Learning How to Learn Languages Learning How to Learn Languages A THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR LEARNING ADDITIONAL LANGUAGES KELI YERIAN; BIBI HALIMA; FAITH ADLER; LOGAN FISHER; CAMERON KEATON; ADDY ORSI; AND ABHAY PAWAR Learning How to Learn Languages Copyright © 2024 by Keli Yerian; Bibi Halima; Faith Adler; Logan Fisher; Cameron Keaton; Addy Orsi; and Abhay Pawar is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Contents A Letter to Readers Faith Adler xv In Gratitude Keli Yerian and Bibi Halima xvii Meet the Authors Faith Adler; Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; Cameron Keaton; Addy Orsi; Abhay Pawar; and Keli Yerian xx Our Adventure in Open Pedagogy Keli Yerian and Bibi Halima xxviii How to Use this Book Keli Yerian and Bibi Halima Organization of these Materials xxxiv How these Materials can be used xxxvi xxxiv Accessibility Statement Allia Service Accessibility Features xxxviii H5P Activities xxxix List of Known Accessibility Issues: xl Accessibility Standards xli Let us know if you have any problems accessing this book xli xxxviii CHAPTER 1 - THE SECRETS OF LANGUAGE LEARNING Introduction Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian 3 Communication, Language, and 'Languaging' Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian Then what exactly is language? 11 Language or languaging? 12 So do we need a language to communicate? 14 8 Language Ideologies and Language Learning Myths Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian language Ideologies 18 Language Learning Myths: Questioning the Obvious 20 17 Mindsets and Language Learning Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Growth and Fixed Mindsets 33 Growth Mindset and Language Learning 35 33 Secrets of Polyglots Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Common misconceptions 42 So, What do polyglots do? 44 A day in the life of a polyglot 47 41 What is your Motivation to Learn Language(s)? Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Extrinsic and intrinsic motivation 50 Why is motivation important? 50 Can we apply this to our language learning journey? 51 49 Your Journey Begins Here Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian 55 CHAPTER 2 - APPROACHES TO (LANGUAGE) LEARNING Introduction Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 63 Learning Theories Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Behaviorism 68 Cognitivism 70 Constructivism 74 Reflecting on your past language learning 76 67 Procedural and Declarative Knowledge Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Procedural knowledge 79 Declarative knowledge 79 Putting the two together 80 From Concepts to Examples 82 78 Implicit and Explicit Learning Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Implicit Learning 88 Explicit Learning 88 Putting Them Together 89 87 Multimodal Ways of Learning Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian What is multimodality? 95 Learning Styles – Fact or Fiction? 95 From Unimodal to Multimodal 98 94 Teaching Methodologies Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Grammar-translation Method 104 Audiolingual Method 105 Communicative approaches 106 103 Connecting the Dots to your Story Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 111 CHAPTER 3 - ACCESS AND POWER IN LANGUAGE LEARNING Introduction Cameron Keaton; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 115 Majoritized and Minoritized Languages Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian Majority and Minority Languages 120 Majority is Majori-tized and Minority is Minori-tized! 120 119 Language Standardization and Minoritization in Education Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian Standardized Language in the Classroom 127 Minoritization of Other Language Varieties 128 African American English (AAE) 130 Respecting Linguistic Diversity in Education 132 126 Heritage Languages Cameron Keaton and Keli Yerian What is a heritage language? 136 The Unique Competencies of Heritage Language Learners 137 Empowering heritage language narratives 138 Looking towards the future 139 135 Less Commonly Taught Languages (LCTLs) Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian What makes a language “Less Commonly Taught”? 145 LCTLs and the Power-Access Equation 146 LCTLs have their own Privileges 146 Where to go to learn these languages? 148 Here’s the Bottom Line 150 144 Language Endangerment and Revitalization Keli Yerian and Bibi Halima Languages at Risk 153 Are we losing more than words? 155 Lost Words, Found Voices 156 Revitalization Efforts In Oregon 157 What does this have to do with me? 159 152 Advocating for Linguistic Diversity Cameron Keaton; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 175 CHAPTER 4 - CULTURE, INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE, AND PRAGMATICS Introduction Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 179 What is Culture? Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian How Does Culture Relate to identity? 186 Languaculture: Living, Shifting Language 187 184 Going on a Culture Expedition Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Culture as an Iceberg 194 Don’t Let Culture Shock Surprise you! 197 193 Language is Culture is Language Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian High-Context and Low-Context Culture 205 Pragmatics 206 203 Broadening Horizons: A Big, Big World Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian What is Cultural Intelligence? 213 212 So, What Now? Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 217 CHAPTER 5 - METACOGNITION AND METACOGNITIVE STRATEGIES Introduction Faith Adler; Cameron Keaton; Addy Orsi; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian What is Metacognition? 223 Why Is Metacognition Useful? 224 223 Phases of the Metacognitive Cycle Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian What are Five Phases of Metacognition? 227 226 Four Levels of Metacognitive Learning Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 231 SMART Goals Addy Orsi; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian What are SMART goals? 236 More Smart Goal Examples in Language Learning 238 Your Turn! 240 235 Language Learning Strategies Addy Orsi; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian What are Learning Strategies? 242 Indirect and Direct Learning Strategies 243 You can Take Charge of Your Learning 249 Your turn! 252 242 Revisiting the Metacognitive Cycle Addy Orsi; Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Putting your goals and strategies into action 254 Making Your Journey Visible 257 254 FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE Integrating Skills Faith Adler and Keli Yerian The Three Modes of Communication 261 Input and Output 264 261 CHAPTER 6 - LISTENING OR VIEWING SKILLS Introduction Logan Fisher; Abhay Pawar; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 271 Listening and Viewing Principles to Live By Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 274 How Do We Know? Support for the Principles Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 282 Listening/Viewing Strategies & Stories Keli Yerian; Logan Fisher; and Bibi Halima 290 Your Turn Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian 309 CHAPTER 7 - SPEAKING OR SIGNING SKILLS Introduction Logan Fisher; Abhay Pawar; Keli Yerian; and Bibi Halima 313 Speaking and Signing Principles to Live By Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 316 How Do We Know? Support for the Principles Logan Fisher; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 327 Speaking/Signing Strategies & Stories Keli Yerian; Logan Fisher; and Bibi Halima 335 Your Turn Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian 355 CHAPTER 8 - READING SKILLS Introduction Keli Yerian; Logan Fisher; Abhay Pawar; and Bibi Halima 359 Reading Principles to Live By Cameron Keaton; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 362 How Do We Know? Support for the Principles Keli Yerian and Bibi Halima 374 Reading Strategies & Stories Keli Yerian; Cameron Keaton; and Bibi Halima 381 Your Turn Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian 391 CHAPTER 9 - WRITING SKILLS Introduction Faith Adler; Logan Fisher; Abhay Pawar; Keli Yerian; and Bibi Halima 395 Writing Principles to Live By Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 398 How Do We Know? Support for the Principles Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 409 Writing Strategies & Stories Keli Yerian; Faith Adler; and Bibi Halima 419 Your Turn Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian 459 CHAPTER 10 - FACING FEARS AND FINDING OPPORTUNITIES Introduction Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 463 Weaving it in: Retention in the Day-to-Day Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 466 “Hitting a Wall”: What to Do about Anxiety and Motivation? Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Second Language Anxiety 473 Maintaining your Motivation 474 471 What’s Next? Benefits and Opportunities for Language Learners Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian Individual Benefits 479 Benefits to Communities 481 Benefits to Social Justice 483 Back to Benefits to Your Self 485 478 Visualizing Language Learning Paths Faith Adler; Bibi Halima; and Keli Yerian 487 Closing Statement Faith Adler 503 Feedback and Suggestions 505 Licensing Information 506 Glossary 508 A Letter to Readers FAITH ADLER “Seek first to understand, then to be understood,” – Stephen R. Covey. We write this book during a time of great unrest all around the world. Through a variety of media, we are surrounded by news of violence, prejudice, hatred, and genocide on a daily basis. We have written this text with heavy hearts as new (and continued) acts of violence have developed between neighbors, cities, states, and nations. We strongly believe in the importance of seeking to understand before asking to be understood and have embedded the heart behind that message all throughout this text. We hope that this can serve as even a small encouragement and reminder to seek out the voices of victims affected by tragedy, especially those with traditionally marginalized voices, and listen to what they have to say. When others are silenced, we are given the opportunity to be a voice for those who remain unheard. We hope, in our heart of hearts, that you will take anything you might learn from this text and use it to do just that. Though with the seemingly never-ending A LETTER TO READERS xv xv rise of exploitation of media-consumers through flashy headlines, biased news, and false information, hope may seem further away than ever before, there has truly never been such a time as this to have and spread hope. Faith Adler, on behalf of the Open Pedagogy Team xvi A LETTER TO READERS In Gratitude KELI YERIAN AND BIBI HALIMA All worthwhile efforts are collaborative, and this one is no different, particularly in its spirit of open pedagogy. We would like to extend our deepest appreciation to the following supporters. We received grant generous support from: • The Williams Instructional Fund at the University of Oregon. This fund was established in 1996 by Tom and Carol Williams to support faculty who are “willing to search for better and more effective ways of learning”. We are grateful for this vision and the concrete resources it provides to make it possible. • Open Oregon Educational Resources. These grants are designed to support faculty and institutions to develop fully accessible and openly licensed course materials in higher education institutions across the state of Oregon. • The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at the University of Oregon. Funding from CAS was awarded to departments for supporting diverse student participation in research projects. The Linguistics Department awarded a portion of these funds to our Open Pedagogy project. IN GRATITUDE xvii xvii https://provost.uoregon.edu/williams-fund https://openoregon.org/2023-25-oer-grants-awarded/ The Open Oregon grant included a stipend for an OER project mentor. Liz Pearce, author of the Open Pedagogy OER Pressbook Contemporary Families: