Mango Languages

Students have spoken. And they love Mango.

Mango recently surveyed users at academic institutions and found that over 90% of respondents reported an improvement in their language skills from using Mango.  But that wasn’t all – they had lots of great things to say about their Mango experience.  Check it out:

“I want to learn Japanese in my free time so I’ll be ready for an exchange in the near future.  Mango has made it so much easier to learn Japanese and I’ve been telling all of my college friends about it.“

“I like Mango’s portability, as I have it connected on both iPad^® and my Android™ phone.  Whenever I need it, Mango is there!”

“I love that it covers many aspects of learning the language and gives you the opportunity to practice.”

“It offers a variety of languages – and languages that are relevant.”

“I love how simple it is to navigate and how clear the voices of the ‘teachers’ are.”

“I love how it keeps reviewing previously learned material.”

“Manageable chunks of information make me feel like I’m making progress.”

“I really like using Mango. I have been able to grasp the language much better than when I took a class on it.  And I can remember much more, even if I take a long break in between sessions.”

“The format of lessons is well done: breaking down sentences, teaching the words, and showing how things change when used in another context.  This has been very useful, especially in learning long or otherwise difficult phrases.”

“I like the availability and the accessibility.  I can pick it up and use it whenever I want to.”

“I love this program. It has proved beneficial for every situation I have found myself in.”

Is there an international language? Part Two.

In the previous post we looked briefly at the main factors that can lead to the abandonment and loss of a language.  Let’s see now what happens nowadays to foresee if of the 83 major languages, one will surpass all others and be crowned THE language.

Part 2: What Is the Situation Today

Let’s say first that from a biological standpoint, the existence of only one language is not impossible. Our brains are hardwired to learn language, not a language. A child will learn the language(s) s/he is exposed to, regardless of their nationality. For example, a Chinese child will learn Chinese if s/he is exposed to Chinese, or Japanese if s/he is exposed to Japanese.

So, what is the situation today?

There is still immigration.

There are social forums, where people want to communicate and make friends with people sometimes in the other part of the planet, speaking a different language, so they need a lingua franca, a language commonly known.

There are new developments and so new vocabulary is used, and languages either create new words to cover that need or adopt the foreign word as is; there is osmosis, attrition, “languages” like Chinglish, or Spanglish.

There are movements of language revitalization: despite the efforts of the former Spanish dictator Franco to stamp out the regional languages of Spain, today Catalan is stronger than ever; similarly, efforts are made to restore Irish, Cornish and other languages whose speakers were forced to abandon them.

All these phenomena have been with languages since day 1. People have always come into contact and had lingua francas. Languages have always come into contact and borrowed or lent words; new words have always been created to cater for new needs. Creoles have been created.

But is there coercion? Is there loss of self-esteem? Is there conscious effort to keep up with the changes or are the changes too rapid for us to keep up pace with them?

Maybe the answer to the two first questions is no, or not to the same extend as in the past, but we must explore the third one more in depth. One word that characterizes “today” is “globalization.” People today come into contact more often than before, through forums, blogs etc. The reason why there were so many languages in the past was that people lived in small settlements of a few speakers, sometimes in complete isolation, and used a lingua franca whenever they had to communicate with other tribes; they met, solved their issues, and left to meet much time later, if ever. But today, people use the Internet on an everyday basis. Services are created that are addressed to the world as a whole. Translation of services is costly and sometimes it cannot be done automatically and hence on time.

Languages must keep up with the technological changes. If a page is not translated into someone’s native language but is translated into English and s/he speaks English, then s/he will read it in English. There is automatic translation but if only English is supported then the future of the other languages is bleak.

There is much need for an international lingua franca, and the English Language is the best candidate. The question now is, will it prevail? Are we – or rather our children’s children – going to experience an anti-Babel phenomenon?

Why give up a language when you can speak both your language and the lingua franca?

No reason, probably, but let’s look at what happened in Italy: Before 1861, there were many states in Italy and as many languages: if someone from Milan met someone from Sicily, they wouldn’t be able to communicate. After 1861 when all these states were united, through education, but more importantly for our topic, through the mass media, the Italian language has been homogenized and is now what we call “Italian.”

Can there be a similar case today through the Internet? Can people unconsciously start using one language more and more until they forget their native tongues?

This is yet to be seen.

