Oxford English Explanatory Dictionary description

An application that allows you to learn english the propper way.

Oxford Dictionary is a well-known software dictionary that provides high translation rate, easy-to-use interface, detailed, and up-to-date dictionary bases with numerous sound samples.

The most popular English dictionary worldwide with up-to-date coverage of 240,000 words, phrases, and definitions. With Oxford English Explanatory Dictionary you will be able to learn English from the comfort of your own home.

Here are some key features of "Oxford English Explanatory Dictionary":

• Rich dictionary base (trustworthy authors and publishers, best general and thematic vocabularies)
• Simple and friendly interface (flexible configuration, two operation modes)
• High search speed (exact translation of word entered in any form in a few seconds)
• Pronunciation of words by native speakers
• Instruments for self-training (view history, bookmarks, comments, user dictionaries)

Requirements:

• Intel Pentium/Celeron/Xeon, AMD K6/Athlon/Duron or compatible PC 200 MHz or higher
• 128 MB RAM
• 00 MB free hard disk space (not including user dictionaries)
• Sound card, headphones or speakers (for working with sound files)
• Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher

Limitations:

The longer you use an unregistered version, the more often you will see a corresponding message instead of the expected word translation. In case sound module is installed, a beep will be heard instead of the expected pronounced sound fragment. You must register your copy to restore full functionality.

Link: http://www.softpedia.com/progDownload/
Oxford-English-Explanatory-Dictionary-Download-101470.html

Source: www.softpedia.com

READMORE - Oxford English Explanatory Dictionary description

COMMON TEACHING SITUATIONS: Teaching Problem Solving

In many teaching situations, TAs are responsible for helping students solve problems in their disciplines. Whatever the instructional setting you are in, the basic strategy for addressing problems remains similar. First, explain principles in your discipline for assessing a situation and making sense of the given information. Then, explain how to apply these general principles to a particular problem. Whether the discipline is Political Science or Engineering, the problem solver must first represent the problem and then devise and implement a strategy for solution.
Framework

The purpose of the representation step is to help students organize the data, define the problem and identify key issues. In this phase, you might ask students to:

• frame the problem in their own words
• define key terms and concepts
• determine statements that accurately represent the givens of a problem
• identify analogous problems
• determine what information is needed to solve the problem

In the solution phase, one develops and then implements a coherent plan for solving the problem. As you help students with this phase, you might ask them to:

• identify the general model or procedure they have in mind for solving the problem
• set sub-goals for solving the problem
• identify necessary operations and steps
• draw conclusions
• carry out necessary operations

In all cases, the more you get the students to articulate their own understandings of the problem and potential solutions, the more you can help them develop their expertise in approaching problems in your discipline.
Strategies

A few different ways you can introduce a problem to students include:

• demonstrate a problem solution by systematically explaining each step and its rationale
• ask the students how they would approach solving the problem
• ask the students to help you solve the problem by posing questions at key points in the process
• have the students work together in small groups (3 to 5 students) to solve the problem, and then have the solution presented to the rest of the class (either by you or by a student in the group)

Student feedback

Students in problem-solving classes indicate that they appreciate:

• clear step-by-step explanations
• questions posed at key points in the solution
• overviews and summaries of problem-solving approaches
• opportunities to ask questions about problems and solutions
• explicit links to similar problems
• opportunities to interact with each other and with the instructor while working towards solving problems

Related resources on the Internet

• Teaching Engineering, from CIDR (http://depts.washington.edu/cidrweb/engrtools.htm)
• Teaching Math and Science Courses, from CIDR(http://depts.washington.edu/cidrweb/mstools.htm)

Source:
http://depts.washington.edu/cidrweb/TAHandbook/ProblemSolving.html

READMORE - COMMON TEACHING SITUATIONS: Teaching Problem Solving

Teaching Problems and the Problems of Teaching

by Magdalene Lampert

In today’s education debates, many experts call for school vouchers, smaller classes, more standardized testing, or rigorous teacher accrediting as the key to improving student performance. Remarkably, none of these approaches addresses what actually goes on in the classroom. In this book an experienced classroom teacher and noted researcher on teaching takes us into her fifthgrade math class through the course of a year. Magdalene Lampert shows how classroom dynamics—the complex relationship of teacher, student, and content—are critical in the process of bringing each student to a deeper understanding of mathematics, or any other subject. She offers valuable insights into students and teaching for all who are concerned about improving the learning that happens in the classroom.

