Foreign Language Requirements

[abrink]

¿Qué piensan de requisitos para estudiantes tomar un idioma extraño? Personalmente pienso si no quiere aprender un idioma, no va a aprenderlo. Muchas escuelas secundarias tienen requisitos para estudiantes tomar un idioma extraño. También muchas universidades tienen requisitos para unas carreras tomar un idioma extraño. No estoy de acuerdo. Pienso aprendiendo un idioma es una cosa bonita, pero no pienso requisitos aprender uno es una buena idea.

Ahora en inglés porque yo sé hay probablemente muchas errores encima de esto. Me gusta si ustedes corrigen, por favor!

I really don't think requiring students to take a foreign language is a good idea. My personal experience is that students that don't want to be in a foreign language classroom bring the overall experience of the class down. Most students have no interest in learning another language, and forcing them to sit through 3 foreign language classes in order to graduate is not going to make them do so. I firmly believe that foreign language learning is a great and beautiful thing, but for many students, it's seen as an unnecessary hassle. What do you all think?

I think introducing foreign languages to students at a young age is a good idea, but I do not think requiring them to take the classes later on is a good idea. If someone would be so kind as to correct my Spanish above I'd greatly appreciate it!

[chileno]

To me it has to do with formation and education. It is real "mind opener", so yes, I think it is good that students are required to take at least one foreign language, especially one of the 5 official UN languages.

[Premium]

Escrito originalmente por abrink

¿Qué piensan de requisitos para estudiantes tomar un idioma extraño? Personalmente pienso si no quiere aprender un idioma, no va a aprenderlo. Muchas escuelas secundarias tienen requisitos para estudiantes tomar un idioma extraño. También muchas universidades tienen requisitos para unas carreras tomar un idioma extraño. No estoy de acuerdo. Pienso aprendiendo un idioma es una cosa bonita, pero no pienso requisitos aprender uno es una buena idea.

Ahora en inglés porque yo sé hay probablemente muchas errores encima de esto. Me gusta si ustedes corrigen, por favor!

I really don't think requiring students to take a foreign language is a good idea. My personal experience is that students that don't want to be in a foreign language classroom bring the overall experience of the class down. Most students have no interest in learning another language, and forcing them to sit through 3 foreign language classes in order to graduate is not going to make them do so. I firmly believe that foreign language learning is a great and beautiful thing, but for many students, it's seen as an unnecessary hassle. What do you all think?

I think introducing foreign languages to students at a young age is a good idea, but I do not think requiring them to take the classes later on is a good idea. If someone would be so kind as to correct my Spanish above I'd greatly appreciate it!

I totally agree with you. When i was in middle school, i had no interest in learning another language. After my graduation, my English was horrific. One day from another, i was totally eager to learn English for no reason. I buyed some movies and started to watch them in English.
It is absolutely necessary to have at least one foreign language in school. Any another should be tought if they sign up for it voluntarily.

[pjt33]

I'll leave the corrections for a native speaker because the changes I would suggest may be larger than necessary to err on the side of caution, although I will comment that the English think would IMO be better translated here by opinar; that the English participle -ing is usually translated by an infinitive; and that I thought you were talking about pre-requisites for studying languages rather than an obligation to study them.

Language lessons aren't just about learning language: they're also about learning culture, which I think chileno's answer hinted at. It's probably a general observation that most people aren't very interested in learning about other cultures, but are happy to stick with crude stereotypes; and in Anglophone countries most people don't see the point of learning other languages. So motivating people in the US or the UK to learn foreign languages is quite hard.

Even if you start them young, a good motivation helps. My nephew and niece have a small incentive to learn Spanish so that they can use it when they visit their uncle in Spain, but to really want to learn it they'd need friends who speak it as a first language.

I think that it's good to make people do lots of subjects at school for a couple of years so that they have opportunity to find out what they enjoy and what they're good at. And I also think that foreign languages have a hidden benefit in helping you understand your native language - in English lessons when I was in my mid-teens, the six hands which went up for every question about grammar belonged to the six people who were studying Latin. But that's a hard sell.

There are some subjects which are considered essential: everyone should learn basic maths and a certain level of skill in an official language of their country of residence. It's an interesting question as to whether foreign languages should be classed in this category.

