How does a child’s capacity to learn relate to the central debate about nature or nurture?  As part of the Early Childhood Development lecture series, Dr. Patricia Kuhl talks about children’s ability to learn effortlessly and the importance of social interaction in the learning process. Kuhl, professor of Speech and Hearing Sciences and co-director for the UW Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, is internationally recognized for her research on early language and brain development.

Speech: Power is moving East: Tony Blair's speech at Yale (25-May-2008)
When you read this book, you will be more convinced than ever that our children will need to have tools to be proficient in the languages of the future, not languages of the past.
 
Article: How to bring our schools out of the 20th century from Time Magazine (10-Dec-2006)
 
Book: Adventure Capitalist (2003)
Book: A Bull in China (2007)
Both books by Jim Rogers, was co-founder of the Quantum Fund with George Soros, travelled around the world (in a motorbike and a converted Mercedes SLK on 2 separate trips) and concluded that the 21st century belongs to China just like the 20th century belonged to America, and that Chinese is THE language to learn if you want to get ahead. Read it and you'll see why I am so passionate about ensuring my kids learn Mandarin.
 
Article: "You have 7 years to learn Mandarin" from Fortune Magazine (29-Apr-2008)
Abstract: Infants acquire language with remarkable speed, although little is known about the mechanisms that underlie the acquisition process. Studies of the phonetic units of language have shown that early in life, infants are capable of discerning differences among the phonetic units of all languages, including native- and foreign-language sounds. Between 6 and 12 mo of age, the ability to discriminate foreign-language phonetic units sharply declines. In two studies, we investigate the necessary and sufficient conditions for reversing this decline in foreign-language phonetic perception. In Experiment 1, 9-mo-old American infants were exposed to native Mandarin Chinese speakers in 12 laboratory sessions. A control group also participated in 12 language sessions but heard only English. Subsequent tests of Mandarin speech perception demonstrated that exposure to Mandarin reversed the decline seen in the English control group. In Experiment 2, infants were exposed to the same foreign-language speakers and materials via audiovisual or audio-only recordings. The results demonstrated that exposure to recorded Mandarin, without interpersonal interaction, had no effect. Between 9 and 10 mo of age, infants show phonetic learning from live, but not prerecorded, exposure to a foreign language, suggesting a learning process that does not require long-term listening and is enhanced by social interaction.
 
Article: Can preschool children be taught a second language? from Early Childhood News
 
 
Article: Mandarin Chinese in North American classrooms from Suite101.com (5-Jan-2007)
 
Article: Teaching Mandarin for a "Chinese Century" from NPR (National Public Radio) (6-Feb-2006)

CBS Evening News story:  Chinese: the new French or Spanish (1-Jun-2005)
 
 
Article: More U.S. schools, universities offer Chinese classes from China View News (8-Mar-2008)
 
Article: 10 Best Things We'll Say to Our Grandkids from Wired Magazine (October 2009)