C2 CEF DESCRIPTOR AND VIDEO

Is CEF C2 really possible?

C2 as described by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages refers to language users at mastery level. This means that a C2 rated speaker should be native or native-like. Take a look at the sample video.


ProficientUser
C2
Can understand with ease virtually everything heard or read. Can summarise information from different spoken and written sources, reconstructing arguments and accounts in a coherent presentation. Can express him/herself spontaneously, very fluently and precisely, differentiating finer shades of meaning even in more complex situations.
C1
Can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts, and recognise implicit meaning. Can express him/herself fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. Can use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. Can produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, showing controlled use of organisational patterns, connectors and cohesive devices.

IndependentUser
B2
Can understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in his/her field of specialisation. Can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party. Can produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.
B1
Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc. Can deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is spoken. Can produce simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest. Can describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes & ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans.

BasicUser
A2
Can understand sentences and frequently used expressions related to areas of most immediate relevance (e.g. very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment). Can communicate in simple and routine tasks requiring a simple and direct exchange of information on familiar and routine matters. Can describe in simple terms aspects of his/her background, immediate environment and matters in areas of immediate need.
A1
Can understand and use familiar everyday expressions and very basic phrases aimed at the satisfaction of needs of a concrete type. Can introduce him/herself and others and can ask and answer questions about personal details such as where he/she lives, people he/she knows and things he/she has. Can interact in a simple way provided the other person talks slowly and clearly and is prepared to help.

Red Integrada de Participación Educativa (RIPE)

El concepto de redes-sociales y de una Red Integrada de Participación Educativa

Los avances en las tecnologías de la información han sido un elemento importante para el progreso de la humanidad y, por ende, de las bibliotecas, bases de datos o entornos virtuales por medio de los cuales podemos educar a las nuevas generaciones acorde con las exigencias y facilidades actuales. El uso de conceptos que albergan formatos especializados pretenden implícitamente diversificar los espacios tecno-sociales que resguardan la información que genera la sociedad según el soporte en el que los datos estén contenidos.
No obstante un análisis histórico nos revela espacios dedicados para preservar la memoria transpersonal de la raza humana; las bibliotecas, pero las cualidades intrínsecas de los procesos de comunicación e información actual, redefinen características propias que deben replantearse y fundamentarse por su modo, forma y operación acorde con los cambios trascendentales de la evolución global que acontece en estos tiempos.

Características de la Red Integrada de Participación Educativa
· Consulta de material de diversas disciplinas en soportes no convencionales contemplando las necesidades y satisfacción de información tanto de los docentes y alumnos de los distintos niveles educativos como del público en general.
· Educación asistida por computadora.
· Educación asistida con consultoría telefónica gratuita.
· Presencia y uso en función de su interacción a fin de permitir la transferencia de un formato a otro y permitir convertirle en depositaria de los recursos e implementos par la lectura de documentos de diversa índole
· Multi e interdisciplinariedad para el ejercicio de sus funciones en:
§ Ingeniería de la comunicación
§ Bibliotecología
§ Pedagogía
§ Ciencias de la comunicación
§ Información en base de datos
§ Telemática
§ Teorías documentales
§ Gestión del conocimiento
§ Cibernética
§ Aprendizaje de idiomas
§ Educación asistida por computadora desde el Ministerio de Educación
§ Vídeo-conferencias
§ Mensajería instantánea
§ Correo electrónico
§ Creación de espacios virtuales como blogs
§ CreaActividad
§ Gestión de servicios públicos como parte de los servicios del Gobierno Digital

An Introduction to the Study of Language

An Introduction to the Study of Language

Prof. M.Sc. Gilberto Hernández Quirós

(Source: An Introduction to Language by Victoria Fromkin and Robert Rodman, 6th Ed.)

Part One: Introduction to Linguistics
Every human knows at least one language, spoken or signed. Linguistics is the science of language, including the sounds, words, and grammar rules. Words in languages are finite, but sentences are not. It is this creative aspect of human language that sets it apart from animal languages, which are essentially responses to stimuli.

The rules of a language, also called grammar, are learned as one acquires a language. These rules include phonology, the sound system, morphology, the structure of words, syntax, the combination of words into sentences, semantics, the ways in which sounds and meanings are related, and the lexicon, or mental dictionary of words. When you know a language, you know words in that language, i.e. sound units that are related to specific meanings. However, the sounds and meanings of words are arbitrary. For the most part, there is no relationship between the way a word is pronounced (or signed) and its meaning.
Knowing a language encompasses this entire system, but this knowledge (called competence) is different from behavior (called performance.) You may know a language, but you may also choose to not speak it. Although you are not speaking the language, you still have the knowledge of it. However, if you don't know a language, you cannot speak it at all.
There are two types of grammars: descriptive and prescriptive. Descriptive grammars represent the unconscious knowledge of a language. English speakers, for example, know that "me likes apples" is incorrect and "I like apples" is correct, although the speaker may not be able to explain why. Descriptive grammars do not teach the rules of a language, but rather describe rules that are already known. In contrast, prescriptive grammars dictate what a speaker's grammar should be and they include teaching grammars, which are written to help teach a foreign language.
There are about 5,000 languages in the world right now (give or take a few thousand), and linguists have discovered that these languages are more alike than different from each other. There are universal concepts and properties that are shared by all languages, and these principles are contained in the Universal Grammar, which forms the basis of all possible human languages.