Advice on Reaching Advanced-Low on the OPI Part 2

Since I wrote the post Advice on Reaching Advanced-Low on the OPI, it has become the most popular on my blog. As I continue to tutor people who need to achieve this level, I have come to realize that there are other pieces of advice that I usually give that I should include on my blog, so I'm creating a Part 2.


Listen more -a lot more! This is often overlooked since improving speaking is the goal but as a university instructor of Spanish that uses comprehensible input (CI),  I cannot overemphasize how important it is to substantially increase the time spent doing active listening. As a non-native second language user, listening has been the primary skill I have developed and the one I started to work on more that 40 years ago when I first began to hear Spanish. Listening should precede speaking; it can help with pronunciation and developing an ear for the basic structures, so you know what sounds right and expanding your vocabulary. Recently, I came across a video of young lady who went from Intermediate-High to Advanced-Low and also cites how increasing her time spent listening in Spanish was one of the keys to moving up a level.   She had been listening, as I recall, for approximately 6 hours a week, but increased that amount to nearly 20 hours a week, which she says made a great difference for her.  Similarly, this page, from the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at the University of Minnesota suggests that to reach advanced one should “engage with the language 15-20 hours per week outside of class over the course of several years”.

What should you listen to? Anything you can find that is comprehensible (80% or more) and interesting to you. There are many choices on www.youtube.com, plus podcasts, movies and series on Netflix, online radio, music, etc. Specifically for the OPI, I'd recommend videos that are conversational-like and involve paragraph-length narrations and descriptions, which is primarily what you must produce during the interview. Here are some sites where you can hear natives doing just that on a variety of topics: www.spanishlistening.org , https://www.laits.utexas.edu/spe/, and http://www.coerll.utexas.edu/spintx/home.


Practice telling complete, cohesive stories, especially in past tense. Complete means there should be a beginning, a middle and an end. Part of telling a complete story is the details you include. For example, let's say that you were asked about something you did recently and you tell about how you went to a restaurant to celebrate a friend's birthday. An Intermediate speaker might say :


Fui a un restaurante. Era el cumpleaños de un amigo. Es su restaurante favorito. Nuestros amigos fueron tambien. Tuvimos que esperar un poco cuando llegamos. Había mucha gente ahí. Yo comí pollo pero todos mis amigos comieron carne. Me gustó mucho. Comimos y hablamos mucho y nos divertimos. Nos quedamos en el restaurante 3 horas. Llegué tarde a casa pero dormí bien.


An Advanced speaker might the story this way, adding specific information about the relationship between the people involved and when and why things happened:



El sábado pasado, un amigo mío que celebraba su cumpleaños ese día, me invitó, junto a unos amigos mutuos, a comer a su restaurante favorito. Cuando llegué al lugar, nuestros amigos ya estaban ahí esperando una mesa ya que el sitio estaba lleno de gente que, como nostoros, no había hecho reservaciones. Gracias a Dios no tuvimos que esperar mucho pero no lo notamos porque pasamos el tiempo hablando. Ya en la mesa, llegó enseguida la mesera y menos mal, ya que todos teníamos hambre. Yo pedí pollo mientras que los otros en el grupo pidieron carne. La comida estuvo muy rica y disfrutamos mucho comer y hablar con nuestros amigos especialmente en ocasiones como ésta. La pasamos tan bien que no nos dimos cuenta que ya habían pasado 3 horas y como se hacía tarde todos decidimos que era hora de irnos. Llegué tarde a casa pero dormí bien esa noche.


The Intermediate version is more a series of sentences and only highlight the primary activites without giving details to describe some of the circumstances surrounding them. For example, “tuvimos que esperar” is mentioned in the Intermediate version but in the Advanced version, a why is given- “ya que el sitio estaba lleno de gente que....no había hecho reservaciones”.
The Advanced version takes many of the sentences from the Intermediate version and connects them to form longer ones and also uses more cohesive devices such as ya que, mientras que and como.
It also uses more adverbial phrases like cuando, enseguida, and ya to situate the events of the story to show the relationship between them. All of these features of the Advanced version help to make the sentences flow together and make the story more complete.

As you practice telling more Advanced-like stories, try to include information about when an event took place (el sábado pasado, hace...días, etc.) and also the why behind it - (¿Por qué a ese lugar? ¿Por qué tuvieron que esperar?) Making these types of changes to the way you tell anecdotes will help you start moving closer to achieving Advanced-Low.

Have you reached Advanced-Low or higher?  What did you do to get there?  If you'd like, share your story in the comments section below.

An Adventure in Circumlocution

 For how long have you ever sustained a conversation in Spanish (or your second language)? I had never thought about this until more than 20 years ago when I found myself in a day-long marathon of a conversation. How I ended up in that situation is a story in itself.


A couple of years after college and less than a year before I started grad school I heard an ad on the only Spanish-language radio station in the area announcing they were looking for bilingual sales reps for the station. Now, I had no interest in actually doing any selling, nor am I any good at it, in any language, but did that stop me? Goodness no. What did interest me was this open invitation to speak Spanish in a non-social setting, so I went. At the designated time I arrived at the station and there was instructed to wait until called to the meeting. There were few people there in the waiting area but one, a large man was speaking Spanish with a lady who worked there. As I listened I was struck by his accent, surely Venezuelan. It was an intuitive reaction, perhaps wishful thinking since just 3 years earlier I had been there to visit my then boyfriend/fiance. Compelled to speak up, I went over to him and asked in a natural tone that showed an intent to bond with him, “ ¿Tú habla' e'pañol?” followed by “¿De dónde ere'?” purposely dropping my s's. My 'presentimiento' was right. He was from Venezuela and as it turned out, from the same city as my former boyfriend where I had spent 2 weeks. We talked up a storm about his country giving me a chance to not only reminisce with him about local culture and geography but also to feel more like 'su paisana' than simply a non-native speaker who can communicate and happened to have been to an area tourists don't usually frequent. We hit it off and I offered to show him around town the following week since he had just moved here and didn't speak English.

After about 5 or 10 minutes, we were called to a conference room for what I thought was a group interview. Actually it was more of a meeting to inform us about what the job would entail. It seemed there were no real requirements and it would be commision only all of which made it less appealing even to just listen to in Spanish. I got bored very quickly and my blood sugar was dropping and so I had my excuse to duck out of there. I was ready to leave anyhow because I had already gotten what I came for.