Lampert considers the teacher’s and students’ work from many different angles, in views large and small. She analyzes her own practice in a particular classroom, student by student and moment by moment. She also investigates the particular kind of teaching that aims at engaging elementary school students in learning fundamentally important ideas and skills by working on problems. Finally, she looks at the common problems of teaching that occur regardless of the individuals, subject matter, or kinds of practice involved. Lampert arrives at an original model of teaching practice that casts new light on the complexity in teachers’ work and on the ways teachers can successfully deal with teaching problems.

Magdalene Lampert is Professor of Educational Studies, School of Education, University of Michigan.

Source: http://yalepress.yale.edu/yupbooks/book.asp?isbn=9780300089738

READMORE - Teaching Problems and the Problems of Teaching

WordLang Study American English Talking Picture Dictionary Game 1.2

A talking dictionary designed for children who wish to learn basic American English.

Study English Talking Picture Dictionary with Native Speaking Pronounciation for Kids. Include Animals, Numbers, Colors, Shapes, Food, Nature and Home. Great toy and learning tool for very young children. An appealing and colorful visual representation with a word or two on each spread, along with a simple illustration and native sound pronunciation.

The series is designed for children who wish to learn concrete vocabulary and basic structures of the American English language. Will be great resource same as for Beginners Intermediate and Advanced levels.

Here are some key features of "WordLang Study American English Talking Picture Dictionary Game":

· Fast browsing
· System tray launch
· Slang words Included.


Limitations: 30 days trial
Download link:

http://www.softpedia.com/progDownload/WordLang-Study-American-English-Talking-Picture-Dictionary-Game-Download-106565.html

From: www.softpedia.com

READMORE - WordLang Study American English Talking Picture Dictionary Game 1.2

Teaching English Using Games

From 'Games for Language Learning'
by Andrew Wright, David Betteridge and Michael Buckby
Cambridge University Press, 1984.

'Language learning is hard work ... Effort is required at every moment and must be maintained over a long period of time. Games help and encourage many learners to sustain their interest and work.'

'Games also help the teacher to create contexts in which the language is useful and meaningful. The learners want to take part and in order to do so must understand what others are saying or have written, and they must speak or write in order to express their own point of view or give information.'

'The need for meaningfulness in language learning has been accepted for some years. A useful interpretation of 'meaningfulness' is that the learners respond to the content in a definite way. If they are amused, angered, intrigued or surprised the content is clearly meaningful to them. Thus the meaning of the language they listen to, read, speak and write will be more vividly experienced and, therefore, better remembered.

If it is accepted that games can provide intense and meaningful practice of language, then they must be regarded as central to a teacher's repertoire. They are thus not for use solely on wet days and at the end of term!' (from Introduction, p. 1)

From 'Six Games for the EFL/ESL Classroom'
by Aydan Ersoz
The Internet TESL Journal, Vol. VI, No. 6, June 2000.

'Language learning is a hard task which can sometimes be frustrating. Constant effort is required to understand, produce and manipulate the target language. Well-chosen games are invaluable as they give students a break and at the same time allow students to practise language skills. Games are highly motivating since they are amusing and at the same time challenging. Furthermore, they employ meaningful and useful language in real contexts. They also encourage and increase cooperation.'

'Games are highly motivating because they are amusing and interesting. They can be used to give practice in all language skills and be used to practice many types of communication.'

From 'Creative Games for the Language Class'
by Lee Su Kim
'Forum' Vol. 33 No 1, January - March 1995, Page 35.

'There is a common perception that all learning should be serious and solemn in nature, and that if one is having fun and there is hilarity and laughter, then it is not really learning. This is a misconception. It is possible to learn a language as well as enjoy oneself at the same time. One of the best ways of doing this is through games.'

'There are many advantages of using games in the classroom:

1. Games are a welcome break from the usual routine of the language class.
2. They are motivating and challenging.
3. Learning a language requires a great deal of effort. Games help students to make and sustain the effort of learning.
4. Games provide language practice in the various skills- speaking, writing, listening and reading.
5. They encourage students to interact and communicate.
6. They create a meaningful context for language use.'

