SERVICE LEARNING AS A MODEL FOR LINGUISTIC DEVELOPMENT OF STUDENTS OF SPANISH AS A HERITAGE LANGUAGE AND AS A FOREING LANGUAGE

ABSTRACT

This article presents an investigation carried out to study the linguistic development of students from a Spanish Language class. The community service learning (from now on, due to its initials in English, SL) methodology is used. The students of Spanish as heritage language learners (from now on, due to its initials in English, HLLs) and students of Spanish as a foreign language (from now on, due to its initials in English, FLLs) participated in SL in which they translated educational and medical materials from English into Spanish. The first objective was to determine whether SL affects vocabulary development and to what extent students’ prior knowledge benefits their linguistic development. The second objective was to observe the intrinsic motivation of the students. This research includes eight FLLs participants and eight HLLs participants who, as an assignment of the Spanish language course, translated the materials. Two diagnostic tests were administered in order to analyze the results. A qualitative analysis shows that the intrinsic motivation of the students underwent favorable changes. Quantitative analysis indicates that vocabulary development increases due to connections between previous and new language skills. This research concludes by highlighting the results; among the results it can be observed the development of the linguistic aptitude, of the vocabulary, and the sense of belonging to the Hispanics community from part of the students.

Spanish heritage speakers; vocabulary development; service learning; Spanish as a foreign language; Spanish as a heritage language

RESUMEN

Este artículo expone una investigación llevada a cabo para estudiar el desarrollo lingüístico de estudiantes de lengua de idioma español. Se recurre a la metodología de aprendizaje por servicio a la comunidad (de ahora en adelante y por sus siglas en inglés, Service Learning, SL). Los estudiantes de español como lengua materna (de ahora en adelante y por sus siglas en inglés, Heritage Language Learners, HLLs) y los estudiantes de español como lengua extranjera (de ahora en adelante y por sus siglas en inglés, Foreign Language Learners, FLLs) participaron en un SL en el cual tradujeron materiales educativos y médicos en inglés al español. El primer objetivo era determinar si los SL inciden en el desarrollo del vocabulario y hasta qué punto el conocimiento previo de los estudiantes beneficia su desarrollo lingüístico. El segundo objetivo era observar la motivación intrínseca de los alumnos. Esta investigación incluye a ocho participantes FLLs y ocho participantes HLLs que fueron quienes, como parte de la tarea del curso de lengua de español, tradujeron los materiales. Se administraron dos exámenes diagnósticos con el fin de analizar los resultados. Un análisis cualitativo demuestra que la motivación intrínseca de los estudiantes experimentó cambios favorables. El análisis cuantitativo indica que el desarrollo del vocabulario se incrementa debido a las conexiones entre los conocimientos lingüísticos previos y los nuevos. Esta investigación concluye destacando los resultados obtenidos; dentro de estos se observan el desarrollo de la capacidad lingüística, del vocabulario, y del sentimiento de pertenencia a la comunidad hispanohablante.

Español Hispanohablantes; desarrollo de vocabulario; aprendizaje por servicio a la comunidad; Español como lengua extranjera; Español como lengua materna

Introduction

The service learning methodology (from now on, due to its initials in English, SL) is a method focused on having students carry out community tasks based on the development of their education, leadership and civic participation (CLAUS; OGDEN, 1999). Looking at it in another way, through SL, students develop their learning goals autonomously while providing services to their community (GELETA; GILLIAM, 2003). This type of methodology establishes the use of academics in all the habits of the social life of the human being (VEGA-QUIÑONES, 2020), which therefore leads to the construction of knowledge focusing on the task and the student as an active actor of the learning process.

In recent times, there has been an increase in the use of SL in the classroom of foreign and native languages. This increase and use have helped improve the discernment of the methodology and has provided benefits to educators, students and members of the different communities where they are applied. In linguistic terms, SL help foreign language learners (from now on, due to its initials in English, FLLs) develop the language in the same environments where heritage language learners (from now on due to its initials in English, HLLs) develop the language (MCKENNA, 2001), which leads to its use in a context of everyday life (SALAZAR, 1992). Also, the FLLs and HLLs increase their commitment to their educational process and their language skills are favored (CALLEJA, 2018). In addition, the SL promotes establishing relationships between all members of the community: parents, children, and educational and private entities (DELVE; MINTZ; STEWART, 1990). These relationships between the different members of the community help socioeconomic development (ROSNER-SALAZAR, 2003), promote critical thinking and favor the inclusive process of minorities (NIETO; BODE, 2008).