A week later, my new friend and I got in touch and agreed to meet for a tour of the city. We started out in the morning around 9. I had been looking forward to it since I had mentioned the idea to him. I began by giving some background about the area and its general demographics and features of the area. So far so good, even though I found that I had to circumlocute (talking your way around the vocabulary you don't know by using what you do know) more words than I expected, —until about 20 minutes into the conversation when my lack of precise vocabulary and constant circumlocution literally had me out of breath. I started hyperventilating. I had to stop talking and roll down the window, take some deep breaths and relax some 15 to 20 minutes before I could resume my informal and spontaneous presentation. When I did, I resigned myself to the fact that I would be spending the rest of the day circumlocuting and prepared myself psychologically for it. However, my confidence in being able to describe my city had eroded away so I gave up on the idea that my vocabulary was broad enough for this day-long task. By the end of the day, I felt that although I had ran a linguistic marathon, I had gained a type of stamina and confidence to make it through a day without tiring from circumlocution.

Levels of Language: The Revised ACTFL Guidelines

The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) has revised its guidelines which describe various levels of proficiency. These newer guidelines now include a higher level, Distinguished, as well as more detailed descriptions of the levels and video excerpts from interviews that serve as examples of what a speaker can do at the different levels. Check this page for some general information about the guidelines and this page to see the videos for Speaking along with the explanations given for the level assigned to each speaker.


The videos of the interviews are in English, which will surely interest my readers who have English as a second language but those of us who speak Spanish as a second language can also benefit by imagining how we would fair in responding to similar prompts in our second language at the different levels that are shown.

A Numbers Game or How I Made the Most Out of Living in an Area with a Small Spanish-speaking Population

People tell me I’m lucky to be in Florida because there are many Spanish speakers here. Well, yes and no. Yes, there are large numbers of Hispanics here (assuming they speak Spanish as well, although that’s not always the case) but they are not evenly distributed throughout the state. The largest concentration of Hispanics are in the bigger cities like Miami and Orlando. My town is much smaller and the percentage of Hispanics in my county according to the 2010 census is about 8% and almost 23% in the state as a whole. When I came to this area from Miami 30 years ago it was significantly less. Ironically it was back then, and in the years before the Internet, that I got most of my speaking practice. At that time I was making the most of the opportunities around me, mostly through international classmates and networking with friends. But their mere existence was not enough to guarantee the chance to hear and speak the language. For one, no one knew I was capable of sustaining a conversation until I did something about it and spoke up. Even when my best friend in college (a non-native major like me who had a similar level but had many social contacts) introduced me to her friends in Spanish, specifying to them that I could speak the language, I was still addressed in English. I quickly learned that I had to prove my ability to handle myself in a conversation by switching to Spanish and then sustained use of the language as a means of insisting on my preference. It most always worked.


Today, even though the numbers have increased dramatically, I no longer actively seek to have contact with the local Spanish-speaking community and consequently have fewer face-to-face encounters in the language. But what remains the same is the fact that in general, the Spanish speakers here also speak English and are integrated into the community and not marginalized. Because of that, if I want to use Spanish, I have to be the one to initiate the switch otherwise my interlocutor will go on obliviously in English. I have come to realize through my experiences that the number of speakers in an area doesn’t tell the whole story. If I hadn’t been a college student back when I was looking for people to speak with, I might have never even known there were any since I wouldn’t have been traveling in those circles. And even in Miami, a bilingual city, for all intents and purposes, I was not addressed in Spanish, a social reality that has not changed despite becoming fluent. Switching languages, for whatever purpose, falls to me. In the end, no matter how many Spanish speakers there may be in an area, the key is, in my humble opinion, making the most of the situation and hopeful becoming involved in the community so that through social contacts you can increase your language opportunities.

What is Your Level?

If you’re interested in getting practice in listening and reading and getting an idea about your level in those skills at the same time, check out GLOSS .  I have used this page personally and have recommended it to others who are learning or perfecting their skills in the languages available there.


This link will take you to the site’s main page where you can choose the language you are working on, the level you’re at or trying to reach, then click on “Search Lessons”. From there you can select one to start on. Each lesson takes about an hour and except for any writing assignments as a final activity for a lesson, there is feedback available when you click on “Check Answers”. What level should you start at? This site is from the Defense Language Institute and uses the government’s ILR scale. You can read the level descriptors for listening here. If you think you might be at level 2, for example, you could try out the lessons for that level. If you get most or all the answers right on a variety of lessons for that level, you are likely at that level. But if you only get answers right about half the time you’re probably at level 1+ for the modality (listening or reading) that you worked on.   Regardless of the level you're trying to reach, you're sure to find the activities challenging.

I hope that the GLOSS site will be a valuable resource to all those who use it.

My Accent in Spanish

I’ve been obsessed with my accent for many years. I have been told it’s neutral and that that’s good because it shouldn’t be regional sounding. No one, for the most part, beyond a few initial phrases, takes me for a native speaker, although I do seem to pass for a heritage speaker despite the fact that my looks often override everything that comes out of my mouth. Online, people I’ve just met, without being able to see me, often tell me I sound like a native, although not from their country, but nonetheless, that’s the biggest compliment I could get and it’s very satisfying. Considering the fact I’ve acquired the sound system in the U.S. (through the Cuban community in Miami) in late childhood and have never lived for an extended period out of the country, I have plenty to be proud of. However, the concern about my accent has persisted until recently.


A few months ago, in a conversation with my husband, I came to realize that my situation isn’t as unique or particular to a non-native in the U.S. as I thought. My husband, who is originally from Colombia has been here a long time now without regular contact with others from there. In fact, he really only speaks Spanish with me and the Mexicans with whom he works. Over the years he apparently has lost his Colombian accent from being in a country where one gets exposed to a variety of accents. No one can tell where he is from, even Colombians, who have a hard time believing he was born and raised there.

So, if a native speaker who was brought up in the language can no longer be recognized as a member of his ‘own’ speech community because of prolonged contact with a variety of other accents, I shouldn’t feel bad about my own perceived shortcoming.

Advice on Reaching Advanced-Low on the OPI

In the last few years, I have helped several in-service and pre-service teachers reach Advanced-Low on the ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI).  Most had already taken the interview and received an Intermediate-High rating; a couple had gotten Intermediate-Mid.  Generally speaking, because their current or future career was at stake, they were naturally nervous, but also uncertain about why they had not been assigned Advanced. There were several misconceptions about what the OPI was, what was expected of them at the different levels and how they would be judged.  I’d like to post here the advice I gave to those I tutored, much of which are answers to frequently asked questions about the OPI.

What is the interview like?

