From http://www.jpf.go.jp/e/culture/exhibit/oversea/traveling/photo_1970s.html
Gazing at the Contemporary World: Japanese Photography from the 1970s to the Present
This exhibition is an overview of the diverse photographic expression that has emerged in Japan since the 1970s. This show is composed of two sections (excluding “Prologue” and “Epilogue” ). The first, “A Changing Society,” focuses on human being as members of society. The second, “Changing Landscapes,” looks at cities, the suburbs, and nature.
August 25-September 16, 2012
George J. Doizaki Gallery, Japanese America Cultural and Community Center (Los Angeles, U.S.A)
September 1, 2012
Japanese Film Database
JFDB is a Japanese Film Database managed in cooperation with the Japan Foundation and UNIJAPAN. It provides search for information on Japanese films according to title, film cast and staff, or film industry related companies. JFDB also offers information on Japanese films released in period from year 2002 to 2010 together with contact details on Japanese film industries, bilingually in Japanese and English.
Search the database at http://jfdb.jp/en
Search the database at http://jfdb.jp/en
Article: More Area Schools Embrace Chinese-Immersion Method
From http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443855804577600021401451132.html
More Area Schools Embrace Chinese-Immersion Method
By Ben Worthen
August 22, 2012
When kindergartners arrive at the Presidio Knolls School next week for their first day of class, they will be allowed to speak English only on the playground and at a few other times. Most classes will be taught in Chinese.
The Bay Area is now home to 23 such Mandarin Chinese-immersion schools, according to one count, many of which have opened in the last few years. Some of the schools are private—Presidio Knolls among them—while others are public. Still others are charter schools, which are privately operated but receive public funding.
Read the full article at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443855804577600021401451132.html
More Area Schools Embrace Chinese-Immersion Method
By Ben Worthen
August 22, 2012
When kindergartners arrive at the Presidio Knolls School next week for their first day of class, they will be allowed to speak English only on the playground and at a few other times. Most classes will be taught in Chinese.
The Bay Area is now home to 23 such Mandarin Chinese-immersion schools, according to one count, many of which have opened in the last few years. Some of the schools are private—Presidio Knolls among them—while others are public. Still others are charter schools, which are privately operated but receive public funding.
Read the full article at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443855804577600021401451132.html
Native American Language Teacher Certification Adopted in Arizona
From http://www.azed.gov/educator-certification/2012/08/28/native-american-language-teacher-certification
Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal announced today that a new Native American Language Certification Policy R7-2-614J, developed jointly by the Arizona Department of Education and the Native American Tribes, was unanimously adopted by the State Board of Education.
The new policy allows for individuals with Native American language proficiency, whose proficiency is verified by their own tribal assessments, to apply for a Native Language Teacher Certificate at the Arizona Department of Education. Other requirements would include a finger print clearance card, an application fee and be subject to renewal requirements consistent with other teacher certificates under section R7-2-614. The policy goes into immediate effect and is anticipated as a new avenue for elders and other non-degreed language experts to teach only native language(s) to students in Arizona schools. Many of these languages are critically endangered and at risk for extinction if not taught to Native American Youth.
Read the full Arizona Department of Education’s press release at http://www.azed.gov/educator-certification/2012/08/28/native-american-language-teacher-certification
Read a related article at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/08/31/arizona-adopts-native-american-language-teacher-certification-policy-132383
Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal announced today that a new Native American Language Certification Policy R7-2-614J, developed jointly by the Arizona Department of Education and the Native American Tribes, was unanimously adopted by the State Board of Education.
The new policy allows for individuals with Native American language proficiency, whose proficiency is verified by their own tribal assessments, to apply for a Native Language Teacher Certificate at the Arizona Department of Education. Other requirements would include a finger print clearance card, an application fee and be subject to renewal requirements consistent with other teacher certificates under section R7-2-614. The policy goes into immediate effect and is anticipated as a new avenue for elders and other non-degreed language experts to teach only native language(s) to students in Arizona schools. Many of these languages are critically endangered and at risk for extinction if not taught to Native American Youth.
Read the full Arizona Department of Education’s press release at http://www.azed.gov/educator-certification/2012/08/28/native-american-language-teacher-certification
Read a related article at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/08/31/arizona-adopts-native-american-language-teacher-certification-policy-132383
School Districts Try New Approaches in Teaching Foreign-Language Speakers as Achievement Requirements Get Tougher
From http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443713704577603980738740256.html
Making English Part of the Fabric
School Districts Try New Approaches in Teaching Foreign-Language Speakers as Achievement Requirements Get Tougher
by Vauhini Vara
August 25, 2012
TRACY, Calif.—For years, students with poor English language skills have lagged behind their fluent classmates. Now, this outer suburb of San Francisco with a large Mexican immigrant population is one of many school districts nationwide overhauling their approach to try to close the language gap.
Starting last year, teachers in all subjects were trained to infuse their classes with literacy lessons. Many English learners still take a daily language-development class, but those classes are giving students more oral practice and using nonfiction texts to teach students to use more academic language in writing and conversations.
