The Chronicle of Higher Education published an article called
Divided Attention a few days ago.

The amount of information in our life has grown so much so quickly that most of us multitask to varying degrees. And there is some satisfaction to that, the feeling that you "get a lot done" at the same time.

The article highlights research that proves that doing more is not at all equal to performing well, or even satisfactory, and that attention and working-memory capacity is still what separates the true achievers from the busy bees.

Great read.

We recently launched a new feature allowing eSpindle users to set their native language and receive live translations of the word to be learned. The additional information is available on demand, so as to not distract from the otherwise English immersion environment of the quiz.

Members who use eSpindle to learn English as a foreign language love it!

You can choose from 37 different languages, including those with non-Latin scripts, like Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, etc.
To activate the feature, simply select the language by going to you > preferences.
Then you'll see the translation of the word every time you mouse over the "bubble" icon in the quiz.

It's quite common when I introduce eSpindle to the educational community (not parents, not students, but educators, administrators, and publishers) that it is rejected with a brusque -- "but eSpindle requires knowing how to spell the word!"

It blows my mind every time, but people actually highlight that as a flaw of the program.

>>We don't teach spelling, why do you make it a requirement?

>>Well... because if you don't know the spelling, you don't really know the word, do you now?

>>But that is memorization!! Are you saying you want students to MEMORIZE content?

>>Memory is not a four letter word. Every kind of learning - playing an instrument, learning to ride a bicycle, cooking, academics - is 5% "aha!" and 95% memorization.

>>That's dark 19th century pedagogy! We want our kids to explore! Experience! Learn smarter, not harder! They don't have to learn at all, actually, just know how to consume information effectively... be creative, critical thinkers... tech-savvy...

And so it happens that although eSpindle is the most advanced and high-powered vocabulary and spelling practice program in the world, most people actually find us in the search engines because we also provide the most extensive listing of root words and suffixes on the Web.

Root words are being taunted as the holy grail of orthography and verbal prowess right now.

Admittedly, studying root words and etymology is very interesting, and I could spend hours exploring "what's in a word" (if I only had the time). Delightfully, there are a few words where you can systematically decode meaning from knowing root words (most books I know herald "orthography" as an example).

Then there are a few thousand more where you can derive some bits of understanding if you know root words. That's it, folks!

The fact is, to say it bluntly, that the root word frenzy to a large degree is linguistic smart-alecking that is not useful to somebody struggling with a limited vocabulary or someone learning English.

Our brains (unless we're dyslexic) build their vocabulary knowledge by storing mental orthographic images (MOI) and sound impressions for each word... it is a pattern-based process that relies on -- yes! -- memorization. Almost exclusively at that. It helps when the word is presented in interesting context, but learning words is still mostly memorization in action.

We're currently making lists for the word archive at eSpindle Learning, and we ran hundreds of queries in our database to draw out words as examples for the various root words.

The result: Most of the words that display the root word sequence actually do not fit the common teaching for that root word. In some lists, one can see a proportion of three misleading words to one conforming word. We were initially going to clear the "not-working" words out, but will likely keep them in.

Students should understand that root word knowledge is great, yet really just a grain of salt in the big pot of word soup. It's not what language is made of. Language, to the largest part, is not a verbal Lego set, where words are the sum of their components. But it does add some fun to know root meanings.

Let's take for example some random suffixes: "-ware" - "things of the same type or material". We got silverware, earthenware, software, hardware... and aware? unaware?
Next suffix. "Wise" - "in what manner or direction": Clockwise, lengthwise, otherwise, likewise... unwise? Plus, if as in these (and many other) cases there are indeed just four words where the root word meaning applies, why not simply teach the words and let the brain figure out the pattern, as it will naturally do?

The smart mind is lead to strange and wondrous lands by root word study... the labyrinth of the English language that resists standardization, rules, "smart learning." It will slip and slide and fall - get tangled in contradictions and oddities, and end up with as many questions as answers.

We get emails from students constantly asking in despair -- what's the root words of "ought"? Of "weird"? If "pre" as in "prejudice" means "before"... why does "present," the word that means "now," have the prefix that indicates "before"?

If I was a modern-day student, I would get started on questions like these and get lost for hours of verbal wonder and philosophizing, and would flunk all those "smart-teaching" root word classes.

The fear to "just teach" and the ban on anything that resembles memorization that has become prevalent in the educational community is disastrous if you're a student who either has a lot of catching up to do, or who just doesn't memorize words automatically/subconsciously.

