PROMOTING LITERACY IN THE SPANISH EDUCATION CLASSROOM

Promoting Literacy in the Spanish Education Classroom

Glenda Kon Burley

Promoting Literacy in the Spanish Education Classroom

PROMOTING LITERACY IN THE SPANISH EDUCATION CLASSROOM

In todays society one must be literate to be able to survive. Literacy is defined as the
ability to be able to read and write along the individuals capacity to use those two skills to work in
shaping the course of his or her own life. Without these two skills, a person cannot make it through

school or into the work force. It is nearly impossible to be a productive member of society if a
person did not go to school or if a person does not work. Learning a second language can
promote literacy in multiple ways. When an individual is bilingual they also have a more positive
experience with memory retention, and better decision making skills. Learning a second
language is also proven to take measures in preventing diseases such as Alzheimers and
Dementia. Research proves that children raised in homes that promote literacy are more likely to
grow up and be better readers and do well in school, than students raised in homes that do not
promote literacy.
Some people say that words that are derived from another language are called loan
words. A student could potentially use context clues to understand the meaning of the word if
they know more than one language. For example, if a student did not know what an armadillo
was, but they spoke Spanish, then they would hopefully know that this word literally translates to
the little armored one. This could help the student to understand that are armadillo is something
that is covered with armor and that is smaller. Hopefully there would be other context clues that
would allow the student to understand that an armadillo is an animal. The Spanish language also
has words that are cognates. This means that these words look very similar to each other in both
languages (i.e. Telephone in English= Telfono in Spanish). For students who are learning
English or learning Spanish, this could be beneficial because they should know how letters are
supposed to sound and these two words sound very similar but are just different spellings.

PROMOTING LITERACY IN THE SPANISH EDUCATION CLASSROOM

The Spanish language is originally derived from Vulgar Latin. Under the Roman rule in
nineteen BC, the inhabitants of Hispania, learned Latin from the people they were surrounded by.
When the classical Latin of the educated Roman classes mixed with the pre-Roman languages of
the Iberians, Celts, and Carthaginians, a language called Vulgar Latin appeared. It followed the
basic models of Latin but borrowed and added words from the other languages (hence why we
now have loan words). Typically many words that are Latin are also incorporated into the
English language and they usually have a suffix or prefix added to them. When a student has the
ability to recognize a root word in Latin, they are hopefully able to breakdown the word and
understand the true meaning even if they did not know it before.
A study that was conducted by Northwestern University in 2012, concluded that when
you learn a second language your brain is forced to pay attention to relevant sounds while
blocking out irregular sounds. Being bilingual helps to fight off a cognitive decline in function.
Speaking a second language allows a persons brain to have a cognitive reserve which means that
a persons brain has efficient usage of the brain networks to enhance brain function during the
aging process. This research is said to prove that the ability to speak a second language can help
restore those networks that end up damaged, thus possibly improving memory. The memory is
what is affected when Alzheimers or Dementia takes over the brain and begins to shut down
parts of the brain.
Learning a second language has been proven to help eliminate some preconceptions that
can alter our decision-making skills. The most common conception eliminated is
our consideration for potential losses, which can cause us to ignore promising opportunities
when there is any risk of loss present. For people who learn a language during adulthood, this
conception also tends to decrease, causing researchers to suggest that our rational mind takes the

PROMOTING LITERACY IN THE SPANISH EDUCATION CLASSROOM

lead when we make decisions in a language that isnt our native one. Also adults have more
factors that can affect decision making skills. Adults typically are better at making decisions than
the decisions that children make. They have different extrinsic motivators which cause them to
think differently, and when rational takes over it usually works better with experience (which
adults would have more of).
Promoting literacy at home is one of the most important tasks a parent needs to complete.
It is proven that when a student has a parent who is involved, and who cares, the student will do
better than a student who does not have a parent that cares. These situations can be affected by
all types of things because not all students are motivated by what others are motivated by. When
a parent promotes literacy at home they may read stories, read poems, sing songs, or include
them in anything that has to do with reading and writing. This is proven to help students be better
readers and hopefully achieve better grades in the future. Showing children that the ability to
read and write is very important will be very helpful to them. At any age you can find a way to
promote literacy. As the child grows you can show them the connections between English and
Spanish. Raising a bilingual child can also allow many cognitive advantages.
It does not matter what language you speak, as long as you speak. Allowing yourself to
speak more than one language has many benefits. The benefits do not have any negative effects.
The benefits only open more doors. The cognitive abilities that could be opened or kept open
could help people all throughout the world and maybe allow them to live for a longer time.
Along with that this will also allow the children today to be more literate and have the ability to
recognize and speak other languages.

PROMOTING LITERACY IN THE SPANISH EDUCATION CLASSROOM

REFRENCES
Cerebrum. (2012, October 31). Retrieved October 14, 2015, from
http://dana.org/Cerebrum/2012/The_Cognitive_Benefits_of_Being_Bilingual/
Latin words in English. (n.d.). Retrieved October 14, 2015, from http://wordinfo.info/unit/3277
List of English Words of Spanish Origin. (n.d.). Retrieved October 14, 2015, from
http://grammar.yourdictionary.com/word-lists/list-of-english-words-of-spanish-origin.html
Moskowitz, B. (2011, March 1). What Bilingual Babies Reveal About the Brain: Q&A with
Psychologist Janet Werker. Retrieved October 14, 2015, from
http://www.livescience.com/13016-bilingual-babies-brain-language-learning.html
Online Games. (n.d.). Retrieved October 14, 2015, from http://www.getreadytoread.org/earlylearning-childhood-basics/early-literacy/promoting-family-literacy-raising-ready-readers
Spanish. (n.d.). Retrieved October 14, 2015, from
https://www.alsintl.com/resources/languages/Spanish/
Why Everyone Should Learn A Second Language. (2015, March 21). Retrieved October 14,
2015, from http://thenextweb.com/lifehacks/2015/03/21/money-dream-jobs-a-better-brain-whyeveryone-should-learn-a-second-language/