RJA 14: Field Research Report

I chose to survey two of my classes, one called Diversity and Communication in the U.S. with 20 students and the other called The History of English with 25 students, asking each person their age, whether they had had experience studying language, if so then how, and how fruitful their efforts were.  The Div. and Comm. class had a total of four people older than 30, while the English class had only one.  The results were as follows...

While 38 out of 40 young people had had experience studying language, none of the older people had studied a foreign language.
The 38 young people who had studied language had done so as part of their compulsory education, mostly in high school; no one had studied out of their own volition.
No one reported having gained fluency in their studies; most people reported in fact that they only barely could speak their language if at all.

This was fantastic support for my claim that language education in America is simply in adequate, and should be beefed up.

RJA 12b: APA-Style Annotated Bibliography, Part 1

1. Hinkel, E. (2011). Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning. (2nd ed., p. 410). New York: Taylor and Francis.
   /Eli Hinkel delivers the findings of some current research in second language teaching and acquisition, and it is from this book that I got my information on the critical period hypothesis./
2. Richards, J., & Rodgers, T. (2001). Approaches and methods in language teaching. (pp. 73-75). New York: Cambridge University Press.
   /Richards and Rodgers present some of the newer trends in teaching language to L2 learners, and compare them to some of the traditional methods.  I got my information for TPRS (total physical response) from this book./
3. Bawer, J. (2004). Hating america. Hudson Review, Retrieved from http://www.hudsonreview.com/BawerSp04.html
   /Bawer discusses the negative views that other countries' people have on Americans and our behavior, and makes mention specifically to our lack of culture and monolingualism.  Such views are particularly prevalent in Europe, but even in Asia, where support for the American lifestyle is strong, exists such views./

RJA 12a: Conversion from MLA to APA Style

1. Dicker, S. (2003). Languages in america: A pluralist view. (2nd ed., pp. 298-302). Tonawanda: Multilingual Matters LTD.
2. Kim, J. (n.d.). Japanese education vs. amerecan edukashun. Retrieved from http://eserver.org/courses/fall95/76-100g/papers/kim/default.html
3. Lam, A. (2005). Language education in china: Policy and experience from 1949. (p. 186). Aberdeen: Hong Kong University Press.

RJA 11: Argument

America Would Do Well to Become Multilingual

Reasons

1. We are losing jobs to people from overseas.  For example, the reconstruction and renovation of the crumbling Alexander Hamilton Bridge in New York is being outsourced to a team of Chinese construction workers!
   Cuomo, Chris, Joseph Rhee, and Tran Linh. "Bringing America Back: Are Infrastructure Jobs Being Shipped to China?." ABC World News. 23 Sep 2011: n. page. Web. 10 Dec. 2011. <http://abcnews.go.com/US/bringing_america_back/american-infrastructure-jobs-shipped-china/story?id=14592567>
2. Others in the world understand the world around them and thus are cultured and worldly, areas in which Americans have for decades been chastised.  People across Europe have always made of fun how lacking in knowledge of general facts about the world Americans are.
   Dicker, Susan. Languages in America: A Pluralist View. 2nd. Multilingual Matters LTD, 2003. 298-302. Print.Bawer, Bruce. "Hating America." Hudson Review. (2004): n. page. Web. 16 Dec. 2011. <http://www.hudsonreview.com/BawerSp04.html>
3. Multilingual children do much better in cognitive reasoning and on tests overall.Krashen, Steven. "Bilingual Education Works." Rethinking Schools. n.d. n. page. Web. 5 Apr. 2012. <http://www.rethinkingschools.org/special_reports/bilingual/Bi152.shtml>

Objections

1. Americans do not need any other languages besides English to conduct business and live in this country.  In fact, immigrants ought to learn proper English!Arguements Against Learning Spanish - http://www.ehow.com/info_8054932_arguments-against-learning-spanish.html
   Official English Will Encourage Immigrants to Learn English - http://www.opposingviews.com/arguments/official-english-will-encourage-immigrants-to-learn-english
2. English will cease to be spoken if we allow immigrants to bring their languages to America.  It is already happening; English is under attach as we speak.
   Linguistic Unity Is Critical to an Increasingly Diverse Society - http://www.opposingviews.com/arguments/linguistic-unity-is-critical-in-an-increasingly-diverse-society

