English Language Teaching Professionals: Don’t Spend Your Time Abroad on the Toilet!

Getting and Treating "Monteczuma's Revenge"
Walking past the row of vendors cooking meat, sausages, French fries and small yellow potatoes was tempting. Sporting a fedora and a Grand Canyon smile, Charlie Martinez fronted his cart offerings of fresh-squeezed orange juice and fresh-strained carrot juice. We ordered one each. I opted for a fried sausage with some yellow potatoes. The potatoes were fine. “Don’t eat that sausage”, my wife Doris warned. I heeded not - even when I noticed it was slightly undercooked. That night I paid the price. Bathroom trips came every 20 minutes or so. The smell alone could kill. I swallowed Gatorade like an Olympic athlete in training to help prevent my growing dehydration. Finally, in the wee hours we headed for the emergency room. I had Giardiasis.

Giardiasis
Giardia is a microscopic parasite which moves around using a pair of whiskers called flagella and lives in the small intestines. It is a common cause of diarrhea. Symptoms can include yellow, foul-smelling diarrhea with bubbles or froth but without blood or mucus, an uncomfortable, swollen abdomen, and mild cramps with lots of gas. The diarrhea may come and go from day to day. There is usually no fever. One symptom that is fairly specific to Giardiasis is passing stools which stink and are difficult to flush away because they float.

Recommended treatments are fairly straightforward. You could try 24 hours on clear fluids and a bland, fat-free diet with lots of rest before starting antibiotics. Giardia infections can often clear up by themselves. “Flagyl” (metronidazole) 2 grams per day for 3 days or Tinidazole (not available in the USA) are common. The drug Quinacrine (Mepacrine) works well too but can cause some side effects. Do not drink alcohol during treatment or you will feel ill. Competent medical treatment by a physician should always be sought for symptoms of any illness while in any foreign country.

An Unwelcome Guest
Untreated Giardiasis normally does little harm except make you an unwelcome guest and cause some loss of weight. My case was treated with Tetracycline tablets for three days. The organism is transmitted through improper hygiene, especially fecal-oral transmission.

Remember: Always observe proper hygiene – wash your hands before you eat anything. DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT eat raw, uncooked or partially-cooked foods. Take NO foods or drinks with ice in them. Be wary of eating garden salads washed with local water. If the water used to clean that lettuce or those tomatoes was bad – Bingo! You’ll have the “Turkey trots” before the evening news airs. Use treated or bottled water only at all times. Hotels in the mid-range and up often can recommend a physician or treatment for minor infirmities while you are abroad. Pricey hotels often have a doctor on call for guests. Before traveling it’s also a good idea to see your doctor for travel medications, recommendations and advice. Protect your health. Protect yourself.

Two widely available, recommendable health references for travelers are:

“Bugs, Bites and Bowels” by Dr. Jane Wilson Howarth
“Staying Healthy in Asia, Africa and Latin America” by Dirk G. Schroeder

Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. Now YOU too can live your dreams in paradise, find romance, high adventure and get paid while travelling for free. For more information on the lucrative, fascinating field of teaching English as a Foreign Language, get your copy of his no-cost, full multi-media, hypertext-linked pdf ebook, “If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here’s What You Need to Know” by sending an e-mail to lynchlarrym@gmail.com with "free ELT Ebook" in the subject line. Need professional, original content and photos or images for your blog, newsletter, e-zine or website? Want more information, have a comment or special request? E-mail the author for a prompt response.

How to Illustrate Rhythms in Language When Using Music to Enhance English Language Learning

So, you’re back for more of this series, are you? Okay, we’ll continue with how to precisely illustrate the aspect of rhythm in spoken language and connected speech.

Try This
Play the opening rhythm of a song in Spanish, Turkish, Chinese, Arabic or other first language (L1) of your learners. Then play the opening rhythms of a second, then a third song with one of the songs being an English (or other L2) one. Remember now, you don’t want to hear any words or lyrics, only the opening rhythm of the song. Now ask the language learners what language is song number one? Then ask about song number two and finally, song number three? Odds are they’ll have no trouble correctly identifying the language of each song. Why is that? It’s because they, and you, will easily recognize the rhythms that belong to the songs and the languages. You’d never mistake a Salsa song for an British folk ballad, a German or an Arabic one, now would you? You can just bet you wouldn’t. Why so? It’s because of the distinctive rhythms that unmistakably identify each type and genre of song, that’s why.

