Language journeys with Claire

Ever thought about how something as fun as the Spice Girls could kickstart a lifelong love for learning a language? Join me, Debbie Ross, as I chat with the amazing Claire. A passionate language teacher whose journey from learning Spanish in high school to fluency after living Argentina is anything but ordinary. We dive into how her love for Spanish not only changed her life but also helped her build real, meaningful connections in a completely new country. Claire shares some incredible stories from her time abroad and her experiences in the classroom, proving that learning a language is about so much more than just grammar and vocabulary.

We get into how to make language learning engaging, exciting, and useful. From hands-on activities that keep students hooked to cultural immersion trips, we talk about why real-life practice is so important. Claire breaks down how learning Spanish isn’t just about speaking another language. It sharpens your brain, boosts confidence, and makes you more adaptable. We also chat about how tech and pop culture keep lessons fresh and fun, plus Claire’s top tips for anyone wanting to start their own language-learning adventure. 

Hosted by Debbie Ross
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Transcript

Importance of Learning Languages

Debbie 0:15

Welcome to Nuturing Educators , the podcast that shares inspiring and insightful conversations with passionate teachers dedicated to education and wellbeing . I'm your host , Debbie Ross , and each episode we will explore the personal stories , challenges and successes of educators from all walks of life . You'll hear practical tips and strategies to help them thrive both in the classroom and beyond . To help you thrive both in the classroom and beyond . Hey everyone , on today's episode , we're going to be talking about the importance of learning languages . I'm excited to chat with a special guest whom I met on a teacher's language exchange trip to Spain back in 2018 . We bonded over our love for Spanish while studying and exploring Madrid and Salamanca together . Though we live in different cities , it's always so nice catching up . Welcome Claire .

Claire 1:17

Hola

Debbie 1:18

Hola ! All right . So , just before we get started , would you like to tell us a little bit about your background ?

Claire's journey to learning spanish

Claire 1:24

Yeah , I studied Spanish at high school and then did an exchange to Argentina through Rotary and lived there for a year , came back and did a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and Linguistics , went on to do some honours study and then took a break from university for about five years , worked in retail and hospitality and then decided to become a teacher .

Debbie 1:50

So did you become fluent in Spanish in that year that you were there ?

Claire 1:53

Yeah , definitely . I'd done five years at high school , but I never really took it seriously until I lived in Argentina and within about three months , I'd say , sort of became fluent .

Debbie 2:07

How did you find the transition period from having learned Spanish in school to then the full immersion in Argentina ? What was it like ?

Claire 2:14

I mean it was tricky because it was like a complex situation of being in a foreign country without anybody I knew . So I think the social environment was probably trickier than the language . you know .

Debbie 2:29

But people are always so friendly

Claire 2:30

So friendly yeah , it was amazing , and my connections with my host families and my friends , you know , are still . I'm still connected to those people today .

Debbie 2:40

That's so cool . So what was the thing that inspired you to learn Spanish when you started in high school ?

Claire 2:46

Do you want the honest truth

Debbie 2:48

A boy ?

Claire 2:52

No , funnily enough . No , it's because of the Spice Girls , Because Geri Halliwell spoke Spanish on some of the tracks and I just thought , man , that is so cool and I really want to learn Spanish . It was an option at my high know , my high school , and so I took it in third form and then just kept going for no reason other than just

Motivation to learn spanish

Claire 3:10

I liked it .

Claire 3:10

I was not good at it at school , I really didn't study well and apply myself . But then when I , you know , was in seventh form , I had the opportunity to go to Argentina . So I knew then that I needed to work a little bit harder and yeah , well .

Debbie 3:26

I guess that's cool for students learning the language the way that you don't necessarily need to be good at it , you just need to be passionate about it , and actually want to learn .

Claire 3:35

Yeah , that's so right .

Debbie 3:37

So you learned it mainly in Argentina

Claire 3:40

Yeah , definitely so

Debbie 3:42

You did the one year there .

Claire 3:44

Yeah , an exchange there .

Debbie 3:46

Have you been back since ?

Claire 3:47

Yeah many times . So I went back while I was at university . I was walking past like a travel agent and it said flights to Buenos Aires , what 900 return and at the time that was just unheard of . It's so , so cheap . So I just literally walked in and booked a ticket and went back . We met some friends and then actually through that trip , ended up meeting my husband and so , yeah , I have been back nearly yearly to visit his family and then more recently to take students on trips to go back .

Debbie 4:23

So how are the dynamics at home ? Do you guys speak Spanish at home ? A little bit , a little bit a mix ?

Claire 4:29

We try , we try , we're trying to teach our son Spanish . But yeah , it's . You know when it's the end of the day , it's 5 o'clock , you're a bit tired .

Claire 4:38

It can be hard .

Claire 4:39

So , and especially in our relationship , we have never really like . Spanish has not been the dominant language between us , so it is hard to kind of switch in and out .

Debbie 4:49

Good for your little son to be able to learn a language too .

