This afternoon's Friendly English group divided into two subgroups. Carlos and Edana worked on Auralog, and on the Voice of America SPECIAL ENGLISH website. To quote from the website, "On October 19, 1959, the Voice of America broadcast the first Special English program. It was an experiment. The goal was to communicate by radio in clear and simple English with people whose native language was not English. Special English programs quickly became some of the most popular on VOA. They still are. Special English continues to communicate with people who are not fluent in English. Over the years, its role has expanded. It helps people learn American English while they learn about American life and stay informed about world news and developments in science. It provides listeners with information they cannot find elsewhere."
Special English as a core vocabulary of 1500 words, the narrators read at a slower pace, about 2/3 the speed of standard English.
Particulary interesting is the WEEKLY TV FEED, a 30 minute program of news, arts and culture. As the broadcaster reads, captions appear on the screen. You can watch this week's program by going to the VOA Special English page:
http://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/index.cfm
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