User:Sharoncharlene/sandbox

My Immersion Experiences

As a World Language teacher, I strive to impress upon my students the benefits of learning a second language. Students who do not know why they are learning a subject or who are unaware of the practical benefits of such, will not be motivated or interested in the subject matter.

The path to language acquisition is a wide one full of adventure. In the classroom, students must engage in the target language as much as possible, and it is up to the teacher to facilitate opportunities for such. Everyday conversations and routine requests should be in the target language. The Internet provides countless sites with audios and videos using native speakers. Furthermore, the teacher should create opportunities for students to collaborate in the creation of projects such as skits/dialogues, songs, presentations, and videos. The more students can use the language for meaningful purposes, the easier they will acquire the language.

At the age of 10 I moved to Puerto Rico, where I spent two incredible years creating some of the best memories of my life. My father enrolled me in a bilingual school, where some classes were taught in English and others in Spanish. For 6th grade Social Studies I had English textbooks to read and study and a teacher who had just moved from France. She taught in Spanish with a strong French accent. What a challenge that was. Needless to say, I had to learn Spanish quickly, and although I spoke mostly English with my father and closest friends, I acquired a solid foundation in the language. Learning a language is not just about linguistics, but includes the culture of the countries where it is spoken. This is where living in another country is ideal. How much fun it was to go to the beach every Sunday, watch the local fisherman, sit under the coconut trees, make new friends with the locals, eat new foods, and watch the divers come into our favorite restaurant on the water with the fresh catch of the day. My dad and I cooked chicken wings, deviled eggs and rum balls every Sunday morning to take to the beach and share with the other families. To this day I have saved the orange picnic kit we used. My neighborhood was on a hill, so the houses were situated like stair steps. As I played in my back yard of Bermuda grass and fruit trees, I could look down on the flat roof of my next door neighbors to see their chickens and rooster, the ones that woke me up way too early many mornings. We frequently island hopped to St. Thomas, St. Croix, St. Maartin, and St. John, where I had opportunities to snorkel in the clear Caribbean waters. My photo albums, sea shells, coconut dolls, and the taste of a mango take me back in time to those days in my childhood when I was able to be a child.

Living in Spain for one academic year and studying at the Universidad de Sevilla was a much more intense language immersion experience. Spanish 24/7 with a host family, classes Monday – Friday with Spaniards and a few Americans, and daily life in a big city allowed me to put to good use my high school and college years of classroom Spanish. From flamenco to tapas and tunas, I soaked up the language and culture like a sponge. Many American college students in my program had an “intercambio”, a Spanish student we could meet with to help improve our language skills. These relationships became more like friendships. We went out in groups to the movies most Wednesday evenings (when the cost was only 200 pesetas, or approximately $2.00), and socialized on weekends as well going bar hopping for tapas and tinto de verano, dancing, and taking in the sites of the city. It is through the relationships formed with the local Spaniards that I learned the most. My host family welcomed me into their home like one of their own, even entrusting me to care for their Doberman Pincher. Walking her in the park was no easy task. And, as I tell my students today, language applies to animals. I learned to speak the necessary commands and other words understood by the Spanish Doberman, Indira. Travel to other areas of Spain as well as Portugal included experiences such as backpacking along the Costa del Sol, eating the pig in the window of a restaurant, hiring a local fisherman to take us along the Algarve of Southern Portugal, and participating among the crowd of passionate tearful Catholics when La Macarena was carried through the city streets during Semana Santa. Today the opportunities for immersion experiences abound. No matter the area of study, being able to study in a foreign country is the opportunity of a lifetime for any student.