8D World Releases Wiz World Online -- the World's First Virtual World for English Learning

8D World Launches Wiz World Cup in Partnership With Six Shanghai Government Agencies
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/8D-World-1017963.html

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Wiz World Online
8D World

SHANGHAI, CHINA and WOBURN - 8D World has released Wiz World Online (www.wizworldonline.com), the world's first virtual world dedicated for global English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) learners to improve their spoken English in a highly motivating environment.

Wiz World Online was first released in Chinese to the general public and has attracted a rapidly growing user base while partnering with hundreds of public and private schools in China. In addition, users can go directly to www.wizworldonline.com to join.

In July, 8D World will be working with six Shanghai government agencies and Shanghai Oriental Digital Community to launch the Wiz World Cup oral English competition in anticipation of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo. Taking advantage of the virtual world platform, Wiz World Cup is able to attract an unprecedented number of contestants who only need a home computer and a broadband connection to participate. Such an innovative format has significantly raised the level of interest and participation.
"Classroom-based English education is very effective for written English learning. However, because of the traditional one-to-many teaching setting and lack of an immersive language environment, classroom-based teaching offers very little practice time for each individual to speak English. In addition, Asian English learners are typically shy and afraid of making mistakes in front of their peers, which creates additional challenges for them to improve their spoken English," said Alex Wang, CEO of 8D World. "In contrast, Wiz World Online leverages a virtual world design powered by advanced speech technologies and delivers an immersive English speaking environment that is long desired by the English learners."

8D World has received venture capital financing from Spark Capital and Gobi Partners.

"Spoken English is critical for every individual to effectively communicate in the increasingly globalized world," said Alex Finkelstein, general partner of Spark Capital. "Wiz World Online is designed for the global audience and has truly made our world smaller."

"Chinese parents pay enormous amount of attention to their child's education. Due to the lack of an immersive language environment, it's an age old problem for the Chinese to effectively improve their spoken English," said Lawrence Tse, partner of Gobi Partners. "Wiz World Online, for the first time, provides the mass market with such an English speaking language environment with first-person experience."
"Research in Second Language Acquisition has shown that when learners are engaged in fun activities, their subconscious learning is far more effective than conscious learning. What is more, they have a better retention rate with enhanced motivation and investment," said Dr. Jun Liu, chairman of the English Department at University of Arizona and former president of TESOL. "Wiz World Online has made a revolutionary move in making learning a fun experience through gaming at a self-directed pace. It caters to learners with different learning styles, balancing the individual's needs with dynamic group cohesion. The program is specially designed for communicative English language learning and conforms to many national and international standards."

About 8D World

8D World is the creator of Wiz World Online, the world's first virtual world dedicated for global English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) learners to improve their spoken English in a highly motivating environment. 8D World's team includes top English educators, award winning speech technology experts and world renowned multiplayer game designers. 8D World's management team has proven track records of successfully starting and growing global multimedia and software companies. 8D World is headquartered in Woburn, Massachusetts, USA and has its Asia head office in Shanghai, China. To learn more, visit www.8dworld.com.

About Spark Capital

Spark Capital is a venture capital firm with investments focusing on the conflux of the media, entertainment and technology industries. The partners of Spark Capital carry diverse expertise in media and technology industries with proven track records identifying and actively building market-leading companies in sectors including infrastructure (Qtera, RiverDelta, Aether Systems, Broadbus and BigBand), networks (College Sports Television, TVONE and XCOM) services (Akamai, thePlatform, Admeld) and digital media (Twitter, Boxee, 5min). With a deep network that spans technology and media, investing and operations, Spark Capital provides world-class entrepreneurs and revolutionary companies with the resources to succeed in today's marketplace. Spark Capital has $622 million under management, and is based in Boston, Mass. To learn more, visit www.sparkcapital.com.

About Gobi Partners

Gobi Partners is a China-based venture capital firm focused on early stage IT and digital media investments. Gobi defines digital media as a new form of communication emerging from the convergence in telecommunications, media and technology. Gobi invests in companies that are pushing the frontier, integrating gaps or enabling consolidation within the digital media value chain. The Gobi Fund includes IBM, NTT DOCOMO, Sierra Ventures, McGraw-Hill, Steamboat Ventures (the venture capital arm of The Walt Disney Company), and Nokia Growth Partners as investors. For more information, please visit www.gobivc.com.

