Targeted Learning Goals
Our online language learning system teaches the skills of reading, listening, writing and speaking, as well as the background on a foreign language and its culture. It is self-paced and provides regular, targeted feedback. It integrates activities, interactive text, audio portions, and visual stimuli to give learners the most engaging and effective experience with a new language. Our online learning system integrates words, phrases, and entire sentences in written and audio form, focused on developing proficiency in specific dialog topics.
Pedagogical Approach
Our online language learning system is able to support multiple pedagogical approaches, particularly in a blended-learning environment. The nature of Transparent Language’s primary customer base is such that the primary emphasis is on supporting faster, more reliable language acquisition and a more reliable transition from training to persistent and successful career-long sustainment and enhancement. Lexicon, grammar, and a variety of skills are important and intrinsic to language proficiency; good technology addresses all of those areas. However, the most significant and measurable improvements in which technology can be a primary differentiator are on the lexical side, where great technology can reduce the training time-to-outcome and increase the rate of successful transition to persistent sustainment. “Lexicon” in this context meant broadly to include words, phrases, patterns and other “chunks” of language. Up to at least the Intermediate level, the size and robustness of a learner’s lexicon correlates very tightly with overall proficiency. A more robust lexicon also offers significant advantages in the development of the language skills that are critical for advanced proficiency and beyond. Our default pedagogical method is a “Declarative first” approach that emphasizes the quick and effective development of basic memorized proficiency in a foreign language. The focus is on growing each learner’s lexical repertoire and then using those learned words and phrases in activities that provide multiple opportunities to utilize newly acquired content in various setting and contexts.
Languages are offered at all learning levels
Within the 80+ languages included in our repertoire is a variety of course and supplemental learning material. This material is intended to support language learning, enhancement and sustainment for all levels of language learner. Given that the preponderance of demand for language learning material exists at the Beginner to Advanced Beginner level more of the learning material available to our students is oriented to those levels. Sufficient material and learning activities exist at higher levels to keep intermediate and advanced learners engaged in the learning system. Below is a listing of the courses, with brief descriptions and specifications including the amount of learning material available. For all of the items below there are some variations amongst the various languages.
Supplemental Vocabulary Lessons
The Supplemental Vocabulary series is a set of vocabulary lessons designed to help beginner to intermediate learners build and sustain a robust and functional vocabulary of words and phrases. The lessons are a fun, easy, and quick way to get started learning or build on existing skills. These paired language lessons use the learner’s native or known language to support the instruction in the target language. Each collection is organized into themed sets as listed below. Each Vocabulary lesson contains 8 engaging and increasingly challenging activities that lead towards mastery of the words, phrases, and expressions a person needs to know to understand and convey the basics for survival and to participate in typical, everyday interactions. In addition each lesson includes an assessment to verify that the material has been learned. The core of our vocabulary building system uses a 5-step flash card learning process. This rapid learning system is based on a proven method that takes learners through a series of simple steps to memorize words and phrases. Each lesson takes about 30 to 45 minutes to complete. In addition to the rapid flash card based learning system, our learning tools also include a set of activities specifically designed to drive vocabulary acquisition and retention, including the EveryVoice™ pronunciation practice and speech driven activities.
Emerging Technologies Institute
