Taking Spanish in school can be confusing, especially for students who already speak it at home.

At Hoover High School, a lot of Latino students notice that the Spanish taught in class is closer to the Spanish spoken in Spain or other Latin American countries, but not in Mexico. Teachers use words like “vosotros” for “you all,” which most Mexicans never say. For students used to Mexican Spanish, it can make lessons feel disconnected from their own experience.

Spanish and French are the main languages offered in schools, but Hoover High is a lot more diverse than that. There are over ten languages spoken among students here, and living in San Diego, especially in our neighborhood.  We have a big Vietnamese community. Offering Vietnamese classes, or even other languages like Japanese or Arabic, would give students more options to learn something that actually connects to their lives.

Adding more languages would also make school more inclusive. Students who speak other languages at home could feel seen and represented in the classroom. It could also help students prepare for college and jobs in a world where knowing more than one language is a real advantage especially if a student is required to take Spanish but they already speak Spanish.

Hoover High has a lot of students with different backgrounds and experiences. Offering more languages would make learning more relevant and interesting, and it would show that the school cares about the diversity of its students. Spanish and French are useful, but they shouldn’t be the only choices. Expanding language options would make school a better place for everyone, and it could even make students more excited to learn if it’s a language they are interested in or a language that is commonly spoken in a country they plan on traveling to.