Showing papers in "Hispania in 2018"

What's Next?: Heritage Language Learners Shape New Paths in Spanish Teaching.

Abstract: Abstract:The US Census projects that the Hispanic community in the United States will reach 128.8 million by 2060, and this growth requires a better understanding of Spanish as a heritage language (SHL). This essay examines three future areas of development within SHL instruction. First, more communication between communities of research and practice is necessary to improve classroom instruction. Second, novel SHL teaching materials ought to promote a \"pedagogy of multiliteracies\" approach. Lastly, we provide a discussion that moves beyond differentiated language instruction by considering SHL at all instructional levels and implementing a \"heritage studies\" curriculum.

Intercultural Contact in Short-term Study Abroad Programs

Abstract: Traditionally in the United States, study abroad has been regarded as the primary source for meaningful interaction with members of the target language (TL) community, particularly at the post-secondary level. Today, more than 300,000 college students study abroad every year, and most of them do so in short-term island programs (defined as programs arranged by a sponsoring university, lasting less than eight weeks, aimed primarily at students from that institution, and often taught by faculty members of the home campus). This exploratory study analyzes the change in intercultural contact (i.e., frequency and quality of interaction with members of the second language community) as a result of participation in a short-term study abroad program. Furthermore, it investigates whether those changes are influenced by specific study abroad program features (such as homestays, cultural visits, and service learning), or by the student's level of experience with the TL. Thirty-nine participants in five different short-term island programs (based in Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Panama and Spain) were examined to determine the impact of foreign sojourns on the nature and extent of their intercultural contact with the host community, using an adapted version of the Intercultural Contact Questionnaire (ICQ) (Kormos, Csizer and Iwaniec 2014). The results of this investigation highlight the cultural limitations of short-term study programs abroad, as well as the challenges faced by second language learners when trying to engage members of the TL community. The pedagogical significance and curricular implications of the findings are discussed.

Spanish for the Professions and Specific Purposes: Curricular Mainstay

Abstract: Building on its substantial and sustained evolution over the past thirty-plus years, Spanish for the Professions and Specific Purposes (SPSP) should flourish in the future as a paradigmatic curricular mainstay. A characteristic of its steadily emerging theory-based maturity within the Language for the Professions and Specific Purposes (LPSP) curricular ecosystem will be the increased thickness and granularity of SPSP in continual response to evolving learner needs. Development of SPSP as an adaptable signature feature of future Spanish curricula represents a fundamental, renewable long-term investment in the relevance, and therefore the centrality, of the study of Spanish. It is a commitment to curriculum development activism.

The Role of Technology in Language Learning in the Twenty-First Century: Perspectives from Academe, Government, and the Private Sector

Abstract: Since the end of the 1990s, teachers of all disciplines have been experimenting with content delivered in a hybrid/blended format and entirely online. In the general education field, research—whether empirical or action—has been conducted for a number of years on different aspects of blended and entirely online learning, the term "online learning" typically encompassing both. This essay will provide an overview of developments in online learning at the K–16 levels, in government, and in the private sector, closing with information about technology trends that offer a glimpse into what the language learning field might look like five years from now.

Meeting Student Needs: Integrating Spanish Heritage Language Learners into the Second Language Classroom

Abstract: Despite the increase of Spanish heritage language (HL) courses in response to the linguistic needs of HL learners, these courses often combine this student population with advanced second language (L2) learners. This common scenario presents a challenge to many instructors who lack the training to negotiate intercultural and linguistic issues in the classroom so that all students can benefit. This essay presents key intercultural concerns (e.g., embarrassment and intimidation) and suggests strategies for instructors. Twenty-first-century students will work in collaborative contexts, so they must learn how to benefit from their classmates' strengths and work on their weaknesses through peer interaction and teamwork.

