Why Learn Languages?

One of the hardest parts of being a language teacher is when your students come to your lessons with a preconceived attitude that learning languages are pointless. "Everyone else speaks English"; "I`m never going to go to France"; "Spanish isn`t going to help me be a plumber" are comments I hear on a daily basis. And frankly, it can be very depressing to hear this closed mindset from such young learners.

However, there are many benefits that come from learning a language. This is something that is understood by my adult learners, and indeed by people I meet who tell me how `lucky` and `clever` I am to speak a foreign language, and how they wish they`d paid more attention at school. Language learning is seen as a difficult subject at school, and only those who are academic can do it. While this may be true, in that it isn`t easy to suddenly become fluent in a second language, the hard work can and does pay off not only n the long run, but can have more immediate benefits for the learner.

1) Language Learning Improves Literacy

Low literacy is often a reason given for why a child isn`t succeeding in learning another language, and some will say if a child struggles with English, then being made to learn French/Spanish/German is going to do more harm than good. However, learning a language will often help a great deal in improving their English. When learning a language, you are forced to spend time understanding the grammar and structuring of the language, and how it works in comparison to English. This is something that is often overlooked in literacy lessons at school, so children don`t know the rules to their own language. Understanding why we say `it wasn`t me` (as opposed to `it weren`t me`) can go a great way to helping a child think about the language they use and how they express themselves, which can only be a positive influence.

Learning languages will also boost vocabulary used not only in the target language, but also in English. In the Romance languages most words are latinate based, and so are similar to many words in English that are considered `higher level`. German has a lot of Greek influence, and again many words originating from Ancient Greek exist in English. So exposure to these words through language learning will mean a child learns to expand their own vocabulary as well, which will help lead to a higher level of literacy.

2) Language Learning Boosts Brain Power Studies have shown that those who are bilingual (having knowledge of two or more languages) are less likely to develop dementia in older age. The idea being that learning a language slows down the rate the brain ages, and research has shown those who speak two or more languages perform better in cognitive and intelligence tests, compared to those who only spoke one language. Speaking two languages keeps the brain more active, and boost brain power, and slow down the degenerative effects of ageing.

3) Learning Languages Shows Hard Work and Determination Telling an 11 year old that having a Language GCSE will look good on their CV often falls on deaf ears, but it is true. Unfortunately, numbers of students obtaining GCSEs and A-Levels in a language have fallen sharply in recent years, mainly due to the belief that is it harder to achieve top grades, compared to other subjects. It has been reported that the easiest way to secure a place at Oxford University is by applying for a course in Modern Foreign Languages, as there is less competition for places, compared to other degree courses. While this is not a reason to apply for languages, it is true now that employers and universities see a language qualification as a sign that a candidate is hardworking, resilient and independent; all positive qualities that may give your CV the edge over other candidates.

4) Language Learning Opens Doors Following on from the previous point, knowing another language opens someone up to possibilities they may not have even thought of before. Every live in an ever increasingly global world, and it is no longer safe to assume that it will be possible in the future to get by only knowing English. The possibility to travel for work or pleasure is ever wider with another language known, and increasingly those who speak only English will be at a disadvantage in the workplace even if they stay at home.