Should forgein languages be mandatory?

I don't think that teaching racists Spanish, Arabic, French (etc) is going to make them hate whatever their target ethnicity is any less. Sorry, I just don't see the connection.

-Paige

For all the college preperatory kids at my high school were reqiured to take two years of a foriegn language to graduate. By my senior year we had 4 Spanish teachers, 1 french and 1 latin. ( you can tell the most popular language). Even though I don't remember all the spanish I learned 2 years later, it is still a good idea to learn at least a little of another language. Unfortunately, the vocational track kids didn't have to take a foreign language, but most of the kids at my school were college prep anyway.

~ible

I absolutely agree with you. This is ironic because I totally slacked off in my language classes in high school, but now after moving to a foreign nation for a while, I can honestly say that knowing another language would be the best possible thing. Even when I still lived in new england, knwoing Spanish would have been great. I'd love to see more emphasis on language in public schools.

(if you can't see the fnords they won't eat you)

Kids need to learn languages and at a young age - its easier the younger you are!

Definitely.Foreign langueges should be required just like math is, so that in first grade, kids should be able to at least count in another languege. I did not take any foreing langueges until ninth grade, when I was less impressionable, always thinking in English, even in Spanish class. I was always frustrated with how little I learned. Now I intend to live in another country, where I hope to have no other choice but learn the native languege.
And as for the post higher up, teaching a foreign languege is also about learning about the cultures that speak those langueges. And hate is the child of ignorance, if I may use a cliche. So by preventing ignorance and misconseptions, we can prevent hate. Racism is learned, you aren't born with it 9sorry about all the cliches, but they seem to help my point). So with studies in other cultures, they will learn to appreciate other cultures.

I think foreign language classes should absolutely be mandatory. I think that this entitled belief many Americans have that America is the only country of importance and that English is the only language worth speaking is simply pathetic and untrue. I think that at least one, if not two, foreign languages should be required starting in middle school at the absolute latest.

You're absolutely right! Whether people like it or not, or country is filled with other languages. You can no longer make a phone call without hearing a robot on the other line say "Para espanol..." We need to start early in our education to keep up with the changes are country is going through and languages is just one minor part of those changes...

You're absolutely right! Whether people like it or not, or country is filled with other languages. You can no longer make a phone call without hearing a robot on the other line say "Para espanol..." We need to start early in our education to keep up with the changes are country is going through and languages is just one minor part of those changes...

I think that foreign languages should be madatory. In our society today we allow all language speaking individuals to live in our country. In that case in order to be successful as a business or at a job you must be able to communicate. If you can't communicate you lose your business and if you can then you are making that much more money. Nice post.

We have immigrants coming to America who speak hundreds of different languages. I don't buy the argument that forcing kids to learn foreign languages is going to better unite America as a people. Obviously Americans can't be expected to learn all these languages. It is far more practical for immigrants coming to America to learn the single common languages which has united us through past waves of abnormally high immigration and that is English. Indeed, any person who becomes a citizen is required to demonstrate a basic command of English. I think we should considerably strengthen this requirement because more than anything else, a single common language is what unites us. It is far easier to teach the 1 million immigrants who come every year English then it is to teach 300 million Americans the hundreds of different languages these immigrants speak.

There are indeed other good reasons for some people to learn foreign languages. I think it is important that our schools continue to offer these people the choice of learning foreign languages. I speak enough Spanish to get by pretty well when I go to Mexico and I have found having a second language useful in a modest way. But frankly, compared to reading or arithmatic or history or a basic knowledge of science or computer literacy, it is way down the list of important knowlege and skills.

A very large segment of our population is having trouble graduating from highschool with current requirements and it is fairly clear that our schools are having a very tough time successfully teaching the current required curriculum. I think they have more than enough on their plate and rather than loading them with additional required subjects we should instead consider reducing the number of required subjects so that schools can focus on doing a better job teaching the three R's. Other subjects could be optional for the students who are interested.

As countries go, America is fairly low on the list of the proportion of our population that is bilingual. That has not stopped us from becoming the most powerful country in the world in almost every measurable way. We have thrived without a bilingual population so apparently it is not very important. I think we should focus on other things like ensuring that more people graduate from highschool and ensuring that they can actually read when they do graduate.