.
From 'The Use of Games For Vocabulary Presentation and Revision'
by Agnieszka Uberman
'Forum' Vol. 36 No 1, January - March 1998 Page 20.

Using Games

'Many experienced textbook and methodology manuals writers have argued that games are not just time-filling activities but have a great educational value. W. R. Lee holds that most language games make learners use the language instead of thinking about learning the correct forms (1979:2). He also says that games should be treated as central not peripheral to the foreign language teaching programme. A similar opinion is expressed by Richard-Amato, who believes games to be fun but warns against overlooking their pedagogical value, particularly in foreign language teaching. There are many advantages of using games. "Games can lower anxiety, thus making the acquisition of input more likely" (Richard-Amato 1988:147). They are highly motivating and entertaining, and they can give shy students more opportunity to express their opinions and feelings (Hansen 1994:118). They also enable learners to acquire new experiences within a foreign language which are not always possible during a typical lesson. Furthermore, to quote Richard-Amato, they, "add diversion to the regular classroom activities," break the ice, "[but also] they are used to introduce new ideas" (1988:147). In the easy, relaxed atmosphere which is created by using games, students remember things faster and better (Wierus and Wierus 1994:218). S. M. Silvers says many teachers are enthusiastic about using games as "a teaching device," yet they often perceive games as mere time-fillers, "a break from the monotony of drilling" or frivolous activities. He also claims that many teachers often overlook the fact that in a relaxed atmosphere, real learning takes place, and students use the language they have been exposed to and have practised earlier (1982:29). Further support comes from Zdybiewska, who believes games to be a good way of practising language, for they provide a model of what learners will use the language for in real life in the future (1994:6).'

'Games encourage, entertain, teach, and promote fluency. If not for any of these reasons, they should be used just because they help students see beauty in a foreign language and not just problems that at times seem overwhelming.'

When to Use Games

'Games are often used as short warm-up activities or when there is some time left at the end of a lesson. Yet, as Lee observes, a game "should not be regarded as a marginal activity filling in odd moments when the teacher and class have nothing better to do" (1979:3). Games ought to be at the heart of teaching foreign languages. Rixon suggests that games be used at all stages of the lesson, provided that they are suitable and carefully chosen.'

'Games also lend themselves well to revision exercises helping learners recall material in a pleasant, entertaining way. All authors referred to in this article agree that even if games resulted only in noise and entertained students, they are still worth paying attention to and implementing in the classroom since they motivate learners, promote communicative competence, and generate fluency.'

From 'Learning Vocabulary Through Games'
by Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen and Khuat Thi Thu Nga
'Asian EFL Journal' - December 2003.

'Games have been shown to have advantages and effectiveness in learning vocabulary in various ways. First, games bring in relaxation and fun for students, thus help them learn and retain new words more easily. Second, games usually involve friendly competition and they keep learners interested. These create the motivation for learners of English to get involved and participate actively in the learning activities. Third, vocabulary games bring real world context into the classroom, and enhance students' use of English in a flexible, communicative way.'

'Therefore, the role of games in teaching and learning vocabulary cannot be denied. However, in order to achieve the most from vocabulary games, it is essential that suitable games are chosen. Whenever a game is to be conducted, the number of students, proficiency level, cultural context, timing, learning topic, and the classroom settings are factors that should be taken into account.'

'In conclusion, learning vocabulary through games is one effective and interesting way that can be applied in any classrooms. The results of this research suggest that games are used not only for mere fun, but more importantly, for the useful practice and review of language lessons, thus leading toward the goal of improving learners' communicative competence.'

From 'Using Games in an EFL Class for Children'
by Yin Yong Mei and Jang Yu-jing
Daejin University ELT Research Paper. Fall, 2000.

Why Use Games in Class Time?