The ACTFL Guidelines describe what a speaker can do at each of 4 major levels, Novice, Intermediate and Superior in terms of global functions. See the description of Advanced here. It takes the form of a conversation but has a structure that includes a warm-up, a series of probes, to see if you can handle higher level speaking tasks, level-checks, to verify the level you function at most comfortably and consistently , a role-play and a wind-down. Even though it feels like a fairly casual conversation, it’s important that you don’t limit your responses to short answers but rather elaborate on them. At the Advanced level the interviewer will try to encourage full length narration and description, albeit indirectly, with questions like “cuéntame más” or “¿cómo es /era?”, for example.

What questions will I be asked?

There is no pre-set list of questions. The interviewer doesn’t have one. Each interview is unique and the questions come from the individual’s own background and experience.

Does my grammar have to be perfect?


No, but overall, your language has to be understandable to a native speaker not used to speaking with a non-native. In other words, the listener doesn’t have to figure out your meaning, despite your errors. You can make your meaning clear using what you know of the language.
Do I have to know the subjunctive?

Not necessarily. Speakers at this level have probably studied the subjunctive and have some familiarity with it, enough to use some of the most common phrases. You may find yourself needing to use it from time to time in sentences like, “Quiero que venga el próximo fin de semana.” or “Yo esperaba que me llamara pero nunca lo hizo.” But if you are not so good at it, you could possibly avoid it, in the above sentences, for example, by saying instead, “Quiero verlo…” or “Esperaba su llamada…”

Do I have to know specific vocabulary or can I circumlocute?


An Advanced level speaker is not expected to have precise vocabulary; it is usually generic. If fact, the ability to circumlocute is expected and needed especially during the role-play, which for the Advanced level is one in that you must handle an otherwise routine situation or transaction that has a complication or unexpected turn of events. It requires you to think on your feet and so, circumlocution will help you do that.

I get nervous under pressure. What can I do about that?

The best thing to gain confidence is by practicing the required functions for this level- narrating and describing in all major time frames, present, past and future and handling a complicated situation or transaction- involving different topics.

I thought I did pretty well in the interview. Why did I get rated Intermediate-High?


You might not have made many mistakes, although Intermediate and even Advanced-Low speakers are rarely error-free. What is important is that your narrations and descriptions be in cohesive paragraphs, not just a series of sentences. They should include connecting phrases showing sequence or cause and effect, such as primero, después, antes de + inf., más tarde, entonces, aunque, como (since), and por eso, to name a few.  The good news is that Intermediate-High means you can perform the functions of Advanced but not consistently and not across a variety of topics. You may also be able to request an analysis of your interview in which they will suggest an alternate way to respond to the questions you were given.

I hope these comments will aid those who will be taking the interview in the future. If any reader has any other questions about the OPI, please post them here.

Best of luck.

UPDATE:  I've posted a second part to this post with more pieces of advice.  Read it here

