Double Entry Journal #8

1. What is the main challenge being addressed in the book?

The main challenge being addressed in the book is the fact that people who are afraid or intimidated by academic words are stifled when it comes to reading.   

2. What does the author mean by the phrase "ways with words"?

The author says that there is a new “way with words” which is a new way of learning.  He goes on to say “These new ways are the ways with words (and their concomitant ways of thinking) connected to contemporary digital technologies and the myriad of popular culture and specialist practices to which they have given rise. 

3. What is the core argument being made by the author of this book?

The author says “The core argument of this book will be that people learn new ways with words, in or out of school, only when they find the worlds to which these words apply compelling.” 

4. Give an example of a specialized variety of a language or "way with words" you have learned outside of school?

I have several Amish/Mennonite friends whom I spend time with on a regular basis.  Although they speak English, they have a different “way with words” in that they use older words that most people don’t still use very often nowadays.  For example, one day we were horseback riding and my horse started acting up.  My Mennonite friend asked “What’s her ailment?”  The word ailment isn’t one that I’d heard in a long time.  So, when I am with that group of friends, I understand their “way with words” and can completely understand them even when the words/phrases that they are using may not be ones that I use on a regular basis.      

5. According to the author, how do people learn a specialized variety of a language or "way with words" best?

According to the author, “People learn (academic or non-academic) specialist languages and their concomitant ways of thinking best when they can tie the words and structures of those languages to experiences they have had - experiences with which they can build simulations to prepare themselves for action in the domains in which the specialist language is used.” 

6. If people are to be successful in the 21st century, what must they become?

For people to become successful in the 21^st century, the author says that they must become “shape-shifting portfolio people.”  “That is, people who gain many diverse experiences that they can then use to transform and adapt themselves for fast-changing circumstances throughout their lives.”

7. The author states that learning academic language is NOT sufficient for success in modern society? Do you agree? Why or Why not?

Yes, I agree that in order to be successful in modern society, learning academic language is not sufficient.  I feel this way because textbook language or the academic language that textbooks use is not the way that people communicate in the real world.  Whenever people are communicating in real world jobs, environments, having a firm understanding and vocabulary with academic language is likely to help, but won’t exclusively constitute success. 

8. What do you think about this author's "way with words?"

I thought that this introduction was very easy to read.  I liked the way that the author wrote as if he were speaking to the reader.  The numbered points with details about the overview were laid out nicely, too.  So far, I’m not in a black hole (as the author calls it) yet! 

Source: Gee, James Paul. Situated language and learning: a critique of traditional schooling. New York: Routledge, 2004. Print.