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All the latest news from the world of languages and language teaching.BBC Future: How finger counting gives away your nationality
Many people around the world learn to count on their fingers, but we don't all do it in the same way. Could there be a better method? How would you count to 10 on your fingers? Do you start with the thumb or the index finger? Left hand or right? Dactylonomy (counting...
Why some languages are almost wordless
Dozens of traditional cultures use a whistled form of their native language for long-distance communication. TOURISTS VISITING La Gomera and El Hierro in the Canary Islands can often hear locals communicating over long distances by whistling — not a tune, but the...
Are Brain Breaks Worth Classroom Time? 10 Resources To Try
Have you tried out brain breaks in your physical or virtual classroom? Today’s blog post is all about brain breaks: what a brain break is and how to use them with your students. The purpose of a brain break is more than just a pause in instruction; it can have a big...
How to embed Mandarin into your curriculum
With Mandarin growing in popularity, teachers explain how schools can make the most out of teaching the language. “Why is learning Mandarin beneficial to children? Where do I start,” asks Liqun Dai, the head of Chinese at Archbishop Sentamu Academy in Hull. “The...
FT: Global Britain needs to improve its language learning
In a classroom this summer at Azbuka, a London bilingual primary school of which I am a governor, the children switched easily between English and Russian as they designed colourful posters in the two languages to help learn about coronavirus, climate change and...
European Parliament Ambassador School programme
Are you interested in Accreditation for your school/college for staff and students taking on leadership roles? Links and travel throughout a network of 1600 schools across the EU and the UK? Support in the form of free resources, lesson plans and funding for events?...
Press Release: GCSE 2021 Results
Press Release 12/08/2021 GCSE 2021 Results ALL President Kim Bower Comments “At the end of this exceptional year, I want to congratulate all language learners across the U.K. who are collecting their GCSE results today. I particularly want to acknowledge...
Schools Week: Ofqual chief criticised over ’embarrassing’ claim teacher grades ‘more accurate’ than exams
The head of England’s exams regulator has been criticised over his “embarrassing” claim that teacher-assessment grades were “likely to give a much more accurate” reflection of students’ capabilities than exams. One former policy adviser even suggested the comment...
Independent: Teacher-assessed grades are better than exams, Ofqual chief says
GCSE and A-Level students did not sit exams this year and will instead be awarded grades by teachers. Teacher assessment of pupils is a better and more “accurate” way of awarding grades than formal exams, the government’s qualification regulator has said. Simon Lebus,...
The Guardian: Students apply to UK version of Erasmus foreign study scheme
More than 40,000 students could be offered places in new Turing scheme – though costs may not be fully covered. The government’s replacement for the Europe-wide Erasmus student exchange scheme appears to have got off to a flying start – although experts warn that the...
Japan Olympics
As well as the sporting events that dominated broadcasting in Summer we spotted this cultural aspect of the Games : https://japaninsides.com/196-countries-are-getting-represented-in-ambitious-kimono-project-for-tokyo-olympics/ As reported on Twitter by...
10 best Spanish series on Netflix right now
Watching TV shows and films in a different language is the most effective and practical way of learning that language. RM from BTS confirmed this by talking about how he managed to learn English by just watching the highly popular show Friends. If you are a native...
Schools Week: £4m Latin excellence programme: What you need to know
Education secretary Gavin Williamson has vowed to tackle Latin’s “reputation as an elitist subject” with a new scheme to boost take-up of the subject among disadvantaged pupils. He unveiled the £4 million “Latin excellence programme” over the weekend, in a move...
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