Foreign Language Instruction in America

[Strelnikov]

We do a poor job of it. Generally, it consists of two one-year courses in secondary school. Most students regard it as irrelevant to their lives, something to be gotten through and gratefully forgotten afterward. We can get away with this because English is the de-facto common language of the world.

OTOH, my Pakistani immigrant friend started learning English the day he started school. All instruction in secondary school and university was in English. No one will mistake him for a native speaker, but his English is better than that of some people who are.

It's difficult to really understand someone when you don't speak his language. Language and thought are intimately connected. One reason that Arabs are so foreign to us is that the style guide for educated speakers of Arabic is the Koran. It pervades their whole culture and imposes a 7th Century mindset on it.

We would do better here to emulate the Pakistanis. Children learn languages effortlessly, even two or more simultaneously - we're genetically programmed for it. By onset of puberty, though, this ability disappears in almost everyone. Furthermore, the vocal apparatus takes a "set", which makes it nearly impossible to pronounce sounds not used in the languages they already know. The difficulties Asian immigrants have with English "L" and "R" sounds are a case in point. For that matter, my immigrant grandparents were fluent in English, but never lost their heavy foreign accent even after a lifetime here.

I think that foreign languages should be part of every primary school curriculum, from the beginning. Anyone else have any thoughts on the matter? I would especially like to hear from our foreign members.

Strelnikov

 

[qjakal]

Agreed...

Could we add on a solid grounding in Latin as well? It gives you the ability to analyze nearly every other language and provides a framework to see how many of the current languages developed. I took 8 years of one language, 4 of Latin and 3 of another. This does seem to be a part of education that has been put aside, but I'm sure we'll hear from a few teachers to help explain it ...... Q

 

[omega]

More than education has to change

I live in an area where about 5% of the population is Hispanic. I think the last one who spoke only Spanish died last year. Many of the older ones are of course bilingual having grown up in the USA. It is their children who are losing the Spanish. They understand it but do not have any desire to speak it or to see their children learn it.

Case in point: There is an Hispana named Gloria attending our church. Her parents are bilingual and in the home almost always use Spanish. She is also bilingual but in her home speaks very little Spanish. (Side bar: She is married to a man who grew up in Honduras and is bilingual. Conversations between the two are interesting, he almost always uses Spanish with her and she almost always uses English in reply.) Her two daughters understand Spanish but do not want to speak it at all. I have told the oldest daughter, who is a freshman in High School, that it is a wonderful gift to have two or more languages. She says, "Yea I know, when I am older I will regret it, but I don't care." I wonder if the problem is that because most of the population around her is not bilingual she is going through that teenage fear of being wierd and different.

BTW Q: I stand in awe! You are an amazing person! Pro bowler, airplane owner, language expert, and of course, tickler! Now if we could just get you into church.😀

 

[qjakal]

Vice versa...

I kinda like you too, buddy! Now if only we could get you OUTTA church...lol! 😉 Q

 

[CDFGA]

How about "Speak English (The official language) while in the U.S.A."

 

[desdemona]

Ah......but Native American tongues were spoken here first. We didn't exactly honor those now, did we?

I'm all for foreign language instruction. I even minored in French (albeit a lost cause except for being able to read some literary works and chat with some nice Europeans 🙂 But nowadays, as I watch teenagers who turn in English assignments with misspelled words, it pains me to hear that these papers are returned uncorrected - because everyone will have a computer, everyone will have spell check...no need to teach spelling. Hell, why bother with math? Everyone has a calculator...

Friends who are educators are caught up in teaching students how to pass standardized or proficiency tests. The curriculum is geared around being able to prepare students for these cursed things which will determine if they progress to the next grade level or not...or if the school will be accredited or not.

Foreign languages, fine arts, and other so called electives are sacrificed because we can't teach the simple abc's/123's anymore. It really saddens me. It's getting harder and harder to get a decent education around here. Yet we pay our taxes and watch quietly as the system sinks and standards are lowered. Wouldn't it be nice if the schools sought not only to turn out 'educated' students, but students who could think for themselves? With all the testing regimens kids go through nowadays, it's a wonder what they remember after their brains are crammed with so much information. But the ability to teach students to reason logically and communicate is far beyond the scope of most institutions it would appear. Nice thought...wishful thinking.

 

[Deleted member 2452]

i agree strel

we should start teaching other languages early. but which languages? you'll need a whole lot more teachers to do this. my other problem is which languages? i for one will not let my kids learn spanish. my oldest is in high scholl, and she's taking italian. loves it, and plans on taking it all 4 years. i took german in high school for 4 years.
but we all should learn another language.
steve

 

[omega]

Re: Vice versa...

I kinda like you too, buddy! Now if only we could get you OUTTA church...lol! 😉 Q

Well, you can talk to my Boss about it.😉

 

[shark]

What can you expect when a head of the NEA has stated that teaching math was no longer necessary because everyone uses calculators?

Except when the battery dies....
or it breaks.........
or gets too dirty.........
or the user doesn't notice his or her "big fingers"........
Or cold weather affects the battery.....this DOES occur...........
Or you just didn't think of carrying the thing around like your very own personal electronic tumor?

 

[qjakal]

Omega:

Well, you can talk to my Boss about it.

I'm still chatting with a few of his generals over here, omega...Egan in particular has my attention at the moment. Can you say: "Resign after opening your files?" Hope he can... Q

 

[Haltickling]

I can only agree that learning a foreign language would be good for everybody. In Germany, all kids have to learn English from the 5th grade onward. Grammar school students (from grade 5 to 13) have to learn a second language (mostly French, Latin for some), sometimes even a third one. Additionally, there are a lot of optional courses in other languages (Italian, Spanish, Russian, Chinese) offered. All Swiss children have to learn German, French, and Italian, as they have three national languages.

In my own life, I've learnt 7 different foreign languages. Additionally, I know the 20 most important words in about a dozen other languages (yes, no, please, thank you, hello, good-bye, where is-, how much is-, a beer/coffee/sandwich please, and the basic numbers). It was a tremendous help in my job as a travel agent. Speaking the native language (at least a little) helps to open minds and hearts of the locals. I always found that people are much friendlier if the stranger has taken the effort of learning their language, if only a few words. It proves that their own identity is more accepted and respected.

IMO, America has been depending for too long on English as the world business language. Japan and the so-called 'Small Tiger States' in South-East Asia took away a lot of business in Europe from America by understanding that the only language good for business is the customer's language.

I'm actually not favoring Latin at all, except for deeper language studies. In real life, Latin is not very helpful. Do you know why physicians use so much Latin in their language? They want their patients to become accustomed to a dead language… 😀

Some amusing anecdotes on language: A turn-of-the-19th century British Gentleman was much admired for his traveling the world. One day he was asked: "Say, have you never encountered language problems in these foreign parts?" He replied in his dignified way: "Not at all, old chap. Only the natives there had a language problem".

And there was the elderly American lady who never understood why other nations would speak a different language. She used to say: "After all, if God had wished us to speak different languages, he wouldn't have written the Bible in English!" (Both anecdotes are taken from Charles Berlitz's book "The Wonderful World of Languages")🙂

 

[P.H. Tickler]

French and Spanish

Yes, children have the ability to learn a great deal at that age when their (correct me if this is wrong...) "Alpha Neurons" are active. By the time they are older, it's very hard to do effectively.
I suggest French and Spanish for all of America's youth, then when they are adults, instead of losing their jobs to NAFTA, they can follow them to Mexico and Canada.😉