MSI Press Blog

  Diagnostic Assessment at the Superior-Distinguished Threshold is available on pre-order at MSI Press webstore . Written by the director of the diagnostic assessment center (retired) at the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center, one of the most knowledgeable teachers about the finer points of language learner, individually applied. Due to be released in late July. Provides copies of instruments for personalization of instruction, ways to find a learner's zone of proximal developments, explanation of the E&L Cognitive Styles Construct not found elsewhere, delineations of distinctions between ILR 3+ and ILR 4, and sample learning plans for very advanced learners of foreign languages.  For more unique and impressive MSI Press language teaching and language learning books, click HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .   Interested in publishing with MSI Press LLC? Check out information on  how to sub

  We recently learned about a great review of Tom Garza's wonderful and unique book on how to get language learners to super-high levels of proficiency, Practices That Work .  Written by Olena Chernishenko of American University for Russian Language Journal , some of evaluations include: " Practices That Work is an excellent resource for both new and experienced foreign-language instructors, as well as for foreign-language learners. The volume is a compilation of short, thematically organized articles written by numerous experts in the field of foreign-language teaching who share invaluable insights about bringing learners to high-level professional proficiency in world languages. While Practices That Work offers a plethora of effective techniques for instructors, it also provides deep understanding of the learning process, which will benefit the development of learners' development of self-awareness and autonomy." "...every article in the volume gives excellent

  excerpt from The Invisible Foreign Language Classroom (Dabbs & Leaver),  from Chapter 1 Defining and Recognizing the Invisible Classroom: Guardians Guardians General Orientation SJ personality types, more especially as adults, feel compelled to pass on the values of their society. As such, the Guardians in every society are essential to the continuation of that society. As Learners As learners, Guardians work to belong in the group, whether that is a social group of their place in the class. For this reason, they possess a strong work ethic. They crave rules, accept and support tradition and traditional approaches, and want to know exactly what is expected of them.   Because many teachers are themselves SJs, the SJ learner fits right in.   The student understands and feels comfortable with the teacher’s methods because that is how they learn.   The SJ likes the structure, likes knowing what is expected, and since the SJ teacher will generally lay things out in a logica

Excerpt from Practices That Work by Thomas Jesus Garza.  Be Sensitive to Learning Styles   Betty Lou Leaver (Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center) Madeline Ehrman (Foreign Service Institute) Teachers working with language learners at all levels have for some decades now recognized that learners have specific sensory and cognitive preferences when it comes to learning and specific ways of interacting with classmates. These individual differences can be very important both in positive and negative ways in the language process, the significance of which may change as one progresses up the ladder of proficiency. One phenomenon that has been observed by language teachers and their learners over time is the “tortoise and hare” syndrome. Learners who are painfully accurate—and therefore slow— in the beginning of language study often outdistance their faster peers who can plateau at the Advanced/Superior threshold because they have become comfortable with being

  A new affiliated book, but not a new book, for sure. Task-Based Instruction in Foreign Language Education is a classic and came out in 2005. It was co-edited by MSI Press author and managing editor, Dr. Betty Lou Leaver, with Jane Willis of England, well-known for her work in TBI. The book is published by Georgetown University Press and is universally available -- and used in many countries as a handbook, a textbook, and a manual of examples of how to teach task-based language courses in any language. There is also an impressive theory section, written by Jane. The book combines examples of a wide range of TBI programs from several countries and continents and has become a staple for faculty development in government institutions as well as private institutions. For more posts on Betty Lou Leaver, click HERE . To reach Jane Willis's website, click HERE . For more posts on language teaching, click HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Fa

  Excerpt from Communicative Focus : Why is the language performance of native and non-native speakers different?       On the face of it the answer to this question is quite easy. The difference in language performance between native and non-native speaker can be explained by the degree of their command of the language. Native speakers have excellent command of the language and non-native speakers, poor command of it. But why is this so?                                                                   In his book The Native Speaker: Myth and Reality, Alan Davies (2003) defines 6 factors which make a person a native speaker. The most important factor is the acquisition of language in childhood. Successful acquisition of language typically happens by the age of four and is   guaranteed for children up to the age of six.   After that, the potential for native   language acquisition is steadily compromised until shortly after puberty and is rare thereafter. Maturational ch

Reissued -- two beloved oldies in the language teaching world. These books have been published continuously since we first published them years back. We transferred them shortly after publication to Villa Magna LLC. Recently, Villa Magna made the decision to focus on the works of Omar Imady (also one of our authors, whose works we will eventually be transferring to Villa Magna) and recently transferred their language books to us. Both books are unique -- and likely foretell the future of language teaching though the focus they suggest is only slowly starting to become part of the profession, on the periphery. We are confident, however, that, in time, they will represent the mainstream of teaching approaches. Communicative Focus   describes in detail the theory and nature of the principles and practices used in his approach to language teaching. He is not afraid to talk about some aspects of language learning and teaching, such as the development of lexical and grammatical accuracy, as

  Boris Shekhtman has been considered a national authority on teaching students to use foreign languages effectively in communication with native speakers. He has developed a unique set of tools designed to enhance an individual’s communication in a foreign language environment, which he describes in  How to Improve Your Foreign Language Immediately . Boris Shekhtman presented his communication rules at numerous seminars for a number of U.S. Government agencies including the Library of Congress, the Department of State, the Department of Defense, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Agriculture and Air Force. His clients included correspondents of major news organizations such as ABC News, CBS News, BBC, NBC News, New York Times , Washington Post , Los Angeles Times , Chicago Tribune , Time Magazine , and Associated Press. The content of the seminars is well described in his books. The most popular of them are:  Developing

  Being a publisher of language teaching and learning books (among other lines), we are always interested in what the language community is doing. One source of fascinating information is the National Museum of Language. In its most recent newsletter, it talked about its new normal in the era of covid.  At the Museum, our new normal is to not only continue to offer you the same great content you have seen throughout the years, but to add new and exciting concepts to our regular lineup. The Teacher's Corner has taken on a digital slant, focusing on what can be done now while many teachers remain teaching online to some degree, but with tasks and tools that can come back with you to the classroom. After the success of our first trivia night, we will be looking at another one coming to you shortly. Having virtual Speakers has increased our audience significantly and allows us to reach out to audiences we had never considered. And those are only what you have seen so far! Our new int