The revamp is spurred by changes to standardized testing expected to take effect in states across the country in 2014. The Common Core reading standards were recently adopted by 46 states and the District of Columbia, while math standards were adopted by 45 states. The standards specify what students should know in each grade and are leading to new standardized tests—many of which rely more on language skills, according to experts involved in the process. The changes could be especially tough on English learners.
Read the full article at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443713704577603980738740256.html
Making English Part of the Fabric
School Districts Try New Approaches in Teaching Foreign-Language Speakers as Achievement Requirements Get Tougher
by Vauhini Vara
August 25, 2012
TRACY, Calif.—For years, students with poor English language skills have lagged behind their fluent classmates. Now, this outer suburb of San Francisco with a large Mexican immigrant population is one of many school districts nationwide overhauling their approach to try to close the language gap.
Starting last year, teachers in all subjects were trained to infuse their classes with literacy lessons. Many English learners still take a daily language-development class, but those classes are giving students more oral practice and using nonfiction texts to teach students to use more academic language in writing and conversations.
The revamp is spurred by changes to standardized testing expected to take effect in states across the country in 2014. The Common Core reading standards were recently adopted by 46 states and the District of Columbia, while math standards were adopted by 45 states. The standards specify what students should know in each grade and are leading to new standardized tests—many of which rely more on language skills, according to experts involved in the process. The changes could be especially tough on English learners.
Read the full article at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443713704577603980738740256.html
Speaking Two Languages Also Benefits Low-income Children
From http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-languages-benefits-low-income-children.html
Speaking two languages also benefits low-income children
August 27, 2012
In a study forthcoming in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, psychological scientist Pascale Engel de Abreu of the University of Luxembourg and colleagues examine the effects of speaking two languages on the executive functioning of low-income children. "Low-income children represent a vulnerable population," says Engel de Abreu. "Studying cognitive processes in this population is of great societal importance and represents a significant advancement in our understanding of childhood development."
Although the bilingual children knew fewer words than their monolingual peers, and did not show an advantage for representation tasks, they performed better on the control tasks than did the monolingual children, just as the researchers hypothesized.
Read more at: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-languages-benefits-low-income-children.html#jCp
Speaking two languages also benefits low-income children
August 27, 2012
In a study forthcoming in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, psychological scientist Pascale Engel de Abreu of the University of Luxembourg and colleagues examine the effects of speaking two languages on the executive functioning of low-income children. "Low-income children represent a vulnerable population," says Engel de Abreu. "Studying cognitive processes in this population is of great societal importance and represents a significant advancement in our understanding of childhood development."
Although the bilingual children knew fewer words than their monolingual peers, and did not show an advantage for representation tasks, they performed better on the control tasks than did the monolingual children, just as the researchers hypothesized.
Read more at: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-languages-benefits-low-income-children.html#jCp
Article about Newcomers in New York
From http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/26/nyregion/young-new-immigrants-helped-by-the-refugee-youth-summer-academy.html?_r=1
In New York, With 6 Weeks to Adapt to America
By KIRK SEMPLE
August 25, 2012
The Refugee Youth Summer Academy … was created for recently arrived refugees and asylum recipients. The academy, started in 1999 by the International Rescue Committee, a refugee resettlement agency based in New York City, tries to help its students find a footing in their new country and prepare them for school.
This year, more than 100 students enrolled in the six-week program, which offered an academic curriculum supplemented by creative-arts classes, field trips and other activities. They hailed from at least 13 countries, including Nepal, Burkina Faso, Iran, Iraq and Cameroon. Some had been in the country for a couple of years; others, like the Diallos, had just arrived. They spoke at least 17 native languages. Some could speak and read English fluently; others could not write their own name in any language. Some had attended school in their home countries; others had never been in a classroom.
If there was any commonality in their experience, it was that their families had been driven from their homelands and were seeking a better life in the United States.
Read the full article at http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/26/nyregion/young-new-immigrants-helped-by-the-refugee-youth-summer-academy.html?_r=1
In New York, With 6 Weeks to Adapt to America
By KIRK SEMPLE
August 25, 2012
The Refugee Youth Summer Academy … was created for recently arrived refugees and asylum recipients. The academy, started in 1999 by the International Rescue Committee, a refugee resettlement agency based in New York City, tries to help its students find a footing in their new country and prepare them for school.
This year, more than 100 students enrolled in the six-week program, which offered an academic curriculum supplemented by creative-arts classes, field trips and other activities. They hailed from at least 13 countries, including Nepal, Burkina Faso, Iran, Iraq and Cameroon. Some had been in the country for a couple of years; others, like the Diallos, had just arrived. They spoke at least 17 native languages. Some could speak and read English fluently; others could not write their own name in any language. Some had attended school in their home countries; others had never been in a classroom.
If there was any commonality in their experience, it was that their families had been driven from their homelands and were seeking a better life in the United States.
Read the full article at http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/26/nyregion/young-new-immigrants-helped-by-the-refugee-youth-summer-academy.html?_r=1
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