Why Don't More Americans Speak a Second Language?
By
Staten Island, NY Posted: 9/14/2016 1:00:00 AM
It seems like everyone in Europe speaks at least 2-3 languages, but most Americans only speak English. Why is that?
Like most Americans, my education included at least 6 years of foreign language studies, starting with the 6th grade, but I can barely order a burrito at Taco Bell without sounding like a tourist.
It's hard to pinpoint why my language education didn't stick, because I didn't just forget what I learned. I never really grasped the language even when I was in school, and I can say the same for just about everyone I went to school with. I think there's something fundamentally wrong with the way we teach foreign languages in the US.
Perhaps it's a lack of practice. The moment we step out of that classroom, we aren't motivated to use anything we learned. I'm not exactly sure how to fix the problem, but I think we should find a better way to motivate students to learn a second language.
In today's connected world, language skills are very important, so it's even more important for students to really learn and use more than one language.
Joe Crescenzi, Founder
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