Thanks to all who submitted animal expressions for our last challenge; we especially liked “I'll ferret out your little secret”. Thanks to Maggie Ball of Compulsive Reader for that one.

This challenge we dedicate to an exciting upcoming event for the English language. According to the Global Language Monitor, the English language will soon gain its one-millionth word! In honor of this imminent landmark we ask you to coin a new “Techlish” word. Techlish is the combination of English and tech talk that cannot be translated. For example: blogosphere, podcast… get the picture? Submit your suggestions to journalcontest@jedlet.com. Who knows? Maybe your word will become the one-millionth! All entrants will receive complimentary JEDlet subscriptions!

Need inspiration? See our series of English Expressions Tutorials in the writing skills section at www.jedlet.com

The quest to learn English has never been so popular! Consider that 1.3 billion Chinese people recently have been officially encouraged to learn English, and according to the British Council, four-fifths of all electronic communications are already in English. Word watcher extraordinaire Paul JJ Payack, founder of yourDictionary.com and the Global Language Monitor, enlightens us,

“The constantly evolving world of cyberspace is having a profound effect on the words we use. The spread of the Internet has the English language evolving at an increasingly rapid rate.” Paul predicts that the one-millionth word landmark will occur sometime in the fall of this year.

(Visit Paul’s website for fascinating facts and informative articles about the English language at www.languagemonitor.com )

With the creation of hybrids like Chinglish (Chinese and English) and Spanglish (Spanish and English) continually adding new words and expressions to the mix, an evolving form of English is becoming the new lingua franca of global communications. So what does this mean it terms of e-learning? It means that the time has never been better to learn, improve, or sell English language skills via the Internet!

In keeping with that thought, we are delighted to launch our new series of JEDlet tutorials entitled Frolicking with Phonics just in time for International Literacy Day Sept. 8, 2006. Pilot trials are still available for non-profit and educational foundations, email info@jedlet.com for more information. Also available are English Expressions for ESL Learners, a perfect complement to the phonics series, and Bias-Free Communication is a valuable primer to ensure your writing is always appropriate in the global arena.

Browse the entire library at www.jedlet.com

Okay! You have waited long enough! Here is the answer to the question “What is the most frequently spoken English word on the planet?” Answer: OKAY!

This issue we tip our hats to ProLiteracy Worldwide, the world’s oldest and largest nongovernmental literacy organization. Their mission is to sponsor educational programs that help adults and their families acquire the literacy practices and skills they need to function more effectively in their daily lives. JED New Media is delighted to donate 10 access codes to our new Frolicking with Phonics (FWP) series, aimed at enhancing English-language reading and pronunciation skills, to this outstanding organization.

ProLiteracy Worldwide is providing literacy program directors with ideas for promoting International Literacy Day, Friday, September 8, 2006! For more information visit www.proliteracy.org

News

Calling all E-learning SME’s!
Sinéad Averill, a PhD researcher at the University of Limerick in Ireland, needs your help. Her research investigates e-learning in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Europe and examines the cultural differences and reasons for positive adoption in certain countries. She is currently looking at the e-learning situation in SMEs in Canada. For more information, or if you would like to contribute to her research, email sinead.averill@ul.ie

Events

Language Parade-A Fair Of Language Learning Opportunities,
September 8-9-10, 2006, Budapest. Visit www.nyelvparade.hu/

Workforce Performance 2006 - Conference, Seminar & Expo,
September 10-13, 2006, Las Vegas.
Visit www.workforce-performance.com/techlearn

ProLiteracy Worldwide 2006 Annual Conference, Oct. 4-7, 2006, Atlanta.
Visit www.proliteracy.org/conference/

22nd ICDE World Conference, September 3-6, 2006,Rio de Janeiro. Representatives from the Information Technologies & Education sector of the Canadian Consulate General in Brazil will promote the interests of the Canadian eLearning industry there. We invite Portuguese readers to review "Canadian Excellence in eLearning" at www.jedlet.com/download/ICT_Brazil_2006_encarte_canada_e-learning.pdf

For more events, see www.infojed.com

JED New Media is pleased to announce that 30 JEDlet tutorials have been approved as authorized resources by Alberta Education for use in Alberta Schools. Visit www.lrc.education.gov.ab.ca/pro/resources/findares.htm

Assistant Professor Agnes Kokovay of Hungary’s Nyíregyház College reports on how JEDlet tutorials are helping the college to better serve the e-learning needs of a rapidly growing student population. We hope that her experience will interest others in Central and Eastern Europe. Read the entire article at www.jedlet.com/download/Agi_Article_Journal_August_06.pdf

René J. Aerdts, Ph.D., EDS Fellow, EDS

Although English is not the most commonly spoken language in the world (it ranks fourth behind Mandarin Chinese, Indian and Spanish when counting native speakers), it is currently the only true “global language”: English is considered to be the universal language for business and technology.

Even though the Internet provides a level playing field for all languages, it also provides a mechanism for English to become more easily accessible: in a 2004 study by the University of California, Berkeley, more than 57% of all web pages were in English.

Due to this disparity in number of web pages in English and the prevalence of English as a spoken and written language, there is tremendous opportunity for the English language to continue its ascendancy in popularity.