LAS LENGUAS INGLESA Y ESPAÑOLA de Delfín Carbonell

In U.S. schools, there is a tendency to teach a “global” Spanish that aims to embrace all varieties of the language. But in attempting to include everyone, this approach can end up pleasing no one. Showing videos of colloquial Spanish from Panamá, Costa Rica, Spain, and Chile confuses students and often bewilders teachers, who may lack the tools to explain unfamiliar variants. I advocate for a consistent, focused approach: teach the educated, cultured Spanish of one country. This gives students a clear, coherent linguistic model. They will have ample opportunity to encounter regional differences once they travel or advance in their studies. The key is for the school to clarify that the Spanish taught in the classroom corresponds to a specific country, and that it reflects educated speech and writing. At the early stages, we must steer clear of slang, colloquialisms, and juvenile language. A firm foundation in the cultured language will serve the student well, wherever they go. 

You may recall my partiality to Tomás Navarro Tomás 's (1884-1979) Manual de pronunciación española , (1918), a copy of which (1972) is in my modest library. Common sense and clarity dominate this work, which, I believe, is the best in Spanish phonetics and pronunciation. Let me pick out a few quotations which, I hope, will prompt you to dive into this book: "... tratándose de personas cultas, las diferencias fonéticas entre castellanos y andaluces o hispanoamericanos son mucho menores que entre las clases populares." "... una fórmula pueril, que consiste en creer que la lengua española se pronuncia como se escribe." "... la pronunciación correcta rechaza todo vulgarismo provinciano y toda forma local..." "Sabido es que la lengua española presenta importantes diferencias de pronunciación, no sólo entre los diversos países en que se habla, sino entre las regiones de un mismo país, y frecuentemente entre las comarcas y lugares de una misma región....

So, you want to learn Spanish? Excellent idea. It will expand your intellectual horizon and keep your mind on its toes for years to come. But you may have a question: Of all the varieties of Spanish in the world, which one should you learn? Peninsular Spanish? Mexican Spanish? Puerto Rican Spanish? And more. And within them, there are many dialects and variants... A dilemma, indeed. I would advise you to learn "educated Spanish" which is the one that sheds local and dialectal types and is easily understood because it is spoken slowly and emphasizes the sounds of the language, even with different rhythms. Shy away from jargon, and helter-skelter pronunciations. Be precise and slow, and savor the sounds of the language, and how each sound connects with another to form the musicality of Spanish. And congratulations on choosing Spanish, a language spoken and written by over 500 million people.  

  Whether your English is from New Zealand, Australia, the US, or the UK... stick to educated English which will always stand you in good stead wherever you go. The same goes for Spanish. There is no such dichotomy as "Castillian Spanish" and "South American Spanish" as many are wont to say. Stick to educated Spanish that will again stand you in good stead in Peru, Mexico, Cuba, or Puerto Rico. Steer away from localisms, slang, and low-life Spanish or English. Repeating the mistakes natives make will never make you sound like a native speaker. Mark my words. With educated English and Spanish , you will gain the respect of locals. Mark my words.

Austin Williams has a YouTube channel on frugality, austerity, and simplicity. He speaks well, has a way with words, nice voice and I just plain like him. He spent two years in Ecuador teaching English and he manages to sprinkle a few words and sentences in Spanish in his talks. But, horrors and procrastination, he tries to imitate Equatorian street Spanish, to sound more authentic I presume, but the result is a disaster. Somehow -I ignore where this has come from- learners of languages try to mimic low-class, low-brow, uneducated Spanish and English believing this type of language is more "authentic" and "real." If Williams ever tried to land a job using this kind of language, he would not get it, unless he was applying for a dog catcher position in New York City. So, please, try to sound literate and educated in any language because you will be better understood and win more friends. Do not say in Spanish:  Na, pa, haiga, amos, sausté, m´ha dicho, bailemos, ca......

Recently, a "professor" of Argentinian Spanish (?) was telling people in Instagram that in that language "coger" means to have sex, and "pillar", means to urinate, and advised her students not to say  "terminar" because it means to have an orgasm. The lesson ended there, thank God, because otherwise, we would have learnt that it is impossible to use plain run-of-the-mill vocabulary in Buenos Aires without offending someone. Of course, the same problem we might encounter in Peru, Chile, Mexico, or Spain, and that´s why I promote the study of cultured, educated, language, in any language. An educated Bolivian will always understand an educated Mexican. So, please, stay away from "colloquial" dialects and stick to mainstream language which will always keep you in good stead.