One of the primary focuses of SL research has been on the academic development of FLLs. There has been little research focused on the linguistic development of native speakers of a language (HLLs), although the reality of the classroom shows that it is composed of a multicultural and multilingual population (SLEETER, 2005). In his recent research “Development of Standards of Learning of Spanish as a Foreign Language Level B1-B2 in the State of Virginia, United States”, Calleja (2019), shows that through SL, cultures of cooperation, a sense of belonging and the development of the student as an autonomous learner are fostered, leading the HLLs to eradicate the level of academic non-approval of the language. Another example is Montrul (2016), who provides us with his research “Heritage Language Acquisition” contributions about the emerging appreciation in the HLLs of their linguistic skills, the sense of belonging to their inheritance communities and the need to create more courses focused on the development of the native language. In addition, as Valdés (1997) makes clear, due to a lack of research and approaches, there are many unanswered questions in language teaching for native speakers. Although there are many questions about teaching, the truth is that SL benefits the linguistic process of FLLs and HLLs.

Although SL has been a teaching tool in FLLs classes, the degree of effectiveness of this methodology for FLLs still remains to be verified. In the first place, it is known that SLs have been used to emphasize cultural development (WADE, 2000) through which a bond is generated between different members of the community, but it incurs by ignoring the communicative approach and the different language skills (FURCO, 2003). Second, research on unequal student representation has been carried out, focused on abstract ideas, far from reality and that have yielded inconclusive results (FURCO; BILLIG, 2002). Finally, most students who have made up SL studies in FLLs classes have been minorities who have offered services to minority communities (MIDDLETON, 2002). Since it has generally been Spanish programs that lead the implementation of SL in the learning curriculum development of FLLs and HLLs (CALLEJA, 2014), the presence of Hispanics living in the United States can often be seen of America among the ranks of those who benefit from the implementation of said educational methodologies. One of the key points in the research, within the framework of FLLs, is the fact that the HLLs make up a significant number of participatory students in SL, which is a double benefit for the FLLs since they interact with native speakers of the language inside and outside of class (SLEETER, 2005).

This study focuses on providing information to counteract the previously exposed shortcomings, since it reports data on a project carried out in a primary education entity by FLLs students of Spanish and HLLs of Spanish. For this project, the students have translated teaching material and interacted with parents in a virtual way. Specifically, this study has the task of analyzing the acquisition of academic and not colloquial vocabulary. Academic vocabulary has been pre-established and provided in the educational materials that students translated through SL. Therefore, this research is supported by studies previously carried out by SL and seeks to contribute to the field of teaching Spanish as a heritage language (first language that a person learns in its life) and as a foreign language (a different language than the heritage language).

Previous research on the linguistic development of students of Spanish as a Heritage Language and as a Foreign Language

The linguistic exchanges in which the speaker and the interlocutor resolve in an organic way the difficulties presented in their communicative processes have been called transcendental for linguistic development (BLEY-VROMAN, 2009). Although the classes provide students with activities focused on the communicative use of the language, the truth is that several of these activities are limited to physical space and without sufficient connection to real life, which ends up hindering the process of learning language development (SALAZAR, 2009). On the other hand, SLs provide students with new fields of linguistic development where they can exercise the language and develop their social potential (ZANÓN, 1999). Also, the members of the communities, who interact with the students through SL, are providing them with cultural knowledge not present in class (MIQUEL; SANS, 1994).

In this study, linguistic development is explored from the theory of Rogers (1982). Rogers distinguishes two types of learning: experimental and cognitive. The experiment is related to the application of knowledge while the cognitive has to do, for example, with the vocabulary that students acquire through their participation in SL. We approach the study emphasizing the similarities and differences in the vocabulary development process between FLLs and HLLs. Also, we focus on the behavior exhibited towards learning and skills to acquire the language, since they are of major incidence (MONTRUL, 2010). Finally, in this study, the development of vocabulary is observed as an analysis guide to know how the linguistic constructions of the heritage language affect the foreign language and vice versa (ROTHMAN, 2007).

