Study shows that Spanish can help with general academic success.

The University of Missouri recently published a report on the benefits an additional language can have in a general educational setting. Specifically, they looked at the importance of the Spanish language in a group of over 400 Mexican-American students, and how the differing use of their native language had an impact over their grades at school.

The study looked took into account where the students were born and measured their ability to perform college-related tasks and monitored the average grades achieved.

The findings unequivocally showed that the students that actively spoke their native language, both at school and at home and those who identified with their Hispanic culture achieved higher grades throughout all subjects than those who limited their use of Spanish, and spoke in a predominantly English environment.

The study serves as further evidence supporting the significance and advantageous qualities of learning languages, not only as a skill, but also as a way to aid more developed thinking. The lead researcher, David Aguayo, stated that the survey had a simple correlation- exposure to your native culture and language both at home and at school is of definite educational benefit.

Not only is the presence of Spanish increasing in the US, so too is its importance. If you’d like to brush up on your Spanish, or even start it from scratch, then why not book a Spanish course in Latin America or even Spain. The benefits are irrefutable!