Claire 4:51

Yeah absolutely . Absolutely , and we were lucky enough to go . While I was on maternity leave , we spent three months living in Argentina , so we just kind of , you know , he was exposed to her a little bit then and able to meet his cousins and hang out with the family .

Debbie 5:06

What do you find most rewarding about teaching languages ?

Rewards of learning a language

Claire 5:10

I think like it sounds kind of cliche , but that really special connection you get with your students , because being a language teacher , especially in my school , it's just me and so I have taught them from year 9 all the way through to year 13 , so it's really , it's something really special that you can , you know , to be able to build those connections , but specifically language teaching you opening up some of those connections that might not have been formed in other areas of learning .

Claire 5:41

You know , I have a couple of students who don't necessarily fit anywhere else and they kind of feel like in that Spanish classroom . They can just be themselves and , you know , learn and be inspired about something completely different from what they're used to .

Debbie 5:57

I love that .

Debbie 5:59

What are some of the biggest challenges that you have faced as a language teacher ?

Claire 6:04

I think it's really tricky trying to promote second languages as being valuable . And definitely you kind of notice that in New Zealand we are such an English-dominant country , even the concept and understanding of valuing a second language isn't as strong . Where I teach , you know , I'm at Paraparami College it's a really small community as well , so there's not as much interaction with necessarily other cultures or like other ways of life , and so it can be quite insular . So it's trying to bridge those gaps and almost convince the community why second languages are important . Luckily I have a really supportive school , really supportive SLT who value and promote language learning . But it's the kind of bigger picture stuff that's the hardest .

Debbie 6:57

I think that's a big thing . Here in New Zealand , like even in Auckland , where we're such a multicultural city , there's so many South Americans that have come to live here and we just still don't value it . The sciences , the maths , I mean all great and important subjects , but languages , if you go overseas every single person speaks two or three languages we're a minority , aren't we ?

Claire 7:21

yeah , yeah , absolutely , and you know to think that anywhere in Latin America or in Europe , they're learning language , learning English as their second language , whereas we , we kind of we sit a little bit comfortable not having to push ourselves to learn anything in order to communicate

Language Learning Strategies and Benefits

Claire 7:39

with others .

Debbie 7:39

How do you keep the students engaged and motivated to learn a new language ?

How to engage students

Claire 7:45

In the junior school I try and keep the lessons really , really interactive and really I do lots and lots of short activities . So you , if you stepped into my classroom , we're doing five minutes on a reading activity , ten minutes on a listening , five minutes getting up to talk to each other , five minutes on a game , another ten minutes on devices and that's the lesson . So they are moving constantly , they're changing constantly , engaging different parts of their brain , which I think they really enjoy . I mean , I hope they enjoy as well because , yeah , trying to keep it varied and really engaging .

Debbie 8:22

And then , I guess for the seniors , the opportunity to do trips and other things .

Claire 8:26

Yeah , definitely . So this Argentinian exchange that we have up and running is a big drawcard for seniors . Yeah , absolutely . And just again trying to remind them of the importance of some of those broader skills that they get through learning a language , not just the content but , you know , just the soft skills of communication and adaptability you know , working with other cultures absolutely so many isn't there .

Debbie 8:50

We could go on all day yeah , for sure , very important .

Debbie 8:56

So , with those trips that you were talking about before , yeah , what are some of those memorable experiences that you have had when taking the students be really ?

Benefits of travelling with languages

Claire 9:07

Its hard to pinpoint one , I think . Um , there's just so much growth that happens on those trips because the students are out of their comfort zone , away from their families , they're just learning so much and engaging in Spanish language , spanish culture . It really opens their eyes to like what life can be like for a teenager in another part of the world . Yeah , just seeing like because generally we take senior students , you know when they then come back and they think about their future careers , sometimes you might have sparked something in them or helped them open their eyes to other opportunities for study beyond school or like volunteering or travel that they might not have considered before . So I mean , I like somewhere to think that I had a little part in like helping them figure out and navigate what their next steps might be yeah , you definitely did , for sure .

Claire 10:02

Yeah , I think it's also really cool that they can apply what they've learned in class , like oh absolutely light bulb moments of when they come back and they tell you that they've been to the shop and they had a conversation with the shop attendant and it was all in Spanish and they understood and you know , I think some of those real gems are like on the flight , even on the flight over , and they're like I just asked the water ,

Debbie 10:28

Something so small , but just so good, yeah

Claire 10:32

Yeah , for sure , using those language skills in real-life context

Debbie 10:36

makes it meaningful for them

Claire 10:37

Absolutely

How else do langauges help?

Claire 10:38

.

Debbie 10:38

How do you think having a second language benefits students both academically and personally ?

Claire 10:44

Like we were talking about before . Just some of those soft skills know how to communicate with other people , having appreciation of different cultures and it just really adds another like string to their bow . You know there's so many things that that they can kind of get in any context , but having a language just really opens those doors . I think cognitively as well , it really having a second language and learning a second language works in a different part of your brain , so you're stimulating parts of your brain that would not be engaging otherwise and I think it's really cool . Actually , like biologically , there are connections being made . Yeah , it's fascinating .

