Americans have got to catch up to the rest of the world on the language curve.
You do not have to be an International Affairs major or even be interested in traveling to learn another language.
I am actually embarrassed at our educational system, and honestly, the superiority complex that America has that it is not necessary for Americans to speak a language other than English.
For someone who loves to travel, I absolutely hate that I cannot communicate with people in their native tongue when I am a guest in their country. I’m embarrassed that I can only speak English and am conversational in Spanish.
To give you guys a little perspective, out of the 301 million Americans, only about 26% can speak another language. Juxtapose that with the 733 million Europeans with about 54% speaking another language other than their native tongue and you can see a clear divide.
That’s embarrassing.
We claim to be the greatest, most advanced country but only about a quarter of our population can speak a second language.
You know what really just grinds my gears the most about this whole thing? When Americans travel abroad, they assume that everyone speaks English even when it is not the native language. Granted, a good portion of the world does, but that’s not the point.
The point is that when we travel to other countries, people are accommodating and will speak to us in English. However, if anyone tries to travel to the United States and speak anything other than English, they are ridiculed and sometimes even denied service in the U.S.
A couple of years ago, Geno’s, a famous Philly cheesesteak joint in South Philly, came under heat when they had a sign up on the front window that read, “This is America. Speak English.” It was later discovered that they would deny people service if they didn’t speak English or if the employee couldn’t understand them. They aren’t the only ones.
Want to know the most ironic part? There is no official language in the United States. English is not the official language of the United States. So all you eagle-riding, Mel Gibson Patriots need to take it down about 20 levels.
The thing is, learning another language is beneficial not just for communication purposes, but studies have also proven that learning a second language can help your overall brain functions such as attention and concentration. This means performing better on tests, and being able to absorb information better.
Also, for all your recent graduates or soon to be recent graduates, putting on your resume that you can speak another language increases your chances of getting hired over someone who can’t exceedingly.
You might be saying that you don’t have time in your schedule to add a language class or you don’t have enough money to pay for language classes. Those are valid points, but guess what? There are tons of free websites where you can learn another language. One of my favorites is Duolingo.
Listening to music or watching movies in another language is also a great way to improve your language skills.
In this increasingly globalized world, it is important now more than ever for America to follow suit and start mandating language classes at a young age for not just students that want to go into international studies, but for everyone.
Sources:
http://www.gallup.com/poll/1825/about-one-four-ame...
https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2014/sep...
