2008 is starting well for eSpindle: A few days ago we received a Learning Magazine’s 2008 Teacher’s Choice Award for the Family.

Isn’t it pretty? 😉

At the same time the membership report came in. Overall, our membership revenues increased by 270%, and we fulfilled our goal of giving away 5,000 eSpindle scholarships to disadvantaged students in 2007.
These scholarships, once established, are kept live for as long as they are used by the student, giving an unparalleled tool for personal improvement to those struggling with vocabulary.

The most significant news for me personally was that the ratio of members who renewed beyond their first year term increased by nearly 9%; an improvement that is quite impressive, considering that even last year the majority of members decided to renew after the first year.

A big thank you to all those who have been part of building eSpindle – those who volunteered, contributed, provided feedback and believed in this unique project, especially those who provided precious support when eSpindle was nothing but a vision.

Every once in while we meet people who respond to us with a peeved “how can you be a nonprofit, you act like a business!” The next line tends to be – “if you’re a nonprofit, why aren’t your services free?”

Unfortunately “free” simply does not exist, not even for nonprofits. What’s “free” to you is free at the expense of someone else – a sponsor hoping for positive publicity, a foundation channeling funds to serve its intended purpose, a government agency distributing tax dollars, a donor hoping to make a difference, a volunteer committing time and sweat. And the more “free” services nonprofits offer, the more dependent they become on the charity of these participants.
There is a saying in German - “Only death is free, and it will cost you your life.”

eSpindle is aiming to create a self-sustaining system that empowers our public benefit mission without depending on donations and grants.The business-nonprofit hybrid model you see at work in eSpindle is also commonly referred to as social entrepreneurship.

As you can easily imagine, the development effort behind eSpindle was tremendous.
Custom editing a 100,000 word database (including live recording single words and about 20,000 sample sentences), developing a refined and now patent-pending technology to provide the highly differentiated instructional technology, and building a name in the world of education, all required and still involves a team of brilliant people contributing their unique talents along with lots of time.

Honoring this effort we decided, from the start, to accept the challenge of growing and sustaining the organization by “real world” rules – the rules of the market place. And fortunately, our unique application allows us to do this because it is of value to a diverse audience – both those who can easily pay $80-100 for a year of tutoring, and those who can’t.

By incorporating both for-profit and non-profit best practices we believe that eSpindle will be a stronger organization in the long term, than if we allowed reliance on the comfort and protection of charity grants.

Contrary to common perception, nonprofits are free to do anything a regular business does – including selling products and services, licensing, collaborating with both for-profit and non-profit ventures, etc.

The main difference is that nobody at eSpindle owns the company or any surplus created. Every effort we undertake is focused on our mission:

To empower people by helping them build a broad vocabulary as a foundation for critical thinking, confident communication and success in life.

From the start we have committed to match every paid membership with a free license to a disadvantaged student, and our current ratio (of which we are very proud of) is six scholarships per paid membership.

These free licenses are given to other nonprofits, literacy organizations and title 1 schools who approach us for help, and if you have ever seen the challenges that students in underserved neighborhoods face, you will know why we are delighted to support teachers who dedicate themselves to making a difference for these students.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of this message:

fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid too.

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mind!

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno’t mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.

The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm.

Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh?
Yaeh, and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!

People of the let's-not-teach-spelling variety are still sending it to me, mostly because of the triumphant "Yeah, and I always thought spelling was important!"

Is this really what it means? That spelling is not important?

 

Why it works

- we do not read letter by letter. If we did, we could indeed not read this text unless we went through lengthy decoding. The brain is far more creative and powerful. It does not simply unravel words going from left to right, letter by letter. Instead, it is a powerful pattern processing machine, which enables it to produce useful results even with minimized cues.

- the human brain uses Mental Orthographic Images (MOI) not only to write ("looks right"), but also to accelerate reading ("looks like").

- the text uses a lot of short words, so even jumbling them does not produce a big obstacle.

- function words (the, be, and, you etc.) stay the same - mostly because they are short words. If the grammatical structure is preserved, there is a framework for meaning. This makes the context more predictable and words easier to read.