A Day of Immersion in Miami

On a couple of occasions I have taken former students of mine to Miami for a full day of Spanish practice.  I got started doing this after discussions with classes about field trips and going abroad.  What better place than Miami for a taste of Latin America without leaving the country?  However, I only took people who had had at least 2 semesters of study because true beginners would be even more overwhelmed and not get that much out of it.  I was hoping to further motivate these students by sharing a small part of what I knew of the language and culture and letting them experience some of it themselves.
      The week beforehand, I went down, planned my route, made some arrangements and recorded some of the most popular songs of the moment for them to listen to on the way for ambiance and to learn some phrases by singing along with the chorus (I printed the words out).  On the itinerary were a tour of Little Havana, stops at a Cuban bakery, a Cuban restaurant, a Colombian bookstore, a Latin supermarket (suggested by the 2 ladies I took on this trip), and a Colombian café.  I was very organized - everything planned down to the minute.  I thought it would go exactly as expected.  The morning began with excitement and anticipation.  At 7 am sharp, I picked up my passengers at their house.  It was too early in the morning for salsa music so I held off on using the tape I made.  There wasn't much conversation because of their limited Spanish but I stuck to my promise to not speak English (even if they did).  We ended up using repetitive questions like ¿Quieres? or  ¿Te gusta?.   But no matter.  Repetition is good, right?  By the time we got to Miami, we were a bit hungry, so first stop-a bakery for Cuban coffee. I figured I would have to order but since they knew the numbers I was hoping they'd listen for our ticket number.  Not this time around.  No, this wasn't going to be linguistic at all.  This was my first indication that I had taken this cultural familiarity for granted.  While I was ready to order and eat they seemed to be entranced by another world infused with it's own exotic sights and smells.  "What's this?" they asked, peering into the glass case filled with unfamiliar looking sweets.  "What are you going to get?"  "What do you recommend?"  They sat back and watched it all unfold in front of them.  I got the feeling they were experiencing sensory overload.  I got them café con leche, pastelitos de queso y otros de guayaba.  They did say they enjoyed the food without much more commentary, so I left it at that.  We were already on  Calle Ocho the main artery through  La Pequeña Habana, and site of an annual festival every March, which was the next leg of our tour.  This part was mostly for its visual impact of seeing most store names and signs in Spanish, ending with a quick drive by Máximo Gómez Park, also known as Domino Park. 
     Now we were on our way to the bookstore.  I chose the place, primarily because the owner, whom I had become friendly with over the years, would be open to having Spanish-language learners attempt to speak with her.  When we got there, I introduced everyone, she greeted them warmly with a customary kiss, then launched into a conversation about how they were enjoying the local weather.  Being greeted with a kiss by a stranger, albeit a woman, took them slightly by surprise, but they went with the flow.  However, the Spanish went right over their heads and relied on me to communicate for them.  The small, compact store intrigued them as they started to wander around.  One shelf label caught their eye:  Literatura latinoamericana.  "Professor, why doesn't it say 'española'?"    I explained how that word would refer to something from Spain exclusively.  That's when I realized that the little things I have always taken as a given were completely new, 'foreign', if you will, from their monocultural point of view.  This was supposed to be, after all, the whole point of venturing down to Miami but I hadn't ever, up until that moment, seen what was completely normal to me, through the eyes of someone who was only familiar with American (USA) culture.  There were more cross-cultural differences and misunderstandings to come.
     It didn't take long for them to have their fill of browsing in one place.  They wanted to go exploring the other shops and eateries, all Latino, down the long strip mall that the bookstore was a part of.  Sure, I thought-why not?  There's plenty to see.  As they were about to walk out the door, I heard, "Say bye to your friend for us."  Little alarm bells went off in my head.  What?  You can't do that, I said.  You have to say good-bye personally, was all I could get out of my mouth, but they were gone.  A bit embarrassed and feeling like I had been left holding the bag, I went to the owner and apologized that they left.  I began to feel like a cultural ambassador.  First I explained their cultural viewpoint; she was of course, graciously understanding.  Then, sensing a teachable moment, I went outside to find the ladies to explain to them the importance of  returning and saying good-bye 
     If it was only that simple.  Now, a new snag presented itself.  Outside, I didn't see them.  Could they have gone into a store?  But which one?  There were more than a dozen.  I started to panic. This was the same summer that Chandra Levy had disappeared.  While we weren't in a particularly dangerous area-I wouldn't have gone- but they were tourists, didn't speak the language or know the local culture and could get into trouble. Just a minute had gone by when they emerged from a shop nearby.  I called them over.  As we were beginning to talk about returning to the bookstore, a suspicious looking man approached us.  My concerns about my guests were heightened.  He spoke to them in Spanish, quickly switched to English, trying to engage them in conversation and apparently asking for money.  My instincts were to dismiss him and get away but they made small talk for a few moments but since none of us showed interest in continuing or giving him anything, thankfully, he left on his own.  It took about 10 minutes to explain about polite greetings and leave-takings, but they understood and we all went back to the bookstore and said our good-byes and thanked the owner for her hospitality. 
      Still on schedule, we headed for the Cuban restaurant I had in mind.  It is a very popular place but I didn't count on it being so packed, not to mention there was unexpected road construction on the corner, making it difficult to get in and out of the parking lot.  Switch to plan B- another nearby local restaurant chain, less formal and less crowded at any given hour of the day.  I was still full from the morning's pastry but they were ready for a bite to eat.  My best option was just a cup of caldo gallego.  They each ordered a sándwich cubano.  When it arrived, I couldn't figure out why they were surprised at its large size, as they considered it.  I guessed that's why they could only eat half of it.   We took our time, lingering over our meal, then a new question to think about:  "How come they haven't brought us the check?"  Mmmmmm.  This was interesting to me on a couple of levels.  Certainly this is not usual in the U.S., especially in casual places like this but we were not in a hurry so I was struck by their comment.  Were they ready to go?  Did they think the service was bad because of this?  I explained the custom and differences in viewpoint in both cultures, which they appreciated and found eye-opening.  I realized they were learning the kinds of things I had hoped they would. 
     After this, we then went on to a Latin supermarket.  It was a request my passengers had made the week before.    The place was bustling with activity.  Spanish was floating all around-easily overheard conversations, people ordering from the butcher, announcements about specials over the speakers.  They strolled down the aisles observing the tropical produce on display, the labels and signs in Spanish, imagining what it all meant.   Just about everything there was from Latin America- common foods, popular brands, but still recognizable by its name or packaging- until they came across bags of mate.  I knew about it but had never actually tasted it, but still I could give them an idea.  After a half an hour of wandering around, they were ready to move on to the last stop- a Colombian café.
     I had met the owner some time before and would usually drop by to say hi to her whenever I was in Miami.  It was a kiosk separate from the adjacent shopping center, with its own little patio, white plastic tables (with built-in umbrella for shade) and chairs for seating.   We just plopped our tired selves down to take a breather while we waited for her to come over and say hi.  I introduced everyone.  Aside from "Hola, ¿cómo estás?" that was the extent of interaction in Spanish between the two parties.  Since my friend didn't speak much English, and my former students equally limited in Spanish, I served as interpreter.  But it was almost 3pm; the day was already over.  Although they had to use some English with me during the day, the mental exhaustion from being semi-mute for eight hours left them feeling worn out and more than ready to head back home.  I couldn't help but sympathize.  I, too, was quite spent from constant driving and still facing another 3 hours on the road.
     On the way back, I mulled over the events of the day, analyzing what had happened, particularly at the restaurant.  I wondered about their reactions and found myself comparing cross-cultural differences from two points of view: that of a learner, experiencing another world for the first time and that of a (Hispanic) culture-bearer observing an outsider.  As I thought about it, I realized  I was seeing where each other's perception lies from a different standpoint.  It was a strange third space I hadn't experienced before- somewhere in between worlds and yet not fully in either.  "Wow", I thought to myself,  "supongo que, como dice la canción de Facundo Cabral, 'No soy de aquí ni soy de allá.'".

You Know You're Bilingual (or Really Fluent) When...

You say something to someone (or heard something) but don't remember what language it was in because you were only focused on the meaning.

You start a sentence in one language and finish in another or you intermingle phrases and words from both within a sentence or a story (code-switching).

You have dreams in both languages.

You find it hard to answer the question "Which language do you prefer?"



These are only a few of the things that I could come up with.  I invite all my readers to add to these or suggest variations on the ones I have put here.
I 'm looking forward to your comments!

Maintaining Bilingual Skills in the US

I have heard people tell me that  it's difficult to maintain their language skills because they say they don't live in an area with a lot of Spanish speakers. To a certain extent, I agree, but my contention is that it's not the numbers that count but rather how you make the most of them. Even if you live in an area with a large number of bilinguals, how and how often you interact with them might depend on your skills, and willingness to use them.  In addition, if you haven't developed basic fluency yet, bilinguals are often not the best choice for speaking partners since on average, they are more likely to switch to English rather than patiently wait for you to finish your thought in Spanish.  If you live in an area without an obvious Spanish speaking population, they still may be around but you'd have to seek out the community.  For listening and reading there is no limit to how much you can access especially with the Internet.  Satelite TV providers have Spanish language packages with numerous channels from around the world.  There are also language exchange sites that have real time voice chats like sharedtalk and livemocha.  But there's nothing like interacting face to face with people in person.  I feel that networking is the best way to grow your circle of contacts. You may have friends that speak Spanish (even if they use English with you), and they have family and friends.  Hopefully you get invited to their get-togethers and get to meet others and so on.  If you belong to a church, they may have Spanish language services, which could be good listening practice or a way to meet other people.
The important thing is to have daily contact with the language no matter what form that may take.  In the U.S., where English is the dominant language, you can never get enough listening and speaking practice in Spanish, so dive in and soak up as much as you can!