An Equity Lens accepted our request to fill this role. We are indebted to Liz for her advice, stories, and conversations with Halima and Keli over coffee during her visits to Eugene. The Open Oregon grant also included a stipend for our University of Oregon OER Librarian, Rayne Vieger, who went the extra mile to support our team throughout the year from start to finish. She created a Pressbooks OER called The Open Pedagogy Toolkit for our team to use as a resource on Open Pedagogy and Open Educational Resources, one that also served as a model for how to create and structure a book using Pressbooks. Rayne met with our team as a whole and individually for consultation multiple times, and aided in troubleshooting formatting issues at the end of the editing process. We would like to thank a number of other individuals who contributed to this project: Cameron Teubner-Keller, who was a teaching assistant for LING 144 in Fall 2023 alongside co-author and project manager Bibi Halima. Cameron provided support to our project through writing feedback, student support, and glossary contributions for the project. The team of faculty who first collectively proposed and brought to life the LING 144 course in 2020: Kathie Carpenter, Spike Gildea, Harinder Khalsa, Jeff Magoto, and Melissa Baese-Berk. We also thank former instructors of this course Spike Gildea, Harinder Khalsa, and Robert Elliott as well as former teaching assistant Nicole Williams. All of these individuals contributed significantly to the conceptualization and development of the course materials that inspired our own Pressbooks content. xviii IN GRATITUDE https://opentextbooks.uregina.ca/families/ https://opentext.uoregon.edu/openpedstudenttoolkit/ Lee Rumberger, Associate Vice Provost for Teaching Engagement for the Teaching Engagement Program, for her energizing guidance during the conceptual stages of this project. Allia Service, Open Education Resources Specialist in the University of Oregon Libraries, for her excellent support in making our materials accessible. The Department of Linguistics for its encouragement during the development and presentation of this project at the Spring 2024 Linguistics Colloquium. The collective support of the many friends, colleagues, and family members that cheered all of us on for this project. Their care, encouragement, and yes, even admiration for attempting to do such an endeavor kept us going through all the fun and less fun moments of writing, creating, and revising. IN GRATITUDE xix Meet the Authors FAITH ADLER; LOGAN FISHER; BIBI HALIMA; CAMERON KEATON; ADDY ORSI; ABHAY PAWAR; AND KELI YERIAN xx MEET THE AUTHORS xx Authors are introduced below in alphabetical order, and project roles are described beneath each author introduction. Authorship of each section of the 10 chapters is shown at the top of each page. The lead author for each section is listed first, and the two editors, Bibi Halima and Keli Yerian, are listed at the end of each section. Occasionally other significantly contributing student authors are listed in second or third position in sections where there are more authors listed. Also, in cases where Halima or Keli are listed as first authors, this signifies that they contributed most of the content in that section. Addy and Abhay are not listed as section authors but are given attribution for their important contributions at the bottom of each page on which their illustrations or multimedia work appears. FAITH ADLER Faith was a junior at the University of Oregon at the time of this project, studying Japanese and Second Language Acquisition and Teaching. Her love for Japanese language and culture began in her junior year of high school when she studied abroad in Isesaki City in Gunma Prefecture. Since then, she has fallen in love with language and started studying Mandarin and Korean as well. She hopes to teach language in the future MEET THE AUTHORS xxi and spread the message of the importance of communicating across barriers like differences in language and culture. Faith’s primary role on the team was as a writer. She was the lead author for Chapter 4 Culture, Intercultural Competence, and Pragmatics, the ‘intermission section’ on integrating skills, Chapter 9 Writing Skills, Chapter 10 Facing Fears and Finding Opportunities, and our Letter to Readers in the Front Matter and the Closing Statement in the Back Matter. She also contributed significantly to Chapter 5 Metacognition and Metacognitive Strategies, created some H5P materials, and appears in one of the project videos in Chapter 2. LOGAN FISHER Logan is a 2027 graduate of the University of Oregon, pursuing majors in Linguistics and General Music, a Spanish minor, and two Second Language Acquisition and Teaching (SLAT) certificates in English and Spanish. When not studying languages or linguistics, you can find them in the Oregon Athletic Bands where they play mellophone for the Oregon Marching Band, Oregon Basketball Band, and the Yellow Garter Band where they are the logistical director, or in the School of Music where they play french horn. They are also a member of the Wayne Morse Scholars program. They hope to pursue a career in second language education while continuing their passion as a researcher in the field of linguistics. Logan’s primary role on the team was as a writer. They were the xxii MEET THE AUTHORS lead author on Chapter 2 Approaches to (Language) Learning, Chapter 6 Listening and Viewing Skills, and Chapter 7 Speaking and Signing Skills. They also contributed significantly to Chapter 1 The Secrets of Language Learning and to the introduction sections of the Skills chapters. They also helped to design H5P materials and conceptualized (and appears in) one of the project videos in Chapter 2. CAMERON KEATON Cameron was a senior at the University of Oregon during the creation of this OER, graduating with a B.S. in Political Science and a minor in English. He is driven to make education more affordable and accessible. One of his passions is language learning; he has taken a variety of language courses, including classes in French, Spanish, and Arabic. He hopes these OER materials will be the first of many in the genre of Open Pedagogy. His hobbies include watching Detroit sports, traveling, reading, and collecting sports cards. Cameron’s primary role on the team was as a writer. He is lead author on key sections of Chapter 3, Access and Power in Language Learning, and in Chapter 8, Reading Skills. He also helped to design H5P materials and appears in one of the project videos in Chapter 3. MEET THE AUTHORS xxiii ADDY ORSI Addy was a first-year student at the University of Oregon at the time this project was created. They are studying Linguistics and Communication Disorders and Sciences. As an illustrator, Addy wants to assist readers’ learning experience by creating supporting images to help convey information. They are proficient in Spanish and are learning American Sign Language; they look forward to improving their skills in these languges and others in the future. Addy’s hobbies include making art and crafting, creating ceramic sculptures, spending time with their cat Wilfred, and gardening. Addy’s primary role on the team was as illustrator for the entire book. All of the original images throughout the chapters were created by Addy. They also created the time-lapsed video in Chapter 5 and contributed to some sections of Chapter 5 and some H5P design. Please note that the illustrations and time-lapse video have a different Creative Commons license from the rest of the content from the book. xxiv MEET THE AUTHORS ABHAY PAWAR Abhay is a 2027 graduate of the University of Oregon, pursuing a double major in Advertisement and Media Studies. Being a second- generation immigrant, he was raised speaking English and Punjabi which started his love for languages and communication. His main drive for this project was the idea of delivering information from student to student. He took this as an opportunity to have a platform to show that sometimes, something being hard to learn isn’t about what is being taught, but who it is coming from and how it is delivered. When he isn’t working, he is out with his friends, conjuring up video ideas, playing golf, crate digging for music, at car shows, etc. Abhay’s primary role on the team was as a multimedia content creator. He envisioned and created original videos for Chapters 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8. and 9. He also designed or contributed to various H5P materials. MEET THE AUTHORS xxv BIBI HALIMA Halima was pursuing her Master’s in Language Teaching Studies at the University of Oregon during the project period. As a language teacher, she is passionate about making education accessible through the inclusion of additive multilingualism. As an international student from Pakistan, she grew up speaking and learning four languages including Punjabi, Urdu, Arabic, and English. In future, she seeks to create an impact in the field of language education by advocating for solutions to global challenges threatening multilingualism. She feels that the experience of working on Open Pedagogy Project has brought her “one step closer to a dream of making education more multilingual, accessible, and open for all”. Outside of her academic life, she loves connecting with family and friends and spending time in nature. Halima’s primary role on the team was threefold: 1) as project manager, holding meetings, managing Teams, and communicating and meeting with students throughout the project, 2) as lead author for sections of Chapter 1, The Secrets of Language Learning, Chapter 2, Approaches to (Language) Learning, and Chapter 3, Access and Power in Language Learning and 3) as a final editor of the project with Keli Yerian, editing writing content and creating and making decisions about final Pressbooks design elements. xxvi MEET THE AUTHORS KELI YERIAN Dr. Keli Yerian is a Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Oregon. She is passionate about language education and sharing this passion with students and other colleagues. She directs the Masters of Arts Program in Language Teaching Studies and the undergraduate certificate in Second Language Acquisition and Teaching. She speaks French and Spanish and has learned some German and Wolof in the past as well. Her hobbies include river paddle boarding, hiking, and traveling when she can, and also doing plenty of extensive reading and movie-watching in her second languages. Keli’s primary role on the team was twofold: 1) as project lead and mentor and 2) as a final editor of the project with Bibi Halima, particularly with regards to editing writing content and making decisions about the final Pressbooks design. MEET THE AUTHORS xxvii Our Adventure in Open Pedagogy KELI YERIAN AND BIBI HALIMA We were thinking big when our team began this project in January, 2024 at the University of Oregon. We met together for the first time around a table in a conference room, excited about the prospect of creating a student-led, online textbook for LING 144 Learning How to Learn Languages. We started the project with open minds, lots of energy, and a healthy dose of nervousness, not knowing exactly what would happen or what we would actually create. And then… we did it. Eight months later we are looking at ten completed chapters, each with multiple sections, fully illustrated and peppered with videos, interactive activities, and plenty of stories about what it can look like to learn a language. We ended this month with a self-given score of 10/10, not because the product or process was perfect, but because we all navigated the journey with grit and grace and did not stop short of our best collective efforts. We are happy with the unique, ever-evolving aspects of this open-source text, just as we hope our readers will be happy about their own evolving journeys in language learning. As you will see in Chapter 1, we champion a focus on proficiency over trying to reach perfection. xxviii OUR ADVENTURE IN OPEN PEDAGOGY xxviii AN OVERVIEW OF OUR JOURNEY This project began in Spring 2023 when Keli Yerian, a faculty member in the Department of Linguistics and a language