Refutations

1. The fact of the matter is that we will always have people in this country who do not speak English because America has allowed such a tradition since its inception.  Forcing them to speak English won't solve anything, but learning their languages would mean better business.
   http://www.opposingviews.com/arguments/linguistic-unity-is-critical-in-an-increasingly-diverse-society (in the comments)
2. This simply is not true.  Allowing minority languages to thrive would have no effect on the overwhelmingly dominant status of the English language in America.
   http://www.opposingviews.com/arguments/linguistic-unity-is-critical-in-an-increasingly-diverse-society (6th paragraph)

RJA 10c: Objections

• American society functions well enough with English, and doesn't need any other languages
• Arguements Against Learning Spanish - http://www.ehow.com/info_8054932_arguments-against-learning-spanish.html
• English is under threat from other languages
• Linguistic Unity Is Critical to an Increasingly Diverse Society - http://www.opposingviews.com/arguments/linguistic-unity-is-critical-in-an-increasingly-diverse-society
• Foreigners should learn our language and assimilate, which would in turn benefit them in finding jobs and opportunity here
• Official English Will Encourage Immigrants to Learn English - http://www.opposingviews.com/arguments/official-english-will-encourage-immigrants-to-learn-english

RJA 10b: Reasons

• We are losing jobs to others in the world who are multilingual
• Cuomo, Chris, Joseph Rhee, and Tran Linh. "Bringing America Back: Are Infrastructure Jobs Being Shipped to China?." ABC World News. 23 Sep 2011: n. page. Web. 10 Dec. 2011. <http://abcnews.go.com/US/bringing_america_back/american-infrastructure-jobs-shipped-china/story?id=14592567>
• Po, Vivian. "Rep. Judy Chu: American Children Need Bilingual Education." New America Media. 21 Apr 2010: n. page. Web. 2 Apr. 2012. <http://newamericamedia.org/2010/11/judy-chu-bilingual-education-will-help-american-children.php>.
• Dowdell, Sommer. "What Are the Benefits of Being Bilingual in U.S. Jobs Today?." eHow. n.d. n. page. Web. 16 Dec. 2011. <http://www.ehow.com/list_6724805_benefits-bilingual-u_s_-jobs-today_.html>
  
•  We are culturally malnourished; learning other languages helps people understand the world
• Dicker, Susan. Languages in America: A Pluralist View. 2nd. Multilingual Matters LTD, 2003. 298-302. Print.
•  People from other countries look down on Americans for being so "self-centered" and "uncultured"
• Bawer, Bruce. "Hating America." Hudson Review. (2004): n. page. Web. 16 Dec. 2011. <http://www.hudsonreview.com/BawerSp04.html>
•  Multilingual children do better in school overall, and show higher cognitive functioning
• Krashen, Steven. "Bilingual Education Works." Rethinking Schools. n.d. n. page. Web. 5 Apr. 2012. <http://www.rethinkingschools.org/special_reports/bilingual/Bi152.shtml>
•  Nauert, Rick. "Bilingual Kids Show Cognitive Advantages." PshchoCentral. 10 Nov 2010: n. page. Web. 5 Apr. 2012. <http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/11/10/cognitive-ability-improved-when-bilingual/20740.html>
•  Almost 18% of our country speak something other than English at home, and we ought to learn to accommodate them
• The World Factbook - U.S.A. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/us.html

RJA 10a: Claim

Would America Do Well to Become Multilingual?

The Answer????

Yes!!!

1. Dicker, Susan. Languages in America: A Pluralist View. 2nd. Multilingual Matters LTD, 2003. 298-302. Print.
2.  Po, Vivian. "Rep. Judy Chu: American Children Need Bilingual Education." New America Media. 21 Apr 2010: n. page. Web. 2 Apr. 2012. <http://newamericamedia.org/2010/11/judy-chu-bilingual-education-will-help-american-children.php>.
3.  Cuomo, Chris, Joseph Rhee, and Tran Linh. "Bringing America Back: Are Infrastructure Jobs Being Shipped to China?." ABC World News. 23 Sep 2011: n. page. Web. 10 Dec. 2011. <http://abcnews.go.com/US/bringing_america_back/american-infrastructure-jobs-shipped-china/story?id=14592567
4. Bawer, Bruce. "Hating America." Hudson Review. (2004): n. page. Web. 16 Dec. 2011. <http://www.hudsonreview.com/BawerSp04.html>.
5.  Dowdell, Sommer. "What Are the Benefits of Being Bilingual in U.S. Jobs Today?." eHow. n.d. n. page. Web. 16 Dec. 2011. <http://www.ehow.com/list_6724805_benefits-bilingual-u_s_-jobs-today_.html>.