These ideologies that strut around displaying modern and liberal attitudes are actually the opposite: Ignorant of current realities and elitist.

How much longer do we have to look at ridiculous drop-out rates and every decreasing literacy levels, before we will start to set aside ideology? The research is in that a 4th grader who does not operate at grade-level literacy level is doomed to fall more and more behind. So, what will we do with this knowledge now?

It's not a matter of phonics (which teach sounds, not words, and are heavily overrated), it's not a matter of rules (that don't work) and root words (that are a linguistic hobby, not a solution).

The problem is that if you don't have a chance to build a large vocabulary in your early years and within your extended family, you need a teacher teaching you these words. You need follow-up that makes sure these words make it into long term memory, and you need as much targeted instruction as it takes to help you catch up.

Let's end this on the positive note.

Research has not only shown that our academic crisis is largely a verbal, a literacy crisis.

Research has also shown that students can build their vocabulary at drastic speed if provided with targeted, meaningful study tools. We also hear this from our members: Provided with effective tools, the gap can be bridged quickly!

Ditch the ideologies!

Memorizing is not bad.
Spelling is not a problem, unless you don't teach it.
It's not rocket science. It just needs a bit of practice.
It's really not a big deal, unless it's ignored.

I just came back from a few delightful days at Yosemite National Park. With the fall air crisp and clear, and both the sunny days and full-moon nights sharing their light with the magnificent surroundings, grandeur was everywhere.
What is the difference between something grand and something big?
Something truly grand will not make you feel small, but instead inspire and empower you.

Just like Google did recently when they gave us a generous Google grant to promote Word Cup.
Google has been helping many non-profits get the word out about their work and the causes they serve. To be chosen for a grant has been really inspiring and has helped our event a lot.
It's been a grand grant indeed!

We now have over 7,000 large color photographs enhancing our eSpindle resources.
What bliss! It is so much easier to understand and memorize words with the right visual support.

Our volunteers are still combing through Flickr in search of more images, and we anticipate that once we're done we'll have 12,000 images supporting our program.

If you haven't eSpindled lately, register for a free trial and see how it works!

Friday will see the launch of Word Cup as part of the LitCam Live! Forum at the Frankfurt Book Fair. (12:00, Hall 4.2)

Word Cup is designed to harness the power of the Web to make good, maybe even amazing, things happen. Our goal is to grow the event into the largest literacy fundraiser on the Web.

With some generous support from Google and Amazon Web Services and great media partners like BetterWorldBooks, AromaLand and Helium.com, we're on our way...

People who participated in the last Word Cup will notice some profound differences - for one, Word Cup is now completely free!
Secondly, there are substantial prizes to be won. That is, if you support the Word Cup fund with a few dollars yourself.

Being a supporter qualifies you for lots of extra "Word Cup 2.0" prizes; plus, you'll help the Word Cup Literacy Fund grow. Come check out Word Cup's four literacy projects!

I've been meaning to share this study with the eSpindle community for a while. I think it is very interesting:

No Effect on Comprehension Seen From 'Reading First'
By Kathleen Kennedy Manzo

The $6 billion funding for the federal Reading First program has helped more students “crack the code” to identify letters and words, but it has not had an impact on reading comprehension among 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders in participating schools, according to one of the largest and most rigorous studies ever undertaken by the U.S. Department of Education.

While more time is spent on reading instruction and professional development in schools that received Reading First grants than in comparison schools, students in participating schools are no more likely to become proficient readers, even after several years with the extended instruction, the study found.

Among both the Reading First and comparison groups, reading achievement was low, with fewer than half of 1st graders, and fewer than 40 percent of 2nd and 3rd graders showing grade-level proficiency in their understanding of what they read. On a basic decoding test, however, 1st graders in Reading First schools scored significantly better than their peers.

The problem with literacy and academic achievement does not originate in students having problems learning 26 letters and corresponding phonemes.
The real problem is that they are not familiar with the words and the meaning they add to a sentence.

If I would get a dollar for ever teacher telling me that explicit vocabulary instruction and practice is no longer needed, I would be going on vacation today.
Who started the rumor students will somehow learn words by themselves?

Fact is that students from a disadvantaged background enter school with half the vocabulary of their more supported peers. This gap widens as the years progress, with 4th grade commonly being considered the critical year. If the lack in vocabulary skill and confidence is not remedied by 4th grade, the student is at high risk to fail academically, and to drop out of school.

So much for the sad news. The good news is that every student can build a strong vocabulary with efficient and targeted practice. eSpindle was designed to be that program, providing personalized learning sessions and unlimited support.

