1.     Dr. Ingold, Does STARTALK vet readily available software/technology (Duolingo comes to mind) for enhancing their curriculum? 

Response:  No, STARTALK does not make recommendations to the programs it funds concerning technology.  These programs are of short duration — a few weeks at most — so an investment in technology new to the local organization would not make much sense.

2.       Dr. Ingold, Have you addressed/approached the technology industry to help support the STARTALK initiative?

 Response: No,  STARTALK’s central office staff do not solicit funds for STARTALK from sources other than the primary sponsor.  

3.       Dr. Wiley/Ms. Rhodes, As an Iranian-American who is married to a German-French American, what advice do you have for hopes of our children to retain ALL of our languages?

Response: It all depends on what languages you speak in the home and what languages are available for them to study in school. If you speak Farsi and German at home and the children’s school offers English and French, you’d be all set! Realistically, if you focus on one language (other than English) in the home, then they could study English and a second language in school, and would end up trilingual.  Then they could always add a fourth language at a later time.  The most important thing is that you expose your children to languages at an early age, which will make them more open to learn other languages in the future.   For other questions on family bilingualism, we recommend Colin Baker’s book, A Parents’ and Teachers’ Guide to Bilingualism 

4.       Has there been any efforts to combine after-school activities such as sports with language teaching?  Children’s availability/time is always a concern.

Response: That’s a great idea. We know of some districts and schools that have combined “special