RJA 9: MLA-Style Annotated Bibliography

Dicker, Susan. Languages in America: A Pluralist View. 2nd. Multilingual Matters LTD, 2003. 298-302. Print./Susan Dicker expresses her view of what an America where several languages besides just English are spoken would look like.  She describes all the benefits that would come with becoming a multilingual nation economically, socially, and culturally./

Kim, James. "Japanese Education vs. Amerecan Edukashun." Eserver. n. page. Web. 16 Dec. 2011. <http://eserver.org/courses/fall95/76-100g/papers/kim/default.html>./This journal talked about differences in the Japanese educational system and ours.  It talked about the good and the bad, e.g. they don’t have native speaking teachers but have government-sponsored programs in place to increase the number of English speakers and English proficiency across the country./

Lam, Agnes. Language Education in China: Policy and Experience from 1949. Aberdeen: Hong Kong University Press, 2005. 186. Print./This book describes the language education system in China while comparing it to ours.  It talks about the difference in motivation among students to learn languages, and the methods used to teach.  It focuses primarily on English, as that is the most widely studied language in China./

RJA 7

Kim, James. "Japanese Education vs. Amerecan Edukashun." Eserver. n. page. Web. 16 Dec. 2011. <http://eserver.org/courses/fall95/76-100g/papers/kim/default.html>.

• The author has no degree, but is a freshman at CMU.
• There is no bibliography, but he cites several people in his body and utilizes charts and pictures to ground his argument.
• The author intends to incite a change in how we do education here in America by speaking directly to American students and teachers.  He tries to be unbiased in his delivery, but obviously sides with the camp that says that our educational system is very broken.  He does, however, mention some of the pitfalls that Japan experiences.
• It is a very easy read, and the information is very reliable.  It gives me something to use to substantiate my comparative arguments about America's educational system.

Dicker, Susan. Languages in America: A Pluralist View. 2nd. Multilingual Matters LTD, 2003. 298-302. Print.

• I do not know if Susan Dicker has a degree, but one would assume that she has some credibility in this matter, at least enough to write a book about it.
• She has a references page in the book and cites many people in her body.  It seems that she has some experience in ESL herself.
• She speaks to Americans, hoping to enlighten them on the idea of linguistic plurality, something that is being fought against in this country by an "English Only" movement.
• She does not use a bunch of jargon and terminology that the average Joe would not comprehend, but it is is pretty dense information.  It definitely is not a quick read.
• The book is copyrighted 2003, so the information is not particularly recent but not out of date.

Webpages

http://diigo.com/0p4wn

http://diigo.com/0p4wq

RJA 8b: Field Research Plan

I want to survey Americans who have tried to learn another language via classes in school, on their own accord, or any other method.  The information that I want to obtain is how they tried to learn the language, how successful that they thought the method was or how they would rate themselves in terms of being able to communicate in and use that language, why the method was or was not successful, whether they think that it is important for Americans to become proficient in other languages, etc.  The survey will be conducted online (link to come later after I have thoroughly put one together) and I would like to survey my classmates and my clients (I work for Rosetta Stone).  This should provide some demographic information as well.

RJA 8a: Freewriting

Why Does America Struggle with Language Education?

One could say that our main problem lies in American language classes; students are taught languages as if they are math problems: problems of a logical nature that must be fought and worked through until they are solved.  A language, though, is not something to be solved, but rather something to simply internalize and not question.  Granted, once we get past a certain age, what most folks like to call the “critical age,” our brains take on a firewall that automatically questions any and all incoming traffic.  There is some literature on this as well; Eli Hinkel has written a book, Handbook of Research in Second Language Teaching and Learning, in which she says this: “Concerning the effortfulness of later language learning, Lenneberg [(the original proponent of the critical period hypothesis)] suggests that post-pubertal [second language] learning requires ‘conscious and labored effort’…[m]any professionals involved in one way or another with language have simply assumed that later [second language learning requires more effort” (p. 410).

