the-brain-learn-best-smart-studying-strategies/

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The Unsplash collection of photos for free

Unsplash features pre-screened, public domain (CC0 1.0 Universal licensure), high-resolution photos in a collection that apparently began in May 2013 (Unsplash archive).

The problem is that there currently aren't built-in provisions for searching the collection. That is, other than the [chronological] archives. On-site options include:

• Manually scrolling and visually scanning the main page, 
• Searching the main page for names of photographers you may know, or 
• Scrolling and scanning the thumbnails in the annual or monthly archives. 

Fortunately, perhaps, a web developer, Arthur Weill, Director of Web and Cow, has been working on the problem. His Unsplash Search (beta, n.d.) is out in both English and French.

Searches may combine selections from a few dozen tags. For instance, a search for an image including a "tree" and resembling a "town" turned up the two photos here:

Boat on the river. Well, river only. — with Kabir Van Delić.
By Ermin Čeliković

Luxor Egypt, in Days by the Nile
By Linh Nguyen

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