teacher educator, applied for grant support to launch this Open Pedagogy initiative. The LING 144 course she had taught twice did not yet have a central text, and she had just been introduced to the concept of Open Pedagogy through a workshop sponsored by Open Oregon. With support from the UO Williams Foundation, Open Oregon, and the College of Arts and Sciences, Keli enlisted Bibi Halima, her former LING 144 graduate Teaching Assistant, to be a co- collaborator and project manager on the project. Keli then put out a call to former LING 144 students to apply to join the project. The grant funding provided pay for student part-time work, ensuring equity of access to those who applied. With a diverse and talented team of five undergraduates in place (three of whom were first year students), we began the Winter 2024 term with workshops on leadership and project management provided by the UO Holden Leadership Center in order to build team cohesion and identify our strengths. We had meetings with UO OER Librarian Rayne Vieger, who created OER materials specifically to guide our team. We also enlisted an experienced Open Pedagogy mentor for the project, Liz Pearce, to offer us advice at key stages in the project. Over the first several weeks, we discussed and mapped out our book plan using whiteboards and sticky notes, while also learning how to use our collaborative and publishing tools: Teams for communication and project organization, OneDrive for drafts and initial peer review, H5P for interactive elements, Pressbooks for our final materials, and Hypothesis for final review. OUR ADVENTURE IN OPEN PEDAGOGY xxix Image by Crissi from Pixabay Although the five students initially divided up the chapters to author individually, by the end of Winter term it became clear that specializing into different roles would work better in order to capitalize on student strengths. Three students continued to primarily write, while one began illustrating the whole book and the other focused on multimedia. The team kept our gears turning through Spring break and into Spring term as we began planning for the final five chapters. Our regular meetings and weekly progress became increasingly more intensive, even as the students juggled their full-time schedules and other extra- curriculars. As Summer arrived, one team member graduated and moved on to a new commitment. The other four continued to revise and fill in missing content through mid-August as Halima and Keli engaged in full-time review, editing, and accessibility remediation. We were fortunate that one of our writers was awarded additional Summer funding through a UO Center for Undergraduate Research and Engagement scholarship. We wrapped up our last group meeting on August 14, 2024 with a palpable sense of pride and accomplishment. One student compared the project to a bonsai tree: one we had carefully trimmed and shaped over time but had taken its own beautiful, unique form in the end. Yes, we had done it. xxx OUR ADVENTURE IN OPEN PEDAGOGY https://pixabay.com/users/crissi_13-4895560/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=2202769 https://pixabay.com//?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=2202769 LESSONS AND REFLECTIONS In the poem, “Don’t Allow the Lucid Moment to Dissolve” Zagajewski reminds us that “knowledge grows slowly like a wisdom tooth” (2003, p. 110). Similarly, our journey in this project revealed ‘lucid moments’ of insight over time. Before these moments dissolve or fade away, here we write them down and share them with you, hoping they light the way to a path in education that is open and brave. From January to August, we gradually discovered the answer to ‘not knowing exactly what would happen’. One question became prominent as we observed our process unfold: How does Open Pedagogy transform student and educator roles and relationships? One word that repeatedly came up in our discussions with all students in several meetings was empowerment. They took ownership of their learning and evolved beyond the feeling of imposter syndrome, beyond believing ‘I don’t know enough!’ Their empowerment by the end was evident in their confidence and positive self-image. In response to the question, ‘What specific skills and knowledge do you feel you gained through this experience?’, one of the students said, ‘I want readers to know what I know, and it is worth sharing with them’. Their empowerment allowed them to recognize us as facilitators rather than ’employers’ or ‘traditional teachers’. They could acknowledge our expertise and seek support when needed. They knew that their ‘I don’t knows’ would be met with the response ‘Let me help you here’. We together created a safe space between ‘We need to know everything’ and ‘We don’t know enough’. This is a space we call open and brave! This is where both learners and educators come together and are willing to learn and share with openness. OUR ADVENTURE IN OPEN PEDAGOGY xxxi As educators, we embraced our fluid roles. For example, Keli with all her expertise and extensive background in language education transcended her role as a teacher and led the team from a fresh perspective as a learner. Whereas Halima, as a young scholar, inhabited the liminal space between Keli’s mentorship and mentoring the student team members while navigating her transnational identity and bridging two worlds as an international student. Through the fluidity of our roles, we shifted from viewing our students as “followers” to acknowledging them as “contributors”. It is true that Open Pedagogy requires educators to be ” guide[s] by their side” rather than “sage[s] on the stage” or even “guide[s] on the side” (Werth & Williams, 2023, p. 309). This is the way to engage as learners together, side by side. Learning How to Learn Languages was not just a matter of creating a textbook, but an experience of becoming together for our team. We all had our specific roles and responsibilities but every week we gathered around a table and trimmed and shaped our bonsai together. With our unique expertise and interests, we grew this project together. “Let me try sketching that out”, “Here, let me share a resource with you”, “Why don’t I add a story here?”, “I can get filming equipment for you”, “Here’s where we could add a touch of clarity”, “Here, let me try to clean this H5P on Procreate”, “Oh, leave that to me” were all our ways of supporting each other. While the world is becoming increasingly commercialized, the OER movement and Open Pedagogy humanize education. Education is a basic human right to access freely and to participate in freely. It is our hope that through this kind of transformative human movement we will open up space for learners to emphasize democracy and agency in education. xxxii OUR ADVENTURE IN OPEN PEDAGOGY An interactive H5P element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=29#h5p-1 Scroll to see the photos above. References Werth, E., & Williams, K. (2023). Learning to be open: Instructor growth through open pedagogy. Open Learning: The Journal of Open, Distance and e-Learning, 38(4), 301-314. https://doi.org/ 10.1080/02680513.2021.1970520 Zagajewski, A. (2003). Without end: New and selected poems (C. Cavanagh, & C. K. Williams, Trans.). Farrar, Straus and Giroux. OUR ADVENTURE IN OPEN PEDAGOGY xxxiii https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=29#h5p-1 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=29#h5p-1 https://doi.org/10.1080/02680513.2021.1970520 https://doi.org/10.1080/02680513.2021.1970520 How to Use this Book KELI YERIAN AND BIBI HALIMA This page provides an overview of the structure of this Pressbooks OER as well as suggestions on how to use this resource. ORGANIZATION OF THESE MATERIALS Our Pressbook contains 10 chapters and is divided into two main parts: Chapters 1-5 and Chapters 6-9. It also includes an intermission section between these two parts and a final Chapter 10. Chapters 1-5 provide a rich conceptual background for language learners. • Chapter 1 introduces readers to the dynamics of language learning and common language learning myths. • Chapter 2 provides an overview of several core concepts that influence language learning. These include explanations of a few influential learning theories; the impact of growth and fixed mindsets; how declarative & procedural learning and explicit & implicit learning work; the benefits of multimodal learning; and several key xxxiv HOW TO USE THIS BOOK xxxiv language teaching approaches that continue to influence formal language education contexts as well as commercial language learning app materials. • Chapter 3 reveals how language learning is sensitive to questions of power and access. This topic is often absent from other books on how to learn languages. It explains what majoritized and minoritized languages are and the relative social power of different varieties of a language. It also explores the cases of heritage language learning, less-commonly-taught languages, and endangered language revitalization. • Chapter 4 is a deeper dive into the critical question of culture in language. It explores the concepts of culture shock, the cultural ‘iceberg’, and languaculture. It also explains the subtle aspects of culture and context in communication, also known as pragmatics. • Chapter 5 takes a step back to look at how the metacognitive cycle can help us reflect on and plan for our language learning efforts (and our efforts throughout our lives!). It also discusses how direct and indirect learning strategies can support our language learning. After these five chapters we have a brief ‘intermission section’ titled “From Theory to Practice”, which emphasizes the integration and interdependence of language skills. The second part of this book provides guidance and examples for applying the concepts from the first five chapters to actual language use. Note, however, that it is not obligatory to read the first half of the book in order to read any part of the second half. We link back to content from the first half when we feel it is helpful. • Chapters 6-9 each focus on one of the four “language skills” and are structured in the same way. These include HOW TO USE THIS BOOK xxxv an introduction section, a section on guiding principles for that skill, a section on some of the research supporting those principles, a section that provides a range of example strategies and student stories to consider, and an ‘Over to You’ reflection section. ◦ Chapter 6 focuses on Listening / Viewing (for signed languages) ◦ Chapter 7 focuses on Speaking / Signing ◦ Chapter 8 focuses on Reading ◦ Chapter 9 focuses on Writing Readers may question why there are not separate chapters on Grammar or Vocabulary. We decided to touch on these topics within the skills chapters, though we may also add one or more chapters on these areas in future editions. Our final Chapter 10 turns to the topics of language retention, language anxiety and motivation, the benefits of language learning, and some final inspirational stories and media created by past LING 144 students about their own language learning paths. HOW THESE MATERIALS CAN BE USED We see three primary ways in which these materials can be used: 1. As an entire set of materials to be used in a secondary or higher education course about learning languages. In our case at the University of Oregon, we will use these materials as a core text for LING 144 Learning How to Learn Languages. 