RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish?

RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (Full Version)

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[Poll]

Should schools require students to learn Spanish?

Yes, across the country (please specify starting grade)

19% (10)

Yes, but only in certain states (please specify state and grade)

5% (3)

75% (39)

Total Votes : 52

(last vote on : 12/28/2011 7:00:18 PM)
(Poll will run till: -- )

Message

a49015Dom4subF -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 10:42:36 AM)
Teach a second language? Have you listened to kids these days? They barely speak English now.

Phoenixpower -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 12:13:28 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: GreedyTop I have had a bitch of a time learning other languages. I am now a BIT better at Spanish (Mexican version), and I can use enough French to get decent service in France at most places. I believe ya straight away...if english exams were only about words and such stuff I had A's and B's, however if we had to figure out which grammar to put in...well...you get the idea...I suppose...[:o] And the same shit happened in my own language...dictations were easy peacy until we reached the age that we had to decide ourselves where to place those commas...and somehow they were always on the wrong place [:o] I just freaking hate grammar [:o] When I grasp some parts of it then I understand that for a while but let pass a week or so and it's all gone again... I regular buffled teachers (which is linked to my undiagnosed ADD or ADHD theory) about being just average if you don't know me further but then buffle them again with an A or B at times...leaving them regular with the comment that I would be an A pupil if I wouldn't be so lazy...well...these days I truly doubt it to be true lazyness....anyhow...life goes on... So whilst I do value the english lessons I had...I did not forget Madam agony which accompanied it at times...[&o] I wish we would have started it earlier than the 5th grade when I started school...as it was about a decade later that they moved it into first year....

zenny -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 2:45:01 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: LaTigresse quote: ORIGINAL: zenny And how are we losing status in the business world? Nice "think of the children". I believe "Next time........come up with a better debate point." would be ironic, no? Anyway, the 'case study = the world' and 'i'm right, this isn't a discussion' peeps are coming in. I'm out. I've read your post three times and still do not understand what your point is. If you wish me to reply.........rephrase your post. Otherwise I am going to ignore your babbling. The first question should be self explanatory. The "Nice "think of the children"" is an emotional plea and non-starter. Hence parroting your words back at you. The second line is a general statement referencing several people. quote: ORIGINAL: gungadin09 quote: ORIGINAL: zenny quote: ORIGINAL: gungadin09 My question is: why does speaking English equate with being American? You already said English was either the language of the vast majority of the USA legally or de facto. Last I checked to acquire citizenship one has to show good command of English. Across a country many things will be different (city/suburb/rural, buildings/architecture, views on work/life, etc.). One of the few universals is language. Also, why would you make it easier for people to break our laws? Why would you not want to encourage people to learn the language of their country and the one that is oft used in business around the world? to add: How is it American to refuse to be American? To live in a community that largely reflects your country of origin, to not only refuse to learn the customs and language of the country but to avoid it as much as possible. Sorry, i'm not sure if my computer's up again or not. Fingers crossed. What i said is that English is not the official language nationally, only at the state level. Maybe it reflects on a person's state pride if they don't speak English when it is the official language, but i don't see why it necessarily makes someone un-American. And, when the demographics change and Spanish is the majority language in some states, it will seem bizarre to me to say that speaking English is un-Californian, for example. i believe English was required for the citizenship test dating from the time when there were no other major languages spoken in this country. My point is, that's changing. i'm NOT attempting to prove that Spanish speakers in this country should not be expected to learn English. What i'm trying to say is that, at least in the Southwest, the opposite needs to be true as well. pam That's quite alright. But you did point out it was the official language on some level which was my point. I've typically attributed it to cultural pride and in the case of older first generation immigrants inability for possible a myriad of reasons. I brought immigration into the equation because I don't think this topic can be talked about properly without referencing it. Simply because, it seems to me, without how the USA has handled immigration in the past 20 years is what has brought these questions about. I will readily admit that in some states it seems it would make life a lot easier to know Spanish. Realistically, that's just how things are currently. But most of my thoughts on subjects weigh very heavily the choice aspect in them. Even for kids. Hence my thoughts on this topic.