Another issue could be attributed to the attitude that Americans have about the learning other languages.  In her book Languages in America: a Pluralist View, Susan J. Dicker uses language like “an absurdity,” “linguistically malnourished,” and “an attachment to monolingualism” to describe America’s problem.  In her words, “many Americans seem unaware of the advantages attached to multilingualism: it gives individuals a sense of identity; it creates a more equitable society; it promotes harmonious relations among linguistic groups; it adds richness to the shared culture; it allows for better foreign relations” (p. 299).  She then goes on in her next chapter to envision an America that acknowledges the world and its languages.  America could be a great nation of cultured, multilingual gents and ladies if it wanted to, instead of the uneducated ones that many Europeans like to pin it as.    

RJA 5b

1. Leveen, Steve. "How America Can Get Her Bilingual Groove Back." Huffington Post. 21 Apr 2010
2. Po, Vivian "Rep. Judy Chu: American Children Need Bilingual Education." New America Media. 21 Apr 2010
3. Dowdell, Sommer. "What Are the Benefits of Being Bilingual in U.S. Jobs Today?." eHow
4. Paradowski, Michal. "Benefits of multilingualism." Knol: a Unit of Knowledge, 2009
5. The Multilingual Children's Association. "The Pros and Cons of Raising a Multilingual Child

Search 1

Google

Search Terms: "Multilingualism Advantages"

Hits: 101,000

Relevance: 5 of 5

Finds: Numbers 4 and 5

Date: Feb. 18

Search 2

Google

Search Terms: "Bilingual America"

Hits: 29,700,000

Relevance: 3 of 5

Finds: Numbers 1, 2, and 3

Date: Feb. 18

RJA 5a

1. Lam, Agnes. Language Education in China: Policy and Experience from 1949.Aberdeen: Hong Kong University Press, 2005
2. Ramsey, Paul. A Polyglot Boardinghouse: A History of Public Bilingual Schooling in the United States. Indiana University, 2008
3. Richards, Jack and Rodgers, Theodore. Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2001
4. Committee to Review the Title VI and Fulbright-Hays International Education Programs. International education of foreign languages: Keys to securing america's future. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2007
5. Hinkel, Eli. Handbook of Research in Second Language Teaching and Learning. II. New York: Taylor and Francis, 2011
   
   
   Search 1
   Google Books
   Search Terms: "Language Education"
   Hits: 5,940,000
   Relevance: 3 of 5
   Finds: Number 2
   Date: Feb. 18
   
   
   Search 2
   Google Books
   Search Terms: "America Language Teaching"
   Hits: 2,380,000
   Relevance: 4 of 5
   Finds: Numbers 3 and 5
   Date: Feb. 18
   
   
   Search 3
   Google Books
   Search Terms: "China Language Education"
   Hits: 1,640,000
   Relevance: 4 of 5
   Finds: Number 1
   Date: Feb. 18
   
   
   
   
   Search 4
   Library of Congress
   Search Terms: "Language Education"
   Hits: 247
   Relevance: 2 of 5
   Finds: Number 4
   Date: Feb. 20

RJA2

RJA2a


I will write about multilingualism and multilingual education in America.  This topic is something that I have some personal opinions regarding, and thus figured it would be worth exploring more in depth.  I think that it is an issue that most are not particularly swayed by one way or the other, and so in presenting it to others, it might make for a good discussion.

America is one of only a few industrialized nations of the modern world who are primarily monolingual, Russia, Japan, and Brazil being a couple of the others.  There are major differences between America and the rest of that class, though, in terms of how the problem is treated, and whether it is regarded even as a problem.  Japan mandates English study from middle school, and many young Russians can speak English very well.  America, on the other hand, does not mandate any language study, and the levels of multi-linguistic proficiency among the youth do no compare to those of Russia, presumably for that reason.  What is America doing wrong, or "wrong," in this arena, and would our monolingualism have adverse effects on our standing in the world with, say, a rising multilingual China.

