Subscribe Now! Adult Literacy: Out of the Shadows Gail Weinstein begins our in depth look at adult literacy by assessing the value of learner narratives in the classroom. Robin Schwarz and Lynda Terrill offer teachers different options to assist adult learners that suffer a disability. Miriam Burt, in her regular column LinguistiCAL, talks about the benefits of using the Center of Applied Linguistics as a resource for aiding adult im-migrants to learn English.

CLASSROOM: Carol Poppleton conjures images of her youth through the music of emotion-provoking performers such as Bob Dylan and how his lyrics and the lyrics of other famous musicians can be used as a learning tool in the language classroom.
I'm often amazed at how well I can recall song lyrics even though it may have been years since I had heard the tune played. Driving in my car, a Bob Dylan "story", such as Tangled Up and Blue, a folksy ballad I listened to frequently in high school almost 20 years ago, comes on the radio and I can remember every word, beat and instrumental solo. As I listen and inevi-tably sing along, I am again enraptured in the story, the verbal weaving of words and rhythms that create for me images and evoke emotions. To read more, subscribe to Language Magazine

Joy Kreeft Peyton and Pat Rigg explore the use of poetry
Poetry provides adults with learning opportunities in language, content, and community building and can be used in adult English as a second language (ESL) classes with all learners, even those with limited literacy and proficiency in English. Poetic themes are often universal, at the same time giving insights into individuals' cultures, beliefs, and practices. When teachers and learners read and write poetry together, they connect with texts and with one another in powerful ways. To read more, subscribe to Language Magazine

J. Ignacio Bermejo discusses the benefits of using magazines, Time and Newsweek.
Time and Newsweek have been favorite sources of teaching material at advanced levels for several reasons: These magazines are easily available all over the world and they can be taken to class as examples of "authentic" English because they are written by native speakers for native speakers. To read more, subscribe to Language Magazine

SPECIAL REPORT: Dr. Thomas Kane takes a relaxed look at how educators can incorporate intuition into their teaching practices.
Did you ever say, "I have a hunch," or, "I have a gut-feeling?" Of course you have; but you have been trained to be suspicious of hunches and gut-feelings. Everyone has had these human experiences. When a sudden discernment about someone or something has crossed oneís mind, more often than not the insight proved to be accurate, popping into our consciousness, seemingly from nowhere. To read more,subscribe to Language Magazine

BILINGUAL EDUCATION: Paul Rogers made some interesting discoveries while teaching in Mexico, which helped his students become more involved in his language-learning classroom.
There is an increase in the need to teach English as a Second Language in the United States as more and more immigrants, many from Mexico, enter the country. In addition there seems to be an increase in the interest in learning English in other countries, particularly in Latin America. In this article, I will explore the development and use of texts and other materials, such as audio and videotapes, in the context of teaching Beginning and Intermediate English to adult Mexican immigrants in bilingual classes. To read more, subscribe to Language Magazine

DIALECTS: Naomi Nagy, Julie Roberts and Charles Boberg explore a historical region of the United States, where the woodchucks simply love belly-bunting and laughing at the leaf peepers.
Two major New England shibboleths are the "dropping" of post-vocalic r (as in [ka:] 'car' and [ba:n] 'barn' and the low central vowel [a] in words like aunt and glass (Carver 1987: 21). Neither pattern is found across all of New England, nor are they all there is to the well known dialect, faithfully reproduced in the recent movie Good Will Hunting. We present a brief description of the settlement of the region and give examples of current vocabulary and pronunciation patterns to illustrate both how New England differs from the rest of the country and what region-internal differences exist. To read more, subscribe to Language Magazine

ELECTRONIC EDUCATION: Steven Donahue takes a look at the recent report issued by the Web-Based Education Commission.
The man who midwifed the release of the Web-based Education Report, Executive Director David Byer, says that a good metaphor for Internet learning is the introduction of the steam engine into the maritime shipping industry. ìWhen the new invention of a steam engine was first placed on wooden Clipper ships, the ships had a bad habit of catching fire and sinking.î To read more, subscribe to Language Magazine

Barry Bakin answers all those frustration questions about how to offer your students practical projects in the one-computer classroom.
Very few ESL teachers will have access to a complete computer lab for their students. It is more likely that you will get or be offered access to one, two or maybe three computers for your classroom. This article will focus on activities and projects that the typical ESL teacher with minimal computer skills can implement in ESL beginning to advanced or multi-level classrooms. The activities will use common programs found on most computers. At least one of the computers must be connected to a printer. I use a Windows/PC computer so the specific tasks will be described in those terms. Apple/Mac users can adapt the exercises to their particular platform. To read more, subscribe to Language Magazine

Lin "Webster" Lougheed offers some advice on how to get your own way.
Educators! Wake up! Speak up! Your opponents are better organized than you and they are getting what they want from your elected officials. You will be left holding an empty school bag. As we know from the last presidential election, being smart and right doesn't mean you'll prevail. To read more,subscribe to Language Magazine

SLANGMAN: Ever wondered how native English-speakers sound to those who are not. Goldilocks and the Three Bears find out with the help of David "Slangman"Burke.
At last year’s TESOL conference, I was talking with three enthusiastic and excited students from Brazil, eager to know more about American slang. During our conversation, one of the people working with me at the booth interrupted us on his way to lunch: “D’jeet jet ‘cause I’m gonna get som’m t’eat. Ya want ‘nee thing?” I said, “Sher. Could’ja gemme a san’wich ‘n som’m ta drink?” “Sher. No prob. Be back ‘n a sec.” As I turned back to my new Brazilian friends looked stunned. To read more, subscribe to Language Magazine

LAST LAUGH SPECIAL: In tribute to "America's Super-duper Blooper Snooper", Richard Lederer's new appointment we offer you twice the fun and double the confusion.
English is the most widely spoken language in the history of our planet, used in some ways by at least one out of seven human beings around the globe. Half of the world’s books are written in English, and the majority of international telephone calls are made in English. Sixty per cent of the world’s radio programs are beamed in English, and more than 70 per cent of international mail is written and addressed in English. Eighty per cent of all computer texts, including Web sites, are stored in English. To read more of this article, subscribe to Language Magazine