- many of words are not jumbled. Oh, you didn't notice that? That's because readers don't consciously notice these short, high-frequency words when reading. (That's why tools like Grammarly are so valuable for catching duplicates that might slip into your copy and that your brain won't detect).

- exterior (first and last) letters of words play a larger role in getting the word right than do middle letters. That's a fact confirmed in research.

The shortfalls

The example is "rigged" in multiple ways. It also has much less to do with the subject of spelling than the email suggests.

- Weak readers have severe trouble decoding the meaning, and typically give up after a few words. Readers can manage abstraction only for words for which they have full automaticity.

- reading jumbled text takes substantially longer than reading conventional copy.

- try reading these sentences (translation at the end of blog), provided by Matt Davis, to understand that words get harder to decode the longer they are.
1- Big ccunoil tax ineesacrs tihs yaer hvae seezueqd the inmcoes of mnay pneosenirs.
2- A dootcr has aimttded the magltheuansr of a tageene ceacnr pintaet who deid aetfr a hatospil durg blendur.

As another example, try reading this comment at bisso.com:

3- Iltnsegnetiry I'm sdutynig tihs crsrootaivnel pnoheenmon at the Dptmnearet of Liuniigctss at Absytrytewh Uivsreitny and my exartrnairdoy doisiervecs waleoetderhlhy cndairotct the picsbeliud fdnngiis rrgdinaeg the rtlvaeie dfuictlify of ialtnstny ttalrisanng sentences. My rsceeerhars deplveeod a cnionevent ctnoiaptorn at hnasoa/tw.nartswdbvweos/utrtek:p./il taht dosnatterems that the hhpsteyios uuiqelny wrtaarns criieltidby if the aoussmpitn that the prreoecandpne of your wrods is not eendetxd is uueniqtolnabse. Aoilegpos for aidnoptg a cdocianorttry vwpiienot but, ttoheliacrley spkeaing, lgitehnneng the words can mnartafucue an iocnuurgons samenttet that is vlrtiauly isbpilechmoenrne.

- Richard Shillcock and colleagues, propose that when recognizing words, the brain splits each word in half, probably because the brain splits the information received by each eye between the two hemispheres when we read. when we read. So, keeping letters in the appropriate half of the word reduces the difficulty of reading jumbled text. (Shillcock, R., Ellison, T.M. & Monaghan, P. (2000). Eye-fixation behaviour, lexical storage and visual word recognition in a split processing model.Psychological Review 107, 824-851.)

- in the viral example the letters often simply switch places with their immediate neighbor, like in "istlef".

- if the letters can form multiple words, the results can be totally confusing (just like with incorrect spelling). This example is taken from Matt Davis' blog:

"The sprehas had ponits and patles"

This might come out as...

The sherpas had pitons and plates... The shapers had points and pleats... The seraphs had pintos and petals... The sphaers had pinots and palets... The sphears had potins and peltas. (palets: paleae (a part of a grass flower), peltas: shields, pinots: grapes, potins: copper alloys, sphaers, sphears: both old form of 'spheres')

- the cna yuo raed tihs text is fairly predictable. Jumbled texts that convey unexpected information or associations will take the reader on a much more difficult path.

- maintaining the order of vowel sounds aids the brain substantially. If that additional cue is jumbled, the processing difficulty increases. This is why jumbled text works in most languages but is much harder in those that omit vowels from writing, like Hebrew or Arabic.

 

What it really means

Spelling convention serves multiple purposes. Among other things, it makes reading faster, clearer, and more effortless.

The fact that we can read misspellings does not mean that they're a good idea, or that spelling is not important. A statement like that is a very superficial conclusion.

The only thing this text proves is the vast potential of the brain.
People tend to respond to this email saying "I didn't know I was that smart," "seems like I'm a genius," or "I would have never thought I could to this."

Why do people go through school not learning this basic truth - that their mental capacities are so vast, nearly limitless? When will our students be taught to understand that they do possess the tools to do anything they want, if only they dedicate the time and energy to develop the skill required?

