Mar
2018
Second-Language Education in Elementary School
Across the country, the public school systems teach students a second language at some point in their academic career. Many of the common languages include those such as Spanish, French, German, and sometimes even Chinese. In a globalizing world, the ability to communicate with diverse people is a coveted skill. In fact, knowing a second, or third language makes students more desirable to many employers. However, the United States lacks far behind the world when it comes to bilingual or multi-lingual citizens. Unlike Europe, where most know multiple languages, only about 26% of Americans know a second language well-enough to hold a conversation in that language. Because there are benefits to learning a second language, most Americans are proponents of this type of education. However, the question remains when second-language education should start. It is much more beneficial to learn a second-language in earlier years, but others argue that there is not enough time to learn these languages in elementary school, and the education should be pushed back to high-school or even college.
To begin, the benefits of learning a second language starting early are numerous. As most commonly known, when a child learns a language before the age of 13, the child will learn the language without an accent, just like a native speaker. The difficulty that adult and teenage learners face is that it is nearly impossible to not develop an accent. Another benefit is that elementary school children are constantly being introduced to new vocabulary in their first language. This natural process is one that can be transferred to learning a second language. Learning more than one language at the same time has been proven to strengthen grammar rules and understanding of both languages. Furthermore, bilingual children have been proven to be successful in other topics. They have shown skills in thinking more creatively and often see problems from a different perspective and find unique solutions. Just like music education improves math education, language education improves other areas as well. In the end, bilingual children often have more success later on in life when it comes to learning additional languages as well. Ultimately, the benefits of learning a second language early are vast and numerous.
However, the opponents of learning a second language in elementary school and all together cite many limitations as well. Primarily, most opponents of learning a second language in elementary school acknowledge the benefits, but state that it is not possible or necessary because of limitations. To begin, because America is geographically isolated, some feel it is more important to focus on English for elementary students, as they are less likely to need other languages until later in life. Additionally, with the exception of learning Spanish in the states that border Mexico and French in the states that are near French-Speaking Canada, there is little opportunity to practice these languages. Therefore, the knowledge learned in school would be lost easily and time would be wasted. Furthermore, some state that it is a waste to educate students in a second language with a sub-par process. The way that children are taught second-languages in school has not changed and it is ineffective, and therefore it is a waste of time to continue to teach them ineffectively. Finally, some cite the fact that the US is too diverse of a country to spend time trying to educate elementary students on a specific second language. These opponents argue that because the US has been welcoming new immigrants, the job of the elementary school teachers is changing. Now, educators are face with the task of gathering diverse students and languages and attempting to educate them all equally. Integrating these students into one culture is time consuming, and therefore there is no room for learning yet another language and culture; rather, this education should be held off until middle-school or high school. In the end, there are vast reasons in which there is a push-back against learning a second language too early.
Ultimately, there is still a large debate on both sides about whether or not education of a second-language in elementary school is beneficial. The proponents argue that it improves children’s education overall, while opponents state that there is simply not enough time or resources. I believe that the benefits out-weight the costs and all efforts should be made to provide this resource to students at a young age. In the end, school is about forming globally minded citizens and second-language education from an early age is a critical part of this goal.
http://zilkerelem.org/spanish-program/benefits-of-learning-a-second-language-in-elementary-school/
http://news.gallup.com/poll/1825/about-one-four-americans-can-hold-conversation-second-language.aspx
nup76
March 16, 2018 at 4:44 pm (6 years ago)As someone unable to fluently speak a second language, I definitely agree that children should be taught a second language at a younger age. Unfortunately, I was not introduced to any language besides English until 7th grade. Although I was able to learn some of the language, I remember very little of Spanish today. I plan to study abroad in Spain this summer, and I wish that I would be more fluent to better immerse myself in the culture. Language is like math or any other subject for that matter. One must learn the foundations of it when young, and continue to build and build on prior knowledge. If this teaching process could be completed over a series of years, this might alleviate some of the concerns of people who may think it is too time consuming to teach language early.
mxe5173
March 16, 2018 at 4:44 pm (6 years ago)One thing that I find interesting when I think about language education in my own personal experience is that all throughout grade school, taking a language, specifically Spanish, was mandatory. I was taking Spanish from the time I was in first grade all the way through eighth grade. When I got to high school, however, although I switched over to taking Latin, we were only required to take language classes for two years and often not encouraged to continue past that level. It is interesting to think about why students would not be encouraged to continue with language education.
I also think, like you somewhat mentioned, that it is valid in a way to look at language education from the perspective of use. English is largely becoming one of the languages that connects the world as more and more countries have many speakers that are becoming proficient in English along with their first language. If English is going to end up being spoken all over the world, then one might ask what the point is for a native English speaker to learn a “less useful” language.
That being said, I do see so much value in becoming proficient in a second language. I think that it can open up so many doors in education and careers and that it really can help you become a better thinker, not to mention, often it can help you to understand your own native language better.
Brooke M Przybylinski
March 16, 2018 at 4:44 pm (6 years ago)I know that multilingualism in the United States has been an ongoing debate but I still believe that the argument for learning multiple languages is stronger than the argument against it. In fact, learning other languages helps people who want jobs that travel abroad, improve language and communication skills, and generally further their understanding of English! I took four years of French and I was able to learn meanings of English words because they had French roots. I do understand that in the United States, it is easier to have one language. In fact, I learned that George W. Bush tried to pass a bill to make English the official language of the country (even though it didn’t pass). Based on the number of immigrants that are coming into the country, I think that we are going to inevitably have to learn more languages but I love how this blog focused on the multiple perspectives surrounding the issue.
spl5400
March 16, 2018 at 5:33 pm (6 years ago)I stand on the side of the debate that supports learning languages early. I didn’t start taking Spanish classes until seventh grade, and now in college I am trying to get a Spanish minor. It would have been really helpful to have had more of a background with the second language at a younger age.