Translation, Interpreting, and Language Studies: Confluence and Divergence

Abstract: Abstract:Perspectives on the interplay of translation, interpreting, and language studies regularly position these related fields in various stages of tension. Renewed interest in translation and interpreting may lead to their incorporation in language programs in an effort to provide cross-cultural and translingual skills for graduates. Such curricular changes will result in several outcomes for these fields. First, formalized translation and interpreting programs will be established to prepare professional language service providers. Second, program graduates will be informed consumers of language services. Third, new offerings may serve as a vector for developing cross-cultural mediation and a method for further language development.

The Evolution of Future Spanish Graduate Programs to Meet Diverse Student Needs

Abstract: As the 2007 report from the Modern Language Association attested, foreign language departments must undergo radical structural changes in order to meet student needs in a changed world. The implications of this report (e.g., to broaden the curriculum beyond the study of literature, linguistics, and culture to include courses with other disciplinary content [history, economics, business, medicine]) have been implemented by some university language programs at the undergraduate level (e.g., Byrnes, Maxim, and Norris 2010) but mostly have been ignored by graduate programs. The effects of the dearth of foreign language graduate programs encouraging graduate students to engage in interdisciplinary research and teaching with faculty and students in other departments is seen in the literature on Languages for Specific Purposes in the United States (Lafford 2012), briefly reviewed here. This essay envisions the evolution of Spanish graduate programs that incorporate interdisciplinary approaches and professional training into their curriculum to meet diverse graduate student needs (i.e., preparing them for careers inside/outside of academe, training them to start professional languages programs, allowing heritage learners of Spanish to leverage their linguistic/cultural expertise, and providing opportunities for them to forge community partnerships to improve the quality of life of the people they will serve).

Writing in Spanish as a Second and Heritage Language: Past, Present, and Future

Abstract: In recent years, writing in Spanish as a foreign or heritage language has assumed more prominence in research and curricular policy in the United States. Increasing numbers of heritage language learners, the emergence of social media tools, renewed interest in writing genres, and changing instruction methods have all influenced how we understand writing and writers. This article provides a brief overview of the aspects of writing that are currently pertinent in pedagogical and research contexts, and suggests what writing practices might look like in the future.

The World Is Not Flat, So Why Are Our Textbooks?

Abstract: We review the evolution of the modern language textbook, exploring its function in the curriculum of Spanish classes. In light of the advantages offered by new technological resources, we propose that the paper-based textbook has outlived its usefulness in today's multidimensional world, both logistically and pedagogically. To demonstrate, we explore three aspects of the paperless classroom: a transformed focus, a design that makes learning visible, and digital implementation. Specific examples are from two projects for introductory and intermediate Spanish.

Brazil's Rise and Portuguese as a Strategic Foreign Language: Preparing Tomorrow's Military Leaders

Abstract: Brazil's meteoric rise as Latin America's economic superpower has prompted the United States government to reassess its strategic vision of South America and its relationship with Brazil. The next generation of US economic, business, political, and military leaders will likely be faced with a South American landscape heavily dominated by Brazil. The US Department of Defense (DoD) in particular has recognized the strategic importance of Brazil and the critical need for Portuguese language and culture training for military leaders involved in DoD missions in South America. This paper describes the reasons for adding Portuguese as one of the Air Force Academy's eight strategic foreign languages and the future of Portuguese FL education for tomorrow's military leaders.

Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Training: A Contrastive Analysis of Trainers and Trainees' Perspectives

Abstract: This study explores current practices of teaching assistant (TA) training in doctoral-granting institutions and expands on previous studies by exploring the views of both faculty and graduate students involved in the process. Our overall goal is to determine whether training practices and goals have changed and, if so, to what extent, in order to reflect the changing objectives of the foreign language (FL) field in the last decades—objectives that involve the development of translingual and transcultural competence and the integration of twenty-first-century skills. We conducted a nationwide survey of Spanish departments that focused on three main areas: language, culture, and technology. Results indicate that TA training is based on immediate teaching needs and lacks long-term goals of professionalization and that there are substantial differences in opinion between TAs and faculty in charge of the training regarding its effectiveness. We argue that our findings have direct implications for the revitalization of TA education since only when TAs are trained to fully integrate culture and language and incorporate technology in meaningful ways in lower-level courses will FL departments be able to strive for the desired integrated curriculum.

