Your Creative Meridian Point

You might find this hard to believe: The meridian point for one's creative energy lies somewhere between the hallux and the second toe. Whenever I run into one of those writer's blocks, I'd wiggle my toes in order to stimulate the release of the creative qi. This stimulation often results in a tingling in my tailbone followed by an electric current coursing through my spine, and, finally, a heightened sense of awareness, bringing with it a thunderclap of a new idea or a burst of new ideas. You don't really believe this, do you?

Was this How the Universe was Created?
What Vijay, Dolores and Stephen Hawkings didn't Know

Find out more at the National Visual Arts Gallery

Needs Analysis in Language Teaching

Recently I had the opportunity to teach an Intensive English course to a foreign student for one month. My slot was on Speaking. I was required to do a Needs Analysis, which I found quite useful as I was able to introduce speaking topics based on information obtained about his job, family, education, and interests.In the field of training and development, conducting a needs analysis on training participants is de rigueur. Yet, in schools, colleges and universities, it is almost unheard of.  Students could be asked to fill up a form at the beginning of the year to obtain not only general information but also the students' different learning styles. A good understanding of the students will go a long way in helping the teacher tailor his or her lessons based on their needs.

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What Makes a Good Teacher?

Read What Makes a Good Teacher  at:

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Lessons from a Stump

I've been looking at this stump for over two months since my wife felled the red palm that had graced our little garden for about 18 years. This once tall leggy beauty has now been reduced to a midgety dull, prosaic stump, standing there daily in our garden in stoical silence. Despite having been brought down from her lofty heights, she never complains- not a hush, nor a rustle; how could she. anyway, when she's been shorn of her glorious green plumage. No, no, I'm not getting sentimental over her loss; I'm no tree-hugging nature lover. One day, for no apparent reason, I decided to take a close look at her, and this is what I find most amazing: even in her death throes, she's giving life to others-tiny plants sprouting to life and feeding off her. Walaoyeh!

Dateline: Sri Lanka, August 6, 2013
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigiriya
There I was climbing up the steps of this ancient heritage site: Sigiriya. At one of the stops to catch my breath, I was standing next to a French-speaking group when the local guide called out: Venez ici. Regardez! La statue de Buddha. Elle est plus grande! Imagine my excitement. I was able to understand what he was saying. Je peux comprenais! Bravo! 

What's your condition?

I often tell my students that English is a language where it's quite common to see writers making mistakes. A case in point is the opening sentence of a recent article in a local English daily: "If you live in Petaling Jaya, you would probably have heard of it. Three armed men rushed into a famous chilli crab restaurant shortly after closing time-and they were not looking for food".

The sentence in italics is a conditional sentence, but it's faulty. If the writer had intended to write in the "third conditional" the sentence should have been written thus: If you had lived in Petaling Jaya, you would probably have heard of it. However, we use the third conditional to express regrets for something that happened or didn't happen. Here's an example: If I hadn't missed the bus, I would have arrived at the office on time. It's quite obvious that the third conditional is not appropriate in this context.

The writer should have expressed his idea in the "first conditional": If you live in Petaling Jaya, you will/would probably know this. This sentence is possible as it expresses the idea that if the condition is fulfilled, the result is likely to happen. The use of would makes the writer's assertion more tentative.