Spanish in the Professions
Spanish in the Professions provides a foundation
in issues related to bilingualism in the professions in the US
context.
What is Spanish in the Professions? Spanish in the Professions at the University of Illinois
has been designed specifically for pre-professionals who are
still full-time students. Students communicate in Spanish while
learning about bilingualism and bilingual professionals in a
US context. It focuses on helping students to develop
communication strategies that will allow them to continue learning
about language and cultures long after they graduate and embark
on their careers.
Most Spanish for the Professions programs are Spanish courses for professionals
who are already in the workplace. These traditional programs
focus on providing specific vocabulary and speaking skills for
use in the workplace. Most have been designed for professionals
who realized the need for Spanish only after they were in the
workplace.
In the Spanish in the Professions course
(SPAN 142), students read and analyze texts from the Spanish-language
press within the US. In addition, audio and video recordings were made
specifically for the course in order to bring real-world experiences
related to bilingualism in the professions into the classroom. The
text, audio, and video segments serve to broaden students’ exposure
to the potential applications of their Spanish language and Hispanic
cultures knowledge.
Spanish in the Professions Courses. Students
preparing for their professional lives often are not aware of
the usefulness of knowledge of the Spanish language and Hispanic
cultures across the professions within the United States. This
program raises student awareness so that they might pursue Spanish
for a specific profession before they are active professionals. Through
this program, students derive their own answers to common questions
such as: Why is there a language requirement at this university? What
can I do with my Spanish when I’ve finished the language
requirement?
CIBER. The development
of course materials, including authentic audio and video recordings,
was funded by Illinois CIBER. For more information about
CIBER, see their website.
Bilingual Professionals. Spanish-English
bilingualism is an asset in almost any profession in virtually
all communities in the US. Here are some examples from
the Champaign-Urbana community that are used in the Spanish
in the Professions (SPAN 142) course:
Psychology/Social Work (requires RealPlayer)
Veterinary
Medicine (requires RealPlayer)
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