Approaches to language learning: Blending tradition with innovation MARK SHUTTLEWORTH a a School of European Languages, Culture and Society, University College London, U.K. Email: m.shuttleworth@ucl.ac.uk Abstract—Experienced language learners have always tended to work out their own strategies to maximise their effectiveness; examples of this would include consciously incorporating newly learnt words and phrases in one’s own speaking and writing, reading real texts on topics that are of interest to one and learning to paraphrase so as to utilise one’s knowledge to the greatest possible effect. Such approaches will probably always continue to have considerable validity. However, the age of the internet and mobile technology is enabling the activity of language learning to be enhanced and supported in new and innovative ways. Firstly, the vast amount of user-generated content now available in many languages on the web (including video content on sites such as Youtube) on every topic under the sun can now be exploited for language learning purposes. Secondly, there are now a wide range of apps (such as reading aids or flashcard utilities), each of which is designed to support particular aspects of the learning process. Finally, wikis and other collaborative writing projects help to make language learning a more active and even creative activity. The paper will present a few examples of these new kinds of approach. Chief among these will be the showcasing of a user- driven wiki for learners of Mandarin Chinese that is based at University College London. One of the emphases throughout will be on considering the extent to which the new approaches and technologies considered are in the spirit of traditional language learning or should be considered a new departure. Keywords-principles of language learning; internet; mobile devices; wikis; apps Language learning is no easy activity. Quite the opposite in fact: it probably comes naturally to very few, and even those who seem to have a flair for it will need to apply themselves with great dedication over an extended period of time in order to achieve a reasonable level of proficiency in a language. And yet there has always been a need for people to know other languages, and this has every chance of continuing to be the case. Even with applications such as Google Translate, 1 Wordlens 2 and the English > Mandarin speech translator currently under development by Microsoft, 3 which appear to be 1 http://translate.google.co.uk 2 http://questvisual.com 3 http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/research/stories/speech-to- speech.aspx on the point of rendering the learning of other languages an unnecessary and obsolete activity, I believe that (at least some) human beings will always wish to be able to communicate with each other across language barriers with the immediacy that such applications cannot provide, for all their many obvious advantages. More importantly perhaps, for a long time to come it is likely that the most sensitive interlingual communication will continue to be entrusted to humans. This paper will start by considering in Section I what are likely to be some of the constants that will continue to characterise the activity of learning another language through what is likely to be a period of great change. It will aim to do this by enumerating what might be considered to be some of the habits that successful language learners develop for themselves. Following this, the next three sections will consider how this activity has changed with the advent of the new technology, focusing in particular on new approaches that are genuinely helpful to the learner. With this aim in view Section II will focus on the potential for language learning that has been unleashed by the advent of Web 2.0 technologies. The emphasis of Section III will be on applications – and in particular mobile apps – that have been developed with the language learner in mind. Finally, Section IV will discuss collaborative writing as a means to language learning, and will focus on a wiki that is being developed at University College London. What follows is certainly not intended as anything like an exhaustive list but focuses on a selection of new possibilities for the twenty-first century language learner. I. PRINCIPLES OF LANGUAGE LEARNING Any experienced linguist will develop a set of mental attitudes and practical strategies that will enhance his or her ability to make rapid progress when learning a new language; these are essential approaches that will help the language learner to overcome the sheer unnaturalness of the activity being undertaken. While this will differ from person to person a typical list might include at least some of the following: 1. In the early stages of learning a new language, work out a basic survival kit that would consist of the following kinds of item: basic greetings; I like, I want, etc. (the 1 st person form being the most important to I should like to acknowledge with gratitude the support given to me by UniMAP, which helped me to participate in the SILK conference.