Photo: Salsa Dancers in Cali, Colombia – the Capitol of Salsa Music

Did You Notice
By the way, did you notice that you (and the learners) could quickly identify the language of the song by hearing ONLY the opening rhythms? That should come as no surprise. We identify music this way all the time. There was, years ago, a TV game show called “Name That Tune” where contestants tried to identify a song by hearing the fewest notes possible from the beginning of the song. Believe it or not, there were people who could correctly identify a song by hearing only the first note or two! It was absolutely amazing! The principle works just as well with the connected speech aspects and rhythms in English and other foreign language learning.

Now you can rest assured that the learners understand the difference between “syllable-stressed” and “accent-stressed” speech and language. Well not technically so, but at least they’ll recognize the difference between the two. English and Spanish are examples of this difference. Which one is which? Ah, YOU tell me!

Finding the Music and Songs You Need
Where oh where can I get the music and song examples that I’ll need to really be effective in using music to enhance my English language learners’ classroom experience? Relax, calm down, chill out – we’ll look at that particular aspect in the next article post of this series.

So, I’ll see you then.


Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. Now YOU too can live your dreams in paradise, find romance, high adventure and get paid while travelling for free. For more information on the lucrative, fascinating field of teaching English as a Foreign Language, get your copy of his no-cost, full multi-media, hypertext-linked pdf ebook, “If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here’s What You Need to Know” by sending an e-mail to lynchlarrym@gmail.com with "free ELT Ebook" in the subject line. Need professional, original content and photos or images for your blog, newsletter, e-zine or website? Want more information, have a comment or special request? E-mail the author for a prompt response.

Using Music to Enhance English Language Learning: Practically Speaking

We’ll continue with ways music can be employed in the English language learning classroom, useful activities in EFL or with English language learners. What kinds and genres of music might prove to be helpful and some free (I’ll bet your budget’s tight) sources for music to use in your class room with your language learners, regardless of the ages or profiles.

In General Music Use
First, accustom your learners to the use of music in a variety of ways in the ELL classroom. You could begin with using soft background music at times to help control the learners. After a TPR or other type of activity session, you calm and soften the learners’ mood but putting on a smooth, easy-listening or classical song (like Mozart or Cesaria Evora – pictured here). I use this while re-arranging seating from a previous activity or prior to starting a new one. The learners also know the transition is expected to be finished before the song ends, so after an initial acclimation period near the beginning of the semester, things often go quite smoothly.

Need to Time An Exercise?
Did you know that a song makes a great “timer” for short assignment or activity completion? When having learners complete a written, grammar, vocabulary or practice exercise, I’ll put on a soft instrumental (or jazz vocal) at a relatively low volume. Learners then have until the end of the piece to finish what they’ve been assigned to do. That way, you don’t have to “watch the clock” or be unnecessarily preoccupied with the time, since the song “times” the activity for you. I even have songs of certain lengths, with some for three, four or five minute lengths. Try it. It really works great.

If You’re NOT A Native Speaker
If You’re NOT A Native Speaker, or even if you are for that matter, then you could use songs to illustrate connected speech elements. Try “Hit the Road Jack” by the late Ray Charles when practicing contractions. “When I’m 64” by the Beatles works great for not only numbers but with connected speech liaison illustration too. Besides, the learners always like that one even if they’ve heard it umpteen times. Want to practice a particular consonant or vowel sound? No problem. I’ll bet you’ll have absolutely no trouble at all in finding a song that uses the sounds numerous times. By singing that tune, learners will inadvertently practice what you want them too. It’s especially effective – if you don’t tell them what you’re actually having them do. If they “figure it out”, great. Either way they’ll gladly “practice” by singing an upbeat, lively song that contains the practice elements you want.

Languages, Like Music, Have Rhythms
Languages, like music, have rhythms that distinguish them from one another. One of the biggest problems in connected speech is that learners try to speak English, for example, using the rhythm of their first language (L1). The result, of course, is that they sound “off”.
Exactly why this is so, along with an example of how to precisely illustrate this aspect of spoken language are the first items to be addressed in the next article post of this series.

See you then.


Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. Now YOU too can live your dreams in paradise, find romance, high adventure and get paid while travelling for free. For more information on the lucrative, fascinating field of teaching English as a Foreign Language, get your copy of his no-cost, full multi-media, hypertext-linked pdf ebook, “If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here’s What You Need to Know” by sending an e-mail to lynchlarrym@gmail.com with "free ELT Ebook" in the subject line. Need professional, original content for your blog, newsletter, e-zine or website? Want more information, have a comment or special request? Contact the author for a prompt response.

