Why is learning Spanish so important?
Posted: Thursday, December 01, 2005
by John Slocum
AmeriSpan Study Abroad & International Education
Why is learning Spanish so important? Learning a foreign language, like Spanish, is becoming much more of a necessity in todays society. Learning Spanish is easier and more enjoyable than ever with audio courses, online courses, study abroad, and intensive language courses.
Following are just some of the many reasons learning Spanish will benefit you and enrich your life:
Spanish speaking countries include Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Spain, Uruguay and Venezuela.
More than 33 million people in America speak Spanish -- That makes the United States fifth on the list of countries with the most Spanish-speaking people. Spanish is also one of the most commonly spoken languages in the world, behind Chinese, English and Hindustani. Undoubtedly, at some point during your life, youre going to find that knowing Spanish is extremely valuable.
More than 1000 Spanish-speaking immigrants come to the United States every day -- That means the country gains at least 365,000 new Spanish-speaking residents each year.
Knowing Spanish enhances your resume -- Employers love applicants that have fluency (or even moderate fluency) in a foreign language. Having the ability to speak Spanish will allow you to communicate with Spanish-speaking employees. If no one else at the company speaks Spanish, youll be even more valuable. If youve ever searched through the classifieds, youve likely run across an ad that states, Must speak English and Spanish.
If you want to continue your education, youll need to take foreign language classes -- Most colleges require that undergraduate students take at least two semesters of a foreign language. If you have your eyes on graduate school, you should know that many require students to be able to read and comprehend one, and sometimes two, foreign languages. Getting a jump-start on learning Spanish will definitely pay off later, especially if youre continuing your education.
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Enjoy your free Spanish phrase ebook: http://www.amerispan.com/spdownload - This 30-pager is great if you quickly want to learn common Spanish phrases for travel or life in general. Also pronunciation and basic grammar. http://www.amerispan.com
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Top-level comments on this article: (2 total)i have been taking spanish and have learned that it is an important languge to learn.
It is good to speak and/or read as many languages as possible. However, I will not switch to a language other than English with someone trying and needing to learn English in order to work here or to become a U. S. citizen. A second or third language is of course do-able--I know from first-hand experience--and so is English. The more one is forced to try, the faster the painful process goes and the higher the sense of accomplishment. Enjoyed your encouragement of learning other languages, and I would like to do that more when not in the U. S.
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