A diferencia de otras eras, donde reinaba la ley del mas fuerte, en la era de la información en que vivimos actualmente, nuestro valor dentro de la sociedad está intrínsecamente relacionado con las destrezas mentales que poseemos en vez de las físicas. Para mantener una posición competitiva en un mundo que cambia continua y velozmente, son muchos los conocimientos que debemos absorber. Todos los días somos bombardeados con grandes cantidades de información. En primer lugar, debemos seleccionar la información pertinente para lograr nuestras metas. Luego, debemos “aprender a aprender”, es decir, digerir esta información de la manera mas eficaz posible. 

Anteriormente, un título de bachiller bastaba para obtener un empleo módico. Por otra parte, un  título universatario garantizaba una buena posición hasta el final de una carrera profesional o retiro. Este no es el caso en el presente, por ejemplo, los conocimientos de un médico genético graduado un par de años atrás estarían completamente obsoletos si esta persona no se hubiese mantenido al día con el avance de la ciencia. En un mundo en evolución vertiginosa, los triunfadores serán aquellos que se mantienen a la vanguardia del cambio. 

En tiempos difíciles, como cuando hay recesión económica, los primeros en perder sus empleos son los que poseen un grado educativo más bajo. Es imperativo mantenerse al día, no sólo para sobresalir ante la competencia, sino también porque a la hora de enfrentar una reducción de personal, los mas instruídos en su área de experticia tendrán mayores oportunidades de mantener sus empleos. 

Si tomamos en cuenta que el éxito en la actualidad está directamente supeditado a nuestra habilidad para asimilar conocimientos en forma veloz y eficaz, debemos esmerarnos en hallar la mejor manera de adquirir aquella información que nos conduzca hacia el éxito en la vida, aún en tiempos difíciles. 

Principalmente porque el regalo de un segundo idioma es una ventaja de por vida, dadas las condiciones de globalización en que los niños del presente tendrán que vivir en el futuro. También porque la investigación científica ha demostrado que aquellos niños que son expuestos a una segunda lengua, desarrollan una mayor habilidad cognocitiva que el resto de los niños. Este mayor grado de pensamiento abstracto les ayuda a obtener un mayor rendimiento en materias académicas, tales como lenguaje, matemáticas, música y ciencias. Finalmente, porque los años de la niñez so claves en la adquisición del lenguaje. Todo niño tiene un don natural para los idiomas. Esto no significa que al llegar a cierta edad una persona no pueda aprender un idioma, pero sin duda le será más difícil.

Los expertos en aprendizaje a temprana edad coinciden en que la capacidad óptima para aprender idiomas disminuye aproximadamente entre los diez y doce años de edad. Lo que sucede es que en el cerebro de un niño hay miles de millones de células interconectadas unas con otras, las cuales procesan las percepciones sensoriales, tales como los sonidos de una lengua. Si alrededor de la edad de doce años el niño no ha sido expuesto a una segunda lengua, el cerebro prácticamente desecha las conecciones que no se han utilizado suficientemente y que se hubiesen podido convertir en la vía apropiada para aprender un segundo idioma. En este caso, el niño pierde la capacidad de “escuchar”, como lo haría un niño más pequeño, los sonidos puros de una lengua. En consecuencia, su acento en el segundo idioma difícilmente será tan puro como el de su lengua materna.

Padres y educadores juegan un papel primordial en la motivación de los niños en el proceso de aprendizaje, mientras su capacidad de aprendizaje está en su potencial máximo. La mejor manera de entusiasmar a los niños a aprender es literalmente rodeándolos con el nuevo idioma, de manera que lo perciban a través de todos los sentidos. La motivación se apoderará de ellos cuando puedan ver, escuchar, hablar y sentir el lenguaje.

La ventaja competitiva de hablar un segundo idioma

En el mercado laboral actual, un candidato bilingüe a un empleo tiene mayor oportunidad de obtenerlo que otro candidato con el mismo grado de educación que no hable un segundo idioma. Al tanto de las ventajas de hablar un segundo idioma, muchas personas ya han incursionado en el aprendizaje del mismo en alguna oportunidad. Si tuvieron éxito en este proyecto, probablemente fueron partícipes de un adiestramiento adecuado. Si, por el contrario, han estudiado una segunda lengua y todavía no la pueden hablar, seguramente participaron en un programa donde se resaltaban el aspecto gramatical y académico de la lengua en lugar del aspecto práctico. Las cosecuencias negativas de métodos ineficaces son, en general, el desánimo y el fracaso. 

