Spanish Language Abroad Programs Booming
By: Ruth Carlson
California Community Colleges are increasing enrollment by sending students away….to foreign language schools. “My Spanish took a quantum leap while I was studying in Spain,” said Darvin Foo, who took classes in the Don Quijote School in Salamanca, Spain through Lake Tahoe Community College. “I stayed with a family and if I wanted to go to the bathroom or eat, I had to speak Spanish,” he laughed. Foo is a one of a growing number of California Community College students who are finding the best way to improve their language skills is to live overseas and Spanish-speaking countries are the number one destination.
The increase is due in large part to the changing population of California. The last census figures showed that Hispanics are the fastest growing ethnicity in the Golden State. Spanish is the fourth most spoken language in the world followed by Chinese, English and Hindu, according to Unesco. It’s estimated that by the middle of this century, approximately 500 million people will speak Spanish throughout the world.
“Californians realize they need to know Spanish if they want success in the business environment,” said Dr. Ana M. Afzali, a Spanish Professor at Citrus Community College, and one of the coordinators of a Study Abroad consortium with 11 community colleges in southern California. Foo said he took the Lake Tahoe Community College Spanish language course to help him succeed in his medical career. “ I work (as an RN) for Shriners Hospital for Children in Sacramento and a lot of my patients are Spanish speaking. “The hospital flies sick children in from all over the world and in order to communicate better, I started taking Spanish classes,” he said.
“The utility of learning Spanish is obvious and right in your face,” agrees Felix Robles, a Spanish language instructor at Cabrillo College and director of the Study Abroad program director of the study abroad program to Argentina. “Speaking Spanish gives students an advantage in the job market,” he said. “Many of our students are taking Spanish for their careers, but no matter how many classes they take they will not be fluent unless they have to use it for an extended length of time in a Spanish speaking country. It’s imperative that we offer them that possibility.” Just in the past five years, more than 750 participants have enrolled in the Cabrillo College programs to Spain, Mexico, Italy, Central and South America.
Surprisingly, although Mexico is closer and less expensive, many community college students prefer to visit Spain. “I figured the place to learn Spanish was at the source where the Castellan language originated,” said Foo. California Community Colleges can find qualified Spanish schools to partner with through Fedele, the Spanish Federation of Associations of Spanish Language Schools for Foreigners. A non-profit organization with 66 member schools, Fedele has stringent criteria such as student to teacher ratios, health and safety concerns, and academic quality. Member schools must either be accredited with the Instituto Cervantes, part of the Spanish Ministry of Education, or possess the CEELE (Calidad en la Enseñanza del Español como Lengua Extranjera - Quality in the Teaching of Spanish as a Foreign Language) seal awarded through the University of Alcalá.
Tabea Schwarzenberg spokesperson for Fedele says: “The courses offered by our schools are designed for students, teachers, businessmen, senior citizens and teenagers, of every nationality. Our schools receive people from age 13 to 77 or more. Younger students may want to add a new language to their knowledge base, professionals and executives need to learn the Spanish language for their job, and adults may choose to learn it during their free time just for fun. A lot of our schools also offer special programs for the ‘golden age’ (50/60 plus) and each course has a cultural activity program. For more detailed information the webpage www.fedele.org has links to our different Spanish schools.”
Schools range from Don Quijote, with eight locations, to the more intimate Esuela De Idiomas in Nerja, (Nerja Language School), run by a married couple who started by teaching classes in their home and now have a separate building for student housing. Afzali attended the 2006 Fedele conference in Granada, Spain and found it very helpful. “I interviewed 20 school administrators at the conference but most importantly I visited the schools. You really have to see the schools to judge them,” said Afzali who sends 80 students abroad each semester.
Melonie Guttry, International Education Program Coordinator at Lake Tahoe Community College, says California is so close to Mexico many students have already visited the country. “Spain is more popular because it’s seen as exotic and totally different from our own culture.” In the past three years, the Lake Tahoe Community College Study Abroad program has grown from enrolling 10 students per class to 50 students.
Spain’s proximity to other countries is another attractive selling point. “We arrange our classes so they meet four days a week, “ said Afzali. “Airline tickets in Europe are cheap so students can travel to other countries on weekends, adding more cultural richness to the experience. Many students enroll in the Spanish language class abroad several times and we hardly ever get repeats for other countries.” Foo has enrolled in the Lake Tahoe Community College Spanish language abroad class six times! The tourism arm of the Spanish government has discovered that students are a boon to the local economy since they stay longer in the country and they’re teaming up with Fedele to promote studying abroad. (www.spain.info).
The price is a big selling point. “Four year colleges and universities charge a lot more for study abroad, " said Ms. Afzali. “Community Colleges offer the least expensive option. In the ten years we’ve been doing this program it’s been growing because community college students can afford it. For $6,000 a semester, the student receives tuition, airfare, accommodation and tuition.” At Cabrillo College, the most popular study abroad option is the wintersession and summer programs for less than $3,000, which includes room and board for a month.
“California has been at the vanguard of study abroad programs,” said Rosalind Latiner Raby, Director, California Colleges for International Education, but she says too few people are aware of it. “The biggest problem we find is that colleges are not getting the word out that this is an option. Students ask me –‘do you know anyone who has this program?’ and I often tell them your College has it. Those colleges that don’t have a study abroad option should consider starting one. It’s clear there is a growing demand for international programs.”
