Sowing Seeds of Understanding: Language Lessons for the Land
Did you know that the United States of America does not have an official language? At first glance, this might be easy to brush off but it ties into a much greater challenge that agriculture business owners encounter daily – the language barrier. According to a study done by the National Center for Farmwork Health, Inc., 70% of agricultural workers were foreign-born and 62% of respondents were most comfortable speaking Spanish (2022). Language barriers can lead to challenges in the workplace in many areas whether it's communicating about what tasks need to be done or building credibility as a leader. Katie Dotterer, is on a mission to bridge this labor gap and help more people in agriculture learn Spanish or English as a second language.
Katie grew up on a dairy farm and was exposed to this language barrier in high school. Like many high schoolers, she completed basic Spanish courses, however, she felt disappointed because she still didn’t know how to communicate. Her family had Hispanic employees who helped teach her more of the language in high school but after college and co-owning a dairy of her own, she saw the need to go back to school and become fluent. “We always talk about the gap between agriculture and consumers. But I was noticing the gap within agriculture, and that was the gap between Spanish and English. It’s a cultural gap that leads to a lot of misunderstandings,” said Dotterer. This recognition of the problem and her desire to make a difference now has her teaching ag specific Spanish and English courses online and in person.
The courses Dotterer teaches aren’t just any courses. They are designed to be industry-specific within agriculture and include a wide variety of students. “We actually practice numbers in ear tag form and are putting together basic sentences by week three that allow you to communicate about animals being sick or where to find things around your facility,” said Katie. As a farmer herself, she understands what traditional language courses leave out and how to make this experience applicable to agriculture. Her students on average are in their forties but her oldest student is 74 years old.
One of the main reasons Katie encourages people to learn a second language is due to the respect you create and the positive outcomes that come as secondary benefits. She likes to share the story of one student who had been collecting milk samples at a Wisconsin dairy for years but never interacted with the other employees. One morning she simply said, “Buenos dias.” and the entire working dynamic changed. The shift went by faster. They were learning from each other and when she went out to her car, the other employees had cleared off all the snow that had accumulated during the snowstorm that day without her asking.
Dotterer encourages those who are scared to learn a new language to take a lesson from children and try something new. “You’ve got to have a good attitude about it and be willing to laugh at yourself. I’ve been speaking Spanish for a decade now and still mess up!” said Katie. Think about it as meeting people halfway and showing respect to them as they learn how to be better communicators too. To learn more about Katie and how to learn a second language as an adult, head to her website https://www.agvokate.com/
Sources
https://www.ncfh.org/facts-about-agricultural-workers-fact-sheet.html