Using Music to Enhance English as a Second or Foreign Language Learning

In a previous article post, I talked about using music, from Mozart to enhance learning. Now, in response to reader comments, I’d like to expound on what areas music helps, and how it could be used with elementary school age children who are English Language Learners. When it comes to using music in TESOL, English as a foreign or second language teaching and learning, there are several viable options that can be applied depending on the purpose of the lesson, the facilities you may have available, your learners’ ages and profiles. Let’s briefly look at the rationale behind using music as a motivational tool in addition to some useful possibilities.

Photo: EFL Teacher Stephen Bradbury “Jazz Toots” in his off hours

Background Music
Have you noticed that music is often used to control or affect our moods while we are in a variety of public and commercial locations? Pay attention next time you’re at the mall, in a medical or dental practicioner’s office or clinic, in a restaurant or eatery, walking through strip malls or shopping districts, in an executive waiting area, in many commercial office settings, in elevators (the origin of elevator music) even “on hold” with a utility service, 800 number or the like. Likely you’ll find yourself almost inadvertently listening to music. This is definitely no accident. Why? Because a multitude of studies has shown that the public can generally be “controlled” or at least influenced to some extent by listening to certain types of music under certain types of circumstances. The company, Muzak, made millions based on this concept.

How Does Music Make You Feel?
Think for a few moments, about how different types music make you feel. When you hear classical, for example, how do you feel? Excited, anxious or relaxed and calmed? How about Rock music? Do you have the urge to relax then? Probably not. When you listen to smooth Jazz, do you “mellow out”? You do, huh? Guess why that’s what’s playing in medical and dental facility waiting areas. Instrumentals frequently have a soothing effect on most listeners too. If you’re in a “fast food” type of eatery that relies on volume sales for profits, you can almost bet that if they play music it will be quick-tempo (“Hurry-up”) beat to subtly aid you in finishing your food in short order. On the other side of the ledger, a strong, throbbing rhythmic beat that drives you to motion and action is the forte of nightclubs and discos worldwide. The louder the music beats (to help in overwhelming competing thoughts and feeling), the more bass and entrancing, the better.

In the Language Learning Classroom
What is it we’d like to convey using music in the English language learning classroom? According to research, one critical purpose of music is to aid in lowering the Affective Filter of language learners. (Krashen-Terrell, 1983) By lowering the learners’ Affective Filter we can actually:

• Encourage input, that is, improve the ease with which new language elements and information are learned or acquired

• Improve motivation and positive self-image

Given two learners with the exact same input or lesson, for instance, the one with the lower affective filter will acquire or learn more according to the Affective Filter Hypothesis mentioned previously. This strongly implies that by exercising some control over the learners’ classroom environment, we can in effect, help them to learn more and learn better.
This can be especially true with young learners. The how and why of this fact are truly fascinating.

In my next article post, we’ll continue with ways music can be employed in the English language learning classroom, useful activities in EFL or with English language learners. What kinds and genres of music might prove to be helpful and some free (I’ll bet your budget’s tight) sources for music to use in your class room with your language learners, regardless of the ages or profiles.


Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. Now YOU too can live your dreams in paradise, find romance, high adventure and get paid while travelling for free. For more information on the lucrative, fascinating field of teaching English as a Foreign Language, get your copy of his no-cost, full multi-media, hypertext-linked pdf ebook, “If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here’s What You Need to Know” by sending an e-mail to lynchlarrym@gmail.com with "free ELT Ebook" in the subject line. Need professional, original content for your blog, newsletter, e-zine or website? Want more information, have a comment or special request? Contact the author for a prompt response.

Yellow Fever: English Teachers Abroad, Know About and Protect Yourself from This Deadly Disease

If you’re teaching English as a foreign language abroad and you live in, travel to, vacation in or work in a foreign location where Yellow Fever occurs, you absolutely must protect yourself from this deadly disease.

The Symptoms
Scarlet, canary yellow and shimmering blue feathered birds flecked with iridescent green, chirp songs to greet the sunrise as you awake. But you do not notice. Thor’s hammer pounds your head in fury. Your eyes close from the pain. The smell of your breakfast sends waves of queasiness through your rumbling mid-section. The nausea increases as you rise. Your back is a slab of concrete. Again you try getting up and your muscles scream so loudly you move in the slow motion of a special effects film. Your palm burns from the 102 plus degrees F radiating from your forehead as you brush your hair back trying to stimulate yourself to alertness. A trip hammer thunders inside you at 100 to 110 beats per minute where your heart should be.
Good morning. You have Yellow Fever.

