vi elekti

[Unkotare]

So, when I was in school the choices available for the foreign language requirement were limited to French and Spanish. That's it. Same for my older siblings when they had been in school. Spanish and French, French and Spanish. For decades that's just the way it was. Of course private schools have always offered a wider range of choices, and even today public schools are often offering a variety of languages to choose from. However, it seems that French and Spanish still predominate. Is this productive for the world we are educating children to enter today?

If a school were limited to offering just three foreign languages (for the sake of argument), which three would you choose and why?

 

[Unkotare]

And I wonder if it might be a positive to deliberately leave Spanish off the list? Perhaps a controversial view, but...

 

[Unkotare]

Does anyone see the utility of teaching so many American students French in this day and age?

 

[jillian]

Does anyone see the utility of teaching so many American students French in this day and age?

i est important de parler des autres langues. et quand je suis au paris le semaine prochaine, je vais être capable de communiquer un petit peu.

mais surtout, il ne se trompe jamais d'apprendre

 

[Unkotare]

I wasn't talking about the general importance of being able to communicate in other languages, as the OP makes clear. I was talking about what would be the most useful choices for American students today in learning a foreign language or languages. Considering the likelihood of American studetns really mastering another language to a significant degree, it seems prudent to make such choices wisely.

 

[Si modo]

My HS offered French, Spanish, German, Russian, Hebrew, and Latin.

If limited to three, I would offer French, Spanish, and German.

 

[Unkotare]

My HS offered French, Spanish, German, Russian, Hebrew, and Latin.

If limited to three, I would offer French, Spanish, and German.

Ok. Why those?

 

[Unkotare]

What particular use do those languages have for an American today?

 

[old navy]

I see no benefit in Americans learning other languages except in certain situations.

The system in which I teach offers Mandarin in elementary school.

My school is the most diverse in the system and we offer Spanish, French, German, Arabic, and probably others I don't remember. Many of the middle eastern kids struggle with Arabic and some Hispanic kids struggle with Spanish.

Lots of people around the world learn English early in life. It is the language of business in this global economy and the language of international flight travel. Although I still speak Southern English, it has served me well for several decades.

 

[blimpo]

The best language is 'speak no evil'.

 

[Unkotare]

That's not a language, but thanks.

 

[Unkotare]

Is the fact that pretty much everyone everywhere is trying to learn English a disincentive for American students to learn foreign languages?

 

[Unkotare]

For American students, would this be time better spent on English, History, Math, and Science?

 

[whitehall]

Many foreign countries (including Vietnam) have a link to French or Spanish colonialism and if you learn the languages you have a shot at being able to converse with the people. American union based education system is so inadequate that it makes sense to teach relatively easy to learn foreign languages.

 

[Unkotare]

Many foreign countries (including Vietnam) have a link to French or Spanish colonialism and if you learn the languages you have a shot at being able to converse with the people. American union based education system is so inadequate that it makes sense to teach relatively easy to learn foreign languages.

And what do you consider "relatively easy to learn foreign languages"?

 

[Unkotare]

Another issue is the effectiveness of foreign language courses in public schools. If students left other courses with such a lack of proficiency, something would surely be changed.