The Spanish Major and Professions

When I decided to major in Spanish, I knew I wanted to be a teacher, so the path to my chosen profession was pretty clear-cut.  The information about what was required to get certified and the courses needed to get there were readily available.  Some of my classmates, as well as people I meet today online, are not too keen on teaching and hope to use their degree in some other career.  If they know what that is, they may be more likely to have a double major or to take courses in that field to prepare themselves not only out of interest in that area but also because they realize that another language is only a tool to assist them in doing something else.  I think sometimes we language oriented people lose sight of this fact.  Assuming that upon graduation a student is proficient enough to do an entry-level job in a given field, what would this be?  It is highly unlikely that he will be hired just for having some bilingual skills (much less in an area with a bilingual population) without some other skill or background knowledge.  Just take a look on any jobs web site and do a search with the word Spanish or bilingual and you will see that the listings are for particular jobs or professions. If a student does get such a position that requires bilingual abilities , he will need language skills in all the modalities (listening, speaking, reading and writing).  Unfortunately, most university programs focus on literature and little on practical professional skills such as business writing.  A student interested in expanding his linguistic repertoire would be better off in a college that offers a variety of language courses for the professions-for example:  Spanish for Business, Spanish for Medical Professionals, Legal Spanish, etc. 
If a Spanish major has his heart set on a language-oriented career other than teaching which usually means translation and interpretation, he should be realistic about the work involved in reaching the high levels of proficiency needed for this field, which are way beyond what is required for teachers and usually attained in a university program.  He would do well to find an undergraduate, and subsequently, a graduate program in translation or interpretation.  There he would obtain the skills needed to be successful in this career and eventually certification from ATA (American Translators Association).
There may be some undergraduate degree or certificate programs in translation but most are graduate-level and usually require very high levels of proficiency in the native and target languages.  What's more, translators and interpreters usually specialize in a particular field such as medical, legal, business, real estate, etc.  And while dictionaries are consulted, it helps to understand the underlying concepts of that field because it is never simply words or terms that are translated but rather ideas, and being familiar with them would assist a translator more than if he weren't familiar with them.
These are just a few things to keep in mind when considering how Spanish could be part of a future career.

How Good Is Your Spanish?

     How do you answer this question?  Many people think that if you don't hesitate and your accent isn't obviously foreign, then you speak the language well.  This is only one facet of overall proficiency, the one on the surface that gets everyone's attention as a marker of being able to use the language.  But this can be quite subjective.  You may say something meaningful but the native speaker listening to you may focus only on your pronunciation flaws.  Likewise, you may say hardly anything at all.  Maybe your "Hi , how are you?" has a near perfect accent, native-like flow and  you could be told you speak wonderfully.  However, for us language educators we think about proficiency as a continuum and look not just at aspects like these but more at what a speaker can do with the language in broader terms.

     There are a couple of scales that describe different levels of proficiency that are used in the United States.  The government has their own- the ILR (Interagency Language Roundtable) scale which is basically used to test their own personnel, for example people who wil be going to fill a post overseas and need to use the language of the host country at a high level or in a professional capacity.  This scale goes from 0 (no functional ability) to 5 (highly educated and articulate native speaker).  See the speaking descriptions here.
This scale is appropriate for its applications used by the government, however since it includes much higher levels of language than are typically achieved by students in formal settings, in academia, the ACTFL (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) guidelines are more commonly used.

     The ACTFL guidelines' major levels go from Novice to Superior and these correspond with the ILR scale's 0-3.  See the descriptions here.  There is something very important to keep in mind when reading these descriptions and that is text type.  For example, novice speakers can only used memorized phrases    intermediate speakers speak at sentence level and advanced speakers can communicate in cohesive paragraphs. Superior level speakers can handle extended discourse.  Advanced-Low is the minimum level required for teacher certification in commonly taught languages in some states.  These guidelines are applied through an Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) with a certified tester.  The OPI measures global proficiency and takes the form of a conversation but there are no pre-set questions.  Topics are determined by the interviewee's background, experiences and level as the interview progresses.

   I first read the guidelines when they were new in the 80's, in a textbook for learning to teach Spanish.  They since have been revised, but at the time, I got the idea from reading them that if you knew all the grammar and could use it spontaneously in conversation then, you were at Superior.  But that didn't take into account text type, so you could be able to say sentences like "si no hubiera llovido, habria ido al parque" but if they are not part of a complete, connected story or part of a longer, more complex discussion on abstract topics, then you would only be rated at an Intermediate level.  Likewise, I thought that since Superior was the ultimate level, implying that those speakers made hardly any errors, native speakers would fall into this category. However, when I went through the OPI tester training, I got a more accurate picture of what the guidelines were about.  What was most surprising, as our professor explained, was that in our own language we tend to speak in the Intermediate and Advanced range in our day-to-day conversation.  Granted, the native speaker will have better pronunciation, flow and accuracy than a learner but the text type is sentence and paragraph level.  It's the back and forth, question and answer and anecdote telling of casual speech.  The higher levels are not as common in the average conversation but are rather either more formal or more linguistically complex such as the language of debates or that needed by diplomats. 

     So, if your accent isn't as good as you would like it to be, remember that there is more to using a language than that. Sure your pronunciation shouldn't interfere with someone understanding you but beyond that it's about what you can do with the language -request, express emotion and needs, tell what happened, counsel, persuade, describe, etc. and how well or to what degree of sophistication.  Keep this comparison in mind. As I have heard,  Henry Kissinger the former Secretary of State, whose first language is German, would be rated a 4+ on the ILR scale. If it weren't for his heavy accent he would be considered as a native English speaker.  Despite the accent, look at what he can do with the language.  That in itself is quite an accomplishment that we can all aspire to.

