"Donde esta la tortuga?" I would ask my friend. "La Tortuga esta en el agua," she would matter-of-factly reply. Such was the extent of my command of the Spanish language during the three-week trip I took to Spain last summer. For those of you who are similarly unfamiliar with the language, this question-answer phrase is translated as, "Where is the turtle?" "The turtle is in the water."
Granted, some natives may have inwardly mocked my friends and me for our ignorance, but most decided we were silly and laughed when we showcased the little Spanish we had picked up during our stay ("zapatos bonitos" or "beautiful shoes" was a favorite among our crowd as well). Despite the language barrier, we spent our trip learning about and enjoying Spain's culture, history and food as we traveled through Madrid, Barcelona, Cordoba and Seville.
Thrilled with my Spain experience, I anticipated spending my junior year abroad in the country to explore it in greater depth. When I began perusing Penn's abroad programs online, however, I was shocked to discover the University's astonishingly stringent study-abroad policies.
To study in one Madrid program, a Penn student must have completed at least six semesters of college-level Spanish. Because the typical student can only complete up to five semesters of a language before spending a junior year semester abroad, the student must matriculate Penn with one or two language credits already under his or her belt. Either that or put in some serious summer hours to gain the credit. A student must complete at least seven semesters of college-level Spanish to be eligible for Penn's program in Barcelona.
No wonder every Penn student I know studied abroad in either London or Australia.
Of all the countries included in Penn's abroad programming, France and the Spanish-speaking countries boast the most intensive language requirements, whereas no familiarity with the native tongue is necessary to study in either India or Greece. Penn's policies are less rigid in these locations because the courses in these abroad curricula are taught in English.
Granted, many students study Spanish in high school. But then there are the exceptions, like me. I attended a private Jewish high school in Los Angeles that demanded Hebrew study for all four years and offered courses in no other language.
Learning a language is crucial to the acculturation process; understanding a people's dialect provides an unparalleled insight into a country's history, literature and values. For precisely this reason I gravitate away from options like Australia, London and Edinburgh and toward Spain and South America.
To require the completion of a few beginners' Spanish courses would be a reasonable expectation - it would give students the basic ingredients to advance their grasp of the language throughout the semester abroad.
Consequently, schools like Yale University demand completion of an intermediate level course in a foreign language before studying abroad in that language. Princeton University requires students to complete a 107 level course in the language (107 is the third and last course level of Princeton's basic Spanish program). New York University offers a variety of tracks within their abroad program in Madrid to accommodate students ranging from those with no background in Spanish to fluent Spanish speakers.
Becoming an expert in a language allows you to become part of the country and the culture. But it's not the only way to have a valuable study abroad experience.
Living abroad for a period of time with minimal to no background in a language is rewarding and enriching as well. Even as an outsider looking in, students can challenge their comfort zones and gain some international perspective.
Penn boasts a successful, diverse and popular abroad program that can only be improved by making non-English-speaking countries more accessible and feasible for its hardworking students . Por favor!
Dani Wexler is a College sophomore from Los Angeles. Her email is wexler@dailypennsylvanian.com. Wex Appeal appears every Friday.
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