The bilingual brain

This is a very interesting TEDx Talk about the “benefits of a bilingual brain” by Mia Nacamulli. – I only would like to point out that grown ups usually learn a new language in a very “conventional” way, which is rule-based (i.e. using books, learning grammar first), what leads to using one side of the […]

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Multilingual Switzerland

  I’ve often been asked if I was able to talk Swiss, as I’ve lived there for a long time. Even if this kind of comment seems funny to those who live in or close to Switzerland, it is quite a common assumption among people coming from other continents, that Swiss talk Swiss, like Swedish […]

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Some thoughts about fluency in language

What does it mean to be “fluent” in a language? What is fluency? There are many different definitions of fluency, so for example it can be “the property of a person or of a system that delivers information quickly and with expertise”, or “the smoothness or flow with which sounds, syllables, words and phrases are […]

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Can monolingual parents raise bilingual children?

    The answer is “yes”, but… Many parents wonder if they can succeed in raising their children bilingually. Most of the studies of the ’60-’80 about bilingualism were about monolingual parents who wanted their children to become bilingual. Some parents would share the same home language and the community language would be L2, in […]

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