The Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) is a widely accepted instrument for assessing second and foreign language ability. It is used by the Foreign Language Institute, the Defense Language Institute, Educational Testing Service, the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, and at many universities in the United States. The Art of Non-Conversation examines the components of speaking ability and asks whether the OPI is a valid instrument for assessing them. Marysia Johnson applies the latest insights from discourse and conversational analysis to determine the nature of the OPI's communicative speech event and investigate its construct validity within Messick's definition of validity. She discusses models of speaking ability-several communicative competence models, an interactional competence model, and a model of spoken interaction based on Vygotsky's sociocultural theory of learning. Finally she proposes a new model to test language proficiency drawn from sociocultural theory, one that considers language ability to be reflective of the sociocultural and institutional contexts in which the language has been acquired.

World Talk is the next level-up from Talk Now! and takes you on to the next stage with new activities, added dictation, and a brand new recording section. Topics covered include "the calendar," building sentences, asking directions, and using numbers. The interactive TV quiz is definitely a hit, where our resident champion may turn out to be more intelligent than you think! You can also compare your skill with a one-on-one match with a friend. With the unique recording feature, you can hear and compare your voice with a variety of native speakers. By mimicking the actors, you will soon see how rewarding language learning with EuroTalk is, and, how fast you learn!

'The thrill is that you're actually figuring it out on your own. You're engaging with another language, not just parroting it... It's an excellent way to start, and leaves the listener thinking, Hey, Ich kann do dis.' - New Yorker, David Sedaris, humorist and author, on learning German with the Michel Thomas Method Looking for a convenient language course that fits your lifestyle and gets you speaking a new language in a matter of weeks, not years? The original no-books, no-homework, no-memorizing method is in tune with the way the brain prefers to receive, store and retrieve information. You'll stick with it because you'll love it. * Improve your Polish naturally and unforgettably without strain or stress * Learn from listening and speaking, without the pressure of writing or memorizing * Build up your Polish in manageable steps by thinking out answers for yourself WHY IS THE METHOD SO SUCCESSFUL? 'What you understand, you know; and what you know, you don't forget.' - Michel Thomas Before there was machine learning, there was Michel Thomas. For over 50 years he worked on decoding languages by breaking them down into their most essential component parts. These 'building blocks' are introduced to the learner sequentially in such a way that you reconstruct the language for yourself - to form your own sentences, to say what you want, when you want. This unique method draws on the principles of instructional psychology and works with the way your brain prefers to receive, store and retrieve information. Knowledge is structured and organized so that you absorb the language easily and don't forget it. The method is designed to eliminate the stress which prevents you from relaxing and allowing the brain to work in the way which accepts learning in a seemingly painless, very exciting and highly motivating way. HOW DO THE COURSES WORK? 'All stress inhibits true and effective learning' - Michel Thomas During the course, you will join Michel Thomas teacher Jolanta Joanna Watson and two students in a live lesson, learning from both their successes and their mistakes to keep you motivated and involved throughout the course. You, as the learner, become the third student and participate actively in the class. Within the very first hour you will be able to construct complex phrases by listening and thinking out answers for yourself without the pressure of writing or stress of having to memorize. You will learn at your own pace, pausing and repeating where necessary, and complete the course in about 15-20 hours. By the end of the course, you will have a solid working knowledge of Polish and be able to express yourself confidently in a variety of situations. WHAT WILL I ACTUALLY ACHIEVE? 'I am the architect who builds the house. It's up to you to decorate it.' - Michel Thomas The Michel Thomas Method will help you kick-start, continue, and flourish in your language learning journey. The Intermediate course will give you a full understanding of all the verb tenses and help you to speak more fluidly, with proper pronunciation, faster than most any other method. Along with the Foundation course, it is designed to give you a strong foundation and good working knowledge of a language from which you can expand and later 'add decoration' to. It is a rapid method for learning, but still requires effort and concentration on the part of the learner. WHAT'S NEW IN THIS NEW EDITION? This new edition includes an audio review course to let you quickly revise and consolidate your learning once you've completed the full course. WHAT'S INCLUDED IN THE COURSE?* Intermediate Polish includes 4 audio Course CDs and 1 audio Review CD to continue and consolidate your knowledge. The booklet is available to download from www.michelthomas.com. *Note that the course content is the same as the previously entitled Perfect Polish course, but the CD-ROM has been replaced with audio review CDs. LEARN ANYWHERE! Reclaim your pockets of free time to learn a new language! Don't be tied to chunky books or your computer, Michel Thomas Method audio courses let you learn whenever and wherever you want, in as little or as much time as you have.

