A blog about languages and linguistics

Archives for October 2020

Linguistics

Forensic Linguistics — Two Important Cases Where It Played A Part

Ever since I started studying language I’ve been fascinated by forensic linguistics! The fact that language can be used to help solve crimes is just amazing to me and very much Sherlock Holmes-like. 🔍

What is forensic linguistics?

As defined by Dr John Olsson of the Forensic Institute, it is ‘‘the interface between language, crime and law, where law includes law enforcement, judicial matters, legislation, disputes or proceedings in law, and even disputes which only potentially involve some infraction of the law or some necessity to seek a legal remedy.’’ So, basically, it is a discipline that analysis evidence based on language and that may be able to help solve a legal dispute or a crime. We use it to find out who’s guilty, but also to protect the innocent.

How cool is that?

Experts divide forensic linguistics divide into two areas:

Spoken language

It refers to the language that interpreters analyze when victims, suspects and witnesses are interviewed and also what and how they said something during a crime. The linguists who specialize in spoken language focus on the dialect, tone, pronunciation etc.

Written language

It refers to transcripts of official interviews with suspects, victims and witnesses, phone messages, letters, social media posts etc. The linguists who specialize in written language focus on punctuation, spelling, grammar, word choice etc.

Derek Bentley case

On November 2 1952 Derek Bentley, 19 at the time, and his 16-year-old friend Christopher Craig were trying to burgle a warehouse, neighbors spotted them and called the police. When police got there, one of them said to Craig, ”Hand over the gun!”, and Bentley yelled, ”Let him have it, Chris”. Craig killed a policeman shortly after, but it was Bentley who they convicted of murder and executed by hanging. There was a lot of controversy around what the phrase meant and it was one of the first cases in history where forensic linguistics was used. Did ”let him have it” mean ”go ahead and kill him” or ”give him the gun”?

Also, linguists came to the conclusion that the grammatical use of ”then” after the grammatical subject ( ”I then” instead of ”then I”) in the ”confession” recorded by Bentley wasn’t consistent with his idiolect (use of language) which he used in court testimony. In fact, it fit better the idiolect of the policemen, which proved that the ”confession” was edited by policemen. Thanks to this and other evidence that was part of a long campaign, Bentley was able to get a posthumous pardon.

The Unabomber Case

This case is famous because it was the only time in the US a search warrant was issued exclusively on language evidence (1995).

Nicknamed the ”Unabomber” (University and Airline Bomber), Ted Kaczynski killed people by mailing them bombs, which was a campaign that lasted for NINE years. He wrote a 35,000 – word manifesto and submitted it to the New York Times and the Washington Post. The manifesto explained his motives and his views on modern society.

After the essay was published, a lot of people called to suggest possible suspects. Ted’s brother David called the FBI and provided letters written by his brother which were written in the same manner as the manifesto.

What was interesting was that the linguists were able to identify both the age and where he was from, purely based on how Ted wrote the manifesto. He used words like ”chick” for women which was something ”you would hear from a ’50’s movie”. The writing format matched Chicago newspaper clips from he 50’s as well, which helped the linguists determine the bomber was born and raised in the Chicago area.

There is an amazing series on Netflix called Manhunt:Unabomber which explores how the FBI caught Kaczynski, and (what I enjoyed most, obviously) how forensic linguistics helped narrow down his profile.

Language learning tips

What is The Queen’s English? 3 Ways to Sound Regal

What is the Queen’s English? OK – it makes sense that the Queen of England uses The Queen’s English, but do you know we also consider it the standard, grammatically correct English? Back in the 17th century, English aristocracy started being associated with perfect, precise English and this is how the Queen’s English came about. If you spoke like The Royal Family it meant that you were a highly educated individual. You also had to be very careful and use Received Pronunciation (RP), which is the accent used in the south of England.

That’s a lot to remember and actually use!

So, you may be wondering – how many people actually speak the Queen’s English in this globalized world? Hardly anyone, honestly.

To be precise (like the Queen!), around 3% of the British population. The rest of the people just use their own dialects they’ve picked up growing up. But, don’t let that stop you!

Without further ado, let’s find out the top 3 things you should do to sound like the queen:

1) Avoid slang and other modern conventions

Yeah – slang may be cool, but the Queen does not think so. Same goes for adding ”like” to everything you say – using, like, filler words is strictly prohibited! Just to remind you, filler words don’t mean anything and we usually add them just to fill a pause in a conversation. Other than like, there are basically, you know, actually, also other filler words.

