Say What?

Recently I listened to a beautiful song by an Icelandic music group called Sigur Ros.  I assumed the beautiful and ethereal song must be sung in Icelandic, so I headed to the Internet to find an English-language translation of the lyrics. 

Surprisingly, there is no translation. The song appears to be sung at least partially in what’s known as a “constructed” language, Hopelandic, invented by lead singer Jónsi Birgisson.  Enya has also used a language invented by her lyricist, and If you’ve ever attended a performance of Cirque do Soleil, you may have heard Cirqish, an invented language spoken only by the troupe and common in some of its work.  

Clearly these artists use their invented languages to express what other languages cannot, or to evoke emotions without limiting meanings, or perhaps as a secret language known only to a few.  Usually these are evocative sounds and have little of any grammar. However, science fiction and fantasy have made extensive us of invented languages that have at least some grammar, such as the Elvish of Tolkien and the Klingon of StarTrek, which fans are able to learn.

Constructed languages have a long history. Among the most interesting constructed languages  are the “language of angels” of Hildegaard of Bingen, as well as the well known Esperanto, a constructed language its creator hoped would become an international language that could  increase understanding among people of many countries. Today up to 2 million people may speak Esperanto, and about 1000 of them are native speakers who have learned the language from parents. You may not know that George Soros, the business magnate and philanthropist, is a native speaker who learned Esperanto from his father.

One of the most interesting recently constructed languages is Dothraki, created for the HBO series Game of Thrones. Dothraki is now heard by more people every week than Yiddish, Navajo, Inuit, Basque, and Welsh combined.  David Peterson, who created the language, took great care to connect the language to the culture of the Dothraki, a civilization in which the horse is everpresent—in its religion, its transportation, its cuisine, etc.  Instead of “How are you?” the Dothraki ask, Hash yer dothrae chek? or “How do you ride?”  Peterson has developed a vocabulary of over 3000 words and a grammar for Dothraki, inspiring Dothraki dictionaries, and language learning websites. Peterson clearly understands, as linguists like Stephen Levinson do, that “the constructs of language, and much of its forms are . . .largely the products of cultural tradition.”  

You can watch a great little video about the creation of Dothraki here.

A Pervasive Culture of Learning

This semester a 19-year-old Indian student, originally from Kerala, has been riding to and from the college with me, and it’s been a terrific experience. Not only do we talk about Indian food—one of my favorite topics--but we often discuss differences in American and South Indian culture. Aliyah is a dedicated student, determined to be a doctor, and though it is unlikely that her family can afford the price of medical school, her excellent grades may well earn her scholarships to help her achieve her dream.

Through talking with Aliyah and her family, I have learned the great value her Indian and Islamic cultures place on education. We often hear that Islam discourages or even prevents women from being educated, yet did you know that the Quran tells Muslims, both male and female, that it is their sacred duty to acquire knowledge that will serve the public good? 

"Whoever follows a path in the pursuit of knowledge, Allaah will make a path to Paradise easy for him."

India’s education system is often criticized, yet when Indian students come to study in America, they often excel, especially in STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). Aliyah certainly possesses a great deal of innate intelligence, but I am convinced that the culture of learning she and her family brought to the U.S. with them plays a huge role in her learning and academic success. 

Aliyah says that she was brought up that education is of utmost importance. “In India there is this quote which says "Matha, pitha, guru, daivam" (translation: Mother, Father, Teacher, God)” she says, emphasizing the importance of learning and the respect given to teachers.

Attending school is not enough; the culture emphasizes excellence in learning. “There is this competition sense in every student’s mind which pushes them to get good grades. Everyone tries to get better grades than their classmates,” Aliyah tells me. “There is also specific time set as study times. Weekends are not just for partying; instead most of the students sit and study so that they can make better grades. Parents are very focused on their children’s education, and most students work hard in part because they want see their parents happy. 

The difference in cultures is evident to Aliyah, who sees many Indian families losing their culture of learning after years in the United States. Like many American students, she laments, they spend little time studying, give up quickly when the work is hard, and no longer want to attempt the challenging STEM classes. “In India, they would be encouraged to study to be engineers,” she says, shaking her head.

Garrison Walters, executive director of the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education suggests that the “lack of a pervasive culture of learning” is greatly responsible for America’s decline in competitiveness. He claims that unlike our competitors, such as India and Japan, too many Americans generally "don’t greatly value educated people and don’t seem to believe that being educated contributes to quality of life beyond that offered by greater economic success. Perhaps we could learn something from India about instilling the value of education in our culture and in our children.

Old Technology and New Technology Work Together to “Train the Brain”

I’m an early adopter. When a cool new technology comes out, often I must have it. I was among the first on my block to buy the iPhone and iPad, one of the first of my professor friends to see the possible benefits of holding class online or on Second Life, and the first person I know to try a smart pen. Attending the League for Innovation conference is like a trip to Santa’s workshop!

But now I am reading about a very old technology – some would argue that it’s not technology at all—that enhances learning. And, even better, it apparently can be combined with newer technology to improve writing composition skills as well as  “train the brain.” 

The technology? That pen or pencil languishing in the back of your desk drawer since you bought your iPad! 

Recent research confirms the importance of handwriting in learning. For example, Professor Virginia Berninger, an educational psychologist, researcher, and disabilities specialist at the University of Washington used brain imaging to prove that finger movements such as those used in handwriting activate the areas of the brain involved in thinking and working memory, as well as those areas involved in language.  Watch a video of her presentation on her interesting research here.

Another study, by Mangen and Velay (2010), looked at handwriting as it affected learning in both children and adults and compared it to keyboarding. Previous research has already demonstrated that using our hands to manipulate tools, including pencils and pens used in writing, “plays a constitutive role in learning and cognitive development, and may even be a significant building block in language development.” 

These studies and others suggest that the recent trend of dropping handwriting, especially cursive writing, from the elementary school curriculum may be premature. The role of handwriting in brain and language development may be crucial. It is possible that students who learn keyboarding without ever engaging in handwriting may miss important aspects of cognitive development.

A brief search failed to turn up much on handwriting's role in helping college students learn composition. However, according to researchers from the Warwick Institute of Education, writing by hand appears to improve "higher order composing processes by freeing up working memory to deal with the complex tasks of planning, organizing, revising and regulating the production of text." Perhaps professors should be encouraging their first-year composition classes to create their drafts by hand.

Handwriting might well be beneficial in helping older adults keep their brains sharp. In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, Duke University neuroscientist Dr. P. Murali Doraiswamy suggested, "as more people lose writing skills and migrate to the computer, retraining people in handwriting skills could be a useful cognitive exercise."

New technology for handwriting. Apps are available to help children learn their letters and develop cognitive skills not served by keyboarding. And for adults, there are handwriting recognition apps such as Writepad for iPad, that may, as Dr. Doraiswamy predicted, keep our brains sharp by allowing us to continue to write by hand at times. 
 

Even so, this early adopter is convinced that nothing beats the smooth and lovely handwriting that's possible with a really fine, old fashioned fountain pen. When it comes to keeping my brain sharp with handwriting, I think I'll set aside my iPad in favor of my Pilot retractable fountain pen--another fairly new "technology" that updates an old one.