Speaking of Language

Since ASL is a visual form of communication, we present this episode as a video, rather than the usual audio-only format. You can view the video here: https://youtu.be/cIcmaj7kkpk

A transcription of this conversation, adapted from the real-time translation occurring in the studio, is available at https://tinyurl.com/brendaschertz.

A second version of the conversation, with a new translation, is forthcoming.

For the final episode of the fourth season of the Speaking of Language podcast, Sam and Angelika speak with Brenda Schertz, the senior lecturer in American Sign Language and coordinator of the ASL Program here at Cornell. Brenda holds a BFA from the Art Institute of Boston, and a Masters in Sign Language Education from Gallaudet University. Brenda and interpreter Mareike Larsen discuss interpreter training, art, film, and all things American Sign Language. 

In honor of Thanksgiving, Sam and Angelika ask students, faculty, and staff around the LRC what they're thankful for.

We'll be back next week with our special final episode of the semester!

Amanda Brown lets us in on the sometimes surprising results of her research into immersive and non-immersive language teaching. Dr. Brown is Associate Professor of Linguistics at Syracuse University. She was on campus as part of our monthly LRC Speaker Series, and gave a talk titled “Immersive versus Non-Immersive Language Teaching: Experimental Studies in English, French, and Arabic Classrooms.”

We're taking a breather this week and are re-broadcasting one of our favorite older episodes, our December 2018 season finale featuring Cornell's Uttiyo Raychaudhuri. Since this conversation took place, Dr. Raychaudhuri has moved from his position as the first Executive Director for the Office of Global Learning at Cornell to serve as a strategy consultant to the Office of the Vice Provost for International Affairs. Whether you’re listening for the first time, or revisiting the conversation, we hope you enjoy and appreciate Dr. Raychaudhuri's vision for international engagement and global citizenship.

Sam and Angelika are joined by Cornell's Abby Cohn and Katie Blake to recap the premier Cornell World Languages Day. The pilot event brought high school students from the community to Cornell's campus to celebrate world languages and cultures. The four discuss the impact it had on participating students and Cornell participants.

Learn more about Cornell World Languages Day at http://wld.lrc.cornell.edu/

In this episode, two Cornell colleagues join us to discuss their experiences teaching language to incarcerated students. Makda Weatherspoon is a Senior Lecturer of Arabic, and Tess Wheelwright is the Academic Director of the Cornell Prison Education Program (CPEP).

Learn more about CPEP at https://cpep.cornell.edu/

Leah Sweet, the Lynch Curatorial Coordinator for Academic Programs at the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art on Cornell’s campus, discusses how museums can be integrated into language teaching. She also touches on the current Johnson exhibition of contemporary art about the movement of people across the globe.

Learn more about the Johnson Museum, including current, past, and upcoming exhibits, at https://museum.cornell.edu/

Margaret Malone is the Director of the Assessment and Evaluation Language Resource Center at Georgetown University, a Research Professor at Georgetown, and she is also the Director of ACTFL’s Center for Assessment, Research and Development. She was on campus as part of our monthly LRC Speaker Series and gave a talk titled “What do students and instructors need to understand about language assessment and what do language assessment developers and researchers need to know about students and instructors?” We continue to discuss strategies for overcoming the potential disconnect between test users and test developers in language assessment in this episode.

A video of Meg's talk is available at lrc.cornell.edu/speaker-series and on the LRC's YouTube channel.

Allyssa Ford, a student at Cornell’s S.C. Johnson Graduate School of Management, discusses her experience as a linguist for the United States Navy, and her time in their intensive language school as well as working with civilian language analysts in the NSA.

Cornell undergraduate Nisa Burns shares her experiences learning multiple Southeast Asian languages and how study abroad has influenced her future aspirations for language revitalization.