There are studies that mention the use of SL as an effective tool for the analysis of linguistic development (FRY; MCKINNEY,1997); these studies highlight the use of activities such as services for the community, projects of short films in the classroom and the elaboration of public and private speeches. In community services, it is possible to perceive the different roles taken by the students who make up the work groups, the community members with whom they interact, and the teachers. Also, it is evident that due to the different levels of heritage language and foreign language, students tend to assume more or less active roles in the process of carrying out the task. For this reason, the level of heritage language management can influence foreign language and vice versa (ELLIS, 2005). Although, in some, it has been documented that none of the students use heritage language and simply resort to foreign language developing the target language organically and together (SABOURIN; STOWE, 2008). Public and private speeches in foreign language classrooms function as a tool to generate connections between what is already known and what is intended to be learned in the target language (REICHLE; BIRDSONG, 2014). Through the process of private discourse, the channeling and internalization of linguistic development is reached (GARMON, 1998). To accomplish this process, the students in this study have developed journals of self-reflection, self-assessment, and future planning for the development of new vocabulary.

The community service learning methodology in Spanish as a foreign language classes

The following studies about Spanish as foreign language, Spanish as a heritage language and community service learning (SL) share with this study similarities in the way that students develop their language skills, specifically vocabulary. For example, Weldon (2003) found that his students, through a SL project in which they translated medical material, achieved significant development in all skills of the target language. His students had 12 hours to carry out a project in a public health center, they had to translate written material as well as interpret medical appointments between patients and public health providers.

Calleja (2019) in his research carried out over four years involves high school students. The SL consists of providing help to family and friends of the students in order to facilitate their interaction with the different educational centers of the city. Diagnostic tests, private and public speeches, group work, direct and inverse translations, a self-evaluation journal, and the communicative method, among others, were used. The author concluded that SL constituted a source of linguistic and cultural development; the level of non-approval of the language was brought to almost nonexistent levels and both FLLs and HLLs explored new language registers.

However, there are authors who raise some adverse aspects in the methodology and conceptualization of SL. Despite being a methodology already installed in the classroom, there are aspects that must be addressed at higher education levels. Some of the aspects to take into account, for SL to be fruitful in higher-level education are schedules, extracurricular activities, study programs and the teacher’s academic degree (ZLOTKOWSKI; DUFFY, 2010). It should be noted that there are also researchers such as McKnight (1996), who have not obtained favorable results with this methodology.

However, other researchers through SL have seen how it can become a tool not only for language development but also to change the world. Kiely (2005) relates how his role as a co-instructor in a program in Nicaragua from 1994-2001, allowed him to observe transformations in both cultures, Nicaragua-United States. The author reports that he used a constant comparative analysis method to identify common learning patterns. In this study, and for the long period of time that it lasted, the students were changing, but not the behavior patterns towards the development of learning that they exhibited.

The studies that have been previously exposed exemplify the application of SL for advanced Spanish courses. These examples show how students benefit from SL. Although, it should be noted that most of these are focused on Spanish as a foreign language. That is why, even today, there is too much information to discover related to the degree of incidence of SL for HLLs and L2. Therefore, this study is focused on answering: first, if SL actually favors the development of vocabulary and to what extent the prior knowledge of students benefits or does not benefit their linguistic development; second, if the intrinsic motivation of the students underwent favorable changes during the investigation; and if the vocabulary development of the students increases due to the connections generated between the previous and new linguistic knowledge.

Method: participants

The sample is composed of eight native Spanish-speaking HLL students between 18 and 21 years old (four men / four women) and eight English-speaking FLLs students between 18 and 21 years old (four men / four women) from the Spanish level 200s program of a Northern Virginia University of the United States of America.