Mango Language Resolution – Weekly Recap 1

We started our Language Resolution campaign with one goal in mind: to help you learn a language by 2013.  We hear excuses all too often: “I wanted to learn a language this year, but couldn’t find the time to practice” or “I ran out of steam and lacked motivation.”  This year, we’re not going to let that happen.  Mango’s got your back – not to mention daily tips, challenges, and motivation to keep you on track.  All you have to do is stay tuned to our pages on Facebook and Twitter.

Last week things got off to a strong start on Monday when we challenged our followers to write their grocery or shopping list in the language they were studying.  On Tuesday, we followed this up with a vocab challenge focused on greetings and terms of gratitude.  Translations of “thank you” and “goodbye” were shared in a handful of languages, including French, Arabic, Japanese and German.  Plus, Philip E. shared his personal translation of those phrases into “Southern U.S. English,” as ‘obliged’ and ‘later’.  Thanks for giving a mini-lesson to our Detroiter Mango crew, Philip!

Wednesday is all about motivation, so we shared a touching story from one of our patrons based at the Kent District Library in Michigan.  Having been in a long-distance relationship for 6 years, she tried everything to learn Swedish without success – including Rosetta Stone.  But after starting Mango, she experienced more improvement in a few days than she had done in years!  Read her full story here.

We dedicate Thursday to a roundtable discussion of issues and challenges faced when learning a foreign language.  Last week we focused on how to successfully learn vocabulary.  Our followers had fantastic tips for tackling this challenge, including: using flashcards, playing video games, reading foreign signs or packaging, and creating associations with English words that have a similar sound.  The one thing that everyone seemed to agree on is that repetition is key, no matter what method you use.  We also agree with this point – which is why repetition of phrases and vocabulary is an important theme in Mango’s courses.

On Friday, we closed out the week with one final challenge for our followers: to “like” or “follow” a foreign company’s page on Facebook or Twitter.  This is a great way to infuse foreign content into your feed!  Haven’t had a chance to complete the challenge yet?  Commit to doing it today!  It only takes 5 minutes.

Ready to get things geared up again this week?  We’ve got a week chock-full of fun challenges, motivating inspiration, and helpful tips/tricks ahead!  Check out our Facebook and Twitter pages daily to keep updated.  Remember, 2012 is the year.  #LanguageResolution.  Let’s do this together.

Adventures in Language Learning: Mango Fans Share “Moment of Pride”

This week we asked our Mango fans on Facebook to share with us their proudest language learning moment.  The responses we got were awesome.  Each of the stories – while unique – demonstrated how fruitful it can be to understand and communicate in a second language.  Here’s just a slice of the feedback we received:

• “In Tokyo, I was given the incorrect change when purchasing boat tickets… I was pretty proud when I politely pointed out the cashier’s mistake and he apologized and gave me the correct change.” – Alan D.
• “I outwitted a crooked cabbie in China, found a private club in Mexico, helped a Spaniard navigate the trains in Italy, and swept a cute French girl off her feet, but my happiest moments are when I can help foreigners right here in the USA.” – Donald S.
• “Haggling for art on Montmartre [in Paris]!” – Lola M.
• “I figured out how to purchase a cell phone at the mall in Chile years ago as an exchange student.  I was very proud that I was able to get all my questions understood and answered.” – Danielle S.

These stories of worldly adventure got us thinking about how helpful Mango can be to students who are planning to travel abroad.  While many students traveling overseas may be part of a foreign language program, there are a growing number of programs taught abroad in English that appeal to students of other disciplines, such as Art History, Ancient Civilizations, or International Studies.  Mango provides these student travelers with exposure to content that they will actually need when traveling to a foreign country.  You won’t find any lessons here about “the red cat sitting under table.”  We prefer to focus on practical content used in everyday conversations, such as: names and introductions, getting around, shopping and payment, dining, and asking for help.

And don’t forget the value of Mango’s unique culture notes!  Even if you’ve already taken French 101, Mango may teach you things you never knew about living in, getting around, and avoiding an embarrassing faux pas in France.

So before you book a ticket to study abroad in Italy or plan a volunteer trip to Latin America, make sure Mango is at the top of your prep list.  The experiences you’ll have will be enriched by your understanding of the language.  And who knows?  It may even get you out of a sticky situation…or lead you to love.

For more information on how Mango can benefit college and university students, check out our academic page.