MSI Press Blog

  Recently released - the audiobook for Communicative Focus  by Boris Shekhtman and Dina Kupchanka. In the current volume, the author 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 well as the need for memorization and the development of memory, that have been increasingly omitted from the classroom as a result of the rise in popularity of theories that debase their significance but which are very important, especially if students are to reach the highest level of proficiency. He also discusses some ideas, such as the unique nature of the connection between language and meaning that native speakers experience that non-native speakers must learn to deal with-in differing ways at differing levels of proficiency. His focus throughout is on communication and the nature of communic

  MSI Press has added to its collection of affiliated books, a self-published book edited by Boris Shekhtman, a prolific author of MSI Press books and books published by Cambridge University Press. Contributing authors include Dina Kupchanka (Specialized Language Training Center), Natalia Lord (Foreign Service Institute), and Svetlana Sibrina (Specialized Language Training Center).   To purchase this book on Amazon. click HERE . For more posts and Boris Shekhtman and his books, click HERE . For more posts about Dina Kupchanka, click HERE . For more posts on language learning, click HERE . To see more affiliated books and learn about affiliated status, click HRE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter.

  Communicative Focus (Shekhtman and Kupchanka) which has been read for language instructors for year is now available as an e-book. At last! Book description: In the current volume, the author 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 well as the need for memorization and the development of memory, that have been increasingly omitted from the classroom as a result of the rise in popularity of theories that debase their significance but which are very important, especially if students are to reach the highest level of proficiency. He also discusses some ideas, such as the unique nature of the connection between language and meaning that native speakers experience that non-native speakers must learn to deal with-in differing ways at differing levels of proficiency. His fo

  Communicative Focus  was written through collaboration of Boris Shekhtman, who had left the Foreign Service Institute to open his own highly successful private school, using language teaching techniques that were quite unique but extremely effective, and Dina Kupchanka, a young teacher who taught for him.  The realization of the principles introduced in  Communicative Focus  had appeared earlier as actual classroom exercises in several publications, a book published by Cambridge University Press ( Developing Professional-Level Foreign Language Proficiency ),  How to Improve Your Foreign Language Immediately  (an immensely popular book published by MSI Press), and articles in the Journal for Distinguished Language Studies. The theory behind these activities had never been spelled quite so explicitly before (lack of room in the previous publications to include theory). Further, it took some time before the profession was ready to move on from teaching language as linguistics and teachi

  Excerpt from Communicative Focus - Appendix. Table 2. Teacher’s Guidelines for Working with Student’s Repetitions     REQUIREMENTS     MISTAKES   RECOMMENDATIONS   1.   Set up the assignment clearly and keep your promise.   Instructor changed the assignment and did not inform the student about it, as a result the student did not understand what the instructor wanted him to do Every time a change is made  in the assignment, make the student aware of it, even if the change is seemingly insignificant.   2.   It is their repetition, not yours.   Instructor performs the repetition more times than the student himself or herself Present the expression once, at least twice and then let the student do the job   3.   Make the repetition fun.   Repetition was carried out in a monotonous fashion, b

  Ever seen those planes in airplane magazines -- learn languages like a diplomat? The implication is that a course being sold teaches you like diplomats are taught. Misleading. I taught diplomats for six years. While the "courses" are generally ripped off, older, public-domain courses that very likely were used at the Foreign Service Institute at some point in time, they actually do not represent how diplomats are taught since diplomats learn language from interactions with skilled teachers, working in highly individualized environments and very small classes. Very little of what they do in their intensive day-long classes can be represented in a textbook, which generally is just a jumping-off point for work on language development.  That said, a few MSI Press books are written or edited by teachers who did teach or supervise teaching programs for diplomats. They wrap the theory in content meant for non-diplomats, self-learners, or specific kinds of language classes in ways

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

    Today's excerpt comes from Communicative Focus  by Boris Shekhtman and Dina Kupchanka -  Communication between Native Speakers and Non-native Speakers and the Essence of Speech We are interested in communication between native and non-native speakers for one very important reason: this is the kind of communication for which all teachers are essentially preparing students. Regardless of the level of our students, whether they are beginners or already near-native speakers, if they want to use their second language, they nolens-volens enter this type of communication. We need to help them to participate in this communication with dignity and power and to close the gap between their language skills and those of native speakers. In order for us to prepare our students in this way, we must be knowledgeable about the specific nuances of verbal communication between native and non-native speakers.     The most obvious difference between the language performance of native and non-native