Materials

Students from a Spanish language class, as part of their course assignments, performed the work of translating school communications for families. The communications contained information about educational assignments, school events, community events, and public health events (see ^{Appendices 1, 2, and 3}). The fact that other types of communications were not considered is related to the similarity in content, broadcast frequency and volume of material already broadcasted in the target language (Spanish). In addition, 20 keywords (see ^{Appendix 4}) were chosen as a pedagogical link to analyze vocabulary acquisition through SL. The students were not informed of the keywords or their existence. The keywords were selected taking as a reference their high and low frequency in Spanish (DAVIES, 2018).

A diagnostic test was created (see ^{Appendix 4}) in which students were asked to translate the key words that were underlined in the materials provided. In addition, students made written and oral reflections about their participation in SL (see tables 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5). These reflections were of a private nature, carried out in a closed electronic circuit and no one, except the researcher, had access to them.

Table 1
Second reflections manifested in weeks 9 to 11

Positive Comments	Negative Comments
Learn how to work virtually Learn how to search for new words Help the community in general	Lack of time to work Disagreement when being recorded or being on a virtual screen Not being able to be in person with parents, children and teachers, lack of physical contact.

Source: Authors’ elaboration.

Table 2
Fragment of personal reflections

MS (HLLs): “Embarrassed” means embarrassed? Wow, “pregnant” and “embarrassed” are fake cognates. The two are the same, but mean something very different. Because they are written the same, they are called cognates. This helps me a lot. See if I go out there talking that I am ... Or if I say that the man is pregnant.

Source: Authors’ elaboration.

Table 3
Fragment of personal reflections

PA (FLLs): I didn’t know that the same word has different meanings in other places. The word “strawberry” I always say “strawberry”. I learned in other places that “strawberry” is not a good word.

Source: Authors’ elaboration.

Table 4
Fragment of personal reflections

MJ (HLLs): Seeing the lady was like seeing my mother, my aunt, my grandmother and my sister. The next day I arranged more for them to be proud of me. Today I have put on a tie. Helping them makes me feel good, it makes me feel important, it lets me know where I am from and who my people are. Now I have more people, people from the USA and people from Mexico. My colleagues are going to appreciate all this a lot when they see that they get ahead in the city

Source: Authors’ elaboration.

Table 5
Final reflections in week 15

Comentarios positivos

Comentarios negativos

Use Spanish in real life. Understand the grammatical differences between Spanish and English. Learn medical terminology. Learn about the translation and interpretation process. Provide services to the Hispanic and Anglo community Receive and provide feedback about the learning process. Understand the needs of members of the community in general. Discover and learn variations of Spanish. Reinvent yourself as a member of a community. Learn about the importance of accents in Spanish (tilde). Learn more English through Spanish. Help the people who need it most in both communities.

A lot of work in such a short time. Lack of programs in the community that give continuity to these class projects. Lack of time to continue working with the same members of the community (follow up).

Source: Authors’ elaboration.

Design and procedure

At the beginning of the semester, for a week, the preliminary activities began with a reflection on previous experiences in SL and a diagnostic vocabulary test. Then, a series of translations were carried out during the period from week 2 to 3. To solve the translations, the students used Spanish-English dictionaries, different technological tools (for example, electronic translator, internet pages of educational centers in Spanish, brochures of public health centers in Spanish, Internet pages of public health centers in Spanish...), books in Spanish, encyclopedias, catalogs of virtual bookstores and they also consulted public and private interpreters and translators. In each instance of the process of this investigation, the students opportunely cited the intellectual authors of the resources used; for this, the students were instructed to reference them with MLA-style citations.

During the 4-8 week period, students submitted all translated material for review by faculty and staff. The different organisms sent a series of comments so that the students could submit their works for review and correct them. This review-correction process was carried out a total of three times, in addition, the researcher made additional corrections before sending the material to the educational centers.

Once the translation was finished, during the period of weeks 9 to 11, the students shared their traditions to exchange opinions of expressions and the use of words according to the country of origin. Also, the students took another diagnostic test to be compared with the preliminary and final diagnostic tests. The importance of this process lies in the fact that not all the keywords were present in all the materials that were translated. This process was repeated three times to give the students adequate exposure to all the keywords. As the last phase of the investigation and experience of SL, during the period of weeks 12 to 14, the students offered virtual interpretations to teachers and relatives of elementary school students. These interpretations were carried out from English to Spanish and vice versa. The issues that were addressed in the interpretations were related to the material that was previously translated and to the educational progress of the students.