• Games are fun and children like to play them. Through games children experiment, discover, and interact with their environment. (Lewis, 1999)
• Games add variation to a lesson and increase motivation by providing a plausible incentive to use the target language. For many children between four and twelve years old, especially the youngest, language learning will not be the key motivational factor. Games can provide this stimulus. (Lewis, 1999)
• The game context makes the foreign language immediately useful to the children. It brings the target language to life. (Lewis, 1999)
• The game makes the reasons for speaking plausible even to reluctant children. (Lewis, 1999)
• Through playing games, students can learn English the way children learn their mother tongue without being aware they are studying; thus without stress, they can learn a lot.
• Even shy students can participate positively.

How to Choose Games (Tyson, 2000)

• A game must be more than just fun.
• A game should involve "friendly" competition.
• A game should keep all of the students involved and interested.
• A game should encourage students to focus on the use of language rather than on the language itself.
• A game should give students a chance to learn, practice, or review specific language material.

From 'Index Cards: A Natural Resource for Teachers'
by M. Martha Lengeling and Casey Malarcher
'Forum' Vol. 35 No 4, October - December 1997 Page 42.

'In an effort to supplement lesson plans in the ESL classroom, teachers often turn to games. The justification for using games in the classroom has been well demonstrated as benefiting students in a variety of ways. These benefits range from cognitive aspects of language learning to more co-operative group dynamics.'

General Benefits of Games

Affective:
- lowers affective filter
- encourages creative and spontaneous use of language
- promotes communicative competence
- motivates
- fun

Cognitive:
- reinforces
- reviews and extends
- focuses on grammar communicatively

Class Dynamics:
- student centered
- teacher acts only as facilitator
- builds class cohesion
- fosters whole class participation
- promotes healthy competition

Adaptability:
- easily adjusted for age, level, and interests
- utilizes all four skills
- requires minimum preparation after development


Publication Details:

'Games for Language Learning' (2nd. Ed.)
by Andrew Wright, David Betteridge and Michael Buckby.
Cambridge University Press, 1984.
source: www.teflgames.com

READMORE - Teaching English Using Games

Language acquisition

Language acquisition is the study of the processes through which learners acquire language. First Language Acquisition studies the infants' acquisition of their native language, whereas Second Language Acquisition deals with acquisition of additional languages in both children and adults.

One hotly debated issue is whether the biological contribution includes capacities specific to language acquisition, often referred to as universal grammar. For fifty years, linguists Noam Chomsky and the late Eric Ingeberg have argued for the hypothesis that children have innate, language-specific abilities that facilitate and constrain language learning.

Other researchers, including Elizabeth Bates, Catherine Snow, and Michael Tomasello, have hypothesized that language learning results only from general cognitive abilities and the interaction between learners and their surrounding communities. Recent work by William O'Grady proposes that complex syntactic phenomena result from an efficiency-driven, linear computational system. O'Grady describes his work as "nativism without Universal Grammar." One of the most important advances in the study of language acquisition was the creation of the CHILDES database by Brian MacWhinney and Catherine Snow.

Souce: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_acquisition

READMORE - Language acquisition

Psycolinguistics

Psycholinguistics or psychology of language is the study of the psychological and neurobiological factors that enable humans to acquire, use, and understand language. Initial forays into psycholinguistics were largely philosophical ventures, due mainly to a lack of cohesive data on how the human brain functioned. Modern research makes use of biology, neuroscience, cognitive science, and information theory to study how the brain processes language. There are a number of subdisciplines; for example, as non-invasive techniques for studying the neurological workings of the brain become more and more widespread, neurolinguistics has become a field in its own right.

Psycholinguistics covers the cognitive processes that make it possible to generate a grammatical and meaningful sentence out of vocabulary and grammatical structures, as well as the processes that make it possible to understand utterances, words, text, etc. Developmental psycholinguistics studies children's ability to learn language.

Areas of study
Psycholinguistics is interdisciplinary in nature and is studied by people in a variety of fields, such as psychology, cognitive science, and linguistics. There are several subdivisions within psycholinguistics that are based on the components that make up human language.

Linguistic-related areas:
Phonetics and phonology are concerned with the study of speech sounds. Within psycholinguistics, research focuses on how the brain processes and understands these sounds.
Morphology is the study of word structures, especially the relationships between related words (such as dog and dogs) and the formation of words based on rules (such as plural formation).
Syntax is the study of the patterns which dictate how words are combined together to form sentences.