You Get Worse
A few days after the sudden onset of symptoms, as you worsen, you’ll become jaundiced and watch as your skin yellows to the point you more resemble a Halloween caricature than a dying person. The destruction of your liver cells results in the accumulation of yellow bile pigments in your skin, giving the disease its name. Your heart will slow to around 50 beats per minute. The rumbling in your stomach is your gastrointestinal tract bleeding. You vomit the characteristic black blood of Yellow Fever. It will become much worse. You don’t have long to suffer though. Death usually occurs between the fourth and eighth day after the onset of the disease.

The Mosquito
As little as three days, but more than likely around two weeks ago you were bitten by a species of an Aëdes aegypti mosquito while you were fishing in a tropical location or vacation spot where the disease occurs. That mosquito was itself infected by sucking the blood of an infected monkey or other infected primate or a sick person. If you are one of the rare cases who recovers, the disease will never recur, one attack providing immunity for life.

Yellow Fever is an untreatable, mosquito-borne disease which is endemic in Central America, some parts of South America and much of sub-Sahara Africa. Along both the Gulf of Mexico and Pacific coasts from Mexico to Panama, Colombia and Ecuador an alert caused by outbreaks of Yellow Fever is currently raging. From November until mid-January nearly a score of deaths from Yellow Fever are usually recorded. Immunization is of extreme importance. There is a good vaccine available which protects you for up to ten years. Many countries require an international vaccination certificate if you are traveling to or from an infected or endemic area because “many parts of the world are inhabited by mosquitoes capable of carrying this devastating disease and no one wants to see it spread beyond its present range”, according to Dr. Jane Wilson Howarth in “Bugs, Bites & Bowels”.

Resources
There is no specific medical treatment for Yellow Fever once it is contracted. Care consists of treating the symptoms of the disease by preventing dehydration and reducing fever. Bed rest is also important states Dirk G. Schroeder, ScD., MPH, in “Staying Healthy in Asia, Africa and Latin America”. In 1939 the South African physician Max Theiler developed a vaccine that confers immunity to the disease. The vaccine is not recommended for people with a severe allergy to eggs, children under 9 months of age, during pregnancy or in people who are immuno-supressed (e.g. cancer and AIDS sufferers, or people on high dose steroids).

Before traveling, you should discuss your options with a doctor or immunization center. If you are considering fishing or outdoor travel to Southeast Asia, Mexico, Panama, Colombia (or other countries in Central and South America), get vaccinated and carry the yellow health/vaccination records card you will be issued to avoid future problems. Take care. Don’t be a victim.

NOTE: You cannot enter a Yellow Fever area (i.e. Panama, Colombia, Brazil, etc.) without being vaccinated and you MUST show proof of vaccination within the past ten years.


Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. Now YOU too can live your dreams in paradise, find romance, high adventure and get paid while travelling for free. For more information on the lucrative, fascinating field of teaching English as a Foreign Language, get your copy of his no-cost, full multi-media, hypertext-linked pdf ebook, “If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here’s What You Need to Know” by sending an e-mail to lynchlarrym@gmail.com with "free ELT Ebook" in the subject line. Need professional, original content for your blog, newsletter, e-zine or website? Want more information, have a comment or special request? Contact the author for a prompt response.

Effective Ways to Use the Internet: Playing games and having fun

More on Using the Internet for English
or Foreign Language Learning

Our six ways of effectively using the Internet to learn English or another foreign language continues with suggestion numbers and five and six of six.

Photo: A curved outdoor pedestrian-only plaza leading to the Plaza de Los Martires in chilly Toluca, Mexico

5. Playing games and having fun

Vocabulary is often referred to as the building blocks of language. Knowledge of vocabulary is one aspect that separates the language learning levels. The more vocabulary you know, the more communicative you are. Here are some unique linguistic sites that help build your language as you “play”:

• The http://www.manythings.org/ site offers “interesting things for ESL students” like songs, jokes, quizzes, word games, puzzles, slang and even podcasts to help stimulate English language acquisition.

• The foreign language course site at: http://www.foreignlanguagehome.com/topics/courses/index.htm has activities in 27 languages including Finnish, Mandarin and Quechua.

• At the Transparent Language site you can play games in any one of more than 100 languages from Afrikaans to Farsi or Guarani to Yoruba. And yes, they have Zulu too. Check out all their listings here: http://www.transparent.com/games/

6. So what language tickles your fancy?

While the selection of language courses, tutorials, news feeds, music and other audio – visual materials online is extensive, ALL the world’s 6912 languages simply aren’t available. Sorry. But hundreds of languages are and here’s how to find you’re interested in if it’s online.