Finally, during the period of week 15, the students took a post-SL vocabulary diagnostic test, a written evaluation about their participation in SL, and a group presentation (virtual mode). During this period, the students were given indications about the use of cognates that were necessary to improve the quality of the group presentation. This task lasted an estimated time of three hours and was carried out in three sessions of 60 minutes each.

Data analysis

During the course of this research, use is made of the qualitative ethnographic research method as well as the quantitative method (BERNARD, 1994). Quantitative information has been collected through three diagnostic tests. The information provided by the diagnostic tests was stored and later analyzed. On the other hand, qualitative information has been acquired throughout the investigation through written reflections, group reflections of an oral nature and a final group work (virtual presentation). In addition, through group reflections, it was possible to obtain additional information on how the FLLs perceive the importance of vocabulary compared to HLLs, how the HLLs develop a sense of belonging to the community, and to what extent the linguistics development process differs between the FLLs and HLLs.

Language development data was analyzed in two stages. The first stage of analysis took place between weeks 9-11 and the second in week 15, at which time a comparison was made of the results obtained through the diagnostic tests. Following the model of Bernard (1994), separate analyses were made to visualize vocabulary acquisition, vocabulary retention and vocabulary development of post-SL students, data shown in the following tables.

3 Results

In order to obtain results that would give an answer to the first objective of this research (to determine if SL affects vocabulary development and to what extent students’ prior knowledge benefits their linguistic development), the results of the diagnostic tests were reviewed in detail. The results showed a significant increase between the results obtained at the beginning and at the end of the investigation. The information obtained from the diagnostic tests was analyzed by means of dependent t-tests (SHIER, 2004). The data showed a remarkable increase (t = -4.23, p <.01) between the preliminary diagnostic test (week 1) and the second diagnostic test (week 9-11), after the students had already performed all the translations. However, it should be noted that there were no significant changes between the second and third diagnostic tests (week 15). This means that the vocabulary acquired during the process of translation of materials and interpretation in educational centers was the source of new vocabulary and that post-SL no significant linguistic development is observed.

The results that give answer to the second objective of the research (to observe if the intrinsic motivation of the students experiences favorable changes towards the Spanish language) show that the experiences of the students, reflected in their personal journals, changed during the course of the investigation. In the first phase (week 1) in the reflections about the SL, the students had a distant, detached and less positive behavior; although they expressed optimistic feelings since they liked the idea of using Spanish outside the classroom, in the community and for the community. Both groups of FLLs students and HLLs expressed concerns about working remotely and virtually, although they referred to this new process to the possibility of having to develop their future professional careers in the same way.

The results of the reflections from HHLs and FLLs after the translations and interpretations were charged with positivism, enthusiasm, and new projects in the short and long term. Within the reflections, constructive criticism is observed with positive and negative comments, a brief summary of which is presented in Table 1.

The two groups of students, FLLs and HLLs, emphasized, throughout their reflections, the benefits of participating in SLs. Also, it could be observed in most of the reflections that the interpretation process motivated the use of oral expression and generated the development of autonomous learning strategies. That is, the students developed their own methods of increasing vocabulary in order to facilitate oral communication between teachers and the families of primary school students.

In Table 2, MS (HLLs) reflects on the use of a false cognate “embarrassed” (embarrassed) that was translated as “pregnant”. MS explains that there is a big difference between a word and “embarrassed”, in addition to the synonyms and antonyms of both terms. The students had not been exposed to antonyms and synonyms, but MS explains that these terms arose naturally due to the work done with the word “embarrassed”.

In Table 3, the student describes her language development process; more precisely, the development of vocabulary, the understanding of the variations of Spanish and its regionalisms. Although it can be noted that both terms refer to the same fruit, it is also true that the student is already making contact with the “culture” and the meanings that it gives to words (MIQUEL; SANS, 1992).

