--- On Sat, 12/26/09, Brad Johnston <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
--- On Sat, 12/26/09, Brad Johnston <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> From: Brad Johnston <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Re: "We speak English ...
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Date: Saturday, December 26, 2009, 6:24 AM
>
>
> Craig, Peyman et al,
>
> Consider this logic. If English becomes the official
> language of the USA, various jurisdictions would no longer
> be required to print say tax forms in say Spanish,
> which helps the non-English-speaker at the moment of impact
> but hinders the necessity to learn the language that
> will ultimately provide the best road to assimilation.
>
> If I go to live in Iran, the sooner I become
> fluent in Farsi, (the unlikeliness of that happening brings
> a smile to my face -- not the going, the learning), the
> sooner I can become acclimated to, and become an active
> participant in, the affairs of my adopted country. I would
> not expect the Iranians to print official forms in
> English to make it easy for me while I learn Farsi.
>
> I wonder if I have said that well enough to convey the
> connection between having an official language and making it
> easier for foreigners to learn English. Total immersion is
> painful, while it lasts, but it works better than any other
> way to acquire a language. An acquaintance attended the
> University of (or in?) Geneva for a year. She understood
> nothing at the beginning. At the end of the school year, she
> was comfortable in the conviction that she understood
> everything that was said in her classes. I cannot vouch for
> the phenomenon first hand, having studied Latin for 4 years,
> Spanish for 2, and being self-taught in "Taxi
> French", which is good enough for me
> to understand what my Notaire says to me over a
> bowl of onion soup and a glass of Beaujolais.
>
> We can do without an official language except that its
> absence causes various levels of government to impede the
> learning process by which we would more easily come
> together.
> .
> .brad.26dec09.
>
>
>
>
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Graig, Brad and all the rest of you wonderful educators,
I can't say enough about how grateful I am for you people for doing what you do daily. I am truly blessed this sacred season for having such a wonderful dialogue with educators that do justice to that word. May America continue to be the beacon of light that it always has been. I know that there have been dark times in the history of this nation, but my oh my, I totally believe that this nation is a miracle of a nation. It really is, and the type of dialogue we have recently had is an example of this nation's being a miracle. I look very much forward to a day when I can visit you all in Florida; the last time I was there was in my youthful days of well, the precious 20's. I am now 48 and fast approaching age 50.
The sacred book that I read which helps me celebrate this precious season, also speaks very highly of the profession of teaching. You are all in a noble job.
To answer Craig's question, yes I would want my children to learn English for absolute sure and then learn Farsi and Russian to keep both mom and dad's cultures. I try to learn Russian to communicate with my wife's parents, and I totally agree with Brad that by forcing myself to immerse I would learn more. I did try that last summer when I visited Kyrgyzstan, and by simply just good old fashion trying and making many mistakes, I learned a great deal of Russian, though it is still broken at best. I was there only during the summer.
Any way, blessings to you all and your families. I am going to move to a different subject now and ask something about Gerunds and participles.
At your service,
Peyman
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