Translations of jumbled text above:

1- Big council tax increases this year have squeezed the incomes of many pensioners.
2- A doctor has admitted the manslaughter of a teenage cancer patient who died after a hospital drug blunder.
3- Interestingly I'm studying this controversial phenomenon at the Department of Linguistics at Aberystwyth University and my extraordinary discoveries wholeheartedly contradict the publicised findings regarding the relative difficulty of instantly translating sentences. My researchers developed a convenient contraption at http://www.aardvarkbusiness.net/tool that demonstrates that the hypothesis uniquely warrants credibility if the assumption that the preponderance of your words is not extended is unquestionable. Apologies for adopting a contradictory viewpoint but, theoretically speaking, lengthening the words can manufacture an incongruous statement that is virtually incomprehensible.

 

 

eSpindle started out as a program strongly focused on spelling.
Now a more advanced tutoring module is available as well that challenges you to find of the right word first.

After selecting "advanced word tutor" on the preferences page, the quiz will no longer provide instant audio for the word in question.

Instead you're simply presented with the number of letters the word contains, and may then request the first and last letter of the word.

These clues, along with the definition and sample sentence will challenge you to actively find the right word without actually hearing it.
You can then click the "hear word" button to verify your answer.

We hope you'll enjoy this version as well and let us know what you think, please!

Vielen Dank an Michelle für die Weiterleitung ein Beitrag durch Washington Post Schriftsteller Michael Skube, betitelt Schreiben Off Lesen.
Dieses Zitat fasst die Essenz seiner Beobachtungen:
"Wenn also die Münze ihres Denkens sind, werden sie [Studenten] sind mit wenig mehr als Kleingeld zu arbeiten."

Eine interessante Lektüre für alle über sinkende Lese-und Schreibfähigkeiten betrifft.

Der Schule meiner Tochter Bücher lehren Wortschatz über Multiple-Choice.
Aber bedeutet das, dass die Schüler diese Worte besitzen?
Werden sie kennen genug, um sie sowohl für flüssiges Lesen und Schreiben?
Sind diese Worte werde "zu ihnen kommen" mit Leichtigkeit und ohne zu verlangsamen ihren Zug des Gedankens?
Ist es genug, um ein Wort zu erkennen, oder ist es wichtig, in der Lage sein, es zu erinnern, zu wissen, was es bedeutet, wie es klingt, wie es geschrieben steht?

Kürzlich hatte ich ein Gespräch in einem charmanten kleinen Café, Coffee Catz, in meiner Heimatstadt, Sebastopol.
Ein paar Tische entfernt von mir, ein älterer Mann und eine junge Frau gerade entdeckt, dass sie beide in College-Ausbildung arbeitete, und beide spezialisiert auf Unterricht Förderunterricht Englisch.

Nachdem sie Notizen darüber, wie schwierig, ja unmöglich verglichen hatte, war es für einige Schüler, um den Schnitt zu machen, weil sie "benachteiligt", und wie man mit noch wenig Fortschritte zufrieden sein musste, verstummte ihr Gespräch ab, an welcher Stelle ich

"Overhearing Ihr Gespräch", sagte ich, "und das Verständnis, dass Sie im Unterricht Förderunterricht Englisch-Kurse für College-Studenten sind erfahren, bin ich sehr daran interessiert zu erfahren, wie viel von den Problemen sind Sie konfrontiert sind, um grundlegende Kenntnisse in Bezug Wort, Ihrer Meinung.

Als ich sagte, "Wort Wissen" die junge Frau plötzlich drehte sich in ihrem Stuhl, damit sie mich nicht mehr konfrontiert.
Der ältere Mann nahm auf einem herablassenden Ton, den Sie verwenden, um jemanden unwissend, dass sie gerade ein Verbrechen gegen die politische / soziale / Gesamt Korrektheit verpflichtet zu erklären.