'The thrill is that you're actually figuring it out on your own. You're engaging with another language, not just parroting it... It's an excellent way to start, and leaves the listener thinking, Hey, Ich kann do dis.' - New Yorker, David Sedaris, humorist and author, on learning German with the Michel Thomas Method Looking for a convenient language course that fits your lifestyle and gets you speaking a new language in a matter of weeks, not years? The original no-books, no-homework, no-memorizing method is in tune with the way the brain prefers to receive, store and retrieve information. You'll stick with it because you'll love it. This Taster course is the first hour of the eight-hour Foundation German course. Within this first hour you will learn 50 essential words of German thanks to the Michel Thomas Method, perfected over 50 years by celebrated psycholinguist Michel Thomas. * Pick up German naturally and unforgettably without strain * Learn from listening and speaking, without the pressure of writing or memorizing * Build up your German in manageable steps by thinking out answers for yourself * Progress to the full Foundation German course with confidence in the method. WHAT'S NEW? This new edition includes remastered audio and comes in new, eco-friendly recyclable packaging. WHY IS THE METHOD SO SUCCESSFUL? 'What you understand, you know; and what you know, you don't forget.' - Michel Thomas Before there was machine learning, there was Michel Thomas. For over 50 years he worked on decoding languages by breaking them down into their most essential component parts. These 'building blocks' are introduced to the learner sequentially in such a way that you reconstruct the language for yourself - to form your own sentences, to say what you want, when you want. This unique method draws on the principles of instructional psychology and works with the way your brain prefers to receive, store and retrieve information. Knowledge is structured and organized so that you absorb the language easily and don't forget it. The method is designed to eliminate the stress which prevents you from relaxing and allowing the brain to work in the way which accepts learning in a seemingly painless, very exciting and highly motivating way. HOW DO THE COURSES WORK? 'All stress inhibits true and effective learning' - Michel Thomas During the course, you will join Michel Thomas and two students in a live lesson, learning from both their successes and their mistakes to keep you motivated and involved throughout the course. You, as the learner, become the third student and participate actively in the class. Within the very first hour you will be able to construct simple phrases by listening and thinking out answers for yourself without the pressure of writing or stress of having to memorize. You will learn at your own pace, pausing and repeating where necessary, and complete the course in about 3-5 hours. WHAT WILL I ACTUALLY ACHIEVE? 'I am the architect who builds the house. It's up to you to decorate it.' - Michel Thomas The Michel Thomas Method will help you kick-start, continue, and flourish in your German language learning journey. It is not intended to get you perfectly fluent, but it will get you speaking and using German, with proper pronunciation, faster than most any other method. It is designed to give you a strong foundation and good working knowledge of a language from which you can expand and later 'add decoration' to. It is a rapid method for learning, but still requires effort and concentration on the part of the learner. WHAT'S INCLUDED IN THE COURSE?* Start German includes one audio CD. The booklet is available to download from www.michelthomas.com. LEARN ANYWHERE AND ANYTIME! Reclaim your pockets of free time to learn a new language! Don't be tied to chunky books or your computer, Michel Thomas Method audio courses let you learn whenever and wherever you want, in as little or as much time as you have. WHERE DO I GO NEXT? Foundation German follows on from the Start course.

This expert guide provides yoga teachers with the skills they need to understand how to care for and improve their voices technically, as well as how to express themselves authenticity and effectively as a teacher. Being able to give instruction clearly and with emotional intelligence is part of the personal development that each yoga teacher goes through. This book offers instruction, support and ideas on how to embark on the journey of yoga teaching with greater confidence and mindfulness. After the basics in vocal projection, inflection and intonation are covered, the book details the psychological significance of believing in your own value and finding what makes each teacher unique and accessible to their students. It includes advice on safe boundaries in the student/teacher relationship, self-care, and tips on how to deal with common teaching mishaps with grace and humour. Improvisation techniques and personal stories from other teachers help to expand the reader's skills further to create an affirming, practical guidebook for all yoga teachers.

This second book of the Spoken Standard Chinese series completes the presentation of the major grammatical patterns of modern Mandarin, and introduces an additional 700 words. Book Two uses pinyin romanization. An accompanying audio program is available.

This book begins the Spoken Standard Chinese series, which emphasizes natural dialogue and familiarity with a modern, adult vocabulary. Book One uses pinyin romanization and no Chinese characters. An accompanying audio program is available.

This second book of the Spoken Standard Chinese series completes the presentation of the major grammatical patterns of mdoern Mandarin and introduces an additional 700 words. Book Two uses pinyin romanization. An accompanying audio program is available.