2. As modular parts to supplement language courses in secondary or higher education contexts. For example, the xxxvi HOW TO USE THIS BOOK topics on metacognition, access and power, or specific language skills could be supplemental to any language class, among others. We would be thrilled if language educators used or remixed any of our chapters or pages in the spirit of OER. 3. As educational and personal enrichment resources for independent language learners. These materials do not require that the reader be enrolled in any formal language learning to benefit from them. HOW TO USE THIS BOOK xxxvii Accessibility Statement ALLIA SERVICE We’re committed to creating free, open, and accessible educational resources. If you encounter any accessibility issues with this book, please contact us. ACCESSIBILITY FEATURES The web version of this textbook includes the following accessibility features: • All content can be navigated using a keyboard • Links, headings, and tables are formatted to work with screen readers • Non-decorative images include alt text. When alt text is insufficient there are links in image captions to long descriptions of images (in a collapsible section at the bottom of the page). At the end of every long description is a link that will return you to the image in text. • Information is not conveyed by color alone. xxxviii ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT xxxviii https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ H5P ACTIVITIES H5P activities are HTML based interactive activities that are used throughout this book. All H5P activities are labeled with a heading formatted title and instructions outside the body of the activity. There are several different types of activities. Some don’t require any reader engagement, these include presentation slides, and collapsible “accordion” text. These activities have built-in buttons to go to the next slide or read the next section. There are also interactive activities like flashcards and multiple-choice questions. Multiple choice questions have a “check” button after all of the choices, arrows to move to the next question, and a “retry” button if you answer incorrectly. There are two “image hotspot” activities; images are annotated with clickable buttons. When readers click on the buttons they can read more about that section of the image. These activities are fully usable with screen readers and include additional image description when necessary to describe information in the images. Drag and Drop activities require more complex engagement. They ask the reader to match one or more draggable images or objects with one or more “drop zones” by placing the image into the zone. All objects and drop zones include descriptive labels. Screen readers will always read out the label on the draggable object, but some screen readers may not read out the name of the drop zone until after you place a draggable object into it. You can always select items that are already placed in one drop zone and move them to another zone before checking your answers. Drag the Words activities are similar to Drag and Drop activities. The drop downs are ‘blanks’ in sentences, and the draggable objects are words that you can use to fill in the blanks. This activity type is compatible with VoiceOver on Chrome but may be less accessible with JAWS and NVDA in other browsers. Some readers ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT xxxix report needing to switch between browse mode and focus mode to correctly ‘drop’ words in the blanks. In the Language Endangerment and Revitalization section of Chapter 3, there is an interactive map that shows how the colonization of North America affected indigenous language groups. It allows readers to scroll through multiple slides and see how the map changes and read the author’s commentary on those changes. This activity isn’t fully accessible to readers who use screen readers because the map images are complex. A long description of the entire activity is linked in the description of the activity, under the title. LIST OF KNOWN ACCESSIBILITY ISSUES: While we strive to ensure that this resource is as accessible and usable as possible, we might not always get it right. Any issues we identify will be listed below. • Summary elements: ◦ This book uses drop down summary elements in several chapters, and at the ends of chapters to format accessible long descriptions of complex images. By default, these drop downs are collapsed. Readers can click on the drop downs to expand them and read the text. These summary elements work like buttons and are fully keyboard navigable. They are compatible with most screen readers in most browsers. However some screen readers and some browsers may use different terms to describe these elements, which could be unintuitive to readers using screen readers. xl ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT ◦ Scott Ohara summarizeshow screen readers describe summary elements on his blog: ▪ “Disclosure Triangle” with Narrator, VoiceOver and TalkBack when paired with Edge/Chrome. ▪ “Button” with NVDA when paired with Firefox, Edge or Chrome. ▪ “Summary” with VoiceOver when paired with Firefox or Safari. ▪ Bugged behavior or no role announced with TalkBack with Firefox or iOS VO with Safari, respectively. • Drag the Words H5P activities. There are two drag the words activities in this book, that may not be accessible with every screen reader in every browser (see the H5P section of this accessibility statement to learn more.) ACCESSIBILITY STANDARDS The web version of this book was designed to meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1, level AA standards. LET US KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANY PROBLEMS ACCESSING THIS BOOK If you encounter any accessibility barriers while reading this book, please get in touch with the UO OER team by emailing us using this contact form. Please include the location of the issue in the text, a description of the issue, and information about the software, browser and/or assistive technology you are using to read the ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT xli https://www.scottohara.me/blog/2022/09/12/details-summary.html https://www.scottohara.me/blog/2022/09/12/details-summary.html https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/ https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/ https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ book. We will get back to you as soon as possible with an accommodation. ATTRIBUTION This page is adapted from the BCcampus Accessibility Toolkit – 2nd Edition Accessibility Statement by Amanda Coolidge, Sue Doner, Tara Robertson, and Josie Gray, which is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. xlii ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT https://opentextbc.ca/accessibilitytoolkit/front-matter/accessibility-statement/ https://opentextbc.ca/accessibilitytoolkit/front-matter/accessibility-statement/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ CHAPTER 1 - THE SECRETS OF LANGUAGE LEARNING LEARNING HOW TO LEARN LANGUAGES 1 1 CHAPTER SECTIONS 1. INTRODUCTION 2. COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE, AND ‘LANGUAGING’ 3. LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS 4. MINDSETS AND LANGUAGE LEARNING 5. SECRETS OF POLYGLOTS 6. WHAT IS YOUR MOTIVATION TO LEARN LANGUAGE(S)? 7. YOUR JOURNEY BEGINS HERE 2 ABHAY PAWAR Introduction BIBI HALIMA AND KELI YERIAN If language learning were a perfect art, we would all need… Help! What if someone told you that you couldn’t pick up a paintbrush unless you were already a great artist? What if someone said you could only swim in the pool if you were an Olympic-level swimmer? Or that you couldn’t make pasta in the kitchen because you’re not yet a 5-star chef? You would immediately know that such high standards are ridiculous. Then why do many of us have such fear of learning languages ‘imperfectly’? INTRODUCTION 3 3 Similarly, language learning is not something you need to perfect in order to enjoy it or to be successful. In fact ‘perfect’ is not even a realistic concept when it comes to how languages work. Does this surprise you? You might have felt perfection was required when you were facing a test in your language class and you couldn’t remember when to use Spanish ser vs. estar, or which word order to use in Japanese, or which tones you should apply to each word in Chinese. Many of us are used to measuring our success by how well we passed those tests. But on the flip side, imagine going to Mexico and successfully asking where to find the bus stop and the shops, even though you used ser instead of estar almost all the time. Or picture yourself in Beijing roaming the street markets, negotiating with vendors in Chinese and successfully bringing fresh produce back home despite hearing some unfamiliar tones. Or see yourself in Alexandria going to a local café and successfully placing your order 4 ABHAY PAWAR in Arabic without perfecting the difference between the Arabic glottal stop hamzahamza and the Arabic vowel fathahfathah. In these flip-side examples, how did it go? Yes, everything went fine! We could even say ‘perfect’ because you used language successfully to get something done. Instead of ‘practice makes perfect’, we could say ‘practice makes proficient’. Figure 1. Accessible long description. So now allow us to rephrase and say, If language learning is an art, we are all creative artists. Human artists and human learners! There is no secret code and no shortcut to language learning but there is a way to understand how humans learn languages. In this chapter, we will put these pieces together that will help you see your (nearly) limitless possibilities to learn and liberate yourself in the language(s) you are learning. INTRODUCTION 5 CHAPTER GOALS At the end of this chapter, I will be able to: • Compare language and communication • Identify some common language learning myths • Determine where I stand on the continuum of I-can and I- cannot mindset • Discover what motivates me to keep going on my language learning journey • Learn the secrets of polyglots Media Attributions All original illustrations on this page © Addy Orsi are licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0 (Attribution NonCommercial) license. Image Description Figure 1: Practice Makes [deleted]perfect [replaced with]Proficient Comic with text in Spanish, and translated to English: 6 ABHAY PAWAR https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ Panel 1: a person in a blue shirt talks to themselves in the mirror. “¿Dónde está la parada de bus? ¿Dónde está la parada de bus?” “Where is the bus stop? Where is the bus stop? Panel 2: The same person talks to a person on the street, “Perdón, ¿dónde es la parada de bus? Excuse me, where is the bus stop?” They respond, “Gira a la izquierda y está allá. Go to the left and it’s there.” “¡Muchas gracias! Thank you so much.” Return to Figure 3. INTRODUCTION 7 Communication, Language, and 'Languaging' BIBI HALIMA AND KELI YERIAN PREVIEW QUESTIONS 1. What is the difference between language and communication? 2. What is languaging? 