Weekly Task 2
After watching Lera Borditsky’s SAR lecture from May of 2017(link below), I noted the following to strike me as interesting.
[6:26] Dr. Boroditsky mentions that it is possible that thinking differently is required because different languages ask the speaker to pay attention to different specifics.
In my own experience I think this is important because it opens a new way of looking at learners, especially those who have a language other than English as their first language. How does the way they need to think because of language alter how they see the world around them?
[18:17] Dr. Boroditsky mentions language being causal meaning you can change the way people think way people think by teaching them a new language.
In my own experience I think this is important because ELL educators need to be mindful that when learners are learning English, they are doing a lot more work that just learning the language. They are training their brain to think a different way.
[33:53] Dr. Boroditsky mentions how grammatical forms that are around a person change what they pay attention to.
In my own experience I think this is important, especially in young children, to be aware of what they are hearing at home and the grammatical forms they are bringing into the classroom. This may change what they are paying attention and what they think is important around them.
[35:02] Dr. Boroditsky mentions that math is not universal.
In my own experience I think this is important because we often fixate on what is the current normal. I think that if we explored more systems of numbers our students would have a better understanding of how number language works and what is the reasoning behind them.
[44:49] Dr Boroditsky mentions how we are capable of seeing the world in many different ways but don’t often think to do it.
In my own experience I think this is important because we often become narrowly focused in our lives and how we see the world. It is important to use language to help us see different perspectives and find what is really meaningful to us.
[57:02] Dr. Boroditsky mentions how language is always changing and is not static.
In my own experience I think this is important because every generation focuses on how change is bad and how it is ruining language. We need to focus on how change happens and what comes from these changes. Every generation puts their own mark on language which should be celebrate because it shows how our brains are flexible and clever.
Things that this video made me wonder:
- Has neuroscience looked at how different languages engage different parts of the brain?
- How can educators engage learners in meaningful exploration of language, text and technology?
- How many languages is the human capable of learning and using?
- Will there be new languages developed in the future? Not just new words but whole complete languages?
Video link: https://youtu.be/iGuuHwbuQOg