“Should a foreign language be required for all
students at the university? Why? Express your opinion on this issue.”
Yes, I think a
foreign language requirement is a good idea, especially at a liberal arts
university where the goal is to receive a well-rounded education. On the most pragmatic level, such a
requirement enables the university to impart yet another a marketable skill to
its students. Being able to say on a
resume that you have even a basic grasp of a foreign language could easily make
you a more attractive candidate for the position. Even if you are not great at it, the fact
that you committed to learning a foreign language exhibits a willingness to
learn new things and shows you are capable of learning to do things more than
one way.
However, there
are less tangible – and in my opinion, more important – benefits to a foreign
language requirement as well. As I just
mentioned, if you put on your resume that you’ve learned a foreign language, it
shows you can learn to think about things in more than one way. I think the further you advance in a
language, the more you realize that different languages are not just different
ways of saying the same thing, but they each represent, to a certain extent,
different ways of thinking about things.
Even something as simple as a different grammatical structure makes you
conscious of the choices you must make to communicate most effectively. Being bilingual works your brain.
Even beyond
grammar, though, learning a foreign language introduces you to cultural aspects
you might not have been aware of had you not learned the language. Being exposed to other cultures and learning
to accept and appreciate ideas that might seem strange to you keeps you
open-minded (which is also, I might add, a valuable people/workplace skill).
So even if you
don’t advance in the language, it’s still worth being exposed to one in college
because it teaches you to think out of the box and gives you an appreciation
for something unfamiliar. I did not advance
in math or science, but it’s probably a good thing I had to take that stats
class when I was a sophomore because I was exposed to something that changed
the way I thought about a field I’d never given much thought to before (surveys
and data representation, for instance).
And at the very least, it made me appreciate that I don’t have to do
that for a living!
I agree with much of what you said on this topic, and even wrote about some of the same points in my post as well! I like the connection that you made between learning a language and learning its culture. I think it is quite funny how close the two are connected, but you don't truly understand that connection until you experience it firsthand.
ReplyDeleteI also liked that part that you added about the need for the ability to think outside the box when speaking or learning a different language. There were countless times in my high school French class where I couldn't find the right word to use, and had to go about saying the exact same thing in a different way. The ability to find solutions to problems through alternate routes is definitely an amiable quality to have.
I totally agree with the statement "Being bilingual works your brain." I have always considered taking a foreign language to be like completing a math problem, its an activity for mind-building. Along those lines, I have found that my English language skills have also improved through improved language awareness that my French classes have provided me. It not only makes you a better communicator because you can speak to those from other cultures and places, but it makes you a more effective communicator in your own language.
ReplyDeleteBeing bilingual definitely works your brain. Studies have shown that math skills and the ability to learn another language are often correlated. Learning French has also helped me with my English skills. It opens up a greater vocabulary for you to use in English and it finally taught me what direct and indirect objects were.
ReplyDeleteI believe it has also helped me be open-minded. For example, no one in my family can speak another language and they often have the conversation together about how people who immigrate here should be able to speak English. Not that I disagree entirely with them, but I know that you don't just take a class and all of a sudden speak a language. I imagine it's easier to move from a terrible situation in one country to a better situation in the US than it is to decently learn a foreign language.
My brain on German feels like a different brain that when I'm in "English mode" and I would even argue that my personality and decision making process is different that change when I am using German, so being bilingual definitely works the brain in ways that other academic pursuits do not.
ReplyDeleteI like your point about taking a stats class and they way it made you at least appreciate a field of study that was not familiar. I also took stats here for the math requirement and still occasionally find some of that information useful. Am I a certified statistician? No way (what's a p value again?), but at least I had some exposure to new ways of using the brain, even if it was only for 15 weeks.