Semantics deals with the meaning of words and sentences. Where syntax is concerned with the formal structure of sentences, semantics deals with the actual meaning of sentences.
Pragmatics is concerned with the role of context in the interpretation of meaning.

Psychology-related areas:
The study of word recognition and reading examines the processes involved in the extraction of orthographic, morphological, phonological, and semantic information from patterns in printed text.

Developmental psycholinguistics studies infants' and children's ability to learn language, usually with experimental or at least quantitative methods (as opposed to naturalistic observations such as those made by Jean Piaget in his research on the development of children).

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psycholinguistics

READMORE - Psycolinguistics

Futsal Fever

Futsal Fever…!!
Futsal is an indoor game soccer which is played by two teams. Each team has five players, thus there are ten people in this game. This game is now being popular in Indonesia. Although it is not a cheap game for many Indonesians, Futsal still becomes new alternative of sport. Playing futsal is very fun. We can enjoy the game while we get our body healthier. Futsal combines soccer skill and strategy. I and my friends actually love soccer game. Sometimes we have a problem when we want to play soccer. We do not have enough players to play soccer game. Considering this matter, futsal is the best solution for me and my friends.

Now, I have a futsal team called Al Kareem FC. This team was established in the early of 2008. This team consists of some students of Sebelas Maret University, Surakarta, Indonesia which are live in Al Kareem boarding house. Futsal helps us in improving our health because before we have futsal as our routine sport event, we rarely have sport activities in our daily agenda. Besides, Futsal also strengthen our friendship and solidarity because we play it in team. Okay, here is some information about Futsal:
THE PITCH
Dimensions: The pitch shall be rectangular. The length of the touch line shall be greater than the length of the goal line.

Length: minimum 25 m /maximum 42 m
Width: minimum 15 m/ maximum 25 m

For further reading you may visit: http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/developing/futsal/lawsofthegame.html

READMORE - Futsal Fever

Old English

The invaders' Germanic language displaced the indigenous Brythonic languages of what became England. The original Celtic languages remained in Scotland, Wales and Cornwall. The dialects spoken by the Anglo-Saxons formed what is now called Old English. Later, it was strongly influenced by the North Germanic language Norse, spoken by the Vikings who invaded and settled mainly in the north-east of England (see Jórvík and Danelaw). The new and the earlier settlers spoke languages from different branches of the Germanic family; many of their lexical roots were the same or similar, although their grammars were more distinct, including the prefix, suffix and inflection patterns for many words. The Germanic language of these Old English-speaking inhabitants was influenced by contact with Norse invaders, which might have been responsible for some of the morphological simplification of Old English, including the loss of grammatical gender and explicitly marked case (with the notable exception of the pronouns). The most famous surviving work from the Old English period is a fragment of the epic poem "Beowulf" composed by an unknown poet; it is thought to have been substantially modified, probably by Christian clerics long after its composition.

The period when England was ruled by Anglo-Saxon kings, with the assistance of their clergy, was an era in which the Old English language was not only alive, but thriving. Since it was used for legal, political, religious and other intellectual purposes, Old English is thought to have coined new words from native Anglo-Saxon roots, rather than to have "borrowed" foreign words. (This point is made in a standard text, The History of the English Language, by Baugh).

The introduction of Christianity added another wave of Latin and some Greek words.The Old English period formally ended with the Norman conquest, when the language was influenced to an even greater extent by the Norman-speaking Normans.The use of Anglo-Saxon to describe a merging of Anglian and Saxon languages and cultures is a relatively modern development. According to Lois Fundis (Stumpers-L, Fri, 14 Dec 2001), "The first citation for the second definition of 'Anglo-Saxon', referring to early English language or a certain dialect thereof, comes during the reign of Elizabeth I, from a historian named Camden, who seems to be the person most responsible for the term becoming well-known in modern times".

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_English_language

READMORE - Old English

Proto-English

The Germanic tribes that gave rise to the English language (the Angles, Saxons, Frisians, Jutes and perhaps even the Franks), both traded and fought with the Latin-speaking Roman Empire in the centuries-long process of the Germanic peoples' expansion into Western Europe. Many Latin words for common objects entered the vocabulary of these Germanic peoples before any of their tribes reached Britain; examples include camp, cheese, cook, fork, inch, kettle, kitchen, linen, mile, mill, mint (coin), noon, pillow, pin, pound, punt (boat), street and wall. The Romans also gave the English language words which they had themselves borrowed from other languages: anchor, butter, chest, devil, dish, sack and wine.