While most students expressed a high level of appreciation for SL assignments, there was one student from HLLs who stated the impact this project had had on his life. MJ expressed the revealing experience of discovering his sense of belonging to a particular group of people, an ethnic group, its people, as defined in his personal reflections. While he was not explicit in the comments about the benefit that the student received, he did contextualize that in the not too distant future all his classmates will understand the degree of impact that SLs have on their lives and professional careers.

After attending interpretive sessions and interacting largely with teachers and students’ parents as well as physicians and patients, they completed their final reflection on their experiences with SL. Table 5 shows a summary of the reflections presented by the students during week 15.

Taking as a reference all the reflections made by the students and the vocabulary tests, it is prudent to ensure that all of them have demonstrated linguistic development, have increased their cultural competencies and vocabulary development. Also, the students acquired new medical terminology as a consequence of interacting in a real-life context that motivated the use, retention and development of vocabulary. Consequently, the students stated that they have learned to use technological tools with an educational purpose, that traditional resources have been given a new purpose and that they have once again enjoyed interaction with educational material in general; in this way, they have strengthened their roles as autonomous learners. Finally, all students have expressed their commitment to the process of inclusion of the Spanish-speaking community in all areas of society in general. The negative comments, which existed towards this particular SL, point to a lack of time or community programs and the fact that this particular SL was supposed to conclude at the end of the semester. Both FLLs and HLLs showed the development of their communicative approach to the language and their progress as autonomous learners. The increase in vocabulary was the common denominator. Most students, without exception, in one way or another, mention that they have learned to use accents and different words according to the context in which they are being used.

Discussion

In this research, it was analyzed, demonstrated and evaluated the development of vocabulary through the methodology of learning by service to the community (SL). It is understood that the lack of research of this nature gives rise to a reduced literary sample based on the acquisition of Spanish as a foreign language and as a heritage language. We carry out research based on methods that, have been widely demonstrated, are highly capable of perceiving the changes experienced in the linguistic development of students: the ethnographic-qualitative research method used by Bernard (1994) and the dependent t-test used by Shier (2004). In the present investigation, students from a Spanish language class, as part of their course assignments, translated and interpreted educational, medical and community material in general. Within the material, two variables of Spanish were handled: a) standard Spanish and b) variation of Spanish (the place of origin of the individual for whom it is interpreted or translated is considered). The work of Villa (1996) is taken as a reference for the development of a work guide with HLLs and FLLs in terms of variations in Spanish.

Due to the scant focus of previously conducted research in the area of SL focused on Spanish such as FLLs and HLLs that gave measurable results, the format of this research helped in the section on translations of materials, quality control and efficacy. In addition to belonging to the same research genre as the previous ones, this study’s foundation was based on a series of reflections and diagnostic tests, with strength being lack of influence on the part of the researcher; this research was a pioneer of its kind given that this investigation was conducted virtually. Similarly, the level of vocabulary categorization and grammatical order was observed (WESTERGAARD, 2009). Additionally, constructive criticism was sought explicitly and implicitly (CARROLL; SWAIN, 1993) to avoid anything that discouraged the participation of all students. Everything related to the physical and emotional integrity of the students was controlled by dividing them into groups according to ages, preferences and academic approaches (SUPER; HARKNESS, 1997) since these steps ensure the physical and emotional integrity of the participants giving a better result and quality to the research. Although to a large extent, the result of the research was perceptible to the tastes and preferences of the students, we verified that the vocabulary developed was due to intrinsic motivation. This motivation made it possible to build a connection with the community being served and to exclude difficulties and preconceptions of SL that were not favorable for the development of vocabulary as such. Refuting previous research and studies on SL, this research found that, within language teaching for HLLs, the level of vocabulary development increases taking as reference the result of the diagnostic test carried out at week 15 (t = -4.23, p <.01).

This research is, so far, the first to be supported in a virtual way and in times of a global pandemic (COVID-19). It is, on the other hand, one of the first to measure the acquisition of vocabulary in HLLs and FLLs through the community service learning (SL) methodology. The fact that there are not many analyses of this nature is counteracted by the present investigation; since it constitutes a strong sample that the vocabulary in the HLLs and FLLs can be developed jointly at the same time that they participate in SL.