"Nein ..", sagte er, "Ich meine, vielleicht, aber wir nicht lehren Wortschatz, das ist veraltet. Die einzige Art, wie wir lehren Worte, indem sie ihnen in Zusammenhang."

"Das ist toll, aber was ist mit Studenten, die nicht durch die serviert werden? Studierende, die in Ihrem Nachhilfestunden sind, weil sie einfach nicht über einen ausreichend großen Wortschatz? Wie gehen Sie vor weiteren Studie für Worte, die Oberfläche als problematisch im Rahmen Ihrer

"Oh, sie irgendwie bekommen es an einem gewissen Punkt."

"Was, wenn sie es nicht tun? Haben Sie eine Möglichkeit zu wissen? Wie wollen Sie sicherstellen, dass sie die Unterstützung oder Nachhilfe, die sie benötigen? Welche Hilfe ist für Studenten, wo Mangel an Geschick Wort ist in der Tat die Ursache des Problems zur Verfügung gestellt?"

"Nein", sagte er mit einem Ton, der gemeint du bist einfach nicht cool genug, um dies zu umgehen"Wir haben einfach nicht TEACH Worte!
Well, we tell them simply not to use big words. It's good style anyway to express your thoughts with the small and simple ones. There is no need for all these complicated words anyway. Anything that's important can be said simply."

"Oh", sagte ich.
Wie viel würden Sie viel Spaß beim Lesen wissenschaftlicher Texte, oder auch die New York Times die Verlegung auf dem Tisch, wenn Sie Ihren Wortschatz zu den einfachen, kurzen Worte beschränkt wurde?

"Außerdem", sagte er, ein leichtes Lächeln auf seinem Gesicht, "unsere Schüler nicht gehen, es trotzdem zu tun, würden sie nicht, dass es Spaß macht. Vielleicht die Asiaten oder ESL Studenten, aber nicht unsere regelmäßigen englischen Studenten."

Gespräche wie diese lassen mich traurig und schwerer, ich habe diese Art von Aussagen zu oft gehört:

"Wir lehren nicht Worte."
"Wir verlangen nicht, unsere Schüler in der Lage sein zu buchstabieren."
"Wir haben nur in Zusammenhang zu lehren."
"Irgendwie werden sie in Ordnung sein."
"Die Studenten werden nicht tun es trotzdem."

Oh, was bequem Aussagen!
So viel einfacher, als sich auf die Feinheiten, sicherzustellen, dass die Studenten nicht nur tragen "Kleingeld", sondern eine Fülle von Vokabular mit ihnen in ihrem Leben.
Oder darauf, dass sie auf den Aufbau ihrer Sprache Stiftung, die wirklich ihr Fundament im Leben zu arbeiten - unabhängig davon, ob sie denken, es ist "fun" ist oder nicht.

Könnten Sie, lieber Leser, sich vorstellen, in einer Welt, wo die Kommunikation ausschließlich auf Kontext abhängig?
Wie würde es sich anfühlen, herum zu gehen, ohne fließend in Ihrer eigenen Muttersprache?
Was sind Ihre Lieblings-Bücher?
Wenn wir reagieren auf diese Fragen mit einem Achselzucken, was wird aus dieser Sprache, die wir lieben werden?

Wenn wir nicht bauen Schüler aktive Wortschatz wird Lese-und Schreibfähigkeiten weiter sinken.

Ich komme aus einem Land, Deutschland, wo Bücher einmal auf einer gigantischen Maßstab wurden verbrannt.

In der modernen Gesellschaft sind solche drastischen Schritte nicht mehr benötigt wird, um die Menschen vom Denken kritisch zu halten und lassen sie entrechtet.
Lassen Sie die Bücher in den Regalen!
Sende ihnen über das Internet!
Mit Studenten, die aufwachsen, in einer Kultur, die ihnen das Lernen Worte erzählt, ist nicht wirklich wichtig, dass sie gut mit Multiple-Choice-Ebene Wortschatz und eine Rechtschreibprüfung sind, und dass sich alles um "Spaß" Bücher sind nicht mehr gefährlich.
Warum brennen?