Does memorizing "chunks of language" make you more fluent?
More failures of rote memorization
The Backseat Linguist
Commentary on research in language acquisition and language education
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Latest episodes
DIY Master’s in Second Language Teaching: A Reading List
Teaching adults a second language, or developing a good teaching app/program, requires both a solid grounding in the “why” (theory/research) as well as the “how.” If you don’t understand the why, you have no way of knowing if the how is working, or how to fix it when it doesn’t.
Individual State NAEP Scores Aren’t Evidence For Anything
Two more letters appeared in the 10/12/25 print edition of The Wall Street Journal on the topic of phonics and California.
Shanahan Responds to My WSJ Letter
The Wall Street Journal recently published a letter by Tim Shanahan in response to my earlier letter on phonics instruction in California.
Schooling the Wall Street Journal and the “Mississippi Miracle”
More false claims about California, Mississippi, and phonics
Interview with Loïs Talagrand on Language Acquisition versus Learning
"Do not focus on language learning!"
Are Flashcards a Good Idea for Learning New Words?
The research shows the popular approach is in fact not supported by the evidence.
Fundamentals of Language Acquisition: Two Talks
I gave two one-hour talks to the IZ Education Centre for beginning teachers over the past six months or so.
Interview with Matt Brooks-Green on Language Acquisition
Popular YouTuber Matt Brooks-Green interviewed me recently on some key concepts in acquiring a second language.
The Case for Acquired Phonics
Stephen Krashen and I published a very short paper, “The Case for Acquired Phonics,” which argues that the “acquisition/learning” distinction applies to phonics.
Interview with Álvaro from Natural Languages on Comprehensible Input
I was recently interviewed by Álvaro from Natural Languages about using comprehensible input in language teaching.
How to Teach Intermediate Language Students
A video lecture
NABE Talk Materials 2021
I’m giving short talk as part of a panel presentation on heritage languages for the National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE) this week.
Heritage Language Development (Krashen, Tse, & McQuillan, 1998) – Free Book
One of the first collections of papers on heritage language acquisition and education was , published in 1998 and edited by Stephen Krashen, Lucy Tse, and me.
How We Improve Our Vocabulary (Video)
I gave a talk to a group of students and scholars at the IZ Education Center (Iran) via Skype on May 15, 2020.
Can Language Minority Students Acquire Academic Vocabulary from Reading?
Gallagher, Taboada Barker, Beck, and Buehl (2019) evaluated yet another academic vocabulary intervention for middle school students.
The Shaky #ScienceOfReading on Decodable Texts
“Decodable texts” are books written so that the words that appear in them conform to the phonics rules children are taught.
Vocabulary, Grammar, Sex, and Aging
The title Vocabulary, Grammar, Sex, and Aging is from a paper published a few years ago in the journal Cognitive Science, not what’s been on my mind lately.
The NAEP Reading Panic: 2019 Edition
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) – “the Nation’s Report Card” – has released results from their latest round of reading tests.
Why Reading Fiction is Good for Academic Achievement
The education writer at Forbes, Natalie Wexler, argued last week that reading fiction isn’t the “only” thing needed to boost academic achievement.