Cualquiera sea la experiencia de la persona, nunca es tarde para adquirir un segundo idioma. Las posibilidades de la mente crecen en la medida que la utilizamos. Aún cuando los niños tienen una habilidad natural para la adquisición de una segunda lengua, los aprendices adultos poseen mayores destrezas cognocitivas, motivación y capacidad de concentración, características que favorecen la adquisición del lenguaje. Para obtener el éxito en este proyecto, es importante cambiar la percepción del proceso global de aprendizaje. Por ejemplo, alguien que haya tenido una mala experiencia de aprendizaje debe olvidarla y concentrarse en nuevas experiencias con una actitud positiva.

La selección cuidadosa del ambiente donde el aprendizaje tendría lugar es crucial. La participación en un grupo grande no es efectiva. En una clase grande, los estudiantes no tienen mucha oportunidad de hablar y, aún si lo hacen, es probable que el profesor no tenga tiempo de corregir sus errores gramaticales ni su pronunciación. Es preferible participar en un grupo pequeño o en clases privadas. Asimismo, es aconsejable practicar el idioma de aprendizaje también fuera del aula. ¿Qué mejor lugar para practicar un segundo idioma que una región multicultural como el sur de la Florida?  Cualquier lugar se presta para la práctica, por ejemplo, el banco, el supermercado, el cine o la biblioteca. Lo importante es establecer contacto con fuentes (personas o materiales) en el idioma que se desea adquirir. Además de aumentar el valor de la persona en el mercado laboral, el aprendizaje de una segunda lengua puede ser una experiencia amena y gratificante.  

The masculine article el, however, indicates that the person referred to is a male. On the other hand, many traditional professions that were performed in the past mostly by men did not take the a at the end to refer to female professional as in the attorney: el abogado, la abogado. In this case, the feminine sex of the professional was indicated by the feminine article la. Last century, the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language in Spain, which determines how language evolves, accepted to give the feminine desinence to many professions that became popular among women with the emancipation of women. Besides the emancipation movement petitions to change the desinence and transform the phrase la abogado into la abogada, aesthetics was a determining factor in the Academy’s decision for change. It is now correct to say la abogada to refer to a female attorney. But wouldn’t men want the Academy to accept a masculine desinence for those professions ending in a when referring to a male professional and, instead of el pianista, to say el pianisto? And one last question? Wouldn’t it be aesthetically preferable.  

For many years, there was a broadly shared believe that IQ was fixed. Even though IQ test results on the same person do not typically vary by more than 7 points, if the person is motivated and understands the importance of the test, he or she will doubtlessly score higher. There is an underlying genetic component that is being measured. When we are relaxed, alert, and motivated for this measurement, we will actually reflect our natural abilities at their peak.

In fact, IQ may be enhanced by many different factors. It can even be compared to mood changes, susceptible to stimulus. At times, we may be at an optimal performance state, while at other times we may be so “down” that the results of an IQ measuring test would be inferior to what we score under different conditions. The good news is that, as with mood, an IQ boost is up to us. We can manage it, at least to bring it up to its highest potential at a specific time.

Recent studies show that we can consciously control our IQ in a similar way as we can control the way we feel. We may be in a state of depression and somebody may boost the inner child that forms part of everyone’s personality to reveal a smile on our face. It can happen so suddenly that it would only take a good joke from a friend to change even our hormonal secretion. Similarly, it would only take a change of attitude within ourselves to perform outstandingly and show a higher IQ than we could at another time, when no exterior factor is involved. Likewise, we may show a lower IQ under stressful situations when we feel devastated. 

Performing at a peak state when we need to use or demonstrate a high IQ -as is the case when we are taking a test- only takes high levels of motivation, relaxation, and consciousness about the situation, so we are in control.