Understanding the Spelling Errors of Spanish Heritage Language Learners

Abstract: This theoretical position article presents the current state of the research on college-aged Spanish heritage language learners' (HL) spelling as well as the limitations of a descriptive approach to spelling research. The article also highlights the need to analyze and understand HLs' errors based on the underlying cognitive-linguistic processes behind the assignation of graphemes to phonemes. In this article, I analyze Spanish misspellings in college-age HLs within a cognitive-linguistic framework. Spelling is not merely a system of phoneme-grapheme correspondences prescriptively established, but it also requires acquiring and developing awareness of the language's phonological and morphological codes. This article reviews those two cognitive domains and examines different types of spelling errors made by HLs under this perspective, by showing the role of each of these cognitive skills in the erroneous assignment of graphemes to phonemes. Furthermore, the article suggests lines of experimental research targeting these cognitive-linguistic domains.

The Impact of Portuguese on the Study of Third Language Acquisition

Abstract: Over the last several years, we have been witness to a growing body of work that examines the acquisition of Portuguese as a third language (L3). Here in the United States, Spanish speakers account for 45% of students enrolled in Portuguese classes (Milleret 2012), divided among first language (L1) Spanish speakers, second language (L2) Spanish speakers, and heritage speakers. While these three groups are all speakers of English and Spanish, they differ with respect to the order and context of acquisition of the two languages. In this essay, I propose that access to these three linguistic profiles in Portuguese classes offers a unique opportunity for us to study third language acquisition here in the United States that arguably has not been afforded elsewhere. In L3 acquisition research, a primary interest is in the differences in acquisition processes when comparing learners with a mirror image language pairing (in this case, L1 English/L2 Spanish compared with L1 Spanish/L2 English). More recently, we have also begun to examine how mirror-image groups of sequential bilinguals compare with early bilinguals (in this case, heritage speakers of Spanish). Herein, I review research questions that drive the field and illustrate how we have addressed these questions via examination of L3 Portuguese acquisition.

The Future of K–12 Teacher Education: Spanish and Portuguese

Abstract: US teacher education has been scrutinized for years. In this essay, the author discusses the four major questions that have driven educational reform. Afterward, a historical account of teacher education focusing on teacher certification, teacher testing, and the teaching of modern languages is presented. An international perspective is added by highlighting successful practices in Finland. The voices of several leaders in the field are also presented to offer readers insight into the future of language teacher education. The article concludes with proposals about future directions for language teacher education with particular attention given to the teaching of Spanish and Portuguese.

Ecological Crisis and Cultural Representation in Latin America: Ecocritical Perspectives on Art, Film and Literature ed. by Mark Anderson and Zélia M. Bora (review)

Abstract: EDITORIAL POLICY: Hispania publishes reviews of selected books and electronic media in the following categories: Pan-Hispanic/Luso-Brazilian Literary and Cultural Studies; Linguistics, Language, and Media; and Fiction and Film. Publishers and authors should submit their materials for possible selection to the Book/Media Review Editor, Domnita Dumitrescu, Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, California State University, Los Angeles, 5151 State University Dr., Los Angeles, CA 90032. Submitted materials will not be returned to publishers or authors, even if they are not selected for review. Members of the AATSP who wish to be considered as reviewers should upload their information at mc.manuscriptcentral.com/hispan and send their CV to the Book/Media Review Editor at ddumitrescu@aatsp.org. Hispania will not accept unsolicited reviews and does not publish journal numbers, book notices, or reviews of works more than two years old. Due to the number of works that correspond to Hispania’s broad scope, not all requests to review specific items can be granted. We especially encourage, however, requests to review film and other media resources. An invitation to review does not guarantee publication. All reviews are evaluated by anonymous readers and publication decisions are based upon their comments and the discretion of the editors.

Literature in the Undergraduate Spanish Curriculum: Visionary Brainstorming.