Some of the slang words you should avoid if you want to speak the Queen’s English are:

  • extra – say ”unnecessarily dramatic” instead
  • lit – opt for ”delightful” instead
  • shook (as in I was shook) – say ”incredibly surprised” instead
  • etc.

My choice of slang is very much Gen Z today, but just remember you should avoid all slang. Period.

2) Speak slowly and take your time to pronounce words

The Queen’s never rushing anywhere because she’s never late. Everyone else is simply early! Try to put yourself in her shoes in order to speak the real Queen’s English. Don’t rush your words – if you’re used to saying ”particularly” without pronouncing the second to last syllable, avoid doing the same when opting for RP/ Queen’s English. We should pronounce it as par-tic-yoo-lahr-ly.

3) Use ”posh” words

Can you imagine the queen saying ”I’m done” or ”booze”? Neither can I! Here’s a list of words of what you should say vs. what you shouldn’t, just to give you an idea:

  • I’m finished vs. I’m done
  • Alcohol vs. booze
  • Invitation vs. invite

Also, use ”terribly’‘ instead of ”very” ( for example, I am terribly sorry) , and don’t think ”serviette” will make you sound cool just because it’s French – definitely go for ”napkin” instead. ”Scent” should also be used instead of perfume.

There you go – those were the three things to keep in mind if you’d like to speak the Queen’s English! Just in case you have an appointment with the queen herself or something, you just never know.

Language learning tips

A Fun Context Clues Anchor Chart (+a free printable)

OK, first of all, we already know that the best tool for learning vocabulary does NOT include learning a list of words that have nothing to do with each other by heart and with no context. Honestly, the mere thought of trying to memorize something unrelated and abstract is already very unappealing to me. More about why this is not a good idea here.

You can’t fool your brain and you know it – the words have to mean something to it and to you personally. You have to be able to connect them and, poetically speaking, bring them to life! This means that you have to create some context, which is ”the situation within which something happens”. Not only is this useful when learning vocabulary but when you’re learning anything really. Let’s say you have to teach/learn the present perfect tense. You can’t just say – OK, we use it to describe something that started in the past but is still true today, that makes perfect sense. Umm, what does? It doesn’t make any sense at all! It’s as abstract as it gets. We have to see how it is used and in what situations exactly.

Same goes for vocabulary – you may be able to remember 20 words in a day- I’m pretty sure your brain is quite capable of that, but you’ll forget them the next day and you’ll end up realizing you’ve wasted your precious time (ouch).

OK, so what is this amazing tool already?

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the best tool for learning vocabulary I’ve come across – Context Clues Anchor Chart! So, what are context clues? Essentially, they are hints that will help you remember or guess a word from context.

Oh, how I wish I’d discovered this chart sooner. Every since I found it (thanks, Pinterest), I’ve been sharing it with students and using it in class.

Not only is it a great tool for teaching vocabulary, but you can use it for self-study as well (as I do). I’m sharing a free printable that contains my favorite context clues:

So, for example, let’s say you’re trying to learn the word talkative. You’d write:

Definition: Anna is such a talkative person. She always talks a lot.

Synonym (similar word): Anna is such a talkative person. She’s so chatty that she’ll talk the whole day without getting tired.

Antonym(word that means the opposite): Anna is very talkative, unlike Jack, who’s quiet and barely says anything.

Cause and effect (use so, since, therefore, thus etc.) : Since Anna is so talkative, I didn’t have to say much – I just listened.

How do I use this free printable?

Just copy what I did in the examples above and write your own information about the words you’re studying. You can also use context clues when reading, Besides, reading is such an awesome way to learn vocabulary because you see the real context, too.

Some other types of context clues are:

Example clues (including, such as, for example):

Celestial objects, including the sun, stars and moon have long been fascinating to humankind.

  • thanks to the example, you’ll figure out that celestial means ”belonging to the sky”

Inference clue (sufficient clues to make a guess):

He told me: ”I’m never going on a trip alone ever again. I had no one to share my thoughts with and the time went by very slowly. I was so bored. The experience was absolutely monotonous.

  • Monotonous means ”boring”

Mood clue (the mood is set by the author and the word is in harmony with it)

Lucy’s exuberant personality never went unnoticed – she inspired many and she loved life so much that it seemed to love her back.