3. Do we need a language to communicate? Aren’t communication and language the same thing? Let’s imagine a scenario first to see why the answer to this question is “No”. Imagine you ask your friend, “How are you?” and they say, “Fine” 8 ABHAY PAWAR 8 but their tone is flat, arms limp, and they are not smiling. What would you do? You would probably ask, “Are you sure?” Similarly in the video below from the famous TV sitcom Friends, Ross also keeps saying “I’m fine!” to his friends, but they are not convinced. Herepeats the same words but has a forced smile, tense gestures, and a “loud and squeaky” voice. It is not easy to trick your friends, especially when they know you inside out! COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE, AND 'LANGUAGING' 9 One or more interactive elements has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view them online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=39#oembed-1 In both scenarios, your friend and Ross use language – the words “I’m fine” – but indirectly communicate that they are not fine at all. What’s the difference here? The difference is that communication is not limited to language. This is a key point when it comes to language learning. It means you already have many resources for communication even without knowing a language. While language serves as one important means of expression, communication transcends words. In these scenarios, your friend and Ross rely on wordless communication such as gestures, facial expressions, movement, tone of voice, and volume to signal a message that contradicts their words. Humans do this all the time. Defining communication is not as straightforward as you would think. Communication means different things to different people across diverse settings. However, one thing that is non-negotiable about human communication is that it is not limited to words, signs, or sounds. It is a human practice that we do constantly, with or without language. In the simplest words, Merriam Webster 10 ABHAY PAWAR (n.d.) defines communication as “a process by which information is exchanged through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior” (Definition 1). VanPatten (2017) gives a similar but slightly different definition: “Communication is the expression, interpretation, and sometimes negotiation of meaning in a given context. What is more, communication is also purposeful” From this definition, we can conclude that the essence of communication lies in the fact that it is a mutual process of meaning-making between two or more people, one that is sometimes successful and other times unsuccessful. In other words, we can fail to communicate even when we do share a language, and we can succeed at communicating even when we don’t share a language. Why? Because communication is more than just language. It relies on context, body orientation, use of space, hand gestures, facial expressions, our relationship and history with those we are talking to, our cultural expectations, and more. When we are aware of these broader aspects of communication, we can rely on more than just language to express ourselves, just like in the examples above. THEN WHAT EXACTLY IS LANGUAGE? Language is everywhere and is used every day as part of human communication. You catch it when you overhear people talk, you read it on street signs, you hear it in a song while driving, you write it when you text someone in the morning. It is ubiquitous and constant, like the air we breathe each day. Defining language can be tricky but linguists have made significant efforts to clarify its nature. Let’s look at three perspectives below COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE, AND 'LANGUAGING' 11 in an image slider that will help us understand its fundamental properties and functions. LANGUAGE DEFINITIONS An interactive H5P element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=39#h5p-2 LANGUAGE OR LANGUAGING? Most of the viewpoints you read above describe language as a system that is connected to human cognition. Yes, a big part of this phenomenon has to with our neural mechanisms but it is a communal practice too. Besides its cognitive aspect, language is a social action. At this point, we invite you to view language as a 12 ABHAY PAWAR https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=39#h5p-2 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=39#h5p-2 “verb” and not a “noun”. Imagine your friend encourages you to come to their party, or your roommate asks if they can borrow your car for the weekend. In the first instance your friend is inviting and in the second case your roommate is requesting. These are acts we are doing through words. Consider another definition of language here by Bloome and Beauchemin (2016) that suggests language is “inseparable from and constitutive of the actions and reactions of people in response to each other (p. 152)”. Through language people can perform communicative and social acts. The point here is that language is not just a thing like a tool we hold in our hand or a neural system that resides in our brain. Notice that the metaphors ‘tool’ and ‘system’ are both nouns. Language is also an action that we are doing. ‘Inviting’ and ‘requesting’ are verbs! When we use language, we are languaging! Language is what we do, create, share, and build together. Languaging has a direct effect on our realities and identities. Languaging creates a legal reality when we speak up for our rights in precise language or decipher jargon in legal documents. It signals political identity when we voice our allegiance to a political party. It reinforces religious identity when we express our beliefs. It constructs social identity when we interact with friends in daily life. It shapes cultural and ethnic identity when we share our cultural COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE, AND 'LANGUAGING' 13 practices and values. And it builds personal identity when we express ourselves even in something as private as a journal. When we language, we are creating social realities with others and constructing our own. SO DO WE NEEDNEED A LANGUAGE TO COMMUNICATE? Let’s go back to a language learning scenario to answer this question. Imagine a situation where two people do not completely share a language. One person is a student from the U.S. who is on a study abroad program in Lisbon, Portugal. This person has a beginner level of Portuguese. They are lost in the street, looking at their phone. The second person is a local from Lisbon walking on the same street. The student asks the local where Rossio Square is in English, but the local does not speak much English. Imagine their interaction goes like this: Student: Desculpe me… um, I’m lost, can you tell me where Rossio Square is? Local: Eu não entendo (gesturing with their palms up, their head tipped to the side, and their brow furrowed) Student: (realizing that person did not understand, points towards Rossio Square on the phone map and gestures with palms up and a shrug) Local: (nods in understanding and starts explaining in Portuguese, pointing in the direction of Rossio Square) Student: (understands some key points of what was said, nods and smiles) Thank you… um, obrigado! 14 ABHAY PAWAR Local: (smiles in understanding and waves goodbye) Tchau-tchau Student: (waving hand) Bye-bye, tchau Local: Bye See, nothing can stop us from communicating Language can be an exquisite and precise means of expressing your thoughts, desires, and emotions in words, but as we have learned, it is not essential to all communication. When you are learning a language, you can still communicate, no matter your current level. In the example above, both people struggled a little to convey their meaning, but they didn’t let this stop them from trying. You will almost certainly have the same experience of needing to negotiate meaning when learning a new language, but this is a natural part of the process of learning languages, and can even be fun with a can-do approach. To answer the question “Do we need a language to communicate?” it is crucial to remember we have plenty of resources beyond words at our disposal for getting our point across, and nothing should stop us from trying! RECALL AND REFLECT Think of a time when you or someone you know communicated very well using little to no words. How did they do it? COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE, AND 'LANGUAGING' 15 References Bloome, D., & Beauchemin, F. (2016). Languaging everyday life in classrooms. Literacy Research: Theory, Method, and Practice, 65(1), 152-165. https://doi.org/10.1177/2381336916661533 Halliday, M. A. K. (2006). On language and linguistics (J. J. Webster, Ed; Vol. 3). Continuum. Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Communication. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved February 4, 2024, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/communication Sapir, E. (1921). Language: An Introduction to the study of speech. Harcourt, Brace and Company. The Five Graces Group: Beckner, C., Blythe, R., Bybee, J. Christiansen, M. H., Croft, W., Ellis, N. C., Holland, J., Ke, J., Larsen- Freeman, D., & Schoenemann. T. (2009). Language is a complex adaptive system: Position paper. Language Learning, 59, 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9922.2009.00533.x VanPatten, B. (2017). While we’re on the topic: BVP on language, acquisition, and classroom practice. American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. Alexandria, VA 22314. Media Attributions All original illustrations on this page © Addy Orsi are licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0 (Attribution NonCommercial) license. 16 ABHAY PAWAR https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2381336916661533 https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/communication https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9922.2009.00533.x https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ Language Ideologies and Language Learning Myths BIBI HALIMA AND KELI YERIAN PREVIEW QUESTIONS 1. What are language ideologies and why do they matter? 2. What are some common language learning myths? Nod and smile if you’ve assumed any of the following to be true: • Some languages are inherently more difficult than others. • Some languages are inherently more logical and beautiful than others. • Some languages sound funnier than others. • There is always a proper way of articulating a word in a language. LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS 17 17 • The best kind of language is produced by native speakers. • The best way to learn a language is through immersion or study abroad. Keep smiling and read on. These assumptions are a few of the widely held beliefs about language learning. In the last section you learned that you don’t need to share a language to communicate with someone, much less know it perfectly. But maybe you still think that you need at least a year or two in a language class before you begin trying to speak. Perhaps you think you’ll never be able to speak like a native, so you are discouraged to try. These beliefs are the examples of language ideologies. LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES Michael Silverstein, one of the leading figures in linguistic anthropology, defined these ideologies as “sets of beliefs about language articulated by users as a rationalization or justification of perceived language structure and use” (Silverstein, 1979, p. 193). Interestingly, these ideologies are ubiquitous but they do not come from human reasoning. Instead, they show us how people feel about and perceive a particular language or languages in general. DO LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES MATTER? Imagine a scenario where a job applicant is judged negatively in an interview based on their regional dialect, despite being highly qualified. This implies that the interviewer holds a standard- language ideologyand we can infer that the interviewee’s dialect is considered less prestigious and professional. 18 ABHAY PAWAR An interactive H5P element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=51#h5p-3 To know more about the case of Pakistan, read an opinion by Punjani and Khan (2020). It is important to note that language ideologies do not always have negative impacts. If they are constructive and progressive beliefs about language diversity, these ideologies can bring a massive change in making the world more tolerant and diverse for all. Language ideologies are game changers! To visualize and understand the power of a language ideology that believes in preserving endangered and local languages, look at the example of UNESCO’s project in the Amazon region of South America, which focuses on safeguarding linguistic and cultural heritage. You might realize at this point that we too (as authors) have a language ideology in this book. Our ideology promotes the message that every language matters. For example, that efforts should be made to preserve endangered languages. To answer the question ‘does language ideology matter?’ we should understand that these beliefs about language shape our identities and drive the course of social actions as well. Think about it – the LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS 19 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=51#h5p-3 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=51#h5p-3 https://scroll.in/article/967795/opinion-why-pakistani-schools-must-shift-their-focus-from-english-to-regional-languages https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/safeguarding-linguistic-and-cultural-heritage-transboundary-and-recently-contacted-indigenous way we perceive and talk about languages influences everything, from how we make friends to how we judge others in job interviews. It also influences how we learn new languages. LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS: QUESTIONING THE OBVIOUS Language ideologies are everywhere and we want you to notice that they contribute to your own language learning process as well. For example, if you think Hebrew is too complex of a language to learn, you will probably not choose to learn it. And if you subscribe to the idea that language learning in general is difficult, you may not even start to learn at all. This TedTalk by Mathew Youlden explains that learning any language can be an easy task if one starts the journey with questioning their own myths. Since this is the first chapter of this book, let’s take the opportunity to debunk some obvious myths about language learning right from the beginning. For example, in the last section we saw that we can communicate even when we feel that we do not know a language well enough to do so. The idea that communication is limited to language is one of the common myths. Let’s explore what some of the other ones are. 20 ABHAY PAWAR https://youtu.be/Yr_poW-KK1Q MYTH 1: YOU CAN ONLY LEARN LANGUAGES EASILY WHEN YOU ARE YOUNG. I’M TOO OLD NOW! If someone says any of the following: • Babies learn faster than adults. • Learning a language is easier for children. • The best time to learn a language is in one’s initial years of life. They are referring to the critical period hypothesis. There is a big discussion in the subfield of Linguistics called Second Language Acquisition (SLA) about how age plays an important role in learning languages. But what exactly the role is remains a debate among scholars. Penfield and Roberts (1959) first proposed the hypothesis that our ability to learn languages gets diminished after a biologically determined phase. The hypothesis promotes the notion that the sooner a child starts learning a language the better. However, this remains only a hypothesis to this day! LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS 21 Yes, it’s true that children tend to learn seemingly effortlessly in their naturalistic and immersive environments, unlike adults who tend to put themselves in a conscious state of mind to learn a language. But many adults learn languages very well! It is never too late to learn a language, even fluently. Claiming that it is ‘easy’ for children to learn a language is debatable. Even with constant immersion and simplified motherese, it takes babies many months to say their first word and children take several years to develop their first language completely. Let’s say 4-6 years! And they continue to become more sophisticated across more topics and domains as they mature into adulthood. So can we say it’s really that easy for children? It is not a one-night transformation for adults either. Language learning can take a lot of time and that’s okay. Adults have the advantages of being able to consciously dedicate themselves to the task, to be more cognitively mature, and to already speak at least one language. In short, it is completely possible to learn a language at any age you wish to do so. If you want to know more about this topic, listen to Kaitlyn Tagarelli on Am I too old to learn a new language? 22 ABHAY PAWAR https://youtu.be/stopWaILeJk MYTH 2: YOU CAN LEARN A LANGUAGE, BUT ONLY IF YOU HAVE LANGUAGE IN YOUR DNA. Maybe you have heard some people saying one or more of the following: • Some people are better at languages than others. • Languages come so naturally to that person. • I have a gift for languages. It is true that some people exhibit remarkable progress when learning language, but does it mean that some people have language in their DNA? No, it does not. Instead, it is about language learning aptitude and the motivation people have towards a language. Language learning aptitude is a prediction of how well you can learn the different skills of a language. For example, some learners can differentiate subtle sound differences and reproduce them very well. This may be because of their previous language LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS 23 learning experiences or simply their ability to distinguish sounds. This does not mean they have innate language learning abilities. 24 ABHAY PAWAR Someone who has the ability to differentiate sounds may be able to learn tonal languages like Chinese or Vietnamese more quickly than those who struggle to discern sounds. Language learning aptitude is usually predicted by a formal aptitude assessment like The Modern Language Aptitude Test (MLAT). It is important to note that this aptitude is not fixed, innate or static for all languages. It can change for different languages and one can improve it during one’s language learning journey (Singleton, 2017). More than aptitude, motivation plays a key role. If you have a strong desire to learn, you’ll learn faster than someone who simply has more aptitude, just like learning any other skill such as cycling, knitting, or baking. Imagine you are traveling to a different country in a month and you are motivated to learn some basic expressions in order to communicate with people. This upcoming trip will likely motivate you to make more consistent efforts to learn the language than if you were not traveling. Despite individual differences in aptitude, your motivation will make the most difference. If you want to know more about this topic, listen again to Kaitlyn Tagarelli on Are some people just good at learning new languages? MYTH 3: ALL YOU NEED IS… GRAMMAR AND VOCABULARY LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS 25 https://www.mlatstudy.com/ https://www.mlatstudy.com/ https://youtu.be/KOCTE9PspRs [Loud beep sound please] This is a BIG myth! It is true that both grammar and vocabulary are essential parts of language but they are far from being everything. Imagine you want to learn how to drive but you focus only on learning the different parts of the car. Would that be enough? Of course you need to know what the engine and brakes are but what matters the most for drivers is whether you can hit the brake when the traffic light turns red. Similarly, while grammar and vocabulary are the ABCs of language, you still need creative, interactive practice to learn to communicate in it. Unfortunately, most language learning settings stress the ABCs and this kind of explicit learning can support the ideology of prescriptivism, which tells us the ‘correct’ and ‘incorrect’ use of language and emphasizes strictly following standardized rules. This ‘should-do’ and ‘must-do’ ideology can demotivate learners and 26 ABHAY PAWAR prevent them from jumping into communication. Remember that language is a social activity; while it is fine to start with some ‘should-dos’ (some basics ‘rules’ of the language), it is equally important to discover some ‘could-dos’ (creative possibilities for using the language). And it is always important to remember the primary purpose of language learning is communication. An interactive H5P element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=51#h5p-4 MYTH 4: CHOOSE ONE OR THE OTHER! LANGUAGES MUST BE PURE! Imagine Maria is learning Spanish in the US. It is her first year of learning and she has developed remarkable conversational fluency. Her first language is English and when she talks to her friends who either know or are learning Spanish with her, her conversations look like this… Maria: ¿Hola, que tal? Anthony: Hey Maria, I’m alright, but life’s been busy lately. ¿Y tu? LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS 27 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=51#h5p-4 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=51#h5p-4 Maria: Vale, a veces work can be really stressful. Anthony: For sure, and you know the deadline for the final project is coming up. Maria: Oh, don’t remind me. El trabajo nunca se acaba. Notice how seamlessly Maria and Anthony mix the two languages in the example above. This process of mixing languages is called translanguaging. This is a theoretical lens that views languages as dynamic, flexible, and fluid systems for communication. Although we label languages as ‘Spanish’, ‘English’, ‘Arabic’, ‘French’, etc., research indicates that the bilingual or multilingual brain does not store languages as different systems. As Vogel and Garcia (2017) explain “… there are not two interdependent language systems that bilinguals shuttle between, but rather one semiotic system integrating various lexical, morphological, and grammatical linguistic features in addition to social practices and features…” (p. 5). If you are hearing the idea that languages are not actually separate systems for the first time, you must be wondering, “Is that really true?” and your brain might trick you here with the ideology of linguistic purism. It’s also possible you 28 ABHAY PAWAR feel pressured to keep your target language free from the influence of your first language. But rest assured that blending two or more languages is a normal human activity for multilinguals. In other words, you don’t have to choose only one language to speak at a time… unless you choose to! If you want to know more about translanguaging as it can be used in language classrooms, listen to Eowyn Crisfield, What is translanguaging, really? MYTH 5: I NEED TO SOUND LIKE A NATIVE SPEAKER “Do you know what a foreign accent is? It’s a sign of bravery!” – Amy Chua We have heard so many times fellow students in language classes say things like “I don’t want to be disrespectful” or “I don’t want to sound dumb” when it comes to pronouncing words in other languages. But think about it, we all have an accent, even in our native languages. In the Pacific Northwest of the United States we have a different accent in English than people from the East coast, the South, or the Midwestern United States. LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS 29 https://youtu.be/iNOtmn2UTzI And it’s certainly different from the accents of people from New Zealand, Scotland, or India. You probably wouldn’t think to correct the way a Canadian says “about” or the way an Australian says “under” because you know it’s just the way people from those places speak, it’s just their normal accent. So why when a Spanish speaker speaks English with a “Spanish” accent does it suddenly become a problem? Why is the solution to this “problem” always to correct the accent? Oregonians don’t correct Canadians or people from the East Coast, so why are certain types of accents okay and not others? The idea of “proper” pronunciation comes from an ideology called nativespeakerism, another one of those things that exists due to power, i.e. the prestige of a native speaker over a non-native one. This term was coined by Holliday (2005) with regards to English language learning and English language teaching. However, it is not restricted to any one language. Many speakers of other languages also assume that native speakers are always better speakers than those who have learned languages later in life. Now ask yourself, where did you learn how to pronounce things in your second language? Your language teacher? Social media? Your parents? Where do you think your parents or language teacher learned that pronunciation from? Probably from their parents or language teachers. And the further back you go you realize that “proper” pronunciation is just whichever pronunciation was most used or accepted at a given time by the people who were called “native” speakers of a particular language. This is a damaging belief. If you restrict yourself to this 30 ABHAY PAWAR discriminatory language ideology, be aware that you are limiting your chances for growth and the endless possibilities in language learning. Every accent is unique and beautiful; your efforts do not deserve biases and prejudice from yourself or from others. Your efforts instead are a sign that you are courageous and resilient enough to step out and embrace a bilingual journey. Now that you have reached the end of this section, how would you respond to the following statements? LANGUAGE MYTHS COMPREHENSION CHECK Select the best answer for each question. An interactive H5P element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=51#h5p-5 LANGUAGE IDEOLOGIES AND LANGUAGE LEARNING MYTHS 31 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=51#h5p-5 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=51#h5p-5 References Holliday, A. (2005). The struggle to teach English as an international language. Oxford University Press. Penfield, W., & Roberts, L. (1959). Speech and brain-mechanisms. Princeton Legacy Library. Silverstein, M. (1979). Language structure and linguistic ideology. In P. R. Clyne, W. F. Hanks, & C. L. Hofbauer (Eds.), The elements: A parasession on linguistic units and levels (pp. 193–248). Chicago Linguistic Society. Singleton, D. (2017). Language aptitude: Desirable trait or acquirable attribute?. