In Europe, most students begin learning their second language as early as six years old.

As a foreigner in another country, finding someone who speaks English is not that difficult of a task; more times than not, it takes only a minute or two to find someone who speaks my language. So why can't I speak another language?

According to a poll done by Gallup, 1 in 4 Americans can hold a conversation in another language -- that means only 25% of the population is bilingual. The language deficit in America is a peculiar dilemma since our population is made up of varying cultures and a plethora of different languages.

I think that American culture often deems the unification of everyone speaking the English language as a way to help bring everyone together. It is almost a source of national pride. But if I have learned anything in my years, it is that the lack of knowledge of another language is the best way to isolate yourself.

Employers value the skill of knowing another language, but the education system doesn’t hold that same belief. You can learn another language, sort of, if you really apply yourself and have room to take a language course in between the other mandated courses, but the American education system does not require it for Kindergarten through 12th grade.

This idea stems from the belief that upon the founding of our nation, we all had to be able to communicate. But now, only knowing English seems to disallow you to connect with diverse populations. Instead, it often leaves me feeling excluded and permanently in a position of being an “outsider.”

It is incredibly alarming the remarkably low number of people who claim they learned a foreign language from only taking class in school; most Americans who know another language other than English have learned it from family members, or extensive time spent in another country.

I think that American culture needs to emphasize the importance of learning a second language; connecting with other human beings from different places is one of the things that will always remind us of our humanity, and the fact that under all the prejudice and bias, we are all simply human beings.

If we cannot connect through language, we are far more likely to remain comfortable with remaining separated, and that is an injustice to everyone.