The Importance of Interpreters in Healthcare
A viral TikTok recently highlighted the importance of medical interpreters in healthcare. In the video, Jen Hamilton, a labor and delivery nurse in North Carolina, shared her experience with a patient who speaks Spanish. “If I get a patient that speaks Spanish, I will call the Spanish interpreter first,” Hamilton said in the video. She […]
What is LEP in Healthcare?
A person with language skills that are still developing can navigate many situations. In a post office, train station or restaurant, there are ways to get by without being fluent. Communication in medical situations is not as flexible. People who prefer other languages and have Limited English Proficiency (LEP) need to exchange precise messages with […]
Bilingualism in the Workplace
The 21st Century Multilingual Workplace In an increasingly interconnected world, the expanding ease of communicating with others in situations where language barriers used to exist is exciting. Technology and improved knowledge about language have made such advancements possible. Globalization gives companies the opportunity to collaborate with different cultures in ways that can be enriching—and even lucrative—on […]
Why is understanding language disorders essential to improving the criminal justice system?
At any given time, nearly 60,000 youth are incarcerated in the United States. From a lack of investment in poor neighborhoods and schools to draconian drug laws, bail policies that criminalize poverty, and lack of adequate rehabilitation and reentry services, there is a myriad of reasons that the United States has the highest rate of […]
Why Are There Two Official Languages in Canada?
Since the Official Languages Act of 1969, both English and French have been the official languages of Canada. The majority of Canada’s French-speaking population lives in Quebec. The province follows the Charter of the French Language and uses French as the main language in both the government and daily life. However, the number of predominantly […]
Can Humor Help Language Learners?
Memes, the viral pictures and videos shared widely on social media, might offer more than just a chuckle. They could be one of the most effective ways to incorporate humor into language learning. A new study by Dr. Peter Neff, a professor at the Faculty of Global Communications at Doshisha University, looked at the ways […]
Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders: you may never have heard of them, but you probably know somebody that has one.
With a name as ostentatious as Orofacial Myofunctional Disorder, you may be thinking: why should I care about this rare, surely complicated disorder that nobody has ever heard of? And why is ALTA publishing an article about them? Reason Number 1 to care: not only are Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders (OMDs for short) not rare, but […]
5 Fascinating Facts About the Comanche Language
Prey, a prequel to the Predator franchise, made history as the first movie entirely dubbed in Comanche, the native language of the Comanche Nation. After premiering at San Diego Comic-Con, Prey started streaming on Hulu on Friday, August 5, 2022. This movie tells the story of a Comanche warrior trying to protect her tribe from […]
10 Benefits of Learning a Second Language for Jobs
Learning a second language has so many benefits that it’s hard to count them all. The chances of earning money with languages in business, companies and the public sector are also increasing. Speaking another language “pays off” for your brain and social life too. Other Languages Spoken in the U.S. Spanish Across homes in the […]
An Alaskan University Will Offer Free Alaska Native Languages Classes Soon
The University of Alaska Southeast (UAS) plans to offer free language classes for Tlingit (or Lingít), Haida, and Tsimshian this fall. The non-credit classes are intended to help revitalize these Alaska native languages, which are endangered due to assimilation programs. Some experts warn that if nothing changes, Alaska’s remaining indigenous languages will all be extinct […]