Dear Colleagues,

Please take a look at the message below, and participate in the survey as you can – if you have colleagues who might be in a better position to respond, please forward.  María Laín Valenzuela, the author, is currently a researcher at the Observatorio del Instituto Cervantes in Cambridge MA.  She is interested in acquiring data on the use of mobile devices and apps to learn Spanish, and on the role mobile technologies play in language programs.

Spanish acquisition (L2) through Mobile Assisted Language Learning in the United States

Today mobile phone use is so widespread that it has reached 95% of the U.S. population, according to the Pew Research Center.  One of the functionalities allowed by these devices is learning, known as mobile learning, and includes, among other subjects, languages. Also, the U.S. Census Bureau registered 41 million Spanish speakers in 2017, which positions Spanish as the second most spoken language in the US.  Considering the relevance of these two facts, I am researching the current situation of the Spanish language acquisition through the use of mobile phones in the context of the United States.

My goals are to understand, on the one hand, how the triangle “Academia – Corporations – Learners” is reacting to the reality of mobile technology for education, and on the other hand, to develop an overview of the social changes resulting from these technological advances and their ubiquity. Finally, I would like to identify trends, as what is happening here today may be the prelude of what’s to come internationally.

Therefore, I would really appreciate if you might generously share with me your vision and opinion by completing this questionnaire (2-3 minutes) and forwarding it to any person that is engaged in world language education, and is interested in the research.  You can also reach me for a further conversation. Please, use this contact form: http://bit.ly/ContactformMLV2019

 Link to the questionnaire: http://bit.ly/ResearchMLV2019

Best and thanks!

a.

Andrew F. Ross, PhD

Director, Language Center

Harvard University

Science Center B06.40

1 Oxford Street

Cambridge, MA 02138

(617) 496-0607

Pronouns: he, him, his