Enjoy!!! 😍

Teaching tips

How to Teach a Language? 5 Effective Teaching Strategies

I’m so excited to share my top 5 tips for foreign language teachers with you! These tips are especially important if you’re just starting to teach, but they can be just as useful if you’ve been teaching for years. I’ve been teaching languages for 5+ years now and I still need a reminder. There’s always room for improvement.

1. Don’t talk too much – listen instead.

This has to be one of the best tips for language teachers but OK, I gotta admit…this has been a challenge for me because I LOVE to talk, believe me. Even the simple ”How are you?” question doesn’t work as I always have a lot more to say than just a ”Good, and you?”. How can you just be good? I mean, good for you, but… define good! Just good or more leaning towards not so good?

Anyhow, you just have to remember that it’s not about you. It’s about your student. Always keep in mind the 70/30 ratio of student to teacher talk time.

However, I understand it’s hard to make someone who’s not talkative talk in a foreign language when talking is hard enough for them on its own. You have to make them realize THEY need the practice. There’s always something to ask, and especially if it has to do with something they’re interested in.

I used to take a note of what my students’ hobbies were so I could ask them whenever I was stuck or they didn’t feel like talking.

Another thing you can do is ask open-ended questions, that way a student won’t just answer with a yes or no, and you won’t be banging your head against a wall trying to come up with the next question. Compare these two:

-Did you have a good weekend? – Yes.

-How was your weekend? – It was good … (hopefully they’ll say a bit more, if not, you can always ask ”What did you do?”).

2. Create a positive atmosphere.

Let’s be honest – students are terrified and completely out of their comfort zone when learning a foreign language. They need to feel good in order to be able to learn. If not, it’ll only push them further away from reaching their goals.

Praise them, make them laugh, motivate them!

I know it’s hard to be happy and positive all the time when teaching. Everyone can have a bad day, both you as a teacher, and your student as a…student. 😁 Just try to take a little break and try not think about other issues in class, and I PROMISE, more often than not – you’ll cheer up, as well as the student. Call me weird, but I literally get goosebumps when a student gets something right or I feel like they’re enjoying my lesson.

3. Correct your students when they’re wrong.

You shouldn’t quite go for ”You made a mistake” like it’s a big deal, but don’t smile and nod either. Your students need to learn, and they’ll only do that if you point out their mistakes (IMO). You can either correct them right away (if it’s something short or not pronounced well) or wait until they finish their story or sentence.

I did have some students who didn’t want to be corrected because they just wanted to ”practice”. Ummm, if by practicing you mean making the same mistake over and over again, then that’s fair. But then it’s muuuuuch harder to eradicate it because you’ve made a habit of saying something in a certain way.

I just think we should see mistakes differently. Once we start seeing them as an opportunity to learn, they won’t be such a big deal anymore. 😉

Also – don’t just correct them like you’re some sort of language teaching machine. Your students want your feedback as a human, too. Don’t forget to react to their stories and laugh if they’re telling a joke.

4. Teach culture

A language is a HUGE part of a country’s culture, so it’s really not a good idea to skip it. You cannot have a language without a culture, and vice versa.

There’s somebody out there in the real world buying milk and using the same vocabulary you’re teaching in today’s lesson. Expose your students to authentic material, compare the student’s culture to that of the target language, bring some food to class, celebrate holidays…

Check out more amazing techniques on how you can teach culture in the foreign language classroom here.

5. Use context

Yeah, le passé simple is very boring on its own, I’m not gonna lie to you – 10/10 would NOT recommend. 😁 HOWEVER, if you bring a Guillaume Musso’s book and read a passage to your students, they’ll be much more intrigued about its usage. Musso loves le passé simple, as do most of the French writers. Funnily enough, nobody really uses it in everyday speech. So, if your students see that le passé simple’s been used in a book, and that they saw it in class, they’ll be able to connect the dots.

And no – context isn’t a school exam. As teachers, we often tell students they absolutely NEED to know something, but we don’t always explain why. Which is a shame. I’m not a math teacher, but I always hated math problems like ” You have 600 watermelons and your friend gives you 75 more…” wait, first of all, what kind of watermelon business is this, and who’s this generous friend of mine? *sings watermelon sugar high*

What I’m trying to say is, by showing your students a real-life example, they’ll remember it much better. If it’s not relevant to them, it’ll just go in one ear and out the other.

I’ve also written an article about 4 Super Easy Exercises to Help You Memorize Vocabulary in Context that you may find useful.😉

Those were my top 5 tips for language teachers, hope you enjoyed them and that they’ve inspired you to teach better!