Debbie 11:26

So , with regards to incorporating some cultural elements , you've spent a lot of time in Argentina , so you know a lot about their culture . How do you implement it into your language teaching ?

Claire 11:38

Well , by using the language and pointing out when there are differences in vocabulary and explaining when I might use a certain word instead of what's in the textbook . But we do a lot of research and learning about different , you know traditions , festivals , by trying to use authentic resources as well , like videos and searching up TikToks and being like look , you know , here's these people and they're , you know , they're in Pamplona , they're at the running of the bulls , and so you're like you know this is real life stuff .

Claire 12:14

And then I kind of convince students like this could be you in a few years . So , yeah , trying to make those connections really authentic .

Debbie 12:17

So I guess that is using technology . What other ways do you use technology in the learning environment ?

Claire 12:22

Well , we use a lot of different programs for you know , learning vocab , things like Quizlet Education Perfect I mean lots of the students are things like Quizlet Education Perfect . I mean lots of the students are doing things like Duolingo in their own time . But we in the past have done collaborative projects with our host school in Argentina where we've worked on things together .

Claire 12:45

Students can kind of collaborate on . I've forgotten the platform right now , but they can kind of collaborate on the same page on a website and add their different sort of bits of information , but using Zoom and things to talk with other students so that they can actually make those connections .

Debbie 13:02

Makes the world smaller .

Claire 13:05

Yeah , and more accessible .

Debbie 13:08

Have you got any cool success stories of students that are now working overseas or have learnt a language and gone exploring ?

Claire 13:19

Yeah , one of my favourite things is that students , even two or three years on , who will send me a picture and say Miss , I'm in Barcelona . I made it and I'm trying to use my Spanish .

Claire 13:30

Yeah , definitely , students have gone away or gone travelling , even if not necessarily to Spanish-speaking countries , but they've stepped out of their comfort zone to go and do something else . Yeah , that's a real highlight .

Debbie 13:41

Cool , so we've just got a few more, to wrap up , what advice would you give to someone who is just starting to learn a new language ?

Claire 13:51

Advice to someone learning a new language would be to seek out people who you can talk to and interact with . There are so many groups available , even like coffee groups . I know in Wellington there's like a group that meet up on and you know , on a Friday night at a bar and just chat and they have all kinds of people with all different language backgrounds you know meeting together to talk and they all have different levels of language . So , yeah , seek out kind of authentic connections with that language , whether that's going to an event you know like a celebration of of that community or that culture . There's so much on and around . Yeah , because I think it's it's all very well and good to sit at home doing duolingo , but when it gets to actually uh having to use that language , it's a completely new step right yeah .

Debbie 14:46

Yeah and I think it actually helps with integrating it in your brain by actually being able to practice it .

Claire 14:52

And make mistakes .

Debbie 14:54

So true

Claire 14:54

Talking to someone and having them help you , correct you , but also understand what you're saying , Even if you haven't conjugated that verb correctly it doesn't really matter because actually , at the end of the day , you're making that connection with someone .

Debbie 15:07

And there is no real learning unless you do make mistakes . So true , it's what I always tell my students don't be scared to make a mistake . Yeah , learn from it . Awesome , okay . So just one more question , and then maybe we can wrap things up . What are your thoughts on the future of language education and its importance in this globalized world ?

Claire 15:28

I think if I'm being really honest from a local perspective , I would love to see te reo Māori made compulsory in schools . I think it is so important to keep you know our language alive . But on a global level , I think , with technology and with the way careers are going like , the world is getting smaller , so I think learning another language is is pretty imperative to being able to you know , bridge some of those gaps , make those connections and , um you know , continue to understand each other worldwide

Debbie 16:03

because I think you've got a few options now where you're able to like go traveling and work overseas and having a language is so useful for that or I know people who are working in global companies now

Claire 16:15

absolutely

Debbie 16:16

Being able to speak and communicate with the language of that country that you're working from , yeah , can be a really big thing

Claire 16:23

Yeah , or working for , you know , a Zealand company , but you're living overseas , have those possibilities of flexible working hours and you know it can really open up lots of opportunities for people . So many possibilities . Great , it's exciting .

Debbie 16:40

Yeah , for sure , and I mean I really do hope that New Zealand adopts A , our national language , and makes it compulsory , and also I think it's so important to make languages more important in New Zealand too . Yeah , well , it's been so nice chatting with you .

Claire 16:57

Yeah , likewise .

Debbie 16:57

I love that we get to share lots of stories as regards to Spanish and teaching Spanish in New , zealand , appreciate that you've been able to come in today and have a wee chat about what we do Easy .

Claire 17:08

Thank you , so nice to chat .

Debbie 17:12

Yeah , take care , tell see . Yeah , thank you so much for listening . If you enjoyed today's episode , don't forget to hit the subscribe button , leave a review and share it with your fellow educators . Let's keep these important conversations going . For more information , follow , follow us at Nutrient Educators on Facebook and Instagram . Until next time , take care .