Foreign Language Training Now Available on NMCI Computers
Navy NewsStand
Story Number: NNS081216-16
Release Date: 12/16/2008 1:34:00 PM
By Gary Nichols, Center for Information Dominance Corry Station
PENSACOLA, Fla. (NNS) -- The Center for Language, Regional Expertise and Culture (CLREC) headquartered at the Center for Information Dominance (CID) Corry Station has announced that self-paced foreign language training software is now being made available on NMCI-approved computers and workstations.
Since last March, access to this foreign language training was limited to active-duty/Reserve Sailors and Department of the Navy civilians through Navy Knowledge Online (NKO) and installation was restricted to personally-owned home computers.
The new foreign language training went live Dec. 11 and is now approved for use on NMCI systems. The push to all NMCI computers is expected to be completed by February 2009.
In a speech to the Navy's top master chief petty officers in 2006, Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter explained why language skills have become an integral part of the Joint Maritime Strategy.
Winter explained that preparing for deployment beyond warfighting capabilities is imperative to the Navy's overall mission. Sailors need to know how to act and communicate in cultural environments in which they are working to ensure they complete their mission in an effective manner.
"We are going to be involved in a very direct sense with many other nations and with many other cultures around the world," Winter said. "In the same sense that we have Sailors who are comfortable with working with various technologies, we are going to have to have Sailors that really understand what it means to be working in a multicultural environment."
CID Corry Station Commanding Officer Capt. Connie Frizzell explained that the Navy, unlike the Army, has historically not been tasked with missions which have required Sailors to be multilingual. However, the asymmetric nature of the global war on terrorism and the new mission sets that define theater security cooperation (TSC) do have these requirements.
During a speech to students at the University of Florida, Commander last year, Amphibious Force 7th Fleet in Okinawa, Japan, Rear Adm. Richard B. Landolt, echoed Winters' comments about the growing importance the Navy is placing on language and cultural awareness training and the role it plays in winning hearts and minds across the globe.
"We have learned from our efforts during the tsunami relief in Indonesia to the recent deployments of USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) in Southern Command's region, the Navy has learned that we gain as much from peacetime presence and engagement as we do from demonstrations of military might," Landolt said.
"The various communication technologies, which bridge the gaps of the blue water, have brought the Navy to the shores of every nation electronically," Frizzell said. "This technological underpinning forms the basis for a long term virtual presence, initiated during strike group deployments. Understanding the cultures of the communities the Navy is now operating in is critical to establishing and maintaining working relationships in TSC activities and winning asymmetric wars, fought across the globe."
The software package that best met these rigorous demands for the Navy is a suite of commercial self-paced language learning tools, which are known as CL-150 and are produced by Transparent Language Inc. of Nashua, N.H.
"CL-150 is a matrix comprised of domains, languages, tools and platforms," CLREC Director Chris Wise explained.
Among CL-150's unique features is the ability of users to develop their own training materials (i.e. vocabulary and phrase lists and flashcards) geared to a specific need, and then share the materials across the community of other government users.
"Domains are the operational environments or mission sets military personnel encounter (e.g. building rapport; collecting biographic data; performing medical missions, civil affairs missions, search and seizure missions, etc.);
"Languages include numerous foreign languages (e.g. Arabic, Chinese Mandarin, French, Georgian, Iraqi, Korean, Pashto, Russian, etc.) at varying levels of difficulty;
"Tools are the software applications themselves (e.g. audio flashcards, transcribed video clips, lexical, grammar and vocabulary aids, pronunciation tools, etc.); and
"Platforms are the various devices on which the software applications may be used (e.g. desktops, laptops, palmtops, mp3 players, etc.)," Wise added.
The CL150 is widely licensed by other governmental agencies, including the Office of National Intelligence, Special Operations Command, and the Defense Language Institute, arguably the world's premiere foreign language school.
Wise explained that due to licensing restrictions, eligibility to access materials under the Navy license will be verified through the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS).
"Navy retirees who are also DoN civilian employees should ensure that their DEERS credentials and NKO accounts reflect their civilian employment status to ensure access to the software," Wise said.
Although these new tools are not likely to make anyone an instant polyglot, with the Navy's newest language training tool now available on NMCI computers, there's no reason why Sailors and DOD civilians can't all become somewhat familiar with another language. These tools can help you learn specific helpful phrases you'll likely need to know to help bridge the language and cultural barrier between the United States and their foreign partners around the world.
"If you know a foreign language, expect to use it," Landolt cautioned, "and if you don't, expect to learn one."
To access additional training materials and tools associated with foreign language and culture, visit CLREC on NKO at https://wwwa.nko.navy.mil/portal/home/. Log into NKO and search for the keywords "language" or "culture."
For more news from Center for Information Dominance, visit www.navy.mil/local/corry/.
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