MSI Press Blog

  The consensus across ILR documentation, second‑language acquisition research, and government training notes is that between ILR 3 (“Professional Working Proficiency”) and ILR 4 (“Full Professional Proficiency”), interlanguage doesn’t disappear, but it changes character: errors become rarer, more subtle, more stylistic , and increasingly tied to register, discourse norms, and sociolinguistic expectations, not grammar or vocabulary gaps. 🌱 What Happens to Interlanguage Between ILR 3 and ILR 4? 1. The Big Picture: The Interlanguage Shift At ILR 3, learners still have a stable interlanguage system with: Residual grammatical errors Occasional lexical gaps Register mismatches Non‑native discourse structuring Pronunciation that is intelligible but not native‑like At ILR 4, the learner’s interlanguage becomes: Highly stable, highly automatized Error‑rare, but not error‑free Native‑norm–oriented, especially in formal registers Sensitive to genre, audience, and pragmatic exp...

  Discover the Tools That Make Communication Feel Natural and Effortless Let’s be honest—learning a foreign language isn’t just about mastering grammar or memorizing vocabulary lists. It's about finding your voice in another tongue, navigating real-life conversations without freezing up, and feeling confident enough to keep the dialogue flowing—even when words escape you. If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Luckily, there’s a book that reimagines fluency not as perfection, but as  functionality . Boris Shekhtman’s  How to Improve Your Foreign Language Immediately  arms learners with practical, field-tested tools that diplomats and professionals have used to succeed in high-stakes communication scenarios. 🧠 Communicate First, Polish Later Forget the myth that you need to know  everything  before you speak. Shekhtman’s methods prioritize real-world interaction through: Verbose Communication : Use what you know to say what you mean—even if it takes mor...

Today's story behind the book gives a look behind the scenes at  Think Yourself into Becoming a Language Learning Superstar  by Dr. Betty Lou Leaver. From the Author This book was an amalgamation and an outgrowth of the Tuesday language learning tips I would sent out to students on every Tuesday morning when I was the Provost of the Defense Language Institute-Foreign Language Center (DLIFLC). When I retired and become more involved with the civilian and academic worlds, the need for this book -- ways to improve (and speed up) language learning success was clear. In assembling books for MSI Press to exhibit at a CATESOL conference, it made sense to refine and organize these tips into a book for all language learners to have as a feature at the conference. And so this book came into being.  For more posts about Betty Lou and her books, click  HERE .  VISIT OUR  WEBSITE  TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ALL OUR AUTHORS AND TITLES. Purchase this book at 25% discou...

  Please enjoy this month's newsletter form the Museum of Language here . Read other posts about the National Museum of Language here . See posts about language learning and teaching here . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC monthly newsletter (recent releases, sales/discounts, awards, reviews, Amazon top 100 list, author advice, and more -- stay up to date)   Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .   Interested in publishing with MSI Press LLC?  We help writers become award-winning published authors. One writer at a time. We are a family, not a factory. Do you have a future with us? Turned away by other publishers because you are a first-time author and/or do not have a strong platform yet? If you have a strong manuscript, San Juan Books, our hybrid publishing division, may be able to help. Check out information on  how to submit a proposal . Planning on self-publishing and don't know where to start?  Our  author au pair...