Daily Excerpt: Individualized Study Plans for Very Advanced Learners of Foreign Languages (Leaver) - What is an ISP?
Chapter One What is an ISP? An Individualized Study Plan (ISP) is a tool to use in planning your lifelong language-learning endeavors. I emphasize “lifelong” here because the achievement of native-like proficiency is, indeed, an effort that takes many years, and if one wants to retain near-native proficiency, once achieved, one needs to continue one’s study for as long as that language is important in the career or personal interests of the individual. For many learners, the ISP is one of the most important tools at their disposal to achieve their high-proficiency goals. ISPs can take many forms. There is no particular format that is required. There is no particular place that they should be kept. The form and format of the ISP is every bit as individualized as the plan itself. Some folks like to keep a date book. Others prefer a checklist. Yet others like to use diaries. It all depends on the individual learner and his/her learning styles and personality types. Although this volum