Literature and the Spanish Major

If you are or were a Spanish major, most of your advanced classes were probably in literature.  This is almost always the focus of this degree program as it is with other foreign languages.  It's not unusual for non-native students to express their frustrations about the difficulty of these courses.  They can be more specialized or very broad such as a two semester suvey course covering the history of Spanish literature. There are several problems in such classes for the non-native student who has not yet achieved full fluency in the language.  To start, there is the very high level of literary language he faces when reading and the expectation on the part of the professor that he will be able to discuss it despite his limited vocabulary in speaking and writing.  Most of the words are low-frequency and therefore unfamiliar and the learner must look up many of them just to get the main idea. What's more, because there are so many new words, he cannot use contextual clues since that strategy depends on knowing a greater percentage of the vocabulary in the text.  Constant use of the dictionary slows him down and then time constraints add to the problem. One kind of solution that some departments have begun to incorporate into their programs is a 'bridge' course that will help the intermediate student improve reading skills and introduce him to literature as a way to ease the transition to the upper level classes that focus on literature and culture. This may help solve the problem of the gap in linguistic skill, as it applies to academic uses, between the beginning and advanced classes in university, particularly for someone starting their language major in college, but it ignores the fact that because literature is by and large the focus of language degree programs, there is really no significant effort made to develop the learner's professional communication skills for use in the real world after graduation.  It pushes aside the importance of the language for other purposes. Literature professors are just that, experts in literature and want to teach their speciality and no doubt as native speakers feel that this is the only justifiable area of study for anyone getting a degree in the language, especially a non-native.  That's OK.  Let's just be up front about it and call it was it is- a B.A. in Spanish Literature (not just Spanish).  The name is misleading to students and the public at large who expect  at least functional fluency for a variety of situations beyond social conversation.  Whereas there are bound to be students who major in a language because of their love of literature, this may just be wishful thinking on the part of the department.  Most students, even if they don't mind the challenge of literature, hope to use the language in some way in their future work.  Yes, courses such as Spanish for Business or Spanish for Medical Professionals are becoming more commonplace but they were meant for students majoring in those fields who want to learn or improve in the language so as to be an additional skill, a tool for communication.  Even though the level of language may not go above the intermediate level, the important thing is that they are introduced to vocabulary to talk about things other than literature or linguistics, if even that is achieved after four years.  Being able to read business contracts or import/export documents, describe cultural concepts from our own country, discuss insurance policy options with a new client, giving a business presentation or defending or critizing our country's foreign policy are examples of higher level language use that require a broader and sometimes more precise vocabulary than what is usually taught in an undergraduate program. Reading and being able to discuss el Quixote or the stories of Borges do not translate to competency in other types of communication.  Personally, I don't have a problem with literature per se.  But it's place at the center of the curriculum is at odds with the overall goals and expectations of many students who have other plans for using the language. Native speakers who major in English or Spanish in the U.S. for example, are truly specializing in literature and are aware of this.  In the case of English, if the student is interested only in language, there is Linguistics or a Communication major.  When Spanish is seen as a second language instead of a foreign language, then a degree with a name like Spanish Communcation will become available and bring more students to both the advanced study of the language and its literature.
I have been through all of this myself.  When I finished my B.A. I had strong conversational skills and I had done research on Unamuno (Spanish literary figure) and was familiar with the great works and writers of Spain and Latin America.  I was very adept at circumlocution but I couldn't have described a car problem or accident to someone or have been able to handle calls at a call center (because of the speed and taking down numbers and unfamiliar names spoken fast).  This was frustrating because I had hoped to be able to do these things if I chose to  with my degree in hand.  At those moments I began to question the validity of this piece of paper I got for my college work. Just what does it it meant to have a degree in a foreign language?

Starting Out in Spanish Part V

Graduate school was a pretty positive experience overall.  I chose Middlebury College's Spanish School, part of their summer language immersion programs.  They require signing a formal pledge to use nothing but the language of the school for the whole summer session even off campus and for graduate students there is the option of four summers on their campus in Vermont or the first summer there and a year abroad in Spain.  This last option was what I chose so I could finish quickly and be out of the country for a longer period of time.  All of this appealed to me also because I wanted to be addressed in Spanish whether I was in the US or abroad.  Up to this point I was aware of how well I could speak and understand by the reactions of native speakers and that was more important, at least socially, than formal assessments by teachers and I had not had any 'level test' either until I applied to this college.  They gave us a comprehensive grammar test before we arrived.  I guessed I did very well because I didn't have to take the required grammar review class for beginning graduate students who were non-native.  I was happy about that but I still wanted to take another kind of class in language that would suit me.  Nonetheless, it was great to hear nothing but Spanish day in and day out and always being addressed in the language by default.  We had a balanced program of language, culture and literature.  In a way it was similar to my undergraduate program but more reading and less linguistic support.  We were really on our own.  That's to be expected and I didn't mind.  I focused all my energy on my course work but also on improving my reading and writing skills.  Speaking and listening were not an issue since I arrived in Spanish with fluent conversational skills.  No doubt, there's something to be said for being able to experience another lifestyle and mindset.  Living there for almost a year was an enjoyable experience.  I didn't feel I acquired more language because I was reaching a plateau where the next step would require a different approach but one class that was very useful was one just on the subjunctive.  It helped me to see it in a different way and to organize it better in my head.  In that same class one of our classmates asked, even though the class wasn't about vocabulary, if the word 'pedazo' was OK to use for 'slice'.  The professor explained that it depended on the thing being sliced.  For bread it would be 'rebanada', a round slice of fruit, 'rueda',  for a piece of pie or something similar, 'trozo', etc.  I was amazed at this.  I only knew 'pedazo' too, but that's all I had heard.  It made me look at words and my own lexicon in a new way.  This same student asked a similar question on another occasion about the word 'handle' as a noun and we got  more words explained by the teacher.  I wrote them down and always wished I could have had this kind of instruction during my studies.  It didn't happen so I found my own solution a couple of years later.
     The year finished quickly and soon my boyfriend in Puerto Rico got me a job teaching English so I went to the island for about 6 months.  I had been there for a week's vacation before leaving for Spain.  I had wanted to fill in the gaps in my general vocabulary for a couple of years but now I became aware of the kinds of words that were new to me and that I thought were important for someone who has an advanced degree.  I didn't let anyone know at the time, but some examples are hose (manguera) and bucket (cubo).  Back on the mainland, my ambition and passion that had always pushed me forward in learning Spanish kicked in again now that I had more free time.   I figured I should read more but this time it wasn't literature but just about everything else-newspapers, magazines, even bilingual labels, manuals, anything.  I read every part of the paper-news, op ed, social announcements, ads, travel, columns, etc.  I went to big stores like K-Mart and Home Depot and read bilingual material and kept a thick notebook noting everything that wasn't part of my active vocabulary.  As I read I kept in mind the register (level of language), phrasing used, given the type of writing or publication and the kinds of combinations of verbs and nouns, nouns and adjectives and verbs and adverbs (collocations).  I collected hundreds of entries and even though I didn't study them per se, I did look over them from time to time just to admire the amount of words I had included.  Little by little I found myself starting to use them in conversations.  Another activity to get exposed to ways of expressing an idea and to learn more vocabulary was to watch American movies with Spanish subtitles (I could only get that in Miami) particularly films that had legal or scientific topics.  My objective was broaden my vocabulary to be able to talk about a greater variety of topics.  Shortly after I started this project, I met the man whom I later married.  He is from Colombia and we spoke only Spanish for many years until his English improved.  Using the language everyday for different purposes stretched my abilities even more.
      Although I have reached a level of comfort with the language, I continue to strive to maintain it and hopefully become more proficient.  Language learning never ends.

