Language Learning Opportunities

The border region is a linguistically diverse area that offers many opportunities for students to practice Spanish.

The borderlands is a bilingual region, which presents rich opportunities for language learning. In the stores, in the streets, in the restaurants, at the universities, in your placements, and in your families you will hear both Spanish and English. You will also hear very creative and fascinating uses of language when both Spanish and English are spoken.The Border Studies Program offers flexibility in language use and offers programming for those with higher level language skills as well as for those who are newer to Spanish.

Two years of college-level Spanish (or equivalent) are required prior to the beginning of the Spring semester program. Students should have one year of college-level Spanish (or equivalent) required prior to the beginning of the fall semester program. Students with more Spanish language skills will find their language level to be very beneficial.

Create Your Own Language Learning Experience

In many ways students have the opportunity to structure the level of language use and language immersion that they would like. Some students, for example, may prefer an immersion program in Spanish, while others may prefer to locate themselves in an English dominant situation where Spanish is used in certain contexts. Students will live with English language or Spanish-language dominant families in Tucson, AZ. Students also are very involved in the choice of the field study placement. These range from complete use of Spanish to use of English with some Spanish, with many variations in language use in between.

Ways to Achieve Your Language Learning Objectives

• To immerse yourself in Spanish language, you can live with a Spanish speaking family in Tucson, choose to write your ethnography and oral histories in Spanish, participate in a field study placement where Spanish is the dominant language, and interact in Spanish as much as possible. 
• To improve your Spanish, you can live with a Spanish speaking family in Tucson and participate in a field study where Spanish is frequently used.
• To work on your Spanish at a different pace, you can live with a bilingual family and participate in a field study placement where English is the main language but Spanish is also used.

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