Friday, January 16, 2009

Dischettos de video (DVDs), un ressource importante pro studentes de linguas


(Languages of this post: Interlingua, English)


Io ha trovate que un ressource importante in mi studio de linguas es traductiones de libros que io trovava interessante. Pro exemplo, post leger "To Kill a Mockingbird" per Harper Lee, io comprava traductiones de illo in omne le linguas que io studiava e legeva iste libro in diverse traductiones.

(Io trovava duo traductiones in espaniol differente. Il es interessante notar que le traductor de un ex illos usava le expression "exhibición de retratos" pro le expression anglese "picture show", que significava in le anglese de Harper Lee un session in un theatro de cinema.

(Le altere traductor usava un phrase que indicava que ille sapeva exactemente lo que significava le expression anglese. Tal errores parve in le curso total del narration tamen non es significante.)

Naturalmente, lo que io faceva solmente adjuvava mi studios de lectura proque in textos on pote studiar linguas solmente in lor forma scribite.

Ma nunc con dischettos de video on pote studiar le formas oral de linguas del mesme maniera. Pro exemplo recentemente io me faceva prestar ex le bibliotheca public de Long Beach, California, un copia de "The Barbershop", un film american que anque habeva un version oral in espaniol.

Post vider e audir le eventos del film in anglese, io trovava que le version in espaniol esseva multo plus facile a comprender. De un maniera simile, "Annie Hall", un film de Woody Allen, anque habeva un version oral in francese, que io trovava multo facile a comprender post vider lo in anglese.

Iste dischettos anque ha titulos in diverse linguas. E quando io audiva "Barber Shop" in espaniol, io legeva simultaneemente su titulos in portugese.

E quando io audiva "Annie Hall" in francese, io legeva simultaneemente su titulos in francese. Multe vices le titulos de iste film exprimeva conceptos trovate in su dialogo de manieras differente, le quales me adjuva a trovar altere manieras de exprimer multe conceptos simile.

Ante le etate de dece duo annos, on pote apprender le version oral de un lingua multo facilemente solmente trans le conversation. Ma post iste etate on debe studiar le systema phonologic de un nove lingua assatis intensemente.

Io ha trovate que cognoscer le phonetica articulatori me adjuvava multo in mi studios oral de nove linguas. Il es sempre plus facile producer un nove vocal o consonante post leger un description exacte de lo que face le organos usate in le phonation linguistic.

Post leger tal descriptions e le systema de phonemas e allophonos de un nove lingua, io ha trovate que il es importante practicar le production de omne iste sonos comenciante con parolas de un o duo syllabas. Le processo de apprender le habitos neuromuscular pro producer iste sonos es multo simile al nove habitos que on debe disveloppar durante que on apprende a musicar con un nove instrumento.

Naturalmente il es possibile apprender le audition e le prounciation de un nove lingua directemente per le imitation. Ma le processo es multo plus rapide e efficace si on ha cognoscimentos plus exacte de su systema phonologic.

Le usos active e passive de un lingua, sia in su versiones oral o scribite, ha relationes reciproc multo intime. E generalmente il es plus efficace studiar los comenciante con structuras simple, frequente, e familiar e progressante gradualmente a su complexitates grammatic e lexic minus frequente.

Como io ha dicite antea, linguas vivente es systemas complicate e assatis claudite. Illos non es completemente claudite, naturalmente, proque omne linguas cambia in le spatio e le tempore, unes plus rapidemente de alteres. E pro apprender vermente ben un grande selection de iste complicationes, il es necesse practicar los interactivemente pro un periodo de al minus un o duo annos intra un communitate de nativos del lingua.

Il es impossibile tamen apprender omne le characteristicas minus frequente de ulle lingua. Mesmo le nativos de un lingua apprende solmente un selection--un selection multe grande, naturalmente, ma solmente un selection--inter omne le possibilitates de expression de lor prime linguas secundo lor positiones social, lor occupationes, e lor interesses. (Io mesme, pro exemplo, non es sportive, e io controla solmente un selection multo limitate del vocabulario de sport in anglese.)

Ma mesmo con iste complicationes, le nove dischettos video offere possibilitates interessante como platteformas de instruction specific pro studentes de linguas. On poterea construer un curso de conversation generic simile al curso que io ha elaborate in interlingua e anglese e producer versiones multiple de illo in un sol dischetto o un serie de illos. Tal dischettos anque poterea haber partes scribite, como explicationes grammatic o transcriptiones del dialogos oral que on poterea imprimer si on voleva facer lo.

In "Interlingua multilingue" io essaya assemblar un corpore assatis grande de textos a un simile nivele de difficultate (sophisticate e clar simultaneemente). Io spera que con le tempore alteres usara iste ressources pro construer nove cursos assatis integrate inter gruppos de linguas.

