Spanish is becoming a more common language in the United States. It’s the second most common language spoken in the United States. Personally, I have taken six years of Spanish both in middle school and high school and am currently minoring in Spanish. Because of it’s prominence, Spanish is helpful in everyday life.
I want to study abroad in a Spanish-speaking country like Argentina or Spain. Because the number one language spoken in both of these countries is Spanish, these abroad opportunities require a certain level of fluency. I am hoping to achieve that fluency goal and practice my Spanish-speaking skills in person.
Speaking a second language can also have positive, long term health effects. According to Alzheimer’s Today, “Speaking more than one language appears to help the brain resist the effects of Alzheimer’s disease.” According to Colorado Mesa University, there are 33 million Spanish speakers in the United States, leaving other advantages of speaking the language unexplored still.
The Spanish speaking population in the United States is exponentially getting higher and higher day by day. As a result, it’s becoming more popular in the work force and is being taught to young children. I used to be a camp counselor at McDonogh Summer Programs, which had a Spanish class for the younger campers. With six to seven-year-old children, we sang songs and did arts and crafts related to Spanish.
I grew up wanting to learn new things about different cultures. I am still eager to learn new things about other cultures that I haven’t known before. I am going on co-op in the spring and summer quarter and one of the jobs that I had gotten an interview for asked me if I spoke Spanish. I let the employer knew that I had taken six years of Spanish and that my minor is Spanish, putting these advantages to work.
This is a clear example of how popular it is becoming in the work force around the United States, especially Philadelphia. According to a 2011 paper by U.S. Census Bureau Demographers Jennifer Ortman and Hyon B. Shin, the number of Spanish speakers is projected to rise through 2020 to anywhere between 39 million and 43 million, depending on the assumption one makes about immigration. These numbers are clearly going to grow and make an impact on today’s society.