Speaking

Never have the words of an American president been so analysed as those of Obama – notably in the field of EFL / ESOL.  A book of his speeches for English learners with accompanying CD has become a national bestseller in Japan, and his speeches have been subtitled and are popping up on many English-learning sites.

This might be an interesting exercise for advanced students working on public speaking skills.  Garth Risk Hallberg writing for The Millions diagrammed an excerpt from one of last week’s press releases, with the idea that it might provide an insight into the way Obama thinks.  The speech was in the context of a proposed investigation into the conduct of the Bush administration.

This is what Halberg came up with:

He notes how a more “hard line” statements in the speech, such as

My view is also that nobody’s above the law, and, if there are clear instances of wrongdoing, that people should be prosecuted just like any ordinary citizen.

is turned into a platform for vague but inspirational phrases:

But that, generally speaking, I’m more interested in looking forward than I am in looking backwards.

which leaves the hearer with the impression of a forward-looking, progressive Obama, rather than a hardliner.  The full transcript of the speech can be found here, and The Millions has Halberg’s full analysis, which gives some good insights into speech writing.

I learned Japanese in school.  You would never know it today because I can hardly speak a word of Japanese.  The classes were interesting, but one of the big problems was that I never had the opportunity to practise what I had learnt outside of class time.  Japanese was just an academic subject with no connection to the real world for me.

But that was in the 80s – we had never heard of the Internet.  EVERYTHING has changed!  The role of the teacher has changed – we are now motivators and facilitators, we help learners to help themselves learn.

If you would like help to achieve your English or French learning goals, talk to us at englishonthe.net. Contact us here for a free lesson.

The role of the learner has also changed.  Learners no longer sit passively and listen to information, they go out and find it themselves.

There are so many possibilities for live online language practice with native speakers.  Here are a few links to help you start :

englishforum.com
Claims to be the world’s largest EFL/TEFL social network with 50,000 visits a day.   It’s main strength is the forums where learners ask all their questions concerning grammar, vocabulary, idioms, puzzles and games, distance learning, pronunciation, learning software etc.  There is a large number of faithful teachers who give their time freely for advice and support, and generally questions are answered very quickly.  There are also other social networking functions, such as photos & videos, live chat, and special interest forums.  This site is HUGE – you need to go and explore for yourself.

babbel
A completely free network for language exchange.  Connect with native speakers of the language you are learning who have similar interests to you.

Ning hosts a large number of social networks related to language learning.  These are just a few:

English

EFL Classroom 2.0 Definitely the most active Ning network that I use.  Although it seems more directed to teachers, there are also good resources for students (try the “English for Fun and Friendship” group).  4,900+ members

View my page on EFL CLASSROOM 2.0

EFL University

Teachers and students have FUN (Frivolous, Unanticipated, Nonsense) to learn together in English and Spanish (500 members)

French

L’école hors les murs Teachers and students (from middle school up) from several (mostly European) countries join for educational projects through social networking (900+ members)

Voir ma page au L’Ecole Hors les Murs – School Beyond The Walls

Campus FLE Education
Educational social network for teachers and learners based in the University of Leon Spain – some excellent learning materials on their front page.

Foreigners in Lille also looks very good for French, but unfortunately it seems to be limited to people who live in Lille, France, and although it is based in Lille, France, they are open to members from anywhere.