• 108 FREE online foreign language courses are posted at: http://www.word2word.com/coursead.html

• The PARLO language website offers courses in English, Spanish, French and Italian at: http://www.parlo.com/parlo21/home/courselist/courselist_en.asp

• The E. L. Easton Language Institute offers 14 languages online from Albanian to Japanese, Latin to Croatian to Russian and Spanish. The site is online at: http://eleaston.com/languages.html

• A plethora of language learning activities for the world wide web are online for practice activities from the University of Hawaii here: http://polyglot.lss.wisc.edu/lss/lang/nflrc.html

Although the internet may not be the complete answer to all your foreign language learning needs it nonetheless can be a tremendous resource in your efforts to “Habla Español”, “Parlez Francaise”, or “Sprechenze Deutcsh”. The prestige, financial gains, personal satisfaction, envy and opportunities that frequently follow with knowledge of a foreign language are without equal. Why don’t you start today trying out some of these effective ways to use the Internet to learn a language. Be sure to read the companion article posting “Six Quick Tricks for Learning a Language”. By the way, if you do find Cochimi, Cibemba or Kukapa, please let me know – I’m still looking.

Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. Now YOU too can live your dreams in paradise, find romance, high adventure and get paid while travelling for free. For more information on entering or advancing in the fascinating field of teaching English as a Foreign or Second Language send for his no-cost PDF Ebook, "If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know", by sending an e-mail to lynchlarrym@gmail.com with "free ELT Ebook" in the subject line. Need professional, original content for your blog, newsletter, e-zine or website? Want more information, have a comment or special request? Contact the author for a prompt response.

Effective Ways to Use the Internet: How do YOU learn?

Number Two: Become familiar with language learning strategies

How do YOU learn? Knowing this can make the daunting task of English or a foreign language learning less like study and more like play. Are you a Visual – Spatial learner who likes pictures, drawings, graphics and extensive use of color? A Musical – Rhythmic type that would benefit from having your lessons and materials set to music, rhythm or rhyme? Perhaps you’re the athletic type who’d derive more success with learning by motion, movement, mime or even dance? Playing the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (pictured) in the background while studying has been shown to enhance learning in a number of areas. To find out more about your manner of learning visit these sites for starters:

• Learning Styles Explanation http://www2.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/styles.htm

• Index of Learning Styles Questionnaire http://www2.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/ilsweb.html

• The Success Types Learning Style Indicator http://www.ttuhsc.edu/SOM/Success/LSTIntro.htm

3. Practice reading skills

Literacy is one of the 21st century’s most innately valuable compound skills. After all, you’re reading THIS now, aren’t you? Few would wish to be illiterate in their new foreign language so practice of reading skills is paramount. Online newspapers, magazines, newsletters and blogs can provide the needed practice and learning materials. Check out these reading comprehension skills sites:

• How to Read Your Textbook More Efficiently http://www.utexas.edu/student/utlc/lrnres/handouts/1422.html

• Self-study reading lessons http://www.english-to-go.com/

• Read the article in the following address: http://www.pacificnet.net/~sperling/quiz/read1a.html

In the address that follows, take the quiz to verify your understanding of the reading passage: http://www.pacificnet.net/~sperling/quiz/read1b.html

4. Help in developing listening skills

Considered to be the most difficult of the language skills to develop, listening cannot be taught. Rather, you must practice, practice, practice and then practice some more. Every week, twice a week I passed a street vendor at the same spot, absolutely clueless as to what he was saying. I knew what he was selling – I just peeked over at his wares. But his entreaties in street Spanish fell on my language-clogged ears for months. Then one evening, without warning, it happened. Just two days before, his cries were the same incomprehensible slur they’d been for months. That one evening however, when he launched into his huckster’s spiel I suddenly understood every word. My listening comprehension skills had clicked in. Why then? No one knows. Especially not me, and I’m a post-graduate-degreed Language Education Specialist!

Practice your listening skills with radio programs in your target language for a change at www.live365.com which has live global feeds 24 hours a day in multiple languages.

Foreign language internet radio and foreign news radio in 27 European, 4 Middle Eastern, 9 Asian languages and audio feeds from 19 African countries are broadcast on: http://www.multilingualbooks.com/online-radio.html

We’ll continue with two more ways to effectively use the internet for English or foreign language teaching and learning in the final, part 3 of this article posting.

Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an English language teaching and learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. Now YOU too can live your dreams in paradise, find romance, high adventure and get paid while travelling for free. For more information on entering or advancing in the fascinating field of teaching English as a Foreign or Second Language send for his no-cost PDF Ebook, "If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know", by sending an e-mail to lynchlarrym@gmail.com with "free ELT Ebook" in the subject line. Need professional, original content for your blog, newsletter, e-zine or website? Want more information, have a comment or special request? Contact the author for a prompt response.