LANGUAGE LEARNING
Language Acquisition
Being born to multicultural/multilingual parents and being raised in the bilingual island of Puerto Rico opened doors to learning multiple languages at an early age for me. I consider both Spanish and English to be my native languages: devoting almost equal amounts of time in speaking, reading and writing in both languages throughout my life. Retaining Spanish has always been crucial to my family but especially for my mother. My mother was raised in a strict German household in the middle of the Dominican Republic that established a “German language only” policy within the walls of their home. Thus, for her, keeping the native language alive with the “Spanish only” policy in our home is almost a family tradition. Even after we arrived in Florida, my parents always encouraged me to continue practicing the language. Without this encouragement and support I would not have been able to retain fluency in the language.
Having the solid foundation in Spanish allowed me to expand on other foreign languages as well. In middle school, I began learning American Sign Language and continued taking ASL classes until 10th grade. I was an active member in my school’s ASL club and although I have not had many opportunities to practice ASL since high school, I have been able to retain enough of the language to communicate with hard-of-hearing friends I have made throughout the years.
Despite taking my last ASL class my sophomore year of high school, I continued expanding my knowledge of foreign languages by starting to learn French. I moved up exceptionally quickly in my school’s French department; I skipped levels 3, 4, and 5 to move to AP French my senior year, eventually obtaining a 4 on the AP French exam. I attribute my quick obtainment of the language to a solid Romance language foundation and my own dedication to the language. At the University of Florida, I have pursued the French and Francophone Studies minor, allowing me to continue learning and practicing the language. Additionally, after visiting France and speaking with native French speakers, I have gained fluency in the language.
While I was finishing high school, I also became interested in the Italian language. My high school did not offer Italian language courses. However, through listening to various Italian artists, using online resources and my own intuition, I could form simple sentences and begin to understand other Italians by the end of my senior year of high school. I instantly fell in love with the language and enrolled in Beginning Italian for my first semester at the University of Florida. After almost four years of learning the language and living in Italy for a semester, I have also become fluent in Italian.
Although only seriously studying ASL, French and Italian, I have also gained some knowledge of other languages through personal study and effort. I have a basic knowledge of Arabic, Russian, and Portuguese and hope to become fluent in these and other languages in the future.
Language Application
Because of the languages I speak and my interest in the cultures of the world, I have been fortunate enough to communicate with people all around the world. Multilingualism is like the tools that took down the Berlin Wall. It’s what enables people to break down the barriers between cultures and in my experience, multilingualism is what has allowed me to see the beauty in the chaotically interconnected world we live in. Without speaking multiple languages, I would not be the person I am today. Learning languages is both a passion and a hobby, and it’s generally the first thing that comes to mind when I have to say an interesting fact about myself.