Spanish in Context - Volume 10, Issue 3, 2013

This article examines the teaching of Spanish as a second language (L2) in the US in recent years through a review of public documents and a synthesis of relevant literature. The main goals of the article are to compare the sociopolitical and institutional presence of Spanish with that of other languages within the US educational context, and to explore specific critical dimensions that are likely to influence the future development of Spanish as a L2 in this country. This analysis makes it clear that the current abundance of students studying Spanish does not guarantee a constantly increasing number of learners in future Spanish programs, especially in a sociopolitical and institutional climate such as the present one, in which the study of the humanities, in general, as well as the study of second or foreign languages, in particular, seem to be heading for a marked decline.

Entre los diversos tipos de índices metapragmáticos se elige estudiar las referencias explícitas a la práctica sociocultural de administrar justicia penal, sus principios y su racionalidad, que aparecen en el curso de esa misma práctica. Las manifestaciones de reflexividad no son descripciones neutrales sino que expresan o implican las concepciones normativas de los participantes. La clase de índices metapragmáticos que se examinan son las emisiones que nombran la actividad que se está desarrollando o explicitan sus reglas, procedimientos, conceptos y racionalidad. Estas emisiones son examinadas en el género ‘alegato final’ en juicios penales orales desde la perspectiva teórica del análisis del discurso social e históricamente situado. El análisis muestra que, cuando integran un movimiento argumentativo, estos índices desalientan un potencial desafío. El participante que los emplea en el curso del desempeño de su rol institucional proyecta una imagen de conocedor y respetuoso de los fundamentos y las normas de la práctica social. La función central de estos índices, ya sea que intervengan o no en una argumentación, es la de señalar la posición social de ‘experto’. El estudio también revela que la incorporación de jurados populares se concibe como destinada a legitimar ante la sociedad el funcionamiento institucional.

This study is based on the results of an online survey of Montevidean educators on their attitude toward the tuteo and voseo in the classroom. Traditionally, tuteo was considered the only correct form of address for classroom use in Uruguay’s capital. The results of the 78 completed surveys, along with qualitative data from 11 interviews, suggest a shift in that tradition. Teachers report using voseo with almost similar frequency as tuteo; voseo is viewed by a noteworthy number of educators as acceptable for classroom use; and there is considerable acceptance of the T-V form (e.g. tú tenés) that is common in Montevideo. The results here are consistent with prior studies that point to an increasing use of voseo to the detriment of tuteo in Montevideo, the latter of which reportedly persists given, in part, its traditional role in educational domains.

This article presents three perspectives in the study of Spanish/English contact in a community of rural Puerto Rico. First, it presents an analysis of variation based on the presence of English forms in recorded conversational Spanish. Second, it provides a view of the social context of Spanish/English contact by examining responses to a sociological questionnaire focusing on the use of “Spanish Only” versus Spanish and English in spheres of community life. Third, it highlights speaker commentary on social factors in relation to the use of Spanish and English. The study shows that the presence of English in the recorded conversational Spanish is extremely limited and that Spanish dominates in community life. Nevertheless, the presence of English in both conversational Spanish and social spheres within the community reveals patterns in relation to social factors recognized by speakers.

Previous research has indicated that in Yucatan Spanish, /ptk/ are aspirated at greater levels than in other varieties, a feature attributed to contact with Yucatec Maya, a language that has both aspirated and ejective voiceless stops. The current study presents the first quantitative, acoustic, variationist investigation of the linguistic and social factors that constrain aspiration (as measured by VOT) in Yucatan Spanish. Analyses, conducted using mixed-effects statistical models, indicate that VOT values are longer in stressed syllables and phrase initially, and also before non-low vowels. Regarding social factors, men consistently favor longer VOT, along with older speakers. While no significant result was obtained based on language background (Maya-Spanish bilinguals vs. Spanish monolinguals), there is evidence of the influence of language and dialect contact on the observed patterns. Further results and conclusions are discussed.