As a final note, the US college system is quite unusual in insisting that everyone take subjects which are in no wise connected to their focus of study. The experience of other countries would tend to demonstrate that it's not necessary.

[Perikles]

Escrito originalmente por pjt33

I'llThere are some subjects which are considered essential: everyone should learn basic maths and a certain level of skill in an official language of their country of residence. It's an interesting question as to whether foreign languages should be classed in this category..

My own view is that learning a foreign language enhances the understanding of your own mother tongue. This effect is sufficient in itself to justify the effort.

But my view on everything seems to be a minority view.

[chileno]

By the way, when was in school, I also thought it was boring to take English and French. Little did I know I was going to live in another country.

[Emberblaque]

Escrito originalmente por Premium

I totally agree with you. When I was in middle school, I had no interest in learning another language. After my graduation, my English was horrific. From one day to another, I was totally eager to learn English for no reason. I bought some movies and started to watch them in English.
It is absolutely necessary to have at least one foreign language in school. Any another should be taught if they sign up for it voluntarily.

Escrito originalmente por pjt33

I'll leave the corrections for a native speaker because the changes I would suggest may be larger than necessary to err on the side of caution, although I will comment that the English think would IMO be better translated here by opinar; that the English participle -ing is usually translated by an infinitive; and that I thought you were talking about pre-requisites for studying languages rather than an obligation to study them.

Language lessons aren't just about learning language: they're also about learning culture, which I think chileno's answer hinted at. It's probably a general observation that most people aren't very interested in learning about other cultures, but are happy to stick with crude stereotypes; and in Anglophone countries most people don't see the point of learning other languages. So motivating people in the US or the UK to learn foreign languages is quite hard.

Even if you start them young, a good motivation helps. My nephew and niece have a small incentive to learn Spanish so that they can use it when they visit their uncle in Spain, but to really want to learn it they'd need friends who speak it as a first language.

I think that it's good to make people do lots of subjects at school for a couple of years so that they have opportunity to find out what they enjoy and what they're good at. And I also think that foreign languages have a hidden benefit in helping you understand your native language - in English lessons when I was in my mid-teens, the six hands which went up for every question about grammar belonged to the six people who were studying Latin. But that's a hard sell.

There are some subjects which are considered essential: everyone should learn basic maths and a certain level of skill in an official language of their country of residence. It's an interesting question as to whether foreign languages should be classed in this category.

As a final note, the US college system is quite unusual in insisting that everyone take subjects which are in no wise connected to their focus of study. The experience of other countries would tend to demonstrate that it's not necessary.

I agree absolutely that knowledge of a foreign language improves one's knowledge of one's own language. Once I was frustrated with people that would distinguish between the appropriate usage of pronouns, or mention errors in verb usage. The most frequently mentioned errors are confusion of the words "who" and "whom," "who's" and "whose," "me" and "I," and incorrect usage of the verbs "to lie" and "to lay." Now I cannot imagine making those mistakes with my improved understanding of grammar in general, be it English or Spanish.

I didn't know that the U.S. university system was unique in that regard. It has always seemed to me that not only many, but in fact the majority, of the classes one is required to take are what one would describe as filler.

[Premium]

Escrito originalmente por Emberblaque

I agree absolutely that knowledge of a foreign language improves one's knowledge of one's own language. Once I was frustrated with people that would distinguish between the appropriate usage of pronouns, or mention errors in verb usage. The most frequently mentioned errors are confusion of the words "who" and "whom," "who's" and "whose," "me" and "I," and incorrect usage of the verbs "to lie" and "to lay." Now I cannot imagine making those mistakes with my improved understanding of grammar in general, be it English or Spanish.

I didn't know that the U.S. university system was unique in that regard. It has always seemed to me that not only many, but in fact the majority, of the classes one is required to take are what one would describe as filler.

Thank you very much for the corrections. I don't know why I wrote buyed instead of bought, or "any another". I didn't know that "I" is written big, now i know better.

[Rusty]

Escrito originalmente por Premium

I didn't know that "I" is written big, now i know better.

[Emberblaque]

Escrito originalmente por Premium

Thank you very much for the corrections. I don't know why I wrote buyed instead of bought, or "any another". I didn't know that "I" is written big, now i know better.

Certainly. I was surprised as well, because you have always given me the impression that your English is quite good. I forget easily that your mastery lies in many other languages more so than English.