Is it unwise to learn spanish from Spain sources?
I'm learning spanish for latin america, but most all of my learning sources(books, tv shows, movies) come from Spain. Should I scrap all the Spain stuff and only use the Latin american sources?
6 Answers
I don't know where you are based. You say you have a teacher from Guatemala. In the end do things you enjoy - music/films/TV articles and try and listen to a range of accents.
When I was at school our teacher had learned her language from Spain - she was Welsh but the assistant we had in the second year was from Uruguay.
Our teacher is from Madrid but we have also had a Mexican teacher. I have been to Mexico and found it fun that many of the words were different to those used in Spain but most of the grammar and words are the same.
In Spain most of the population say z and c as th. However, you choose to speak be consistent. I live in the UK and understand most Americans and all Canadians Australians etc - they will sometimes use a different word to one I am used to but that is more fun. We do have a lot of American and Australian programmes on TV.
When I started improving my Spanish years after school, I used Notes in Spanish which is run by a lady from Madrid and her British husband. It was clear from their site that many people who were unlikely to travel to Spain but would come into contact with Spanish speakers from Latin America were using the material.
Learn how to pronounce Spanish and improve your listening skills. RTVE has loads of radio and TV programmes and on more recent programmes offer subtitles and a transcription - I assume for hearing impaired but brilliant help for those learning Spanish.
Despite learning mainly from people from Spain I have made myself understood in Peru, Cuba and Mexico.
There is a brilliant song which is on here and other forums from 2 Colombian brothers explaining how difficult it is to speak Spanish. They cleverly go through various words which have different meanings in different Spanish speaking countries. Here is a link:
Not really. Either will help you the same.
Edit:
Just think about this:
Do British people speak English or British?
Do American speak American or English?
Should I scrap all the Spain stuff and only use the Latin american sources?
No, not at all. In fact, I strongly recommend it.
There's a very overwhelming reason you want to learn from both, from anywhere really - you never know who you'll be speaking to.
I've spoken to people from a variety of countries with varying levels of education, some who speak very proper Spanish, some who speak with a ton of slang or even flat out poor Spanish and the fact that I used a ton of different materials from Spanish speakers all over has helped me tremendously. That variety in your learning can be the difference between understanding what's going on vs. being completely lost in the conversation. Imagine if you've only ever studied Latin American Spanish and you end up face to face with a Cuban or Dominican speaking Caribbean Spanish. Good luck with that!
But honestly, at the end of the day, Spanish is Spanish. Learn what you can from wherever and whoever you can, especially in the beginning. Although there are differences, they have more in common then they do apart. And you'll see this as you continue your studies and actually get out there and talk to people.
By learning from both types of resources, you get accustomed to various accents and colloquial words and expressions and increase your overall understanding of the Spanish language as whole.
And here's another tip, Latin American Spanish varies greatly as well. What you hear from people in Mexico and Central America will be different from the Spanish you hear in the Caribbean, and both will be different from the Spanish you hear in Chile, Argentina and Uruguay.
Choose a country/dialect to mimic your Spanish after (I chose Mexican Spanish because I spend more time around them, and even that varies regionally) but expose yourself to all types of Spanish. Don't eliminate a resource for any reason. If it's got good stuff and teaches you a lot, use it!
You need to decide which form of Spanish you prefer to learn: the Castellano spoken in Spain or the Spanish spoken in Latin America...but please remember that neither one is superior to the other...it is just a matter of personal choice and the likely opportunities you will have to travel and/or practise it with Spanish speaking natives! 
I have received tuition from Spanish speaking natives from South America and also from Spain in my life and I have benefited from the rich experienceis of both forms! I have personally chosen to focus on learning Castellano from Spain because I will probably have more opportunities to visit Spain because it is closer, and cheaper to visit.
My native Spanish teacher recently told me that there is little difference in the grammar used between the Spanish spoken in Spain and Latin America but it is when you come to the verbs used and the colloquial and idiomatic expressions that you will know/experience the difference!
It is entirely up to you to decide whether you keep these learning materials ..but I would encourage you to wait and see what the Spanish natives say in response to your post here before taking the somewhaf drastic step of throwing them away!
Have you tried using Yabla? It is a website with video resources eg videos recorded by native speakers from Spain and Latin America. You can check it out at Yabla.com
I hope this helps
On a lighter note, We (españoles) invented this language--or rather we corrupted Latin sufficiently enough to make it a decent speakable language So stick with your Castellano. My Mexican friends smile when they hear my accent.
I wouldn't ignore the original language. If you speak Latin American Spanish, you should be able to understand Castillian Spanish with no difficulty, outside of having to look up a word or two.
