LAS LENGUAS INGLESA Y ESPAÑOLA de Delfín Carbonell

I have been advocating the 15-minute-a-day method for language learning for years and am still backing it. As a matter of fact, only yesterday I suggested a student of mine try it. At first glance, it appears to be an easy task to take on but difficult to adhere to because this method, which totals 91 hours of study yearly, puts the student´s character to the test. It boils down to focusing on language study for fifteen minutes every day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. I have challenged many of my students to do it, only to find that not one has been able to pursue this method for more than a month. Out of 24 hours, it would seem easy to set apart 15 minutes daily to accomplish a given task, but it isn´t. Given the nature of the brain, rituals are welcome but end up becoming boring, and boredom kills learning. I have not solved this drawback or glitch in the system, but I still believe in the 15-minute-a-day method for language learning and I am still giving the matter much though...

  The Internet is chockfull of well-meaning people -I would like to think-, mostly natives, who insist on telling readers what in English or Spanish is "informal" or "formal". They disregard the complexities of language, society, and culture. But these self-appointed, latter-day language gurus love to pontificate about what they consider appropriate. "If you want to sound more like a native, don´t say how are you , say hija ." To pass off as a native speaker, don´t say, mister Smith  , say, Mac, or you ." They insist that using "madam" when addressing a woman is old fashioned and stilted. According to them, the word "sir" came into disuse decades ago, and nowadays "I´m good" has definitely replaced "I am well." Again, it is all a question of age, education mores, context, and social standing. This a thin line that foreign students cannot tread without perhaps falling into the abyss of bad manners and thus reject...

  It seems that the capacity for language use and acquisition is located in the brain's left hemisphere. In my neuroscientific ignorance, I suppose that scientists have come to this conclusion by trial and error: we poke this spot in the brain and you cannot move your left arm; we needle this other spot and you cannot speak... etc. However, I have a doubt: if one language is located in the brain´s left hemisphere, two (or three) languages must also be located in the same place... but how? Are all languages crowded together? How does the brain differentiate one from another? When I speak English, where does my Spanish stay? And vice versa. I reckon all languages I know are located in the left hemisphere, but in different locations, right? Why doesn´t the brain get all mixed up and confuses words and expressions? A mystery. This mystery I shall unravel in my next life. In the meantime, think about this as it bears on language learning.