There has been a lot of hand-wringing about mathematics lately. According to national and international testing we are not getting any better at it and plenty of good reasons have been offered for why…
Academic rigour, journalistic flair
Articles on Language
Displaying 661 - 680 of 710 articles
Revelations of fraudulent practices allowing bogus students to obtain visas to study in the UK have been received with shock and disbelief by English language teachers. An investigation by BBC’s Panorama…
Languages evolve and transform. If that weren’t the case, the only word in the previous sentence that would be considered English is and (which in any case used to mean if). The English we speak would…
Language is about much more than just about talking to each other; it’s one of the bases of identity and culture. But as the world becomes increasingly globalised and reliant on technology, English has…
The drop in applications to European language programmes at UK universities will not have come as a great shock to anybody teaching languages. For at least the past 15 years, the number of students applying…
Emoticons, punctuation and creative spelling have been debated, condemned, and regulated since the very beginning of online text-based communication. We’ve all seen “netiquettes” on how not to use ALL…
Each year the Macquarie Dictionary names a Word of the Year from a shortlist of words that have made a valuable contribution to the language. And it has declared 2013 to be the year … of … the … “infovore…
We could blame it on The Ashes. Last week, media outlets reported the Brits’ use of the Aussie accent might hurt their chances of promotion. But take a deep breath and two steps back from the 24-hour news…
We like to think that we reach conclusions by reviewing facts, weighing evidence and analysing arguments. But this is not how humans usually operate, particularly when decisions are important or need to…
In 1995 Prince Charles caused a ruckus when he lamented the unchecked spread of American English – and the effect of American usage is one that’s perennially lamented. But is it true? Are Americans really…
Rock and roll has always been a great liberating force in our culture. For many it has provided the soundtrack for all manner of acts of political rebellion and personal liberation. This spirit is captured…
What is sign language? Before we answer that question, it might be useful to first consider what a “language” is. Spoken languages are naturally developed complex systems that use a set of conventionalised…
Here’s the truth, and if you’re British or Australian, you may not like it: when it comes to the suffix ize, as opposed to ise, the American standard is correct. I have no idea what cultural forces made…
A report from the British Academy has warned that a lack of foreign language skills could undermine the UK’s future security and capacity for global influence. The report warns of an apathy towards language…
How did Australia, the mysterious southern continent that had captured European imaginations since ancient times, slip from the grasp of the Dutch? Four hundred years ago, the Dutch East India Company…
For many educators, the dream feels tantalisingly close: free, quality education for everyone in the world. The arrival of Massive Open Online Courses or MOOCs led to predictions of a great new age of…
Immigration minister Scott Morrison is new to government, but he is a seasoned campaigner on Australia’s response to boat people. He knows how to get attention on this issue and he knows how to use the…
I found myself in wholehearted agreement with Boris Johnson, as he took the opportunity of his trip to China to express his opinion that British children should learn Mandarin. China has come a long way…
The amount that parents speak to their toddlers can directly affect how quickly they process language and grow their vocabularies…
It doesn’t matter whether or not you think it’s fair: if you’re an academic, your publishing record will have a crucial impact on your career. It can profoundly affect your prospects for employment, for…
Top contributors
-
Senior Lecturer in Linguistics, Monash University
-
Professor of Linguistics, Monash University
-
Course coordinator, The University of Queensland
-
Associate Dean and Professor of Psychology, University of Memphis
-
Professor of English Language and Literature, University of Oxford
-
Professor of Linguistics, University of York
-
Associate Professor in Linguistics, Macquarie University
-
Associate Professor in Language, Literacy and TESL, University of Canberra
-
Professor of Linguistics and English, Florida International University
-
Professor of African Language Studies, University of the Western Cape
-
Postdoctoral research fellow (Forensic Linguistics/ Language and Law), University of the Western Cape
-
Professor, Charles Darwin University
-
Professor of Communication and Journalism, Texas A&M University
-
Director, Office of Scholarly Communication and Publishing, University of Pittsburgh
-
Professor of Linguistics