Spoken Marshallese is designed to fill the need for a basic text in the language of the Marshall Islands. It will give students a fluency in the language and a feeling for its structure, enabling him or her to converse freely on a broad range of subjects without additional formal instruction. The Marshallese-English Dictionary, by Takaji Abo, Byron W. Bender, Alfred Capelle, and Tony DeBrum, would be useful as a supplement to this text.

'The thrill is that you're actually figuring it out on your own. You're engaging with another language, not just parroting it... It's an excellent way to start, and leaves the listener thinking, Hey, Ich kann do dis.' - New Yorker, David Sedaris, humorist and author, on learning German with the Michel Thomas Method Looking for a convenient language course that fits your lifestyle and gets you speaking a new language in a matter of weeks, not years? The original no-books, no-homework, no-memorizing method is in tune with the way the brain prefers to receive, store and retrieve information. You'll stick with it because you'll love it. * Improve your Portuguese naturally and unforgettably without strain or stress * Learn from listening and speaking, without the pressure of writing or memorizing * Build up your Portuguese in manageable steps by thinking out answers for yourself WHY IS THE METHOD SO SUCCESSFUL? 'What you understand, you know; and what you know, you don't forget.' - Michel Thomas Before there was machine learning, there was Michel Thomas. For over 50 years he worked on decoding languages by breaking them down into their most essential component parts. These 'building blocks' are introduced to the learner sequentially in such a way that you reconstruct the language for yourself - to form your own sentences, to say what you want, when you want. This unique method draws on the principles of instructional psychology and works with the way your brain prefers to receive, store and retrieve information. Knowledge is structured and organized so that you absorb the language easily and don't forget it. The method is designed to eliminate the stress which prevents you from relaxing and allowing the brain to work in the way which accepts learning in a seemingly painless, very exciting and highly motivating way. HOW DO THE COURSES WORK? 'All stress inhibits true and effective learning' - Michel Thomas During the course, you will join Michel Thomas Method Teachers Virginia Catmur and two students in a live lesson, learning from both their successes and their mistakes to keep you motivated and involved throughout the course. You, as the learner, become the third student and participate actively in the class. Within the very first hour you will be able to construct complex phrases by listening and thinking out answers for yourself without the pressure of writing or stress of having to memorize. You will learn at your own pace, pausing and repeating where necessary, and complete the course in about 15-20 hours. By the end of the course, you will have a solid working knowledge of Portuguese and be able to express yourself confidently in a variety of situatio

Timothy Cheek's revised edition of Singing in Czech: A Guide to Czech Lyric Diction and Vocal Repertoire, with its accompanying audio accessible online, builds on the original pioneering work of 2001 that set "a new and very welcome high standard for teaching lyric diction," according to Notes: The Journal of the Music Library Association. It offers users updated information, important clarifications, and expanded repertoire in a more accessible, easier to use format. Singing in Czech is divided into two parts. Using IPA, the first part takes the reader systematically through each sound of the Czech language, enhanced by recordings of native Czech opera singers. Chapters cover the Czech vowels, consonants, rules of assimilation, approaches to singing double consonants, stress and length, Moravian dialect, and an introduction to singing in Slovak. Fine points of formal pronunciation have been clarified in this revised edition. In the second part, Cheek offers a thorough overview of Czech art song, expanded from the first edition. Texts to major song literature and opera excerpts by Smetana, Dvorak, Janacek, Martinu, and Haas, with timings, editions, word-for-word translations, idiomatic translations, and IPA transcriptions follow. In this revision, Cheek has included additional cycles by Dvorak and Martinu, and two new chapters on Czech female composers Vitezslava Kapralova and Sylvie Bodorova. This revised edition of Singing in Czech is useful for all those who are interested and engaged in the performance of the rich Czech vocal repertoire.

Talk French has already inspired thousands of people to learn French from scratch and find the confidence to give it a go.

Whether you're learning for business, travel or just for fun, its straightforward, step-by-step approach will ensure you're soon able to speak French in a range of everyday situations.

With its specially designed activities and clear, jargon-free grammar explanations you'll quickly develop your language skills and make genuine progress right from the start.

• Make real progress using the successful, proven Talk method.
• Develop your language skills with tips and strategies to help you learn.
• Practise and learn with interactive activities to support every topic.

Talk Spanish has already inspired thousands of people to learn Spanish from scratch and find the confidence to give it a go.

Whether you're learning for business, travel or just for fun, its straightforward, step-by-step approach will ensure you're soon able to speak Spanish in a range of everyday situations.

With its specially designed activities and clear, jargon-free grammar explanations you'll quickly develop your language skills and make genuine progress right from the start.

• Make real progress using the successful, proven Talk method.
• Develop your language skills with tips and strategies to help you learn.
• Practise and learn with interactive activities to support every topic.