The best way to learn business or corporate Spanish is in a group

Let's start with the facts. In 2005, hispanic population in the U.S. was 14%. It is estimated that by 2050 this number will increase to 29% according to the Pew Research Center. Immigration has continued to increase steadily with a minor reduction in the past few years due to the recession. 45 Million people in the U.S. speak Spanish as a first or second language.

Faced with this reality, American corporations have been investing heavily on publicity directed to Spanish speaking America and the demand for products and services from Latinos is still growing.

Businesses across the country are finding that in some cases having staff that can communicate in Spanish is not an option anymore, it is a necessity. That is why corporate Spanish classes are a key element in many organizations' personnel development plans.

We will explore the different advantages and disadvantages of several methods used in the teaching of Spanish to better understand why organizations are looking for special courses for their people instead of just enacting tuition reimbursement for traditional lessons.

Language instructors and teaching institutions have many ways in which they develop a new language in student's brains. The most traditional way is a lecture type setting.

Lecture

Here, the instructor will impart knowledge in an organized way, often divided by modules or sections within a course. These kinds of classes can be very participative, but in the end the teacher has control of the conversation and the students are usually in a passive mode. In the modern world, schools encourage conversation and other activities in these classes as it has been shown in many studies that students remember lessons the most when they are put in a conversational situation.

One on One

Another way of learning a new language is a private session. The teacher meets the student and tailors his lesson specifically for the learner's level and needs. Spanish lessons that are offered one on one are often set in places where the student can practice after class with either other students or other Spanish speakers. A variation of this, is the private online Spanish class which consists of the educator meeting the student via video conference using one of the many technologies now available for this. Examples are Google hangouts, Skype, and FaceTime.

Immersion

This is one of the best ways to learn a new language and to know a culture. This strategy involves the apprentice going (immersing) him or herself in a place with native speakers. The individual is forced to listen and speak the language because often people simply will not speak any other language. This approach is also the most costly generally speaking because the student will need to travel to another country in most cases and live there for a while. An immersion program can be for as little as a month up to a year. In the U.S., people interested in learning Spanish will end up traveling to Latin America, notably to Peru, Colombia, Argentina, Mexico and Chile, or to Spain.

Group and Corporate Spanish Lessons

A business that needs employees to learn Spanish will find that their needs are better met using a combination of conversation groups and custom-tailored lecture type classes. The student needs to learn syntax and spelling in conjunction with practicing their pronunciation with others.

Today, Spanish for business is taught in a variety of ways to give the student a wide spectrum of practice in the language. Corporate Spanish Classes involve vocabulary intended for the particular industry the workers are in. A person cannot simply get theory in Spanish and improve their fluency this way. Many routes have to be explored to challenge the brain and make it remember pronunciations, nuances, and spellings.

In conclusion, companies are finding that the best way to get their workforce educated in Spanish is having an experienced institution create a custom curriculum for their specific needs.