The Importance of Learning Foreign Languages Essay

Language is a key part of any family, community, culture and the human race. Without language the world today would be much different. From cavemen, to the Egyptian use of hieroglyphics, to Old English, to more than 6,500 languages spoken around the world today, the advances that humans have made in language is remarkable and inspiring. The ability to speak, read, write and understand more than one language is also remarkable and expands the liberties in life, especially for young people. High school students should be required to take at least two years of a foreign language class in order to graduate, as many recent studies support the benefits of doing so. Students who have learned a foreign language in high school have proven to have a …show more content…
Requiring two years of foreign language study for high school graduation would benefit students greatly as they move onto college. Acceptance rate, ability to succeed in and graduation rate would increase greatly if all college students were bilingual. Some students would argue that taking a foreign language class in high school would not benefit them after graduation, as they plan to study a major in which being multilingual is not essential. This may seem reasonable as some majors, such as cosmetology or psychology may not ever use a foreign language nor require further study of a foreign language. However, studies have shown that studying a foreign language builds more skills than just language. Memorization, critical thinking and interpretation skills improve immensely in those students who take a foreign language class in high school (“Benefits and Opportunities” 1). Students can then use these skills to improve academic performance in other areas, improving overall college success. Globalization has recently reached the corporate world, and seemed to be instantaneous. Around 40 percent of large U.S. companies have reached overseas, allowing them to profit from the markets of foreign countries. Due to the rapid increase of companies becoming multinational, major businesses seek to hire employees who are able to speak more than one language, as multilingual candidates are equipped
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Language is a key part of any family, community, culture and the human race. Without language the world today would be much different. From cavemen, to the Egyptian use of hieroglyphics, to Old English, to more than 6,500 languages spoken around the world today, the advances that humans have made in language is remarkable and inspiring. The ability to speak, read, write and understand more than one language is also remarkable and expands the liberties in life, especially for young people. High school students should be required to take at least two years of a foreign language class in order to graduate, as many recent studies support the benefits of doing so. Students who have learned a foreign language in high school have proven to have a higher success rate in college, enhanced career opportunities and increased cultural awareness. The goal of most high school students is to eventually go on to a college or university. Research shows that taking foreign language classes in high school improves the likelihood of being accepted to, succeeding in and graduating from college. If not required by the college or university, seeing foreign language courses on potential students’ transcripts is appealing to the schools. Many post-secondary schools, including the most prestigious ones such as Princeton and Stanford, often require incoming students to have taken foreign language classes in high school before being admitted (Damschen). After being admitted, bilingual students seem to be more successful in college than monolingual students. According to a study done in 2001, college students who had taken at least three years of a foreign language in high school showed to earn higher grades in college and were less likely to drop out (Horn and Kojaku). Horn and Kojaku’s findings also support that fact that taking a foreign language class in high school increases the chances of graduating from a post-secondary institute. Requiring two years of foreign language study for high school graduation would benefit students greatly as they move onto college. Acceptance rate, ability to succeed in and graduation rate would increase greatly if all college students were bilingual. Some students would argue that taking a foreign language class in high school would not benefit them after graduation, as they plan to study a major in which being multilingual is not essential. This may seem reasonable as some majors, such as cosmetology or psychology may not ever use a foreign language nor require further study of a foreign language.