Quality of Words, Not Quantity, Is Crucial to Language Skills, Study Finds (Douglas Quenqua, The New York Times)

Deisy Ixcuna-Gonzalez, 16 months old, is in a new literacy development program in Providence, R.I. CreditKatherine Taylor for The New York Times.

It has been nearly 20 years since a landmark education study found that by age 3, children from low-income families have heard 30 million fewer words than more affluent children, putting them at an educational disadvantage before they even began school. The findings led to increased calls for publicly funded prekindergarten programs and dozens of campaigns urging parents to get chatty with their children.

Wanting it enough: why motivation is the key to language learning (Alison Mackey, The Guardian)

The reasons for learning a second language can be endless but the secret to success is rooted in the science of motivation.

Motivation is crucial for learning a second language, whether it’s for work related reasons or communicating with family abroad. Photograph: Michael Regan – The Fa/The FA via Getty Images.

Second language professionals, after explaining what we do for a living, are inevitably asked “What’s the fastest/best/most foolproof method for learning a language?” Some of us like to answer: language by partner, meaning, go to the country and fall in love with someone who speaks only the language you want to learn and not yours. In academic terms, what we are recommending is that people make the most of something that is crucial for language learning – motivation.

Paddy Ashdown: ‘Learning six languages has changed my life’ (Paddy Ashdown, The Guardian)

From speaking Malay as a young marine, to offending his Chinese teacher with unfortunate translations, Paddy shares the twists and turns of his language adventures.

Paddy Ashdown: ‘I was a disaster at languages at school’ Photograph: Murdo Macleod.

When people ask how many languages I speak, I reply I have forgotten six. That’s the problem with languages: if you don’t use them you lose them. But a little practice soon brings them back and you can once again enjoy the magic of talking to others in their own language and on their own terms.