Abstract: This essay, drawing from Design Thinking, challenges college faculty to reconsider the reading and teaching of literature in the undergraduate Spanish curriculum and initiates a visionary brainstorming process to be continued by readers in their own institutions. It suggests considering new research in cognitive literary studies, the impact of digital communications, and students' personal reading experiences and future goals as individuals and departments imagine new places for literature in and across the curriculum and innovative ways to teach it.

Lenguas, culturas y sensibilidades en los Estados Unidos: Español y Spanglish en un mundo inglés

Abstract: El presente estudio muestra el estado del Spanglish en los Estados Unidos, a traves de las diversas posturas—y de algunas reflexiones—de estudiosos sobre el tema. El cambio de codigos ( code-switching ) entre el ingles y el espanol—caracteristica que diversos investigadores consideran tipica del Spanglish—, representa el modelo de la identidad mestiza de muchos latinos en los Estados Unidos. Con este ensayo tratamos de reflexionar sobre algunos puntos para intentar profundizar y comprender este comportamiento linguistico, cultural e identitario que caracteriza a muchas de las comunidades de origen hispano que residen en los Estados Unidos. Los resultados in fieri muestran que el Spanglish representa una practica linguistica, y al mismo tiempo puede ser un puente entre la cultura hispana y la cultura estadounidense.

Language Proficiency: Envisioning the Win in the High School Spanish Classroom

Abstract: This current study suggests that future secondary Spanish language teachers must be more like athletic coaches to ensure student success and score a so-called win in the classroom. Teachers must retool and redesign outdated and ineffectual curricula and instructional strategies to improve student performance. Focusing on language proficiency, measurable performance, and the development of life skills, as ACTFL's Teacher of the Year in 2014, the author reflects on myriad changes in the educational landscape such as dual language immersion programs and the adoption of the State Seal of Biliteracy. Pressures to produce a multilingual workforce are causing secondary teachers to rethink their traditional classroom practices to motivate students to perform. The abandonment of the verb charts and stale grammar lessons for the inclusion of real-world tasks and intercultural experiences in and beyond the classroom produces a win for teachers and students.

Spanish Second Language Acquisition across the Globe: What Future Research on Non-English Speaking Learners Will Tell Us

Abstract: Research on second language Spanish encompasses a sophisticated and broad-reaching body of work. Nevertheless, there is a bias in this literature toward English-speaking learners. The implication of this bias is that our search for universal trends of acquisition is undermined by an inability to distinguish between challenges that are specific to English-speaking learners and those that apply across learner populations. The goal of this essay is to demonstrate the value of extending the scope of second language Spanish research to include diverse first language populations and to illustrate new insights that might be gleaned through a presentation of recent research on Korean-speaking learners.

Not what it used to be: The future of Spanish language teaching

Abstract: Abstract:Since 1970, higher education in general, and Spanish departments in particular, have experienced a seismic shift, with skyrocketing student enrollment and dramatic increases in the numbers of non-tenure-track faculty. While contingent faculty numbers have continued to rise since 2000, over the past several years, enrollments in college-level Spanish courses seem to have stabilized. I will examine historical and current data, as well as projected statistics, before exploring possible consequences of these recent trends, in particular, how a more stable body of non-tenure-track faculty relates to enriched departmental culture and improved student learning in Spanish departments.

