10 Reasons to Teach Spanish - Socorro Independent School ...

10 Reasons To Learn &Teach Spanish

Facts and Figures to Promote a Better Understanding of the Spanish Language in

Australian Schools

Prepared by Alfredo Mart?nez-Exp?sito, University of Queensland

Ana L?pez, Honorary Consul of Spain In collaboration with the Education Office of the Embassy of Spain

When choosing a range of second languages to be offered through the LOTE department/area of your school, many factors should be carefully considered. Amongst them, the following question is of paramount importance:

Which languages are going to be more useful and provide a broader scope of opportunities for the upcoming generation of young Australians and Australian society in general?

In this report, we offer you substantive, up-to-date facts and statistical studies to assist you in making the right choice. We invite you to consider ten reasons

why Spanish should be seriously considered.

Spanish is one of the very few languages combining the three most sought-after aspects of modern foreign languages in Australia: it is a truly international language, it has a strong commerce and trade profile, and it is an Australian community language.

We would like to acknowledge the invaluable contribution of Karen Preece (Calvary Christian College, Brisbane), Helen Bode (Spanish Honours student, University of Queensland), and the Education Office (Consejer?a de Educaci?n) of the Embassy of Spain, Canberra.

The authors

"Apply yourself to the study of the Spanish language with all the assiduity you can. It and the English covering nearly the whole face of America, they should be well

known to every inhabitant, who means to look beyond the limits of his farm"

Thomas Jefferson, "Letter to Peter Carr" (1788)

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CONTENTS

Executive Summary .......................................................................................................... 5

1. A second language is a definite advantage .................................................................. 6 It's a multilingual world ................................................................................................... 6 Why Learn a Foreign Language? .................................................................................... 6 Multilingual policies ......................................................................................................... 7 Australian position............................................................................................................ 7 Memorandums of Understanding with Latin America ...................................................... 8 The British position......................................................................................................... 10 Study reveals learning languages changes brain anatomy ............................................. 10 Developing language skills is an investment for Australia ............................................. 12

2. Spanish is the first Western language by number of native speakers ....................... 15 Spanish is the official language of twenty-one countries................................................ 16 ... and widely spoken in 22 other countries and dependent territories ........................... 18 Spanish is the third largest language online................................................................... 19

3. Spanish is a major international language................................................................ 20 Spanish in Europe ........................................................................................................... 20 Spanish in the United States............................................................................................ 22 Spanish in Brazil ............................................................................................................. 24 Spanish in the Philippines............................................................................................... 25

4. Australia's trade with Spanish-speaking countries is ever expanding ..................... 27 A highly skilled and multilingual workforce is essential for the economic prosperity of Australia.......................................................................................................................... 28 Australian-Hispanic economic relations......................................................................... 31 Spain ............................................................................................................................... 31 Mexico............................................................................................................................. 32

Argentina ....................................................................................................................... 323

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Peru...................................................................................................34 Chile................................................................................................................................ 35 Uruguay.........................................................................................................36 Venezuela.......................................................................................................37 Some Australian Companies with Operations in Latin America..................................... 39

5. Spanish is one of the three most demanded foreign languages worldwide............... 40 The Demand for Spanish in Europe ................................................................................ 41 Student demand in Australia ........................................................................................... 43 Australian universities forging links with Latin America................................................ 44 Agreements between Australian Universities and Hispanic universities ........................ 45

6. The Hispanic ? a major world culture ....................................................................... 51 Hispanic Culture ............................................................................................................. 51 World Heritage sites in the Hispanic World ................................................................... 53 Cultural and historical ties between Australia and the Hispanic World ........................ 55 Nobel Prize Laureates from Spanish-language countries............................................... 57

7. Spanish is the language for travel and hospitality..................................................... 59

8. Spanish enjoys proper academic standards ............................................................... 62 Discipline and Institutions .............................................................................................. 62 The Spanish Education Office in Australia and New Zealand ........................................ 64 Professional Associations ............................................................................................... 65

9. Learnability: Spanish is easy to learn ........................................................................ 67 Spanish words in the English language .......................................................................... 67

10. Spanish is an Australian community language ....................................................... 71

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Executive Summary

Spanish is one of the leading languages in today's world. Spanish is second only to Mandarin by number of native speakers. It is a truly international language in commerce and trade, communication, education and many other areas. In the United States, an estimated 40 million use Spanish as their first language, and many more use it as a second language. In Australia, Spanish is the language of almost 100,000, making it the sixth largest community language.

In Australia, the popularity of Spanish is gaining momentum. Contrary to general trends in foreign-language enrolments, Spanish is attracting more students at all level of education. New Spanish programs open every year at universities and TAFE across the nation. More and more primary and high schools are making the shift to Spanish. Exchange programs with Spanish-speaking countries are in high demand.

For some, the sudden popularity of Spanish is difficult to understand and is sometimes attributed to fashion or mere coincidence. The reality is that Spanish is a unique LOTE in the Australian context because it fulfills some basic needs in ways that other modern languages simply cannot.

In this report, we have identified and documented some of the reasons why Spanish is rapidly becoming Australia's favorite second language.

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