Syntax Untangler
Syntax Untangler is an online activity that asks the learner to visually mark up a short primary text in any language, in order to improve small-scale reading skills. Any instructor can easily create and publish their own Syntax Untangler content (go to the Instructor Tools link below).
Syntax Untangler is particularly designed for training language learners to recognize and parse linguistic features. Here are some things you could ask your students to do:
- Identify the parts of a separable-prefix verb within a German sentence.
- Draw where a syntax structure begins and ends in a short Chinese text.
- Mark and differentiate all the instances of alliteration, consonance, and assonance in a bit of poetry.
- In a computer program, point out all the statements in a loop that might increment the loop counter.
Play a demo of these examples and more.
Players get instant feedback about whether they found the right answer(s).
- Training Level: Try it out! Play a sample Syntax Untangler unit.
- Instructor Tools: This is how you create and publish your own Syntax Untangler games. Log in or create an account right now!
- Frequently Asked Questions.
- Slideshow for a presentation about an earlier version of Syntax Untangler, 19 September 2011, that was captured and posted on YouTube:
More Examples
If you have written a Syntax Untangler unit you're willing to share, just let me know: Alan Ng, alan.ng@wisc.edu.
- MATLAB programming, by Deb Deppeler.
- German for Reading Knowledge: syntax, first week, by Alan Ng
- German for Reading Knowledge: various topics, fourth week, by Alan Ng
- German for Reading Knowledge: simplify complex sentences by first recognizing prepositional phrases, by Alan Ng
- Demonstration of a step-by-step "drill-down" analysis of a tricky French sentence.
Known Issues in Syntax Untangler
- To play, you must use a modern browser, such as a relatively recent version of Firefox, Chrome, or Safari. Internet Explorer version 9 also works fine. See the minor Caution to players using Internet Explorer versions 7 or 8. Internet Explorer versions 6 or older absolutely do not work.
- A mouse is recommended. Using a trackpad requires some skill, and touch-screen devices may not work at all.
- Right-to-left languages such as Hebrew and Arabic may not work (they have not even been tested).
- A long, but prioritized, list of features and bugfixes that are planned for future versions is available here: https://www.pivotaltracker.com/projects/138899
Syntax Untangler version 1 (a Flash prototype)
- We gave our first public presentation about Syntax Untangler on April 15, 2011 at the UW President's Summit, and here's the slideshow we used.
- Training Level (Warning - this final prototype version 1.15 had a number of known bugs! But it is usable once you get used to them)
- Authoring Tool (only useful for instructors who participated in evaluating this prototype in early 2011)
Credits
Syntax Untangler was made possible by support from:
- University of Wisconsin System LTDC (Learning Technology Development Council)
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Continuing Studies
- University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Professor Larry Kuiper
- University of Wisconsin-Extension Independent Learning
- Volunteer software-development hours from Alan Ng and Sean McMullin.
Sustainability
Syntax Untangler is an expression of the Wisconsin Idea and is available at no cost for worldwide public use. It is also an open-source project. You can get the source code and help build Syntax Untangler at our SourceForge site.