Contact:

Tim Inthirakoth
tim@inkhousepr.com
781-916-9090 ext. 805


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

The Rosetta Stone experiment

The Rosetta Stone experiment

By Braden Cundiff | IDS (Indiana Daily Student)

http://www.idsnews.com/news/story.aspx?id=68393


As a future educator and student, I decided that it is my duty to solve one of life’s biggest mysteries: Rosetta Stone. Any person who has seen a Rosetta Stone advertisement has debated the idea of learning a new language.

The motivations for learning a second language vary from Italian pickup lines at Kilroy’s Sports Bar to being able to decipher a primary source in a history class.

The commercials are convincing – they say they even have the support of NASA and the U.S. military. The Wall Street Journal endorses it as well, and with a starting price of $260, it better be a legitimate program.

The issue is whether Rosetta Stone works effectively enough to warrant the investment of so much time and money.

Well, I have taken it upon myself to try it on my own.

Yep, I fell hook, line and sinker for the made-for-TV product. I want to have a basis of Mandarin before I travel to China next spring, so I purchased Rosetta Stone and have been trying it for about two weeks.

I work 15 to 30 minutes a day and have been impressed so far.

The software works in such a way that you associate pictures and sounds with words. You start with basic words and phrases and it builds up your knowledge base slowly. It also requires you to speak into a microphone and repeat the words or phrases. The system records your voice and even plays it back to you.

It is a far cry from the dreary days of IU’s Proyecto Ancla, and it avoids the usual monotony that comes with language learning. However, I have already started to notice some issues, the first being that talking into a headset trying to speak Chinese brings a flurry of comments from the roommates. Either be prepared for the jokes they will make, or start locking yourself in a room. By the way, I have found the second choice to be the most effective.

The second obstacle is that it is not a quick process. The Rosetta Stone system is developed in such a way that it requires a person to stay active in the program for several months. This could pose a big problem when it comes to staying motivated, especially when you are trying to do additional learning outside of classes.

It’s important to remember why you are learning the language to combat motivation problems. For example, if I don’t continue to study, I might be ordering fish eyes instead of french fries.

So you can imagine my desire for learning Mandarin before next spring. That desire and the effectiveness of Rosetta Stone so far give me hope that a TV commercial’s product may just work.

At the two-week mark of the experiment, I would have to give Rosetta Stone a B+. Check in again in a month for a new report.






Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 135 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Speech and Language Problems in Children

Speech and language problems in children

By Amanda Genge, Staff Writer, myOptumHealth
http://www.kivitv.com/Global/story.asp?S=10409971

Parents delight in hearing their child's first words blossom into full conversation. Some children, though, run into problems when learning to speak. There are babies who don't babble at all, and toddlers and preschoolers who have trouble forming words. These children may have speech or language disorders.

Some of these disorders are the result of oral-motor problems. This means a child has trouble using the parts of his mouth that form words and sounds. Others may be caused by broader developmental disorders like autism. Chronic ear infections or hearing loss could also be a factor.

It's important for parents to understand that speech and language are not the same thing. Speech is how words are formed and spoken. Language is the meaningful exchange of information by expressing or understanding an idea, either through spoken or written words or gestures. A child may have trouble with one or both of these areas.

Speech and language disorders

These disorders are usually diagnosed by a speech-language pathologist (SLP) after a thorough evaluation. This specialist can also arrange sessions to work with your child to improve needed skills. Some speech and language disorders include:

• Expressive language disorder. This is marked by limited vocabulary for the child's age, errors in tense or problems with recalling words. Using the wrong names for objects or people may occur.

• Mixed receptive-expressive language disorder. These symptoms tend to overlap with expressive language disorder. Also, the child may have trouble understanding words or phrases, or may just repeat words after hearing them. Answers to questions - especially those that ask "who, what or where" or "when, why or how" - may not make sense.

• Orofacial myofunctional disorders. A child with this problem may pronounce sounds incorrectly - "s" may come out sounding like "th," for instance. The tongue moves too far forward while talking and swallowing. At other times, the tongue may stick out from between the teeth. Open-mouth posture is common.

• Speech sound disorders. These are problems with forming and articulating sounds and words. A young child who does not outgrow this speech pattern may need speech therapy.