Spanish: A Language for Scientific and Technical Communication

Abstract: In the last two decades, the demand for a curriculum that reflects the diverse needs of language learners has furthered the growth of SSP (Spanish for Specific Purposes) programs and courses across the United States, especially in areas such as law, business, and medicine (Sánchez-López 2010). And, as suggested in the article at hand, “collaborative curricular opportunities with STEM” are expected to grow in upcoming years, in fact, the expansion to scientific and technological fields was proposed to be the next natural step of SSP curricular offerings almost two decades ago (Branan 1998: 5). However, the question of what form will these collaborations take is critical, in a time where it has been stated that “English is not only the dominant form of international scientific publication and oral communication at conferences and in multinational laboratories—it is almost always the only language of such communication” (Gordin 2015: 293). Although overly generalizing, such a declaration highlights the perception that languages other than English have a peripheral role when it comes to scientific applications, raising questions about the future of Spanish for Science and Technology (SST) education. In this respect, two volumes are key to understand the challenges and prospects of Spanish as a language of scientific communication: El español, lengua para la ciencia y la tecnología (AriasSalgado Rosby et al. 2009), and the more recent El español, lengua de comunicación científica (García Delgado, Alonso, and Jiménez 2013). Both collections describe the state of the language in contemporary science, drawing attention to the significant number of publications in Spanish, especially in the health sciences and other experimental fields. Furthermore, many authors seem to agree on the important role that Spanish plays, and will continue to play, in the dissemination of scientific and technological knowledge. In addition, it soon becomes clear that when most scholars talk about ciencia, they are discussing a broader domain than that defined by the term “science,” which often refers to the physical sciences exclusively (Gordin 2015: 3). As a result, and taking the evolution of Spanish for the Health Professions (SHP) as a model (Hardin 2015), SST offerings in the United States will most likely focus on one or more of the following areas:

Where's the Community?: Redux.

Abstract: Abstract:As foreign language and (inter)cultural studies instructors, we have a duty to assist both our students and the communities with which we interact understand and cope with an increasingly technologized, globalized, and conflictive mid-twenty-first-century society. In the unpredictable context of 2068, community-engaged pedagogy can become an even more important progressive force for countering the dystopian tendencies we see around us today. If we confirm our commitment to the fundamental principles of personal responsibility and social justice that underlie our work, we may be able to envision and achieve a more sustainable and ethical democratic society in the future.

Meeting Twenty-First-Century Needs: Spanish for the Professions as the Future of Spanish Graduate Education?.

Abstract: A possible model for future graduate education, the Spanish for the Professions, Master of Science program, which some may consider a terminal degree, was designed to meet the growing need for employees with a high-level of Spanish language proficiency and cultural competency. This exploration of the fully online Spanish for the Professions graduate program outlines program development and provides a preliminary evaluation of the program's ability to respond to learners' needs and job market demand. Program enrollment and a preliminary qualitative assessment provide evidence that the program is a sustainable and adaptive model for Spanish graduate education in the twenty-first century.

A Cross-Generational Conversation about the Future of Teaching Spanish.

Abstract: In this conversation between three language teachers from the same family with different teaching backgrounds (a retired AP Spanish high school teacher, a Spanish linguistics university professor emeritus, and a Spanish professor at a liberal arts college), we consider the ways in which our field has changed over the course of our careers and how we envision the future of the field. We argue that determining how to teach second language learners, native speakers, and heritage speakers in the same classroom, while simultaneously meeting the language learning needs of each group, will determine the success of the future of the profession.

Pinterest: A Vehicle to Promote Cross-cultural Awareness in an Introductory Spanish Course

Abstract: While culture has become an increasingly central component of foreign language learning (Garrett-Rucks 2016), the ongoing debate regarding how to implement in-depth cultural instruction inside the foreign language classroom continues, especially at the introductory level (del Valle 2014; Mitchell 2016). Adopting a qualitative approach, the present study explores the use of Pinterest to encourage cross-cultural awareness (Knutson 2006) inside the introductory-level foreign language classroom. Participants (n = 28) completed a project in which they explored the target culture(s) via Pinterest and then completed a series of reflective activities. Triangulation of data from Pinterest posts and post-project journal entries reveal that when learners explored the target culture(s) via Pinterest, the majority (n = 23) realized that culture is more than just a set of facts and made deeper connections with the target culture(s) through their investigations of cultural-bound values and behaviors (Knutson 2006). The data also show that Pinterest, through the visual nature of the platform, provided an insider's view into the target culture(s) and allowed the majority of learners to connect on a more personal level with the target culture(s) and subsequently develop their cross-cultural awareness.

Realizing the Vision of Quality PreK–5 Spanish Language Programs: A Longitudinal Perspective

Abstract: Abstract:This essay offers a candid overview of the past one hundred years of preK–fifth grade Spanish language teaching and learning in the United States. Among the topics addressed are numbers of programs, program models, and factors that impact the success of learners and programs.