The Bachelor 20 - Ben Higgins - Episode 5 - Discussion - *Sleuthing - Spoilers*

Those video clips are too funny!

I love when Ben says that he also sleeps with a retainer - interesting tidbit!
Hilarious when Ben asks "Whose weave is this?" Boy knows his weaves!

Question as a non-American for Americans: don't most Americans speak basic Spanish? Especially college educated ones? I thought it was mandatory to learn it or some other language? Seems like they were taking lessons though?

I found it funny that Ben usually sees them when they've had time to glam up for him, and he seems to enjoy seeing them in their "natural" state and a glimpse at the "enhancements", like the weave.

AllAboutLove wrote:Question as a non-American for Americans: don't most Americans speak basic Spanish? Especially college educated ones? I thought it was mandatory to learn it or some other language? Seems like they were taking lessons though?

Usually mandatory for a high school and college curriculum but then there are people like me with two years of high school Spanish and a year of college Spanish who remember about 10 words of Spanish.

Calia is a lot closer to her high school\college years than me, seems smart, so perhaps either remembered a lot of Spanish or was a really quick study in the "lessons" they got on group date.

^ IA that Caila closer to college age so more likely to remember if she did take Spanish in college (which I think she did and remembering reading) and probably has an affinity for languages due to her SA in Germany too.

I was thinking about the other girls though... I guess I shouldn't be surprised with Emily. She's sweet but doesn't strike me as the sharpest tool in the shed.

Not to mention... that was pretty basic Spanish lessons though so shouldn't be too hard to mimic or say in that specific setting since they were learning the phrases and it's not like they showed the girls talking Spanish out and about - it was in a class setting. I do like that they tried to get them to learn though even so!

AllAboutLove wrote:Question as a non-American for Americans: don't most Americans speak basic Spanish? Especially college educated ones? I thought it was mandatory to learn it or some other language? Seems like they were taking lessons though?

It was mandatory at my school, and all the high schools around me, to have at least two years of a foreign language. Many of the bigger schools offered more options than just Spanish and German like my school.

For college it really depends on the school. I was not required for my major but I know those in the liberal arts college were.

I took three years in high school and 4 in elementary/middle school plus went on a school trip to Spain in high school. I probably remember more conversational Spanish than most who only took a few years. It comes back pretty quickly IMO when I'm forced to use it.

Neither of my boys took Spanish in HS. One took French and the other German. What's funny is that both chose to do Spanish in college.  ETA: I found people in Europe that I met seemed to fairly fluent in more than one language which is far beyond my HS & college Spanish/French.

^ Yeah I think it would be easier when a language is more frequently spoken or heard in a day to day setting.

I do like that they traveled this year though! I hope they do something charity related on the trip.

albean99 wrote:Neither of my boys took Spanish in HS. One took French and the other German. What's funny is that both chose to do Spanish in college.  ETA: I found people in Europe that I met seemed to fairly fluent in more than one language which is far beyond my HS & college Spanish/French.

I believe the group date involves using the Spanish lessons to go out in Mexico City and buy the ingredients to cook a Spanish dish, so a little more than the usual conversational Spanish.

Jubilee and Lauren B "won" the competition so they either know some Spanish or were quick studies.

Can just imagine citizens of Mexico City having random women in a "competition", so in a hurry, asking where to buy cooking ingredients:giggling:

albean99 wrote:Neither of my boys took Spanish in HS. One took French and the other German. What's funny is that both chose to do Spanish in college.  ETA: I found people in Europe that I met seemed to fairly fluent in more than one language which is far beyond my HS & college Spanish/French.

Are these three languages the most commonly taught ones in the US?

ITA about those speaking more than one language but it makes sense given they are languages usually spoken daily. As someone who grew up in a country that has 11 official languages it is/was the norm to speak/understand at least 3 or more languages at minimum and then even learn more languages at an early age academically.

It's especially interesting to me that languages in the US seem to be most commonly taught at the HS or College level instead of from kindergarten - it's one of the key differences I see which I think probably make for not retaining what is learned along with no need to speak it daily for most people.

Sorry for O/T but it is fascinating stuff and I love learning about all cultures!

AllAboutLove wrote:Question as a non-American for Americans: don't most Americans speak basic Spanish? Especially college educated ones? I thought it was mandatory to learn it or some other language? Seems like they were taking lessons though?

Back in my high school days, it was recommended that a student who was preparing for college take at least 2-3 years of a foreign language. I took three years of Spanish and two of French. I continued to study French in college and almost had enough credits for a second major. I can read French well enough to get the gist of a post or article, but both my spoken French and Spanish are tourist level at best.

My high school offered Spanish, French, German, Latin and Russian. My university offered every major language under the sun.

It doesn't surprise me that Caila could pick up Spanish quickly.

AllAboutLove wrote:It's especially interesting to me that languages in the US seem to be most commonly taught at the HS or College level instead of from kindergarten - it's one of the key differences I see which I think probably make for not retaining what is learned along with no need to speak it daily for most people.

Right, use it or lose it. That was my problem. By the time that I graduated from college, I was nearly fluent in French, but I didn't have the opportunity to practice it. Many of us live too far from either French-speaking Canada or Mexico to make frequent travel possible.