No se te olvide de poner tu nombre al pie de tu entrada y de citar tus fuentes.

Creo que las muchas variedades de español permiten a los estudiantes aprender sobre diferentes culturas en países de habla hispana. Pero esto también puede causar muchos desafíos, especialmente para los principiantes. For example, it can be difficult to follow/understand the different pronunciations of words. The Spanish spoken in Argentina is different from the Spanish spoken in Spain, so learning the vocabulary can also be difficult. Personally, I think the most difficult part about learning Spanish is learning all the different conjugations. However, learning Spanish as a second language allows students to connect to a larger population of Spanish speakers all over the world. This also opens up more opportunities for students, such as jobs and internships. 

Chile- José Miguel Hernández

Ash Chan

- México - México Distrito Federal - Capital (Lucero Vaca)

1. I chose Chile because where I work, there are a lot of Chilean 2nd generation people where I work. My non-Chilean Hispanic coworkers always complain about how it's hard to understand them even though they speak the same language. Judging from the recording, they were right. It is a very different but similar accent that I'm sort of familiar with, but it's all slurred together. It was hard for me to tell when they moved on to another sentence. This variation is definitely not something I'd recommend to a new Spanish speaker. In opposition, México Distrito Federal was almost harsh? This weirdly made it easier to understand what they were (as someone learning). It felt very business or to the point, In all very formal. It was all very clear, and I could pick up on more words easier. 

3. Learning Spanish comes with many challenges and opportunities, especially for someone learning it as their second language. Fortunately or unfortunately, there are a plethora of dialects, so depending on who you learn from or if you do immersion in a country in Latin America, you may learn Spanish differently to a degree. One challenge might be just having to learn the language. It can be hard as an adult or YA to learn a new language because we aren't the sponges we were as children. Fortunately, Spanish is the second most spoken language in the US. Most Spanish speaking people I've met are happy to help you practice or teach you tips and tricks. 

- Tony P.

- Aheen Hajibadri

The Spanish from Mexico City sounds a lot like the usual Spanish that I have heard in the audio clips for Spanish class. I'm able to recognize the words that they're saying, to a degree, since their pronunciation is familiar to me. I can't say the same for the Montevidéu way of speaking Spanish. For one, the letter 'y' seems to make a 'ch' or 'sh' sound, while in the Mexico City Spanish, it makes the soft 'j' sound. The sounds in general sound softer and slightly more 'slurred' in the Montevidéu dialect. I can understand certain words and phrases, but sometimes I struggle to understand what they're saying.

3) The fact that there are so many varieties of Spanish introduces some issues that come with a “general Spanish” education. The nature of there being so many forms of Spanish often means that there will be some forms that receive more or less attention than others. While this might not be as much of an issue for Spanish students who want to continue to live in the United States, who I imagine usually will be exposed to only a few types of Spanish, and therefore do not necessarily need to know about the other forms of Spanish to get by, it might be more difficult for those students to travel to a certain Spanish-speaking countries and easily understand what it being said.

-Shuzon Talukdar

2. I chose Chile and Mexico because they are the farthest apart in terms of the Latin American countries and thought that their differences would be interesting to review. While both Chile and Mexico both speak Spanish, the differences between the two are very apparent when listening to the recordings. From what I heard; Chilean Spanish has a heavier accent compared to Mexican Spanish. The pronunciation of words is also different from what I have commonly heard. Given this heavier accent and different pronunciation it was hard for me to understand much of what the speaker was saying. Meanwhile with Mexican Spanish, I was able to understand most of what was said. I feel as though while the speaker spoke faster than the Chilean speaker, the pronunciation was clearer and certain words were drawled out. Because emphasis was placed n these certain words, I was able to better follow what the speaker was saying.

3. I think that the challenges and opportunities that a student learning Spanish as a second language are numerous. In terms of challenges, I feel as through the numerous dialects of Spanish are a difficult hurdle for any person learning Spanish. Different forms of pronunciation and grammar can be difficult to grasp. In terms of opportunities, Spanish is the fourth most spoken language in the world with more than 500 million speakers. If someone can speak this language, they are privy to a new set of experiences and cultural experiences. People who are attempting to become bilingual or already bilingual will have great advantages in the workforce and life.

- James Washington

2. I chose to compare Spanish variations between Peru and Argentina as they are both countries I would love to visit in the future and I was interested to hear how different they may sound on opposite coasts of South America – Argentina in el Cono Sur and Peru in the Andino and Amazónico dialect region. While listening to the clips, there are some pronunciations that jump out. In Argentina, Spanish sounds softer, with the words flowing into one another. 'Y' and 'll' letter pronunciations, such as in 'playa' or 'llegue', are made to sound more like a soft 'j' or 'sh'. I am not as used to hearing Spanish with these phonetic differences, so at first listen it was difficult to immediately understand him. 

The pronunciations in Peru were more familiar, as they overlap with a lot of clips of Spanish from previous courses. Contrasted with Argentina, the clip from Lima sounded more precise in pronunciation and was much easier for me to understand. 'Y' and 'll" are pronounced as a clear 'ya', and consonants are generally emphasized.

3. Los estudiantes de español como segunda lengua hayan muchas oportunidades en EE.UU. Español es la lengua segunda que hablan en los Estados Unidos. ¡Uno de tres personas habla español en EE.UU! Muchas empresas se gustan contratar los empleados como segunda lengua. Si podemos ofrecer los servicios a hispanohablantes, es muy valioso. Fuera del trabajo, si habla español, los estudiantes pueden connectar con otras personas. Sin embargo, las variadades de español a veces son difíciles entender, especialmente por estudiantes nuevos. Es similar a una persona de EE.UU quien hable con una persona de Escocia o la Inglaterra.

Ultimately, I feel learning a second language opens up many opportunities to connect with others that you may otherwise have not been able to talk to. 
-Stephanie Peterson