<p>Looking ahead to when my DS will study abroad. He is top of his HS class in Spanish and would like to double major in college. Where he is lacking is in conversational experience and if we are springing for a study abroad program we want him to come away with conversational fluency if possible.</p>
<p>So I was wondering if some locations/cities/countries are better than others for those who want to become fluent? For example, is Madrid so infiltrated with English speakers that he would not have a chance to use his Spanish enough? Would Costa Rica be better? I have no idea. Safety is also a concern.</p>
<p>Look into Salamanca - a great place for foreign study. A big friendly university town with lots of students and things to do, and they speak Castilian Spanish, which is the standard dialect.</p>
<p>cbug, I did home stay in two different parts of the country (one in the suburbs and one with an indigenous family in the rainforest). I did not have a traditional job while there but while living in the rain forest, I worked on doing capacity building in order to “earn my keep”. In exchange for living there, I built a bilingual website, taught English at an elementary school, repairs, translated documents, etc. It was an incredible experience. Some people spoke English in the central valley region but when I went to the rural part of the country, no one spoke English.</p>
<p>There is a lot of misconception regarding reaching the level of fluency, and the US standard would be considered wrong in most parts of the world, and this because a perennially low level of expectation for foreign language. </p>
<p>What can be accomplished rather easily is to become COMPETENT in conversational Spanish with one semester abroad. This level is very far from reaching written competency --let alone-- fluency in the foreign languages. Not that it matters much, but the idea that a student could reach near fluency after a few months should be an issue of establishing low standards. </p>
<p>As far as locations go, there are plenty of choices and variances in the possible destinations. The variances in spoken Spanish will influence those choices. The “most common” type of acceptable accent in the United States will be the Mexican, as it is the least influenced by deep (and strange) accents. As unusual it may appear, the Spanish spoken in Madrid will be one that is deeply accented, and so would the tongue spoken in Galicia. The presence of a pronounced lisp is something one has to get used to, and accept. </p>
<p>Closer to home, the same could be said for Central and South America. There are great variances between Mexico and say, Buenos Aires, where the Rioplatense and Lunfardo neapolitan influence make for a distinct dialect. For instance, the LL that can sound like a y in yoyo, might take a form that ranges from ch to zh all the way to a harder sound. A cuchillo (knife) is one such example. Some in Argentina consider those heavy accents as a sign of low-class. Others disagree, but one should be cautious in returning home with an unusual accent picked up abroad. </p>
<p>Last but not least, one should remember that the Hispanic population in the United States is growing rapidly, and that traveling abroad is no longer a necessity to learn Spanish. </p>
<p>All in all, consider the time abroad for the value in experience much more than for the possibilities of acquiring fluency.</p>
<p>I don’t care whether you call it competency or fluency, but I’ve never achieved either without immersion experiences abroad. Someone with more facility with languages could probably do it here. I couldn’t. Sadly I can’t make recommendations except to say that smaller towns, and places off major tourist routes and homestays in general will serve you better for immersion experiences.</p>
<p>Guatemala has been a center of Spanish teaching for many years. Although beautiful and fascinating , it is not the safest place, unfortunately. If you are interested in it, I would recommend Antigua. It’s a lovely, historic city.</p>
<p>Let me just say, don’t go to Barcelona or anywhere in the Catalunya region. My D is there on high school exchange right now and has had to learn both Spanish and Catalan as her school teaches everything in Catalan. In the big picture, this is probably a good thing as learning French, Portuguese, or even Italian will be easier for her, but if the goal is to learn just Spanish, it’s a challenge.</p>
<p>Salamanca might be fine during the school year, but not during the summer. In summer, there are MANY American kids there doing study abroad for just a few weeks. So, lots of English speakers. Madrid would be great, also Bilbao or Granada. Sevilla is fine, but those folks never met an “s” they wanted to pronounce . The accents will be different in different locales, but that’s true anywhere, as mentioned above. Smaller towns like Segovia or Burgos or Santiago de Compostela are great also. Each section of Spain (except near Madrid) will also have its local language/dialect, but it’s very pronounced in Catalonia (Barcelona etc.). Still, in the Basque country (San Sebastian, Bilbao, etc., Euskera is so different that they wouldn’t expect you to learn it, hence no confusion. In Galicia you’ll encounter Gallego, but everyone speaks Castillian Spanish as well. They don’t expect you to learn Gallego. If you want “the King’s Spanish” then stick with Madrid, Burgos, Segovia.<br>
Here in the States, you don’t hear a lot of “the King’s Spanish”, you’ll hear Spanish from Mexico, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Ecuador, etc, etc… So, it’s best to pick an area where not a lot of English is spoken. Therefore, avoid the Mediterranean coast, like Malaga, Marbella, Valencia, and others, because many Brits have settled there, and for that reason, most people will speak a lot of English, there are plenty of Irish pubs and other places where mainly English is spoken. Not so in Madrid, or other towns and villages throughout the rest of Spain.</p>
<p>Daughter at Swat will be doing an immersion program in Madrid for her year abroad sponsored by Hamilton College. Students live with a host family, with another student, and sign a Spanish only pledge. Not sure how it works in practice but is designed to maximize exposure to conversational Spanish.</p>
. The accents will be different in different locales, but that’s true anywhere, as mentioned above. Smaller towns like Segovia or Burgos or Santiago de Compostela are great also. Each section of Spain (except near Madrid) will also have its local language/dialect, but it’s very pronounced in Catalonia (Barcelona etc.). Still, in the Basque country (San Sebastian, Bilbao, etc., Euskera is so different that they wouldn’t expect you to learn it, hence no confusion. In Galicia you’ll encounter Gallego, but everyone speaks Castillian Spanish as well. They don’t expect you to learn Gallego. If you want “the King’s Spanish” then stick with Madrid, Burgos, Segovia.<br>