It is not uncommon that new members need an incredible amount of repetitions - sometimes 50-60!! - before a word is learned. Quite quickly, however, this number shrinks to around 5 as the student develops confidence and interest in words.

Why? Because the student was given the opportunity to figure out, at their own pace and time, that learning words is really not hard. It takes a bit of effort, yes, but it is not rocket science, and definitely something most everybody can manage to accomplish with the right support.

This understanding helps the brain to stop resisting the challenge and gain confidence.

The last few weeks have been hectic with the Word Cup finals under way, and the Word Cup Cafe under construction. It is not a coincidence that the last day of the Word Cup coincide with International Literacy Day.

Whenever I meet someone with high verbal aptitude (and I enjoyed meeting many over my four years at eSpindle Learning), I like to ask them:

How did it all start?
What made you become interested in language?
When did the reading bug bite, the need to write begin?

To this day, I still have yet to meet someone who would not directly trace the source of their verbal development to a person--a parent, a teacher, a relative--who enticed, encouraged, supported, challenged, acknowledged, and mentored them.
Chances are, you owe your appreciation for language to someone you respected, who invested time and energy introducing you to the World of Words. Who was this person/were these people for you?

The mere fact that you are reading blogs and surfing the internet as a reader likely means that years ago, there was someone who read to you, someone who challenged you to expand your vocabulary, someone who talked with you, who taught you to understand and appreciate nuances and different shades of meaning.

Can you imagine for a moment what would have happened if you had not been gifted with such support? Imagine for a moment that your parents and people around you were illiterate - and I use this term according to Mark Twain's interpretation of it, who said, "the man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can not read them."

You entered school proud and eager, but soon noticed that most kids knew words that you didn't - it was not your fault, but you felt ashamed and scared that you would be found out. You felt embarrassed, like something was "wrong" with you.
Fear and shame made learning words even harder, and sometimes it took you a long frustrating while to decipher simple sentences... you especially hated having to read out loud!! Books were scary, and when texts became too advanced, you tried to hide your panic behind "I don't care" attitudes... your growth stopped, and instead of searching opportunities you spent most of your time escaping problems.

Literacy is not a "hot" nonprofit cause.
It is not headline material like an epidemic disease, it is not gory and violent like war, it is not cute like them polar bears... no: advocating for literacy is nerdy.

It reeks of "schoolmasterness" and dusty books. The problem seems so vast, and the number of more immediate and more dramatic catastrophes so large, that it is easy to forget that many of our problems have their roots in this nearly invisible, inconspicuous cause.

What has literacy given you?
Could you share some of that plenty with the kids in your life?
Could you find the time to volunteer to help someone crack the code?
If you could put a price tag on what literacy has brought to your life - would you find yourself rich enough to share?

Today was the last day of the Word Cup, but we are continuing the literacy fundraising campaign until the end of the year.
Please stop by www.WordCupCafe.org and plant the seed of literacy for someone by making a donation.

I just returned from the annual summit of SIIA, the Software and Information Industry Association, in San Francisco. It was an exciting event, with some of the best and brightest of the industry meeting to share ideas and learn from each other.
The beautiful Palace hotel felt like a bee hive, vibrant with great energy.

eSpindle Learning attended both as a CODiE award finalist (the CODiE is an award casually referred to as "the grammy" of the software industry), and as part of SIIA's Innovation Incubator program.

Ten interesting companies/projects had been selected for their innovative contribution in the realm of educational software. We were given the opportunity to showcase and present our work to the industry's veterans. The association went out of their way to support us (who for the most part were very young organizations) and to ensure we maximized the benefits of the event. I'm looking back with a deep feeling of gratitude.

One of the fun little fringe benefits of being part of the innovation incubator program was getting to walk around with a little purple flag on my name tag that said "innovator."

Promptly, I was stopped by a business owner in the software and content part of the conference (which is a different track from the education community) who asked me - "So, what does someone have to do to get to wear an ’innovator‘ badge?"

I replied "Work 60-80 hours per week for 4 years, pay yourself a salary that is a third of what it was before you became obsessed with your idea, constantly push and challenge yourself..."

"Oh," he said, laughing, "I guess I don't want innovation that badly..."

As we continued talking, he learned that eSpindle Learning was a nonprofit, and that threw him off even more. "If you are working so hard," he said, "don't you want to become rich, too?"
"You don't understand," I replied, "I'm as rich as anyone could get already. A bit more money would be great, but aside from that, I'm very, very rich." 🙂