New language school opening in Santa Cruz will offer Arabic, Portuguese, Russian, among others.
Senator Paul Simon once said that the United States is “linguistically malnourished” compared to other countries. It could be the result of geographic isolation or the growing importance of English in international forums and online. But the failure to speak a second and third language has its drawbacks too. It can certainly affect international business: an popular anecdote tells how General Motors marketed its Chevrolet Nova in Latin America without realizing how clumsy the name was. “No va” in Spanish means “it doesn’t go.” There is the problem of intelligence, and a dearth of people who can understand Arabic, Pashto, or Somali, and there is the benefit of a global education, where young Americans can learn to appreciate the rich cultures of other nations.
Raymond Samaha is out to change all that. He will be opening a new language school in Santa Cruz, where people can learn to communicate in French, Spanish, Mandarin, Arabic, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, German and Italian. The school will cater to children and adults, offering flexible scheduling and even night classes.
A UCSC graduate with a Ph.D. in molecular biology opened Aux Trois Pommes after realizing that the traditional way that languages are taught in high schools is not very appealing. “Practice is the key,” he says, “but we also bring into the classroom what’s different about a culture.” This includes special immersion programs, which offer students of all ages a chance to “live their language” by experiencing the culture in which it is spoken. He talks about having origami classes in Japanese and puppet shows for children, all intended to introduce students to the languages as they are spoken. Learning becomes a hands-on experience, taking advantage of the diverse community that makes up Santa Cruz. Read More at the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