The evidence of vocabulary development through SL can only be explained with the foundations of Shier (2004) and Bernard (1994). First, there is an increase in the number of terms acquired, retained, and used by students. Second, there is an increase in intrinsic motivation, even with continuity after the investigation is completed. Finally, there is a complete development of the language, the students, the professionals who work with them and the families who receive the services. In other words, the results obtained and analyzed through the works of Shier (2004) and Bernard (1994) show that the development of the language exposed by Phillips and Ehrenhofer (2015) is a consequence of the bilingualism described throughout the process of this investigation.

Therefore, at the theoretical level, the most obvious result of this study is that the interaction between HLLs, FLLs and the Spanish-speaking community is a determining factor in vocabulary development. This development, linked to the SL, can come to occur naturally as the native language is produced. This process of linguistic development through SL, in a routine, organized and annual structure, can become the model to follow for the teaching of Spanish as a native and foreign language.

At the methodological level, the use of SL for the linguistic development of HLLs and L2 is an experimental approach that includes a wide field of opportunities due to the diversity in the student population (FULLER; AHLER, 1987). However, the appearance of obstacles due to the inference of interests found among the different members of the community is a high-risk factor to take into account (HAUSER-CRAM; SIRIN; STIPEK, 2003). Due to the previously mentioned conditions, the results that were considered null, due to situations outside the educational process, must be handled with caution and discretion and taken into account for the comments, both positive and negative, made by students in their reflections (for example, the new way that science has to see how we develop our language, PINKER, 1995). As shown by Au, Knightly, Jun and Oh (2002), Montrul (2012), Polinsky (2005) and Salazar (2012), acquiring grammar, vocabulary and developing the linguistic capacity of a language occurs only when we take students as a fundamental piece in the learning process.

Finally, an aspect that seems unique in this research is the plurality of the student body. There was a diversity of gender, ages and races, which generated dialogues never before held by the participants of the SL. The students’ reflections show that the objectives of this research were achieved, they discovered identities that, according to them, seemed inactive and distant. The objective of vocabulary development was achieved as all students demonstrated acquiring new vocabulary. Through this process of participation in SL, the students developed a sense of autonomy in their learning process. Students were naturally forced to use all the resources available to them to translate and interpret the language in everyday life situations, which generated a wide exercise of formal and informal Spanish. Finally, in general terms, SLs give language learners tools for the exercise of the language that they would not otherwise have in a conventional classroom.

Conclusion

Spanish FLLs students and HLLs participated together in a SL project that consisted of translating and interpreting medical, educational, and general community material. The two research questions that guided this study were whether, in fact, students could develop vocabulary and intrinsic motivation through participation in SL. The results of this research show that first, all students developed their linguistic capacity by increasing their vocabulary, and second, the HHLs also acquired a feeling of belonging to the Spanish-speaking community, understanding of other linguistic factors such as spelling, lexical variation, variation of linguistic codes, the use of accents and cultural factors that are equally or as important as strictly grammatical. This research also contributed to the development of students’ intrinsic motivation; this was echoed in personal reflections and helped develop the importance of the bilingual school curriculum in local education. The latter is very important since the students saw not only their growth as members of the community but also the importance of being bilingual.

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APPENDICES

A1 - Educational tasks (samples)

1.Think about words related to your home that start with the letter “M”.

Translate to Spanish:

2.Change the drawing with the letter that it begins.

Translate to Spanish:

A2 - School events (samples)

1.Dear Parents: Today we will be having a virtual meeting to discuss the progress of your child. Interpreters will be provided…

Translate to Spanish:

A3 - Community events and public health events in general (samples)

1. Today we will be conducting on-site vaccination for COVID-19.

2. Schools will serve meals to all students while schools are closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Translate to Spanish:

A4 - Questions of the vocabulary diagnostic test (samples)

Translate the underlined word / phrase according to the context in which it is used.

1. Injectables usually hurt for a short time after they are applied to the arm.

2. Homework must be completed every day after school.

3. Nasal and mouth guards are required in public and private centers.

4. Reading, for a period of 30 minutes a day, is beneficial for the academic development of the student.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  06 Jan 2023
• Date of issue
  2022

History

• Received
  14 Aug 2021
• Accepted
  28 Jan 2022