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 7(1), 89-103. http://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2017.7.1.5 Vogel, S. & Garcia, O. (2017). Translanguaging. In G. Noblit, & L. Moll (Eds.), Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/ 9780190264093.013.181 Media Attribution All original illustrations on this page © Addy Orsi are licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0 (Attribution NonCommercial) license. 32 ABHAY PAWAR http://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2017.7.1.5 https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.181 https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.181 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ Mindsets and Language Learning LOGAN FISHER; BIBI HALIMA; AND KELI YERIAN PREVIEW QUESTIONS 1. What are growth and fixed mindsets? 2. How do they apply to language learning? Maybe you’ve seen posters about mindsets in school or heard your teachers talk about them. What do you know about them? If you don’t have previous knowledge about them, what can you guess? GROWTH AND FIXED MINDSETS A growth mindset is defined by Rasmussen (2021) as “a belief that intelligence can be strengthened and expanded through dedication and hard work” (Chapter 8, para. 2). Seems obvious, right? People can learn new things. That much is intuitive. But what if we MINDSETS AND LANGUAGE LEARNING 33 33 introduce a fixed mindset into the equation? Rasmussen defined a fixed mindset as “the idea that intelligence is on a linear scale, and people fall somewhere on that scale and cannot budge from it” (Chapter 8, para. 1). So, what is the difference here? First let’s look at the idea of intelligence itself. The Merriam- Webster dictionary ((n.d.). )defines intelligence as “the ability to learn or understand or to deal with new or trying situations” (Definition 1). If you are a college student, you are likely starting to figure out how to file taxes, how to sign leases, and how to write an email to your professors. You are being confronted with many difficult situations that you are learning how to deal with right now. These are new and trying situations, just as Merriam-Webster states. The other key part of this definition of intelligence is the ability to learn in these situations. Have you ever said that you just aren’t good at math? Or whatever subject for that matter. That is an example of a fixed mindset because by stating that you aren’t good at something, you are stating that your ability to learn – your intelligence – is fixed and will never change. But that’s not true, right? Learning is a constant journey, and we do it all the time. From the moment we were born, we started to learn about the world, about language, about life. We are all born with human intelligence (the ability to learn), but fixed mindsets essentially tell us that we can’t learn. How can our ability to learn just disappear? Newsflash, it doesn’t! It is not natural to stop learning. Fixed mindsets can take over our learning when we become attached to a score or result such as a grade. If we don’t get our desired outcome, our attitudes may start to falter. We stop taking notes and start messing around. By giving in to our fixed mindset, 34 ABHAY PAWAR we are limiting ourselves and our ability to learn. What if, instead, we took that bad test score and asked the teacher for help, or searched for resources that worked better for us? This is what a growth mindset looks like. We are changing the narrative that our brains are not capable into something empowering – “I can do this”. In other words, we can either hold ourselves back or propel ourselves forward. PAUSE AND REFLECT After learning briefly about growth and fixed mindsets, where do you think you fall on the scale? It could vary from one aspect of your life to another, so if something pops into your head, think about that. This exercise is not to beat yourself up, but rather to dive into our brains and our thought processes so that hopefully we can change those habits to be more positive. You don’t have to be a grade-A student in every class or even in any class, but hopefully, you can believe in your ability to learn. GROWTH MINDSET AND LANGUAGE LEARNING Though this book is about languages, the concept of growth mindsets can be applied to every aspect of your life, from fixing your broken phone screen to solving a chemistry problem. But this is a book about how to learn languages, so let’s see some growth mindset approaches to language learning. MINDSETS AND LANGUAGE LEARNING 35 WAYS TO APPLY GROWTH MINDSET TO LANGUAGE LEARNING You can influence your mindset! First, it is your mindset and you can make decisions about it. It is natural to feel motivated with your language lessons one day, go inconsistent on some days, and feel like quitting on other days. The good news is you can always readjust. You can shift or reverse your gears from a fixed or inconsistent mindset to a growth mindset, focusing on what you can change next instead of how you can never change. Instead of telling yourself it’s impossible to grow, you can choose to grow by reflecting on your progress or goals, managing your time, or finding more ways to have fun with the process of learning itself. Allow mistakes Do you feel distressed and anxious when you make a ‘mistake’ in verb conjugation, mispronounce a word, or mess up with sentence structure? When we feel anxious, we are more likely to overthink and not let ourselves use the language freely. Krashen (1982) uses the metaphor of an “affective filter” to describe how our emotions can either hinder or support our learning. Negative emotions like stress and anxiety raise the affective filter and ultimately prevent us from learning. But a growth mindset allows us to see ‘mistakes’ as chances to learn and lowers the affective filter. 36 ABHAY PAWAR Redefine your view of success One major factor that causes language learning anxiety is when we have a linear view of the process. When we see language as climbing a mountain and reaching a summit, we might feel that the benefits of language learning are only at the summit, rather than being an intrinsic part of the path itself. In fact, every step on the path is part of your success, and every step leads to a new discovery. A growth mindset focuses on the value of the journey as well as whatever end goal you may have. In this way, we can replace our mental model of the process. Instead of imagining a long climb ever-upwards, we can see the journey as one of exploration and side-adventures that takes us uphill and sometimes even downhill along the way. As Larsen- Freeman (2017) puts it, “learning is not climbing a developmental ladder; it is not unidirectional. It is nonlinear. […] Language and its learning have no endpoints. Both are unbounded” (p. 27). Reach out to people who can help you It is natural to sometimes feel lonely and helpless in any learning venture! Just like if you were exploring a new city alone, feeling anxious, it’s important to remember there are other people around you who can guide you. In your language learning journey you can similarly seek help from many people around you too. Surround yourself with supportive people (mentors or peers who are also learning) who are or have been in your place and acknowledge your path. If you need feedback, don’t hesitate to reach out and seek advice from people in the profession. They want to see you grow! Having a growth mindset includes noticing these resources around you. MINDSETS AND LANGUAGE LEARNING 37 Speak your growth mindset out loud Honor your efforts of learning a new language and speak positive words for yourself. Come up with your own affirmations and say them aloud. This will help you acknowledge your persistence and improvement. For example, “I am making progress”, “I can do this”, or “Every step counts”. In sum, there might be common ideas out there that “kids just learn languages so much easier” or “the grammar is way too hard for me!” (some of the common misconceptions from earlier in this chapter). Even if we don’t intend for these thoughts to impede our learning, they affect our attitude in a negative way. Anyone can learn a language. No matter how young or old. We are all humans. We are all capable of learning. At the end of this section, assess your understanding. 38 ABHAY PAWAR MINDSETS AND LANGUAGE LEARNING COMPREHENSION CHECK An interactive H5P element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=53#h5p-6 References Krashen, S. D. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Pergamon Press. Larsen-Freeman, D. (2017). Complexity Theory: The lessons continue. In L. Ortega & Z-H. Han (Eds.), Complexity theory and language development: In celebration of Diane Larsen-Freeman (pp. 11–50). John Benjamins. Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Intelligence. In Merriam-Webster.com MINDSETS AND LANGUAGE LEARNING 39 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=53#h5p-6 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=53#h5p-6 dictionary. Retrieved February 4, 2024, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intelligence Rasmussen, H. (2021). Helping high school and college students do better within a broken system. Pressbooks. https://pressbooks.pub/helpingstudentsdobetter/ 40 ABHAY PAWAR https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intelligence https://pressbooks.pub/helpingstudentsdobetter/ Secrets of Polyglots LOGAN FISHER; BIBI HALIMA; AND KELI YERIAN PREVIEW QUESTIONS • Who are polyglots? • What are some misconceptions about them? • What are their secrets for language learning? If you were born in the United States, chances are you only speak one language well: English. It makes sense, and it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Practically the whole country speaks English as a first or additional language. Different regions have different varieties, but overall we share this common language. English has, for better or for worse, become a global language. It is the language of commerce, the language of travel, the language of power. It seems there is little need for native English speakers to speak anything else because much of the world is conforming SECRETS OF POLYGLOTS 41 41 to them. In turn, the idea of someone speaking a second language is often seen as incredibly rare, impressive, and even exotic in the US. Yet it is precisely because we have prioritized English so much, even though the US has no official language, that we have pushed out the necessity of learning other languages. We have become a monolingual and monocultural society. Follow up question: Have you ever met a polyglot? Someone who speaks multiple languages? We may not often notice polyglots in the United States, however when going to other countries, suddenly we see more and more people speaking multiple languages. In fact, this is backed by numbers, as the United States sits at a bilingual population of around 20% compared to the 67% across Europe, 55% across Canada, and 25% across India (Byers- Heinlen et al., 2019, pp. 1-2) . It is clear why we are outliers in this equation, so how can we change this? COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS Let’s first confront common misconceptions about polyglots. “POLYGLOTS ARE RARE” False! Polyglots exist everywhere! Many people in Europe, Africa, and Asia speak many languages, 42 ABHAY PAWAR typically their native language + their national language + a majoritized language like English, Spanish, or French. “POLYGLOTS ARE ALL RICH ACADEMICS” False again. Many immigrants, refugees, or villagers are