What is the current status of any proposed legislation to improve multilingualism in America IF there is any?  If there is none, what else could be done about the matter?  What are other countries doing to increase their numbers of multilingual people?


RJA2b

Using mostly Wikipedia, I have found information on a few different facets of my topic.  I found information on people in America who adamantly oppose multilingual education, citing Theodore Roosevelt as motivation.  Also, I have found information on other countries and their multilingual endeavors, namely our neighbor Canada, where both English and French are official and equal under the law, and Belgium, where such movements like the ones going on here to combat multilingual education are banned, and all languages are accepted.


RJA2c


Positive Arguments

• There are too many languages in the world to only speak one.
• We should be able to communicate with other nations.  We live in an increasingly global economy.
• China and most of Europe mandate multilingual education...why don't we?
• Multilingualism is good for the mind and is correlated to better grades.

Negative Arguments

• We don't really NEED to learn other languages.  Others come here and learn ours.
• What's the need?  America is the world superpower.  Multilingualism didn't help us get here.
• To promoting multilingual education is to promote disimilation within American society. 

RJA 1

1. language education reform in America
1. Is the topic academic or scholarly? Yes
2. Could a research question about this topic be positive? Yes
3. Do you think the answer to your research question can be adequately answered and supported in 3900 words? Yes
4. Do you think you can find at least twelve credible sources--including one book, one reference work, one article from a peer-reviewed journal, one electronic source (not including the book or periodical article if they were obtained online), and one source from original field (or primary) research--on this topic? Yes
5. Do you already know a lot about this topic? Yes
6. Have you already formed an opinion about this topic? No
7. Have you used this topic before for a research paper? No
2. the U.S. and the Kyoto Protocol
1. Is the topic academic or scholarly? Yes
   
2. Could a research question about this topic be positive? Yes
   
3. Do you think the answer to your research question can be adequately answered and supported in 3900 words? Yes
   
4. Do you think you can find at least twelve credible sources--including one book, one reference work, one article from a peer-reviewed journal, one electronic source (not including the book or periodical article if they were obtained online), and one source from original field (or primary) research--on this topic? Yes
   
5. Do you already know a lot about this topic? Yes
   
6. Have you already formed an opinion about this topic? No
   
7. Have you used this topic before for a research paper? No
3. literacy in America
1. Is the topic academic or scholarly? Yes
   
2. Could a research question about this topic be positive? Yes
   
3. Do you think the answer to your research question can be adequately answered and supported in 3900 words? Yes
   
4. Do you think you can find at least twelve credible sources--including one book, one reference work, one article from a peer-reviewed journal, one electronic source (not including the book or periodical article if they were obtained online), and one source from original field (or primary) research--on this topic? Yes
   
5. Do you already know a lot about this topic? Yes
   
6. Have you already formed an opinion about this topic? No
   
7. Have you used this topic before for a research paper? No
4. legalization of marijuana
1. Is the topic academic or scholarly? Yes
   
2. Could a research question about this topic be positive? Yes
   
3. Do you think the answer to your research question can be adequately answered and supported in 3900 words? Yes
   
4. Do you think you can find at least twelve credible sources--including one book, one reference work, one article from a peer-reviewed journal, one electronic source (not including the book or periodical article if they were obtained online), and one source from original field (or primary) research--on this topic? Yes
   
5. Do you already know a lot about this topic? Yes
   
6. Have you already formed an opinion about this topic? No
   
7. Have you used this topic before for a research paper? No
5. censorship and pornography
1. Is the topic academic or scholarly? Yes
   
2. Could a research question about this topic be positive? Yes
   
3. Do you think the answer to your research question can be adequately answered and supported in 3900 words? Yes
   
4. Do you think you can find at least twelve credible sources--including one book, one reference work, one article from a peer-reviewed journal, one electronic source (not including the book or periodical article if they were obtained online), and one source from original field (or primary) research--on this topic? Yes
   
5. Do you already know a lot about this topic? Yes
   
6. Have you already formed an opinion about this topic? No
   
7. Have you used this topic before for a research paper? No