Si un francese, pro example, vole apprender interlingua, ille o illa pote usar iste ressources primo pro apprender interlingua e postea pro producer textos inter interlingua e francese pro studentes de su lingua native. E plus tarde un nativo de germano qui cognosce assatis ben le francese poterea consultar versiones simile de iste textos in francese, interlingua, e anglese.

In le processo de rediger versiones de iste textos in germano, ille augmentara su cognoscimentos del linguas fonte que ille usa in le production de versiones de illos in su lingua native, le quales esserea multo utile pro studentes de germano. Le resulto final es que omne le participantes in un projecto simile a isto ganiara multo in lor rolos simultanee como studentes e instructores.

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Video Disks (DVDs), an Important Resource for Language Students

I have found that an important resource in my language study is translations of books that I found interesting. For example, after reading "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, I bought translations of it in all the languages I was studying and read this book in various translations.

(I found two different Spanish translations. It is interesting to note that the translator of one of them used the expression "exhibición de retratos" for the English expression "picture show," which meant "trip to the movies" in Harper Lee's English.

(The other translator used a phrase that indicated that he knew exactly what the English expression meant. Such small errors in the total course of the narration, however, are not significant.)

Naturally, what I was doing only helped my studies of reading because in texts it is possible to study languages only in their written form.

But now with video disks it is possible to study the oral forms of languages in the same way. For example, I recently borrowed from the Long Beach Public Library a copy of "The Barbershop," an American film that also had an oral version in Spanish.

After seeing and hearing the events in English, I found that the Spanish version was much easier to understand. In a similar way "Annie Hall," one of Woody Allen's films, also had an oral version in French, which I found very easy to understand after seeing it in English.

These disks also have subtitles in different languages. And when I listened to "Barber Shop" in Spanish, I simultaneously read its subtitles in Portuguese.

And when I listened to "Annie Hall" in French, I read simultaneously its subtitles in French. Many times the subtitles of this film expressed concepts found in its dialogue in varying ways, which helped me find other ways of expressing many similar concepts.

Before the age of twelve, it is possible to learn the oral version of a language very easily only through conversation. But after this age a person has to study the phonological system of a new language rather intensively.

I have found that knowing articulatory phonetics helped me a lot in my studies of new languages. It is always easier to produce a new vowel or conconant after reading an exact description of the activities of the vocal organs used in language phonation.

After reading such descriptions and the system of phonemes and allophones of a new language, I have found that it is important to practice the production of all of these sounds starting out with one- or two-syllable words. The process of learning the neuromuscular habits to produce these sounds is very similar to the new habits that must be developed as a person learns to play a new musical instrument.

Naturally it is possible to learn to listen to and pronounce a new language directly through imitation. But the process is a lot faster and more efficient if a person has a more exact knowledge of its phonological system.

The active and passive uses of a language, whether in its oral or written versions, have very close reciprocal relations. And generally it is more efficient to study them starting with simple, frequent, and familiar structures, progressing gradually to its less frequent grammatical and lexical complexities.

As I have indicated before, living languages are complicated and rather closed systems. They are not completely closed, of course, because all languages change in space and time, some more rapidly than others. And to learn really well a large selection of these complications, it is necessary to practice them interactively for a period of at least one or two years within a community of people who are native to the language.

It is impossible, however, to learn all the less frequent charactistics of a single language. Even the natives of a language learn only a selection--a very large selection, naturally, but only a selection--among all the possibilities of expression of their first language according to their social positions, their occupations, and their interests. (I myself, for example, am not a sports fan, and I control only a very limited selection of sports vocabulary in English.)

But with these complications the new video disks offer interesting possibilities as specific platforms of instruction for language students. It would be possible to build a generic conversation course similar to the one I have elaborated in Interlingua and English and to produce multiple versions of it in a single disk or a series of them. Such disks could also have written parts, such as grammatical explanations or transcriptions of the oral dialogues that students could print out if they wanted to do so.

In "Interlingua multilingue" I am trying to assemble a rather large corpus of texts at a similar level of difficulty (sophisticated and clear at the same time). I hope that in time others will use these resources to construct new and rather integrated courses between groups of languages.

If a Frenchman, for example, wants to learn Interlingua, he could use these resources first to learn Interlingua and afterward to produce texts inter Interlingua and French for students of his native language. And later on, a native of German who knows French rather well could consult similar versions of these texts in French, Interlingua, and English.

In the process of coming up with versions of these texts in German, he will increase his knowledge of the source languages that he uses in the process of producing them in his native language, which would be very useful for students of German. The final result is that all the participants in a project similar to this would learn a lot in their simultaneous roles as learners and teachers.

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