Babble on...

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/12/health/12klass.html

An easy and informative read on language development.  Of note:

Babies have to hear real language from real people to learn these skills. Television doesn’t do it, and neither do educational videos: recent research suggests that this learning is in part shaped by the quality and context of adult response.


I know it's somewhat dangerous to extrapolate findings from one research domain to another - but isn't it likely that all learning is mediated by the quality and context of the teacher's response?  I also like the author's bit at the end about how his exam room is his laboratory - I'd love to see more educators approach the classroom in the same light.