Starting Out in Spanish Part IV

I had been waiting for a couple of years since I started college to be able to take nothing but Spanish-no more other courses (even though they were interesting too).  The focus now for me was building on what I had to learn more vocabulary and become fully fluent.  I hadn't really thought yet about what that meant except in the general notion of being able to do anything with the language.  Certainly having a Spanish major would help me get there faster than on my own.  At least that's what I believed. (That is another post.)  I was ready for challenges I knew would be part of my studies.  The concept of lecture classes in Spanish was exciting because we were using the language to learn something else or more language.  It was also satisfying knowing I had 'graduated' to another level beyond review of verb tenses which I had  already mastered.  Of course I still wanted more language classes but this was a small department with a fairly traditional program so after the usual Composition and Conversation classes it was on to lots of literature.  I guess it's a linguistic rite of passage, so to speak, that most language majors go through to get their degree.  Whether or not we have acquired conversational language we get thrown into the deep end of the language pool to learn how not just to swim but to navigate complex texts.  If you survive, you pass, if not, you might change majors.  I made it through at first with a dictionary but like the rest of my classmates we were compelled to abandon that crutch and learn to read without it.  This is very difficult when you are faced with about 50% unknown words that are key to just getting the surface meaning but the professor expects discussion about our interpretation of the piece.  Meanwhile I desperately wanted to learn as much of this new vocabulary as possible for future use but I realized the unspoken message that all vocabulary learning from now on would be our responsibility but that it should come from random words in literary works.  So I did learn things but they didn't include everything I thought was important for saying you had a college degree in a language.  The best part of learning in college for me was listening to the professors' lectures.  It was lots of professional level input.  I asked to tape some of them and on the way home would listen a second time to remember better the content.   Writing papers was fun too.  I enjoyed the research and the process itself and did well on them.  I remember asking native-speaker classmates to proofread my writing and them telling me that parts sounded awkward and not being able to see where or why.  In the end, when I graduated I felt I had gotten the most I could out of the experience and together with daily contact with the language and cultures of Spanish-speaking countries by way of my close friends, (I also went to Venezuela for a couple of weeks to stay with the family of one of them), I was fairly satisfied with what I had accomplished. 
My career goal was to be a Spanish teacher in part because I wanted to teach and also because there was a relatively easy and direct path to get there.  I was very confident that I had the language skills to do so.  However, my first teaching job didn't work out, for non-linguistic reasons, so while I decided what to do next, I went back to Miami for a year and stayed with my dad and took some classes in Interpretation and Translation.  That was interesting but more importantly it was a wake up call to the fact that my vocabulary was sorely lacking.  It forced me to recognize that my conversational skills were not enough to do even a seemingly simple job like answer the phone and transferring calls.  That required something I hadn't thought of before as important-writing down numbers spoken quickly and understanding names that are not the most commonly heard as students.  Later when I came back to my town, another experience allowed me to gauge what I could and couldn't do. 
I met a Venezuelan man who was new in town and didn't speak English, so I offered to give him a day tour of the city.  I thought it would be easy because it would be just conversation and I could circumlocute.  It turned out that circumlocuting was what I had to do since I found myself not having a broad or precise enough vocabulary to describe everything I was trying to say.  After an hour I was mentally exhausted and felt like I physically couldn't breathe.  I took a break for a few minutes then I continued on for the rest of the day and since then  haven't had this kind of problem.  I think it was sheer determination and for the practice I developed some linguistic stamina.  It was becoming clear that I needed to keep learning to get to a more professional level in the language and since I wanted to work with adults, I decided to get my Master's.  Soon a new chapter began in this long journey.  The final part will be in my next post!

Starting Out in Spanish Part III

Now that I was feeling more confident about my listening skills, I continued to push myself, looking for ways to be involved with the language and the people who spoke it in my area.   Over the next few years, I met a handful of international students at my school and some who were studying at the university in town which had a good sized foreign student population.  Even in casual conversations I could notice how they carried their culture with them and picked up on their attitudes towards many things and got a sense of how they viewed their home country and mine.  These encounters weren't everyday but each one was another layer of experience in listening or speaking.  Then  I started upper division classes.  During those last two years of university I also had a couple of  serious boyfriends from Latin American who were here as students.  English was the default language but we would switch back and forth between both and I learned so much language and culture from them directly and indirectly. One thing that I noticed that served as an indicator of what level I was at was that whenever we would talk about something that I thought was important, I prefered English because I wanted to be sure I understood everything.  For casual conversation I felt comfortable using Spanish. That was the relatively easy part to develop because that type of language is common and I sought it out. This skill was solidified by the time I started the advanced classes in university.  I got to practice, for real purposes, a variety of language tasks with the people I knew or met.  Quite often they were situations I had never encountered but perhaps because I was motivated, and had developed skill in circumlocution (using language you know to compensate for what you don't know how to say), I was able to deal with them.  For example, I was once invited to someone's apartment and that person gave me detailed directions in Spanish over the phone.  These kind of experiences gave me a sturdy foundation as I began the more challenging classes in college. 
Now, I was listening to lectures about Spanish history and literature.  It was relatively easy but was more input of a different kind.  So were the Spanish language news reports I 'd listen to on the radio from the city nearby and the salsa and merengue the station played.  Any new song was like a lesson.  After hearing it a couple of times, I learned it the way I would a song in English.  However, this was only if I recognized the words.  There were some I didn't know.   I was also lucky to be taught famous songs and the difficult words in them by my friends.  In this way, I continued to increase my vocabulary through aural input, something I got used to since I originally started in Miami.   So far I was pretty satisfied with what I had learned and thrilled to be advancing in the language through a college major but soon I began to realize that this new stage wasn't quite what I expected.