forced to become polyglots to survive in their daily lives. People confront issues with access to power and access to services, and are therefore forced to learn the language(s) of power. “POLYGLOTS HAVE AN INNATE TALENT FOR LANGUAGES” Need I say false again? Polyglots, just like every other language learner, have to put in the hours to acquire linguistic and cultural content, and to put their language into practice. So what is true about polyglots? When talking about a group of people so broad and diverse, it’s hard to come up with a common statement, but one thing remains true no matter the background of the polyglot: they (usually) love languages. Another word for polyglot is linguaphile, which literally means ‘lover of languages’. SECRETS OF POLYGLOTS 43 SO, WHAT DO POLYGLOTS DO? In other words, you might ask what are the “secrets” of polyglots. The simple answer to this question is that they are not wizards or inherently gifted with a language DNA. They are like all of us who equally find language learning overwhelming and are willing to take this challenge. The key difference lies in their effective methods that they develop to learn and retain target languages. The good news is that what polyglots do – methods and strategies– is not limited to polyglots only but is accessible to anyone who is dedicated to learning a language. Here are some of the “secrets” of polyglots that you can open They learn mostly on their own time While polyglots seek guidance from instructors and formal settings like all of us, they mostly learn by themselves outside of the class. Polyglots are the most successful examples of autonomous learners who do not let only classrooms and formal lessons entirely control their learning but take the learning process in their own hands. Instead of waiting for classes to experience a language, they make time in their daily schedule and practice it on their own. Outside of the class, for example, they may surround themselves with the language environment and engage with media in the target language such as movies, songs, podcasts, and online language exchange apps. From goal setting to selecting and crafting materials to tracking their progress, polyglots actively engage in their learning experience. They select and create their own language learning materials Polyglots are self-directed learners who do not rely on opportunities that others can provide, but they also create their own. They craft their personalized materials and develop unique ways to learn languages that best fit their goals and learning systems. For example, they may create their own flashcards and 44 ABHAY PAWAR language games. They may pair up with another learner or with generative AI to create a dialogue or story. Polyglots do not only create but also select their own materials. For example, instead of relying solely on one textbook, they might visit a local library or start browsing on the internet to find an interesting resource for themselves such as illustrated magazines, audiobooks, recipes, or podcasts. They are not afraid to be uncomfortable Self-directed and autonomous learning inevitably presents some challenges as well for polyglots. This can include discomfort at grappling new patterns on their own, uncertainty with self- assessment, or lack of feedback. However, polyglots are language enthusiasts who are driven by their intrinsic love for languages and have huge tolerance for their uncertainty. They are not afraid to use the language with their ‘incorrect’ grammatical patterns. They also do not hesitate to pick up an unfamiliar resource to just look at it even though they do not fully understand. Instead of letting fear stop their learning, polyglots embrace their discomfort. With their growth mindset, they view their incomplete understanding of texts or incorrect use of grammar or vocabulary as an inevitable natural part of their learning process. They learn consistently in small chunks What do you think is better, 10 minutes every day or 1 hour after 10 days? 10 minutes every day, of course. Polyglots make it a consistent daily practice even if it’s just for a few minutes. In this way, they learn it in small chunks. They set realistic and clear goals (we’ll talk about SMART goals in Chapter 5) to squeeze learning into their daily schedule. If they decide to join language learning apps, they use it consistently and set clear goals. For example, completing one or two app lessons every day is better than cramming multiple lessons after weeks in a single session. They learn in an enjoyable way Fun is the key! Polyglots understand that learning a language is not a one-day event, and that the learning process will become an SECRETS OF POLYGLOTS 45 integral part of their lives. So, it’s important to love the process itself! Instead of only viewing the new language as a destination, they focus more on the path and make sure to enjoy it. But fun and enjoyment mean different things to different people. One person may be a food lover who combines their interest in great food with their language goals. They might find recipes or listen to cooking shows in the target language. Another person may love sports and decides to watch news clips about teams in other countries. This gives them insight into both international sports and the language needed to describe it. Each of these learners are making the process a fun and memorable experience! Let’s read Logan’s story to see how, as a polyglot, they approached language learning with a growth mindset during their trips to countries where their target languages are spoken. An interactive H5P element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=55#h5p-7 Similar to Logan’s story, we can see that being a polyglot is not as daunting as it seems. While it is easy to separate people into me and them, remember that polyglots are people just like you. Polyglots usually love to speak in their various languages, and they prioritize the ability to communicate over perfection. After all, 46 ABHAY PAWAR https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=55#h5p-7 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=55#h5p-7 communication doesn’t require perfection, just a good enough attempt to convey an idea. So next time you find yourself in awe of someone who says that they speak Arabic, Chinese, and English, just know that you have the potential to do so too. A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A POLYGLOT Here is a day in Logan’s life that demonstrates how a polyglot can stay connected to their multiple languages. One or more interactive elements has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view them online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=55#oembed-1 Now that you’ve reached the end of this section, how would you respond to the following statements in the comprehension check below? SECRETS OF POLYGLOTS 47 SECRETS OF POLYGLOTS COMPREHENSION CHECK An interactive H5P element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here: https://opentext.uoregon.edu/ languagelearningedition1/?p=55#h5p-8 References Byers-Heinlein, K., Esposito, A. G., Winsler, A., Marian, V., Castro, D. C., & Luk, G. (2019). The case for measuring and reporting bilingualism in developmental research. Collabra Psychol, 5(1): 37, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1525/collabra.233 48 ABHAY PAWAR https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=55#h5p-8 https://opentext.uoregon.edu/languagelearningedition1/?p=55#h5p-8 https://doi.org/10.1525/collabra.233 What is your Motivation to Learn Language(s)? LOGAN FISHER; BIBI HALIMA; AND KELI YERIAN PREVIEW QUESTIONS • What are two main types of motivation? • How does this apply to language learning? Why am I doing this? When you were a kid, you probably asked your parents this question at some point about things you were told to do, and you probably got answers varying from “Because I said so” to “Remember, if you finish up soon, you’ll have time to play”. These responses serve as motivation for you to do that thing; one is an order and the other is a promise. There are, however, more ways WHAT IS YOUR MOTIVATION TO LEARN LANGUAGE(S)? 49 49 to being motivated! Scholars often divide motivation into two main categories that function in separate ways. EXTRINSIC AND INTRINSIC MOTIVATION “Because I said so” and “Remember, if you finish up soon, you’ll have time to play” are examples of extrinsic motivation. Extrinsic motivation is defined as “behaviors … performed in order to receive something from others” (Kanevsky, 2022, para. 1). Keep in mind that these external motivators don’t have to be negative. Many people might learn a new skill, for example, to get a pay raise at their job, to get credits at college, or even just to get admiration from friends. On the other hand, we have intrinsic motivation, which is when “behaviors are performed because of the sense of personal satisfaction that they bring” (Kanevsky, 2022, para. 1). In the case of language learning, this could look like learning a language just because you want to, or because you like being able to speak to more people. Either way, there is no external reward or punishment attached to your decision. WHY IS MOTIVATION IMPORTANT? Well, “without such motivation, we will almost certainly not engage in some activities or […] make the necessary effort to complete an action or to achieve a specific goal” (Thohir, 2017, p. 21). Motivation drives the world, so motivation is required to do anything, including learning a language. But is one type of motivation better than the other? As it turns out, learners on average experience better results when their motivation is intrinsic. This is not to say that extrinsic motivation is bad, or that the two don’t blend together sometimes. Harmer (2001) says that “even where the original reason for taking 50 ABHAY PAWAR up a language course, for example, is extrinsic, the chances of success will be significantly enhanced if the students come to love the learning process” (p. 98). When a learner is extrinsically motivated, they will often only do what is required to achieve a reward or avoid a punishment, no more, no less. This is very different from a learner who is intrinsically motivated because an intrinsically motivated learner is much more likely to try harder in classes, study more, or continue taking classes longer than required. They truly love what they are doing! Neither type of motivation is bad; however, one usually yields better results for learning. CAN WE APPLY THIS TO OUR LANGUAGE LEARNING JOURNEY? Not everyone is going to be naturally motivated to learn languages, so let’s create some strategies to turn our motivations intrinsic. • Learn a heritage languageLearn a heritage language. If your family is from somewhere that speaks another language, maybe learning that language will feel different and more personal than a language you have no prior connection to. WHAT IS YOUR MOTIVATION TO LEARN LANGUAGE(S)? 51 • Find friends that speak your target language.Find friends that speak your target language.If you don’t have friends in your non-digital life who speak that language, many apps exist now that connect users around the world who wish to learn each other’s languages. Such apps include but are not limited to Tandem, ConversationExchange, Speaky, and HelloTalk. • Find an aspect of culture related to your target Find an aspect of culture related to your target language that interests you.language that interests you. This could be something like sports, music, art, food, or something completely different. Watching videos on these topics is great because it is something we love that involves auditory input in our target language. While we are all motivated by outside factors at some point, finding some deeper connection to a language can help you learn it better. So, what steps can you take to make your language journey more intrinsically motivated? Even finding one thing that you enjoy, whether that’s one song or one dish from that culture, will have a lasting effect on your journey. By being more connected to our learning, we become more connected to our future. 52 ABHAY PAWAR https://tandem.n