--- Forwarded Message from Trip Kirkpatrick <[log in to unmask]> ---

>From: Trip Kirkpatrick <[log in to unmask]>
>Date:         Wed, 2 Feb 2011 07:40:34 -0500
>Subject: Re: #9567 Recent articles on Foreign Language Study
>To: [log in to unmask]

Karl:

One of the more interesting notions I've heard recently is that being
bilingual can help prevent Alzheimer's. (Of course, the study comes with the
usual caveats, but it makes for a good selling point.)
http://www.neurology.org/content/75/19/1726.abstract?sid=00a140c3-da2c-40a4-8e31-ed149e271bf8

More importantly, however, are you sure -- to flirt with insulting you --
that the articles are dated? In my personal opinion, we do ourselves no
service by emphasizing only the current reasons for studying and learning
languages. Certainly I'm aware of political exigencies, but it might be
worth making the point explicitly or implicitly to your review board that
language study, like higher education itself, has purpose that goes beyond
any era's instrumental needs. This, regardless of the reasons for which the
students themselves think they are studying and regardless of the reasons
for which an institution thinks it offers it.

Best,
Trip

--
Trip Kirkpatrick
Academic Technology Specialist
Center for Language Study

e: [log in to unmask]
w: http://www.cls.yale.edu/
p: 203.432.4609

skype: tripst3r
twitter: triplingual

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