Teaching Business in Spanish in the USA

• In Event: Reception with Effective Learning Strategies Displays

Abstract

The number of Spanish speakers in the United States is growing significantly and the quantity of companies owned and operated in Spanish is on the rise. Even more important is the fact that the buying power of these Spanish speakers is increasing; Spanish speaking consumers are the fastest growing market in the country. In the coming years, with the growing population and rapid economic change, Latin America will be one of the major business centers of the world. Consequently, Spanish is becoming one of the world's key business languages.

Higher educational institutions in the USA are well aware of the fact that teaching Spanish for Business provides students with important skills as the world becomes more globalized. For that reason, a large number of universities and colleges are already teaching Business in Spanish and some of them have developed interdisciplinary programs that combine courses in Spanish language and Hispanic culture with selected courses in business and/or economics. These programs provide students with a basic understanding of business and economics as well as the ability to communicate about them in Spanish in a professional context.

The primary goal of this research is to analyze how the top business schools in the USA are offering this kind of programs. I believe it is essential to identify and learn from the best practices followed by these top institutions. This seems to be a very interesting topic and I would like to expand my study in the near future to analyze the positive impact that language skills can have in the development of academic, personal, and social skills. My final goal is to provide our students with the knowledge and skills they need to thrive in today’s competitive global economy.

Author

• Virginia Cortijo, Stonehill College