Our main source for the culture of the Germanic peoples (the ancestors of the English) in ancient times is Tacitus' Germania. While remaining quite conversant with Roman civilisation and its economy, including serving in the Roman military, they retained political independence. We can be certain that Germanic settlement in Britain was not intensified until the time of Hengist and Horsa in the fifth century, since had the English arrived en-masse under Roman rule, they would have been thoroughly Christianised as a matter of course. As it was, the Angles, Saxons and Jutes arrived as pagans, independent of Roman control.

According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, around the year 449, Vortigern (or Gwrtheyrn from the Welsh tradition), King of the Britons, invited the "Angle kin" (Angles led by Hengest and Horsa) to help him in conflicts with the Picts. In return, the Angles were granted lands in the southeast of England. Further aid was sought, and in response "came men of Ald Seaxum of Anglum of Iotum" (Saxons, Angles and Jutes). The Chronicle talks of a subsequent influx of settlers who eventually established seven kingdoms, known as the heptarchy. Modern scholarship considers most of this story to be legendary and politically motivated, and the identification of the tribes with the Angles, Saxons and Jutes is no longer accepted as an accurate description (Myres, 1986, p. 46ff), especially since the Anglo-Saxon language is more similar to the Frisian languages than any of the others.

In conclusion, Proto English was broadly used in Britain in the era of Roman emperor. It is mostly influenced by Latin.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_English_language

READMORE - Proto-English

analyzing some sentences

1. Flying saucer can be dangerous.

This is a positive active sentence which consists of subjects and predicate. The subject and predicate are described in this following explanation:

Flying saucer can be dangerous.

Because of containing subject and predicate, those set of words above can be identified as a sentence. The words ‘flying saucer’ is an active participle which means ‘saucer which is flying’. This group of words is formed by two different words. They are flying (fly) and saucer. However, this sentence does not use verb as its predicate. It uses modal as the predicate. The word ‘dangerous’ in this sentence is an adjective. Therefore, ‘be’ is used as the auxiliary verb which succeeds the infinitive (verb I).

In conclusion, this sentence has subject which is an active participle. People may be confused by this sentence. They may identify the subject as gerund (noun) which means flying saucer (UFO/piring terbang in Indonesian). As the result, people may misunderstand the meaning of this sentence.

2. John loves Marry more than his brother.

John loves Marry more than his brother.

The set of words above is easy to understand. However, I do not see this sentence is right. It consists of a main clause ‘John loves Marry’ and a relative clause. Actually, there are two main meaning which need to be expressed. They are ‘John loves Marry’ and ‘His loves is greater than his loves to his brother’. The combination of those words can be John prefer loves Marry to his brother or John loves Marry before his brother.

In conclusion, the readers may understand the meaning of the sentence. However, the combination of two sentences above is confusing. The sentence above is one kind of degrees of comparison.

3. The shooting of the hunter was terrible

This is an active sentence using simple past tense form. This sentence consists of subject and predicate.

The shooting of the hunter was terrible

The subject of the sentence consists of two main words, ‘shooting’ and ‘hunter’. The word ‘shooting’ has two morphemes, shoot and –ing. The two morphemes create gerund (verb+ing). Gerund changes the verb to be a noun. The word ‘hunter’ is used to give additional information that explains the word ‘shooting’. In the other word, the word ‘hunter’ specifies the word ‘shooting’.

A sentence can only use either ‘be’ or verb as its predicate. It can be identified that the sentence using past form because the sentence employ ‘was’ as the predicate. The sentence above does not have verb, it has the combination of be + adjective (was terrible) as the predicate. However, this sentence does not have adverb of time showing past event.

In conclusion, the sentence above is written in past tense. However, the reader does not find any adverb of time showing past event. Therefore, it will be better if the sentence written in simple present tense; The shooting of the hunter is terrible.

READMORE - analyzing some sentences