FukinTroll -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 2:56:29 PM)
~FR I think the new official language of this thread is going to be P&R. Jus say'n

gungadin09 -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 3:07:10 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: FukinTroll I think the new official language of this thread is going to be P&R. Well, it was a poll, so, You know, i had to put it here. pam

FukinTroll -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 3:08:37 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: gungadin09 quote: ORIGINAL: FukinTroll I think the new official language of this thread is going to be P&R. Well, it was a poll, so, You know, i had to put it here. pam Alright pam... you've been bad... now go to my room! [sm=spanking.gif] Slurp~

gungadin09 -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 3:35:12 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: cuckoldmepls NO, for one simple reason and the open borders nuts know why. It will eventually brainwash the kids into accepting a latin American political take over. Hell, most kids an't even master the English language, much less a foreign language. This should be the shortest thread on record. No offense, but the "Latin American political takeover" is going to happen whether people like it or not. Whether the schools start requiring bilingual proficiency or not. Even if we closed the borders today, the Spanish speaking population of the border states would just keep rising, until, finally, it equals or surpasses the English speaking population. Now, You certainly don't have to like it. But not accepting it is just delusion, in my opinion. And not preparing our children for it does them a tremendous disservice when the time comes for them to enter the workforce, and they suddenly realise that they don't have the skills to get a job. pam

gungadin09 -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 3:37:09 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: FukinTroll Alright pam... you've been bad... now go to my room! [sm=spanking.gif] Slurp~ ...gulp. pam

gungadin09 -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 4:00:51 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: zenny I will readily admit that in some states it seems it would make life a lot easier to know Spanish. Realistically, that's just how things are currently. But most of my thoughts on subjects weigh very heavily the choice aspect in them. Even for kids. Hence my thoughts on this topic. And i will admit that for many people (past immigrants and others), English language skills are a matter of patriotic pride, and part of what they associate with being an American. i'm not suggesting that immigrants should not be required to learn English, or that English speakers bear the responsibility of bridging the communication gap. My point was not that people should know Spanish, or that people should know English, but that in the future, economic realities will demand that people know both in order to survive (at the very least, in the border states). And that we should start preparing out children for that fact now, or we will be setting them up to fail. pam

Selectivelight -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (3/30/2011 4:18:33 PM)
Fast reply - Spanish? No, absolutely not. If you were to name a country that has a more viable economic impact, such as Germany, Japan, China, or India, I'd say yes. I am of the opinion that Spanish is a waste of time to anyone who doesn't plan on visiting a Spanish speaking country. If you're making it compulsory, you'd be much better off teaching Latin. When is the last time breakthrough technology came from Mexico, Spain or Honduras? How about the Dominican Republic, or Argentina? When was the last major political contribution made by Ecuador? When is the last time the US has been deeply concerned about the far-reaching political consequences of something El Salvador did? What do you think of the social impact of the opinions of the good people of Honduras is? Furthermore, most states can't manage to teach -one- language beyond a rudimentary level. Don't you think we should fix this first? So no, I don't think schools should require students to learn Spanish. If you want to do something positive for these kids, bring back the arts and music.

sunshinemiss -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/3/2011 5:29:04 AM)
Thought you might find this interesting... http://www.ted.com/talks/jay_walker_on_the_world_s_english_mania.html?ga_source=embed&ga_medium=embed&ga_campaign=embed

JstAnotherSub -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/3/2011 6:20:55 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Selectivelight Fast reply - Spanish? No, absolutely not. If you were to name a country that has a more viable economic impact, such as Germany, Japan, China, or India, I'd say yes. I am of the opinion that Spanish is a waste of time to anyone who doesn't plan on visiting a Spanish speaking country. If you're making it compulsory, you'd be much better off teaching Latin. When is the last time breakthrough technology came from Mexico, Spain or Honduras? How about the Dominican Republic, or Argentina? When was the last major political contribution made by Ecuador? When is the last time the US has been deeply concerned about the far-reaching political consequences of something El Salvador did? What do you think of the social impact of the opinions of the good people of Honduras is? Furthermore, most states can't manage to teach -one- language beyond a rudimentary level. Don't you think we should fix this first? So no, I don't think schools should require students to learn Spanish. If you want to do something positive for these kids, bring back the arts and music. re the bolded...really? Where do you live. There are many places now where it is a job requirement to be bilingual. The times are a changing and not knowing spanish is going to become more of a handicap for many. Course, it will have the same effect on those who only speak spanish and refuse to learn english I suppose.

