Program Description
This is a comprehensive Spanish language program that provides immediate access to functional language skills for non-Spanish-speaking individuals who have a need to acquire specific personal information and data from Spanish-speakers. The language component utilizes phonetic encoding to address the most important Spanish commands, questions, and phrases pertinent to daily interactions. No prior knowledge of Spanish necessary.

Goal
To provide non-Spanish-speaking persons with specific Spanish language skills so that they will be able to better assist their Spanish-speaking customers and/or clients with routine questions about themselves and/or others.

Objectives
Upon completion, participants will be able to use Spanish to: obtain proof or copies of specific documents; acquire names, addresses, and phone numbers; retrieve birth information; inquire about educational and employment history; request vehicle description and proof of insurance; and ask for basic financial, housing, legal, and medical information.

Methods of Instruction
Modeling, intensive drill, choral response, alpha-beta line, learning pairs and triads, Total Physical Response, role-playing, simulations, and situation cards.

Cross-Cultural Component
None.

Intended Audience
This is intended for non-Spanish-speaking employees of various government offices (federal, state, and county), social services, utility companies, financial institutions, billing departments, and service establishments. Employees in these areas can use this program to obtain basic information form Spanish-speaking customers and/or clientele.

Length of Instruction
16 to 30 hours, depending on client's needs and interests.

Special Considerations
This program is unlike most Command Spanish® in that it teaches primarily "scripted Spanish." This means that participants are taught how to read a majority of the language items in Spanish from the manual. Interviewers learn how to conduct interviews in Spanish by reading from prescribed lines from the manual.