Questions for Textbook Companies – 1
It's odd that the big textbook companies have held dominion over our profession for so long. It's even more odd how the annual ACTFL conference, in spite of their statements about proficiency and use of the language in the classroom,
Stick to the Plan with Stories
Carol sent this in a few weeks ago but it is just making it to through the queue. I think it is an important reminder: Dear Ben: My French 2 class has been a little blah lately. With a forty minute period,
A Horse’s Ass
It saddens me when the passion that some of us have for comprehensible input methods is misinterpreted as being some kind of boastful claim to expertise and superiority in the field. Just because we write and talk about what we do
Two Haystacks
Administrators must decide, lest they resemble the donkey who, faced with two equidistant haystacks, fails to decide on which one to go to for sustenance and so starves. The old way of using a book and speaking English and the new
Myskoke Update
Many know Kate Taluga from NTPRS. She works with preserving Myskoke language in Florida and is part of the Oklahoma group as well, since her People were one of those native groups split between those two states. Her kids are
Tech Question
Carol has a question: Hi! Could you throw this out to the techie folks? I am thinking about using Google Voice to record my upper levels short speaking assessments. I am getting some push back. One young man is afraid of having
Scripts Must Be Simple
When the story script we are using is too busy in the first location, time keeps us from getting to the other locations and we lose all that chance for lots of repetition of the target structures. Many people take
From a Colleague
I was discussing with my coordinator (at the university) my ideas that using tprs could help us with our lower level retention issues, particularly with minority students. She always wants to "see the research" on things, wants data, wants statistics.
After Krashen
John sent this: Ben, I thought you'd either be horrified or entertained by the description of a panel at this year's upcoming American Philological Association meeting. It is called "After Krashen." What amazes me is that the working assumption seems to be
Input vs. Output 2
This content from a recent response by Robert to Jody on http://www.benslavic.com/blog/2011/12/05/ohio-may-have-a-problem/ cannot be ignored so I am reposting it here as a blog entry: I have to agree with Jody. Most programs ignore the importance of the conversation, i.e. the interpersonal component. I also question