Story and images by Manish Singh / WinBeta Earlier this year, 

Earlier this year, Microsoft announced “Skype Translator”, a ground breaking feature which would allow two people speaking in different languages to have audio conversations. At the company’s Worldwide Partner Conference event, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced a development to that project — Skype Translator now facilitates video conferencing as well.

Source: www.telepresenceoptions.com

. 

Although universal communication among people speaking different languages is certainly a worthy goal, I am reluctant to embrace the technology that allegedly allows instantaneous translation during audio/video conferences among speakers of different languages–for many reasons.

• My ethnic Kazakh daughter and I are bilingual (English & Russian), and I have found that the act, itself, of learning a new language necessarily draws one closer to the customs and practices of the people who use the language in their day-to-day lives (requiring an examination of nearly every aspect of the lives of those who speak the “different language”–allowing, at least the feeling of, adoption of a new and different culture).
• Language (particularly oral as opposed to written) is an imprecise method of communication, and even experienced translators will attest that different languages have idiosyncrasies that do not allow for an accurate or precise communication of a particular idea, description or opinion sought to be сonveyed. Подвиг (Podvig) is a Russian word used to describe a particular idea in Eastern Orthodox Christianity is an example of one such word–though others may disagree
• Because of the decline of formal language usage in favor of slang and the explosion of the use of acronyms (SMH, YOLO, WTF), and the multitudes of “figures of speech”, I am skeptical that current technology exists that would allow a computer program algorithm to translate accurately and instantaneously the communications between people speaking different languages.
• Upon reflection, I could not support the widespread use of the technology described in this article. Language, in its many different and beautiful forms, is a reflection of the culture, history and heritage of those who speak it.

See on Scoop.it – Human Rights

Many studies show us that our brains prefer storytelling to facts.When we read facts, only the language parts of our brains work to understand the meaning. When we read a story, the language parts of our brains and any other part of the brain that we would use if we were actually experiencing what we’re reading, light up.This means that it’s easier for us to remember stories than facts. Our brains can’t make major distinctions between a story we’re reading about and something we are actually doing….

Source: writerswrite.co.za

See on Scoop.it – Human Rights

Vanderbilt University

“Metacognition is, put simply, thinking about one’s thinking.  More precisely, it refers to the processes used to plan, monitor, and assess one’s understanding and performance. Metacognition includes a critical awareness of a) one’s thinking and learning and b) oneself as a thinker and learner.

Metacognitive practices increase students’ abilities to transfer or adapt their learning to new contexts and tasks.”

Source: cft.vanderbilt.edu

See on Scoop.it – Human Rights

Take a moment to join us in a snapshot of a classroom we recently observed: Students are hard at work designing a travel brochure as a part of their study of Ireland. They need to think about how m…

Source: globaldigitalcitizen.org

See on Scoop.it – Human Rights