Eric In Santiago English 3 Blog

  I am going to write about a linguist specialized in Language Acquisition--ESL: Stephen Krashen. He is a professor of Linguistics who has taught at Linguistics and Education departments in the US. He received his PhD in 1972, and has been prolifically active in Linguistics Language Acquistion since then having published over 400 articles. I admire him mostly for certain theories that he has focused on, maybe even invented or created: The Acquisition-Learning Hypothesis: This looks at and contrasts acquisition (how babies learn language) and learning (how students in a class learn language). It has supported the idea that classrooms should include as much "acquisition-like" activity as possible to make the language process as close to acquistion as possible. The Input Hypothesis: This says that language cannot be produced (people speaking) without sufficient input. Learners need to listen and hear things; they need a person (model or teacher) to give them input so that they c...

 "One person at a time"--this is a phrase that looks at making the world a better place. We all know that the world could be better, could be a nicer place, could be a place where people are happier and more fulfilled. There are many ways to achieve this effect: We could study Dentistry, Psychology, Anthropology, or Engineering, and we could be contributing to this improvement. I am an EFL teacher--not just English but rather English-as-a-foreign-language teacher. My major (what I studied) and by extension my work helps people by its very nature, so it's easy for me to say that I'm helping. By helping you--my students--learn English, I am contributing to your reaching your goals in life. If you reach your goals in life, there is a great chance that your life will be better, will be as you want it to be. Maybe learning English is just one little piece of it, but it is. I am also helping you communicate with other people from far away. If you can communicate with these ...

  Hi, in this post you will choose a photo (picture) that is meaningful to you. It can be a family photo, or another kind of photo. Write abour why it interests you, what it means to you, and anything else you want to say. This post has a 150-word minimum. This is a photo of mom mom and grandmother taken in about 1944...so my mother was 2 years old. It was taken at a very bad time in history--during World War II. It was taken in Germany, so in the villain country in that part of history. At that time my grandfather was away in the war, and my grandmother was sometimes not sure if he was alive (he survived) because contact was often difficult. They had lost their apartment because of bombing in Hamburg, Germany about a year before, and they were living as refugees in the countryside, in a small village. My grandmother had to adjust to the new situation: living in a room belonging to other people who really didn't want her there. She had to go to the forest to chop down trees for woo...

 I like a lot of different foods and meals--I suppose I am a kind of gourmet who enjoys food. The only food I really don't like at all is celery. Therefore, it's hard for me to decide... I am going to choose lentils. I really like lentils a lot. I find them very versatile. I eat a lot of lentil stew--every week in fact. I always eat a lentil dish--usually lentil stew on Mondays. I know it's very "square" to cook like this--always the same thing on Mondays, but it's easier for planning, so I don't have to think about it so much. In fact I'm making it as I write this, right now. I'm multi tasking--preparing the class and cooking. It's modern life. My typical lentil stew contains lentils, some rice (not much), squash,onions, garlic, red and green peppers, and tomatoes. I really love this mix. Sometimes I add chard or spinach or kale--something leafy and green.  I enjoy eating my stew condimented with oregano and cumin, and some hot sauce. Sometime...

  First, I have to say that I'm not a big fan of technology. I respect it and use it, but I'm not keen on it. In fact, it tends to make me nervous. Actually, I don't feel very comfortable using any mechanical things--I'm usually nervous that I'll "do it wrong" or break it... Second, a lot of different technology has an important role in my life: the computer, smartphone, refrigerator, washing machine, elevators...electricity... Some I could live without, others, such as the refrigerator or electric light are essential to me. If I had to choose one piece of technology, I'd choose the Kindle. This is an e-reader. I can buy and download books onto it, and read them anywhere. It's very convenient. The screen, or the light it produces, makes it seem very natural, like a book, and the whole experience is similar to reading a book--though not exactly the same. Looking at illustrations or flipping between pages is easier in a book. A big benefit of the Kin...

  Originally I had studied International Relations--in which I got a Bachelor's Degree. I liked it, and it was interesting, but as time went on I had increasing doubts about working in that area. At least it was general enough that there were various employment opportunities. Language was a part of that major, and I always really loved that. I studied Polish (and 2 years of Russian were obligatory), and then also worked as a translator and transcriber in the Polish Section of "Voice of America" radio station, so I had a very strong connection with language. Besides, I had grown up bilingually with German. Therefore, as a consequence, linguistic issues were always sort of present. Actually, I had been interested in the science and study of Linguistics from the start. I was provisionally accepted to the MA program in Linguistics at George Mason University in 1989. I say provisionally because I had not actually studied it at the BA level, and they had doubts about me. I was ...