Starting Out in Spanish Part II

I was just turning 16 when my family moved out of Miami to a small but growing town in Central Florida.  It was my last year in high school and of course I continued on to the Spanish III class.  This new place was in stark contrast with where we came from.  Miami was urban, Latin flavored, high in crime (at the time), sophisticated.  Here it was almost rural, Americana, practically no crime, friendly and laid-back.  Except for one family nearby that was Puerto Rican, there seemed to be no Hispanics.  We joked that we were now in "the real United States".  Despite the outward appearances, there were some Latin Americans that I came in contact with.  Those first few were actually students in my Spanish class.  Most were born in Venezuela and had only been here maybe a few years but spoke English fairly well.  The teacher seemed to emphasize only spelling and written accents with them.  I couldn't imagine anything else they could be taught.  For us, the class was all grammar and vocabulary.  I'm sure that this was basically Spanish in vacuum for the others but I welcomed it because I felt that what I needed to know was how the language worked (grammar), rather than how it sounded or motivation to speak, which came early on for me.  Before moving I had learned present tense, informal commands (which was easy after learning some present tense because I had heard many common commands for years, like, ven (come), dime (tell me), mira (look), oye (listen, hey), present perfect, present progressive and reflexives.  Now I was introduced to all the other tenses and even future subjunctive, with the understanding that it wasn't part of conversational language.  I was able to absorb it all, although I don't know how exactly, but that's part of the reason I'm interested in Second Language Acquisition.  I learned a lot of grammar and even though I couldn't understand the Spanish speaking classmates yet-they spoke very fast as it were- I was confident that it was just a matter of time and more listening and speaking experience.
The following year I started college locally where there were more opportunities to meet international people.  I had already decided to be a Spanish major and eventually a high school teacher. I continued to the next levels without having to start over at the beginning and luckily was able to pick up right where I had left off in high school.  The class I took was 3rd semester Spanish and was a review of grammar.   In that class I made a good friend who had similar interests and background in the language and culture.  We used the language with each other between classes and when we would go out together.  She aslo had contacts with South Americans at the college and introduced me to some of them.  Things were now coming together for me with the language.  For example, one day after the Spanish class in which we reviewing irregular past tenses, like decir (to say/tell), my friend and I started to talk in Spanish about something that had happened the other day.  I found myself saying fluently, without really thinking about it,  "Entonces, que le dijiste?  Que te dijo?  (Pardon the lack of accents)  (So, what did you tell him?  What did he tell you?)  I was conscious that I was "practicing" but for real communication.  I was partly surprised I could do this because I was not taught it directly.  I suppose I acquired (unconscious 'learning') it from the many hours of input I had at the same time I was learning in school.  Sometimes I got to meet people through my friend but most of the time I made small talk with strangers I had heard speak Spanish.  Whenever I saw Spanish, I read; whenever I heard Spanish I listened or spoke if possible. Another thing that helped was the repetition of 'scripts'.  For example, when I met someone they always seemed to ask the same questions such as, What's your name?  Where are you from?  What do you study?  Do you have a boyfriend?  I always knew what to say but the familiarity of actually saying it out loud talking to a new person  helped me to do it a little more fluently each time.  This increased my confidence in speaking. Even though I didn't speak that much I did continue listening to hear natural language.
A turning point came after my first year in college.  I went to visit my dad (parents are divorced) as I did about once a month or two, in Miami where he still lived.  This was a treat since he was in a section with a greater percentage of Hispanics than where I had grown up.  Down there, I had much more access to the language.  There was TV and radio, newspapers, tons of restaurants, cafes, bookstores, nightclubs and other businesses run by and catering to the Spanish-speaking community.  Mostly I just listened to the radio as I had before because I liked the music.  By now, when I listened to the DJ's I could recognize most of the words but wasn't processing them instantly so I missed what they said.  I had been focusing on just the words themselves.  But that weekend I had the idea for some reason to listen to whole phrases and not worry too much about any unknown words.  When I did this, I was able to understand almost everything or at least 80% or so.  It was like a lightbulb went on and I started listening in a different way.
From then on, my learning experiences went in a new direction.
More in the next post!

Starting Out in Spanish Part I

I've been asked over the years by friends and students alike how I learned Spanish or how I got to be fluent. It's a rather long story so I'll post it in parts.
 I started hearing the language at 9 years old when I was growing up in Miami in the 70's.  At that time the Cuban and other Latin American influences were growing but weren't quite what they are today.  The amount of Spanish I heard was limited-not complete immersion.  It was used among the kids in the elementary school, a few in my neighborhood with whom I had contact and on the private family-owned Cuban bus I rode from school to home.  It was mostly just a continuous stream of sounds.  On occasion I could hear a phrase or two that was in context and could figure it out.  There was 'oigo' when answering the phone, 'dale' said to each kid, including me, as we were asked to get on the bus.  Generally speaking, I wasn't addressed or invited to learn it. But I've always been interested in language and other cultures and that natural orientation combined with a deep desire to understand the Spanish speaking kids and fit in with them was my first motivation.  Back then foreign language wasn't really available to learn in a class until high school, not counting the sampling of languages in Jr. Hi.  So for some 5 years I waited still soaking up the sounds of the language, which never sounded 'foreign'; they were just another part of life in Miami. I finally got a chance when I started high school and took a conversational class.  There was Spanish I too, but Spanish Conversation sounded like a better choice and so decided on that one.  After all that's what I thought I wanted.  The class was interesting especially with our teacher, a Cuban-American, who got our attention by doing some antics in first few days.  The content focused on practical phrases and Cuban food words.  We even went on a field trip to Little Havana to a Cuban bakery, ice cream store and then a restaurant to sample what we were learning about in class.  What was significant is that I apparently learned the alphabet , but I don't remember that, it was like I absorbed it, and a few very basic grammar patterns with common verbs. That same year I began pronouncing out loud everything I saw in Spanish-book pages at a friend's house, signs in the Southwest section where my dad lived and there was a higher number of Latins, or whatever came my way.  I also used my limited vocabulary to make small talk with a Puerto Rican friend about things we had in common like music and the Salsa station we listened to.  Listening to the radio became more important now.  I couldn't understand what the DJ said but I got familiar with the songs played and some phrases stood out like the words to the station's jingle. Being exposed to the whole language that was part of the community and not isolated only in a classroom had a positive effect on me and I feel helped move my acquisition along.
The next year I wanted to continue but my only option was Spanish II.  I hadn't had Spanish I, which was a more formal class compared to the conversation one, so I was behind.  I managed to catch up and wasn't too difficult.  It helped to have bought a thick paperback bilingual dictionary (an amazing concept I was glad to have discovered) which I used so much that the cover and some inside pages came off.  The best aspect of the class was that we used part an ALM book (Audio Lingual Method).   This method was in vogue in the 50's and 60's but has since fallen out of favor with the foreign language education community.  One of its central features is dialogs that illustrate grammar and vocabulary of the lesson, followed by various aural / oral exercises to manipulate structures with fluency.  Those exercises worked for me, personally, and gave me a big push towards basic fluency, I believe because I had already heard lots of language and now it was being explained to me how it worked and asking me to try to produce sounds and words I might have heard before.  In my case, I also had the motivation to apply what I was learning to real life situations, re-combining the chunks of language presented to us to make my own sentences.  Since I didn't have direct contact with many Spanish speakers, except casually in school, in my neighborhood and through the media, I didn't have much practice but the grammar I learned in class made sense of what I had heard before I studied the language and so was fairly easy to remember.  This is a bit reversed from what many students experience-learning grammar and vocabulary or rules in class then later having it come together through a trip abroad.  For some reason, even though I hardly used the language, I was able to retain most of what I learned in those first few years of formal study in high school until I started speaking more right afterwards in college.  At the end of my junior year in high school, my family moved a few hours north to a small community in Central Florida.  It may seem ironic, but it was there and not Miami where I interacted  the most with native Spanish speakers.  I'll post the next chapter in this story shortly.
Stay tuned!