Foundational Spanish Portfolio
Jonathan Blake Smith
JBScyber.net is designed to show the progression of my language learning journey. This website will show a progression over the next few months of my growth in both language and culture in the Spanish speaking community. Throughout my development at Old Dominion University, in progression to obtaining my Cybersecurity degree, I find that its important to at least have basic understanding of Spanish in the event that I run into other Spanish speaking Cybersecurity professionals in the field.
The ultimate goal of this website is to show a professional growth in my field of study as it relates to communication in the Spanish language. Also, I hope to show benchmarks in my understanding and progression. So, follow me on my journey as I learn the fundementals of speaking Spanish.
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ABOUT ME
Hello, I am currently a Navy veteran with 10 years of service in the submarine force as a Sonar Technician. I'm in my finally year at Old Dominion University as a Cybersecurity Major. My short term goals are to complete my current Spanish course with a exceptional grasp on the Spanish language. I am an eager student that works hard and utilizes due dillgence to complete my tasks and goals. Enjoy my website and posts as I complete my journey through this course.
Introduction
Hola,
My name is Jonathan and I chose to take Spanish over other course due to the value it can provide in my own country of the United States. The U.S. has an increasingly large amount of Spanish speakers from various countries and it would be very beneficial to know and understand the language and the culture. Learning Spanish fits my personal and professional goals in that it can help me in instances of clients who may have very little to no experience with the English language. Also, understanding the culture can help to improve on ettiqute and understanding of cultural norms.
Experience
In my experience outside of class I have noticed that I am able to pick up on other Spanish speaking individuals coversations as I pass by. I have also noticed that when I look at instructions or see a product at a store with Spanish writing on it that I have either understood the meaning or have been interesting to the point of looking up the meaning and it's interpretation. My hope throghout this course is to gain a deeper understanding of the language and culture so that I can utilize it as a tool if a situation arises where my fellow coworkers or I may benefit from a potential language barrier. After taking this course I have become more aware of how integrated this language is in American culture. I hope that after taking this class I will grow in my understanding and fluency of the Spanish language and continue to improve and become a better Spanish speaker. Throughout this course, the cultural discussions and assignments have taught me more the perception of Spanish cultures and a deeper understanding of the day to day life of someone who lives in Spain. Through this I have been able to compare and contrast the similarities and differencies between those of Spain and America.
Transfer
I plan to utilize Spanish when I start my career in Cybersecurity as an added skill on my resume. Although I am not fluent as of yet, I plan to continue to pursue my knowledge of the language after the course has ended.This will be helpful when trying to apply for jobs and careers that may need Spanish speakers to confer with clients. There are many jobs listed on indeed in the IT field that do not necessarily require individuals to speak Spanish, but they do state that it is a preferred skill to have have. This could be an invauluable opportunity to stand out amongst other applicants in the field. This course provides the resources to help to help with both writing and speaking the language through homework assignments that require you to use the correct tense and formation of sentences.This can help when conversing with a spanish speaker by utilizing context if a word or phrase is unknown.
Speaking and Pronunciation
Below is a Recording of me decscribing my preferences of where I would like to live. I discuss in Spanish my preferences for the countryside.
Throughout this Spanish course I have struggled to speak fluently or, often times, correct pronunciation. I have learned that on way to improve is to pronounce the letters the correct way in Spanish by continually going over the alphabet in Spanish. Below I have recorded myself in one of my assignments going over the alphabet in Spanish.
Assignment required me to listen and verify through True/False statements.
Listening and Comprehension
Listening could be challenging at times, but it became easier the more I broke down the sentences and picked up on key words and the context. Overall, I am a very visual learner so for me to listen to a converstaion and understand it, I have to visualize the words on paper. In this section I have provided examples of assignments that I previously turned in that reflect my skills at listen and writing about it was comprehended through questions.
The Assignment had me listen to the sentence and identify the most appropriate vocabulary word associated with it.
Reading in Spanish
I believe that the reading assignments that I have had throughout this semester helped me visualize the words, which in turn, helped me listen and comprehend the material and the vocabulary better. In this section I have attached links that I thought really helped me comprehend the vocabulary and pronunciation. I have also attached an image of an assignment that thought was challenging, and really helped me in engage in reading the material.
Writing in Spanish
I have said in the previous sections that I am a visual learner, so when it came to doing the writing assignments this semester I gained a lot of clarity on how certain words are pronounced and could be used to better understand the context of conversations through being able to visualize the vocabulary word. Grammer assignments helped to not only increase vocabulary but also understand the variations in pronoucing the same word or phrase. In this section I have posted assignments that have required me to write a response the either a cultural video or a description of an events and lifestyles from someone who lives in Spain.
Tendencias en la moda (discussion)
Self-Assessment and Reflection
Initially, I struggled throughout this course to pronounce words correctly. I started using strategies throughout the course that have helped, such as watching some Spanish shows on Netflix, with the captions of course, to help normalize the new vocabulary words into my everyday language. There have also been certain videos, such as the clothing ideas video where someone speaks to Spanish speakers about the styles and articles of clothing that they are wearing. The title of the video is "What are you wearing," and it really got me engaged and interested in the vocabulary and the culture of the region. Other strategies included continously reviewing the pronunciation of the Spanish Alphabet, maximizing efforts and opportunities to speak with classmates and the professor in a manner that would help me critique my skills. Beyond the classroom, I must try to engage with Spanish speakers more and gain a deeper understanding of how to pronounce and increase my Spanish vocabulary so that I can apply this skill to my career. Fluency in this language will help my stand out amongst other candidates in my career and broaden my relationships with other employees and business partners. Since I am a visual learner, I also plan to explore more ways to write in Spanish, so that I can understand words fully and with more understanding.
