Abstract
The data published by The Instituto Cervantes (2021) prove that Spanish language use in the world is constantly rising. The current number of native speakers is 489 million people, and there are more than 22 million learners worldwide. It is the fourth most spoken language in the EU and the third in the UN. The newest Latvian Educational Standard states that the first and second-level educational institutions should offer a minimum of two foreign language acquisition. Nevertheless, the Latvian Educational Curriculum does not include Spanish as an option; therefore, it lacks institutional support to establish Spanish studies in all educational levels with the proper follow-up. The article presents the current situation in various study programs proposed by several Latvian tertiary education institutions in 2020/2021. The data has been collected by contacting current Spanish lecturers and analyzing the current study programs offering Spanish language acquisition in tertiary education institutions mentioned in the article. The analysis presents the content of the study programs in the bachelor and master study levels and the estimated number of students in each study program. It is a panoramic insight into Latvia's Spanish language teaching situation, which is necessary to understand Latvian-speaking Spanish learners' needs, existing resources for Spanish language teaching, and a further perspective for promoting Spanish studies in Latvia. It proves a lack of institutional cooperation to provide the constant Spanish language acquisition from the first till the tertiary educational level that would improve the general recognition of Spanish and its need in Latvian society as a part of the European Union.
Highlights
The data published by The Instituto Cervantes about the Spanish language situation in the world show the current number of 489 million native speakers and more than 22 million learners in 110 countries worldwide (Fernández; 2020, p. 33)
The Educational system is strongly influenced by countries' geopolitical situations and history, The most known Spanish language professors in Latvia have acquired their education in Russian universities that is interesting to mention in nowadays European context
Despite the fact that Spanish teaching in Latvia started nearly a hundred years ago, its status in both, secondary and higher educational institutions is still fragile, as the Latvian education system does not consolidate nor supports Spanish language teachers at the national level, nor does it promote the availability of appropriate quality manuals in the Latvian market Instead the Educational Curriculum still gives preference to traditionally taught foreign languages: English, German, French and Russian
Summary
The data published by The Instituto Cervantes about the Spanish language situation in the world show the current number of 489 million native speakers and more than 22 million learners in 110 countries worldwide (Fernández; 2020, p. 33). In the European Union as a whole, the Spanish language is judged to be the fourth most useful language, following English, German and French, but in Latvia, the interest in Spanish is much lower. Considering Latvia's geopolitical situation and the number of people whose native language is Russian (37.2% of the population), the Russian language is at the forefront of foreign languages and holds second place behind English The most recent study on foreign language learning in Latvia was published in 20162. It shows that only 1% of the population in Latvia understands Spanish, while in the European Union, 7% of the population knows it.
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