• Stuttering. Stutterers repeat whole words or parts of words, or prolong certain sounds in a word. This can make a child's speech hard to understand. Stress may make the problem worse.

• Maturational delay. "Late bloomer" or "late talker" syndrome. Sometimes a child will be slow to start speaking, but will have no problems forming or understanding words. This occurs more often in boys than girls, and tends to run in families. Doctors and speech-language pathologists do not make this diagnosis unless they are certain that there are no other possible causes of the delay. Once the child does start to speak, he or she will typically continue to develop language skills in a normal way.

• Childhood apraxia of speech. This is a less common motor disorder in which children have trouble forming sounds and words. They know what they want to say, but the brain can't coordinate the muscles needed to say it. Very early symptoms are lack of babbling during infancy, late first words with missing sounds, limited sound range and problems combining sounds. Older children may struggle to speak in general, especially with long words and phrases. They can also usually understand much more than they can say.

If you think your child has a speech or language problem, talk to a doctor about your concerns. He or she may suggest having your child evaluated by a speech-language pathologist. Check with your health insurance provider. This service may not be covered.

If your child is under age 3, you can also contact your state's Early Intervention Program for an assessment. Studies have shown that the earlier speech or language therapy is started, the better the outcome for the child.

SOURCES:

• Simms MD. Language disorders in children: classification and clinical syndromes. Pediatric Clinics of North America. 2007;54(3):437-467.

• American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Child speech and language.

• National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Apraxia of speech.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Professional English Teachers Desperately Needed

A Disturbing Trend
When I began interviewing school, institute and university English department heads for information and commentary, a disturbing pattern began to emerge.

At first the interviews went pretty much according to script. As the managers became more comfortable, however, the flow began to change. When they realized that there was truly a forum by means of which some impact might possibly be made, the tone changed entirely. Then the complaints began to flow. Javier Garcia, Director of the Pochcalli Institute of Languages in the city of Oaxaca, said that he has had “many problems with teachers who don't complete the course contract period or who are lax in showing up to teach assigned classes”.

Horror Stories Came Out
Initially, I hadn’t considered touching on basic premises for job hunting and interviewing. Dress codes? No one wants or needs a primer on THAT in this day and age. Or do they? According to the people I’ve interviewed, who are in positions of responsibility for hiring or recommending the hiring of new teachers and professors, I was wrong. Horror stories came out in droves. Tales of applicants showing up for interviews in tattered jeans, T-shirts and baseball caps, with copious body-piercings and gaze-arresting tattoos abounded. “When I informed the female applicant that we’d hire her for a position if she’d consider removing her visible body piercings, she got angry and stormed out of the interview.”, one Director related.

Quit Without Notice
Tales of teachers who quit without notice or who simply didn’t show up for classes on Mondays or Fridays, were rampant. “It actually took us until Wednesday to realize a teacher had quit.”, another school director commented. “When we called the house he was rooming in, they informed us he had left on a backpacking tour.” “So what happened to the class?”, I asked. “We couldn’t get another teacher and had to cancel that group. It hurt the school’s reputation.”, was the sad response. “Now, we’re very leery of hiring non-Mexicans who just show up for an interview.” Working only long enough to secure sufficient funds for the next leg of your Mexico tour is a disservice, not only to the school, but to those of us who genuinely are teaching English as a viable career. You play – we (the serious teaching professionals) pay.

You Call THAT a Resume?
In Mexico City, Veracruz and especially in Acapulco and Cancun, hiring managers were enthusiastic about pulling out what passed for “resumes” to show me what they’re sometimes saddled with by less-than-sincere “applicants”. Some papers were not only sloppy, but shameless in their lack of attention and construction. Others were absolutely unbelievable. There were even a couple that were hand-written. Imagine applying for an English teacher position with numerous “typos” appearing on your hand-written resume! Even in resort cities, It’s no wonder new teachers can have a tough time getting “a foot in the door”.

In the next segment, we continue with more stories from ravaged administrators. Don't you dare miss it!

Be sure to check out this "Interview with Prof. Larry M. Lynch" online at:
http://www.e1-network.com/professor_larry_lynch.html




Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, prolific writer, author and public speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 120 countries. Get your FREE E-book, "If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.