Common Core Curriculum Research Task

Danielle Gabriel
Manhattan College of New York

The ability to speak more than one language is an important skill that we often
dismiss without a second thought. By surrendering this thirst for culture we shut the
door on the countless possibilities and opportunities the world has to offer us. We
condemn ourselves to a life of wading in the kiddie pool when there is a vast ocean out
there just waiting to be explored. With the knowledge of a second language comes the
ability to smash language barriers from coast to coast and really experience life to the
fullest extent.
Looking back at my years in high school, I can remember constantly asking
myself one question, When am I ever going to use this in life. Many times, I couldnt
come up with a valid answer to the age old question, nor did my teachers provide one
from their end. As an aspiring Spanish teacher, I want to make sure Im well prepared
when my students ask me why they need to learn this anyways. Not only does
speaking a second language give one the ability to travel and experience culture from a
completely different perspective, but believe it or not, it also helps them on the home
front with their English skills.
With a steadily growing population of Spanish speakers in the United States, we
are faced with the reality that along with more speakers comes a greater demand for
their native language. In addition to a growing Hispanic population in the United States,
we face the issue of falling literacy standards in comparison to various other countries.

While both articles refer to different issues altogether, they connect in that they both
provide the evidence needed to prove the importance of learning a second language.
According to Mark Hugo Lopez and Ana Gonzalez Barrera of the Pew Research
Center, the number of Spanish speakers in America has skyrocketed 223 percent since
1980, making it the fastest growing language. With Spanish being the second most
spoken language in America, there are now about 37 million speakers in total, which is
only expected to rise between 39 and 43 million by 2020, says Lopez and Barrera.
These numbers can be extremely surprising to some as in America we are often blinded
by our own way of life that we forget there are different languages and cultures being
embraced all around us on a daily basis. As Russell A. Berman, professor at Stanford
University, states, English has become the universal language if you spend your life in
international airports and international hotels. Its not the lingua franca of humanity. Its a
fairytale we tell ourselves. We can get along just fine in these United States speaking
English alone for now, but the second we step foot in a foreign country were basically
throwing ourselves to the wolves. Berman also goes on to say, Despite the pressures
and opportunities of globalization, we are becoming a nation of second-language
illiterates. This statement brings us to the next issue we face today in America, the
issue of seriously falling literacy standards. In the article, The Real Language Crisis by
Russell Berman, I was shocked to read that many colleges and universities are cutting
back immensely in their foreign language department. Louisiana State University cut off
their Latin and German programs, while Southern University made cuts in both French

and Spanish, and the most surprising of all comes with Tennessee State University
getting rid of their foreign language BA altogether. Its no wonder were slowly declining
in this area, when soon enough it will cease to exist in totality. After a recent study, the
National Foreign Language Center tells us, 82 percent of United States residents are
monolingual, and the United States is the only industrialized country where language
study is, for the most part, optional rather than mandatory and where language study
begins, in most cases, at age 14. With this information it is evident that we need to
raise the bar when it comes to our knowledge of other languages if we want any chance
at progressing as a country, and getting out of this stone-age idea that we should speak
English and English alone. Cynthia Haven explains, One of the advantages of learning
foreign languages has always been its importance in teaching the structure of language
itself including ones native language. Therefore, by learning a second language, not
only will we be able to better our relationships with other people and countries but we
will also be enhancing our own country and its proficiency in education as a whole.
As I think back to my years of travel softball, I can remember how excited I was
to go to California for Nationals my sophomore year. I had never been there before and
I couldnt wait to experience the west coast life and all it had to offer. The last thing I
expected to do with my time in California was to realize my dreams of becoming a
Spanish teacher. While lounging around at the hotel one day, we saw a younger boys
baseball team check in. After a closer look we realized that the team was from Mexico
and didnt speak much English. I immediately walked over and started talking to one of

the players, asking where he was from, what tournament they were in, anything I knew
how to say, I did. Each day we were there I would ask the mothers how the games went
that day and we would talk for a decent amount of time. Before that point in my life I had
no idea how rewarding it was to be able to completely break the language barrier and
communicate with someone of a different culture than you. In that week I knew that I
wanted to teach children the language in hopes that one day they would be able to
experience the same feeling of accomplishment and unity that I had that week.
While this was my first encounter with the language outside of a classroom
setting, todays youth may be exposed at a much earlier age. As the population of
Hispanics continues to grow, we are now seeing Spanish everywhere. There are
Spanish billboards, advertisements, menus, directions on labels, you cant even dial an
operator without being asked to press two para Espaol. We cannot deny any longer
the demand for Spanish in America and I believe we need to begin fulfilling that demand
in our school systems if we want to continue to evolve as a nation.
One thing I would like my kids to walk away with is the skill to maintain a simple
conversation. This includes basic vocabulary, commonly used expressions, and use of
at least the present and past tense. In doing so I would have to imply various different
methods of learning. I would have to begin by introducing vocab and expressions
through text by recalling each one and creating an action to accompany it. By
correlating each word/phrase with an action, we increase the students ability to
remember and understand each word. With this knowledge we can move on to the

actual action of conversation. I believe it would be incredibly helpful to have students

listen to conversations of native speakers, whether it be in person or through a voice
recording and being asked questions about the content of the conversation. The more
exposure a child has to the language the more likely they will be able to pick up on it.
After hearing how a typical conversation flows, I would then begin to initiate
conversations with each student and encourage conversations between students. By
constantly speaking and hearing their peers speak, students will begin to gain a sense
of comfortability with the new language. As the students continue to practice in this
matter, they will soon enough be ready to go out into the real world and use their newly
acquired skills to order dinner at a Mexican restaurant, or speak to the operator in
Spanish, or even befriend a fellow student that comes from a household of native
speakers. It is my mission that each student leave my classroom with an appreciation
for the Spanish language along with the ability to use it every day. On a further note, I
hope my children also apply their knowledge of the Spanish language in their other
classes to continue to stay rounded as young students.
While I was aware of the importance of Spanish and second languages, I didnt
realize the severity of the issue until I began researching this topic. Now that I
understand more so the effect that it has on our nation, I am more excited than ever to
enter the field of education and do whatever I can to help fix this problem. Although I
often struggled during my years to find an answer on why I was being forced to learn
material that seemed irrelevant, I strive to make sure each and every student that walks

through my door doesnt leave without a proper explanation. Spanish may not initially
appeal to each and every student, but I hope they will understand its necessity in
regards to its growing demand in the United States as well as its effect on other aspects
of the educational system.