Objectives

The Program for Heritage Speakers of Spanish SMU is designed to both validate and build upon the unique linguistic and cultural backgrounds of our heritage students. Our program objectives are:

1. Enhancing Academic Proficiency: Develop or expand skills in reading, writing, listening, and speaking, with an emphasis on academic and formal registers that may not have been fully acquired through informal or familial use.

2. Cultivating Cultural Awareness: Deepen students’ understanding of diverse histories, literatures, and cultural practices of the Spanish-speaking world, encouraging a critical appreciation of both contemporary and historical contexts.

3. Celebrating the Students’ Language and Cultural Background: Provide a space where students can explore and affirm their cultural identities, linking personal heritage with academic and professional growth.

4. Bridging Informal and Formal Registers: Facilitate the transition from colloquial language proficiency to the mastery of formal and specialized vocabulary required in academic and professional settings.

5. Fostering Critical Linguistic Competence: Encourage critical engagement with language structures, variation, and change, including an exploration of bilingualism, language maintenance, and sociolinguistic issues.

6. Preparing for Advanced Studies and Careers: Equip students with the necessary skills and cultural competencies for advanced studies in areas such as literature, linguistics, education, translation, international relations, as well as for careers that value multilingual and cross-cultural expertise, such as healthcare, business and legal professionals and other specific purposes.