Category Archives: Linguistics, applied linguistics and SLA

English for Lingua Franca Purposes?

Posted on 06/01/2012 by alexcase

While reading Point and Counterpoint in the latest ELT Journal (what can I say, loooooong train journey), it occured to me that a lot of such silly debates on the topic could be ended by completely ignoring what English as a … Continue reading →

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Similarities between Konglish and Janglish

Posted on 27/09/2011 by alexcase

People who looked at the Konglish list I mentioned in my last post might have noticed how many of the words and phrases are marked “same in Japanese”. If English as a Lingua Franca does/ will exist, I would guess … Continue reading →

Posted in English as an International Language/ Lingua Franca, Janglish, Konglish | 3 Comments

Complete A to Z of Janglish (Japanese English)

Posted on 24/09/2011 by alexcase

PDF version for easy saving and printing: Janglish A to Z dictionary Worksheets for Japanese learners of English The TEFLtastic Janglish – English Dictionary – Updated January 2014 Janglish, more often called Japlish, Japanese English or Wasei Eigo, is used … Continue reading →

Posted in English as an International Language/ Lingua Franca, Janglish | 21 Comments

Interesting random facts about language from A User's Guide to the Brain

Posted on 17/09/2011 by alexcase

“if a sequencing area is at the root of human language, we might be able to boost our language abilities by practicing other sequential activities, such as music, dancing, imagining multipart objects, and step-by-step logical reasoning” A User’s Guide to … Continue reading →

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Interesting random facts about language from The First Word

Posted on 13/09/2011 by alexcase

“It’s been demonstrated that subjects who are shown a video of someone saying ‘ga’ that is accompanied by a recording of the sound ‘ba’ perceive something entirely different. They will ‘hear’ ‘da’, which in terms of speech production is in … Continue reading →

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That's perfect, but don't use it

Posted on 08/07/2011 by alexcase

I gave this piece of EIL/ ELF advice for the first time last week, and it was particular painful as it was about something I had championed a lot in the past. I’ve always had problems with the now universal … Continue reading →

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Only undergraduate Applied Linguistics course in the world to close

Posted on 31/05/2011 by alexcase

They also claim to be ranked number two for applied linguistics departments in the US, but the whole UCLA Applied Linguistics department is about to disappear: Applied linguistics department closes admissions

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The Natural Approach

Posted on 23/11/2010 by alexcase

There have been many attempts to help adult foreign language learners study in a way that reproduces the natural methods that a baby or toddler uses to effortlessly learn their L1, but none of them have been very successful. My … Continue reading →

Posted in Linguistics, applied linguistics and SLA | Tagged | 9 Comments

An example of how far we still have to go

Posted on 06/11/2010 by alexcase

Looking again at my list of possible topic for a Cambridge DELTA experimental lesson*, it struck me how many of those things have been around since at least the 70s. That being the case, if ELT theorists and experimenters have … Continue reading →

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Japlish dictionary Part 8 – T to Z

Posted on 03/10/2010 by alexcase

UPDATE: Complete Janglish dictionary now here. Part Seven is here and Part One is here, with links to the other parts. You could also have a look at my recent article giving an overview of the topic, and loads more articles … Continue reading →

Posted in English as an International Language/ Lingua Franca, Janglish, Teaching English in Japan, TEFL | 1 Comment