MasterCord -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/3/2011 6:25:29 AM)
Absolutely not. Only English should be used to teach in American schools, and all other languages and the huge waste of money in multi-lingual education banned. You live here, you speak English or you go to some other country, period. CM

thishereboi -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/3/2011 6:31:46 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: MasterCord Absolutely not. Only English should be used to teach in American schools, and all other languages and the huge waste of money in multi-lingual education banned. You live here, you speak English or you go to some other country, period. CM You want to keep your kids stupid, then keep them at home and teach them your self. Personally I think the more a child learns, the better off he is. It's a shame you can't understand the value of education. Oh and to the poster who suggested we teach them Latin instead of Spanish or French.... I have seen a whole lot of help wanted ads stating that knowing another language would be beneficial to the job and NONE of them suggested Latin.

GreedyTop -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/3/2011 6:41:13 AM)
latin is the basis for several languages (French, Spanish, for instance). KNowing latin gives ground work to learn other languages.

thishereboi -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/3/2011 12:06:50 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: GreedyTop latin is the basis for several languages (French, Spanish, for instance). KNowing latin gives ground work to learn other languages. This is true. I think it's also the base for a lot of the medical terminology.

sunshinemiss -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/4/2011 12:44:55 AM)
I disagree. Why learn a dead language when you can learn the living language (Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese) and get the same benefit? AND you can speak to people.

SexyBossyBBW -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/4/2011 1:17:59 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: a49015Dom4subF Teach a second language? Have you listened to kids these days? They barely speak English now. LOL, that is the truth... I think it's only because we expect less of them... I don't think kids are dumber; I think parenting/schools systems are letting them down. Don't ask if I know the answer though. I only know what I had growing up, and what I wished for. I have to say, I really like the way people from Spain speak Spanish. Latinos speak too fast (In general), for me to understand (and the V=B really confuses me). M

Selectivelight -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/4/2011 1:40:38 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: JstAnotherSub quote: ORIGINAL: Selectivelight Fast reply - Spanish? No, absolutely not. If you were to name a country that has a more viable economic impact, such as Germany, Japan, China, or India, I'd say yes. I am of the opinion that Spanish is a waste of time to anyone who doesn't plan on visiting a Spanish speaking country. If you're making it compulsory, you'd be much better off teaching Latin. When is the last time breakthrough technology came from Mexico, Spain or Honduras? How about the Dominican Republic, or Argentina? When was the last major political contribution made by Ecuador? When is the last time the US has been deeply concerned about the far-reaching political consequences of something El Salvador did? What do you think of the social impact of the opinions of the good people of Honduras is? Furthermore, most states can't manage to teach -one- language beyond a rudimentary level. Don't you think we should fix this first? So no, I don't think schools should require students to learn Spanish. If you want to do something positive for these kids, bring back the arts and music. re the bolded...really? Where do you live. There are many places now where it is a job requirement to be bilingual. The times are a changing and not knowing spanish is going to become more of a handicap for many. Course, it will have the same effect on those who only speak spanish and refuse to learn english I suppose. Lived in southern California, Nevada, and Texas before I moved to Mississippi. I'm well aware they have strong Spanish speaking percentages. I stand by my original assertion, if you're going to be teaching a second language, choose one that has a more significant social, political, and economic footprint. quote: ORIGINAL: sunshinemiss I disagree. Why learn a dead language when you can learn the living language (Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese) and get the same benefit? AND you can speak to people. Latin may be a dead language, but it influences our living languages in significant ways. Learning Latin improves comprehension of any language based around it. This would be useful for the following languages French, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Italian and Romanian. Then with languages like German and modern English too, as there are a lot of Latin derivatives in it. Furthermore, a reasonable education in Latin would be useful for medical, legal, political, historical, religious and scientific pursuits.

sunshinemiss -> RE: Should schools require students to learn Spanish? (4/4/2011 2:02:35 AM)
Again, I don't see any reason to learn a dead language when you get the EXACT SAME benefits from a living language.

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