By Andreina Ojeda, B.A. Modern Languages, M.A. International Studies. 

In today’s workforce, a prospective bilingual employee has a better chance of getting a job than a candidate with equal skills who lacks the second language. Aware of the advantages of being bilingual, many people have already engaged in learning a second language at one time or another. If they were successful in this endeavor, they most likely participated in the right kind of training. If, on the contrary, they have studied a second language and still cannot speak the language, they may have participated in a learning experience where the structural and academic aspects of the language were stressed, rather than true competence in its use. The negative side effects of these ineffective methods are generally discouragement and failure.

It is never too late to acquire a second language. Our brain’s capacity grows as we use it. Even though children possess a natural ability to acquire a second language, adult learners possess higher cognitive skills, motivation, and concentration span, which favor language acquisition. In order to succeed in acquiring a second language, it is important to change our perception of the overall experience of learning a language. For example, someone who has had an unpleasant language learning experience should forget about it and concentrate on new experiences.

Carefully choosing the environment where learning will take place is crucial. Participating in a large group is not effective. In a large class, students do not have a lot of opportunity to speak and, even if they do, the teacher will most likely not have time to correct their mistakes and pronunciation. It is most advisable to take the language out of the classroom. What better place to practice a second language than a cross-cultural area such as South Florida? Practice is possible everywhere –at the bank, the supermarket, the movies, or the library. Aside from increasing one’s value in the workforce, speaking a second language can be a fun, rewarding experience. 

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be ignited”

Plutarch

It has been demonstrated by numerous experiments that when we are empowered with the tools for learning rather than being passive recipients, we achieve higher goals. The idea is to actively participate in the learning process. The first step in this approach is to set forth specific, meaningful goals. It is important that these be attainable in the short term. Even if we are to embark on a major learning project, taking one step at a time will allow us to fulfill one goal after another, thus keeping us motivated all the way through. At the same time, we must become aware of the disadvantages of not knowing the subject.

By following these simple steps in the learning process, we practice what has been called metacognition. As explained in a study by the National Research Council, “How people Learn”, a ‘metacognitive’ approach to instruction can help us learn to take control of our own learning by defining learning goals and monitoring our progress in achieving them. 

In today’s classrooms, metacognition is being used as a means to foster motivation among students. When they are given the independence in the learning process, they become responsible learners. What happens is that by monitoring their progress, they discover those techniques that work best for them. By applying these techniques in the learning process, they achieve fast learning results. 

Some of the learning techniques that work wonders for some of us may not do any good for others. This is why it is so important to search for the tools that will enhance our personal learning capability. These may include a variety of aspect, from analytical thinking to learning in a playful environment. It remains to find out what works best for each of us as individuals.

The new heterogeneous world order, where we have more choice than ever before in history, mandates for diversification. Those who want to get a competitive edge in business need to open up to different languages and cultures. In a world that is shrinking into a global village with more sophisticated cross-cultural relations, we have no other alternative than to adapt to change in order to be a player in the so called global village. Those of us in the forefront of change will succeed, whereas those with limited horizons will be the first to suffer the consequences when the economy slows down.

Far from leading peoples around the globe to fall into an uniform, homogeneous pattern, a favorable perception of Globalization leads to a huge scope of possibilities. During the Cold War, for instance, world power was shared by two superpowers. On the contrary, nowadays there are so many choices around the world, that companies and organizations have to become ever more effective and diversified in order to succeed in the international marketplace. 

It would be very simplistic to think that just because English is the most widely spoken language in the world, we will be  able to get by around the world speaking only English. It is important to be able to negotiate in English -commonly the international language of business- but no doubt our prospect clients, associates and  partners from different geographic and ethnic backgrounds would certainly appreciate our understanding of their language and, even more, of their culture. 

Technology plays an imminent role in the diversification process. Instead of leading to a single choice, it opens up a wide range of choices. As an example, it allows a citizen of any given country to have access to a worldwide range of options to choose from when making a purchasing decision. While it is becoming ever more important to diversify our products and services to satisfy a heterogeneous market, knowing our prospect customers’ language and culture becomes ever more imperative to achieve international success.

Andreina B. Ojeda, M.A.

President