Should College Students Required To Be Bilingual?

Learning a foreign language can be beneficial in future settings and handy when it comes to global presence when well educated, but very difficult processing and learning especially at an older age. Foreign language classes should not be mandatory while in college because there is lack of time, it should depend on individual interest, and because many believe it is a waste of time.

Bilingual education offers a completely different world for students of different ethnic background and thus creates a comfort zone limiting the risk-taking factor necessary for the maturation of a child to an adult. Rodriguez argues supporters of bilingualism fail to realize "while one suffers a

What do we know about the effects bilingualism has on cognitive development? Our world is becoming progressively bilingual; in the US 21% of school age children between the ages of 5-17 years old can speak other than English at home and this number is expected to increase in the coming years. On top of social reasons, the positive effects to the cognitive development of the brain when introduced to a second language are of many. The age of acquisition is vital due to the plasticity of the brain, which according to the critical period hypothesis, begins to level after five years of age. In addition to plasticity, bilingual speakers are more capable of focusing their attention to solve complex problems compared to monolingual speakers.

In my opinion bilingualism plays a major role in the educational development of children. This is because research has shown that children who are fluent in their home language are more successful in learning a second language. Furthermore, being bilingual offers greater sensitivity to language, more flexibility in thinking and better ear for listening. It also improves a child’s understanding for the native language. Moreover, knowledge of other languages increases a career of opportunities offering several job options.

First and foremost, the promotion of bilingualism in American school systems would greatly increase academic achievements. According to Huffington Post, the United States of America falls to number seventeen on the list of countries with the best education; Finland, South Korea and Hong Kong lead the list for higher education.-(Zhao) Outside of school Finnish children speak predominantly Finnish in their homes, however when they come to school they are taught specifically Swedish in

While some may think that this is not certain studies have proven otherwise. In The Power of a Bilingual Brain, Jeffery Kluger states that, “Research is increasingly showing that the brains of people who know two or more languages….. Multilingual people, studies show, are better at reasoning, at multitasking, at grasping and reconciling conflicting ideas.”(1) Clearly, a bilingual education places students a step ahead not only in their education careers but, as well as in their daily life’s outside school. Jeffery Kluger discusses how a bilingual brain is not necessarily smarter brain, but is a more flexible and practical brain. Evidently, demonstrating to us one of the many benefits of a bilingual

The United States is a melting pot of all different groups of people, cultures, beliefs, yearnings, hopes, and languages. The Census Bureau released data from the 2013 American Community Survey, that showed the number of people who speak a language other than English at home reached an all-time high of 61.8 million, 20%, up 2.2 million since 2010. The largest languages in the United States were Spanish with 38.4 million, Chinese with 3 million, Tagalog with 1.6 million, Vietnamese with 1.4 million, French with 1.3 million and Korean and Arabic with 1.1 million each (Owen); however, 75% of Americans have no second language, according to a Yougov survey, and nearly 56% of americans feel it’s unnecessary to know a second language unless it’s basic knowledge for vacations, if it’s a major world language, or because they think most people around the world can speak english. Learning a foreign language is much more than just that, and although it’s highly unlikely, learning a foreign language should be mandatory in the united states. We are constantly putting pressure on immigrants who can’t speak english to learn english, however, we never turn the page and force ourselves to adapt to their language as well.

Language is an important part of our lives. I remember when I arrived to USA I could speak a little English. I went to school to improve my language, reading and writing skills; even now I am learning my second language, without English I cannot survive in this new environment. Now I am raising my own kids and I want them to have this important skill, this privilege of knowing a second language, language of their parents and grandparents. By looking at studies of bilingual children, research shows how important it is for a child to learn a second language. Raising a bilingual child is a benefit because it improves social skills, academic proficiency, introduces child to a different culture, and prepares for the future.

Over the years, bilingual education has involved teaching children academics in two different languages so they may become competent learners and be successful at acquiring English. Before 1968, bilingual education was not a required course in American schools, but instead as a voluntary program. This changed in 1981 when a lawsuit was brought against the state of Texas that resulted in the requirement of bilingual education programs in elementary schools as English as a second language (ESL) program, bilingual programs in post-elementary grades through eighth grade, and ESL programs in high school. This type of education has been a hot topic for the state governments of the United States, debating whether to keep in the curriculum of schools. Many asking themselves, why should we to provide bilingual education for these students? What will students gain from this type of education? Studies have shown there are benefits that range from cognitive ability, educational advancement, to employment opportunities with a bilingual education, while the critics label it as a “failed experiment” that costed a whole lot of money and years to maintain a basic foundation in the second language. Although the cost is hefty for this exploration of a new language and is time consuming, the cognitive abilities, educational advancement, and employment opportunities greatly outweigh these opposing factors.

Increasing evidence is that being bilingual is cognitively beneficial.” As the world changes, so does the languages the people use shown by the

According to a study conducted in 2008 by Ingrid Pufahl and Nancy C. Rhodes, from the Center for Applied Linguistics, the number of elementary and middle schools in America teaching a foreign language has decreased since 1997. As of 2008, only 25% of elementary schools taught foreign languages, and only 58% of middle schools taught foreign languages as well (261, 262). Despite studies saying that learning a second language when younger is easier, according to the article, “List of Pros and Cons of Bilingual Education”, less than half of elementary schools offer a foreign language, due to claims that language programs are expensive, and lack qualified teachers. However, there are many benefits of learning a second language, making knowledge of a foreign language worthwhile.

Bilingual people are smarter than monolingual people. In fact, it is proven that bilingual people are more cognitively developed and receive higher scores in academics. However, this can be improved among monolingual students by teaching more foreign languages in American public schools. By raising foreign language requirements, monolingual students are forced to exercise new regions of their brains, thus improving brain function and academic performance. It is imperative to the cognitive and academic betterment of American students that multiple foreign languages are taught in public schools.

Numerous studies have been conducted on various benefits of bilingualism in multiple difference areas like cognitive, social- emotional, learning or global advantages. Regardless, there are multiple different reasons for an adolescent to learn a second language. Whether obligated when moving to a new county attending a school where it is a requirement, being enrolled in a class to satisfy a language credit, or simply for their own personal desire, when children are exposed to a second language in early formal education there are proven benefits; such as understanding other cultures in the classroom and the workplace, enhanced cognitive and learning development, and emotional bonds.

From a young age I could remember my grandmother scolding my mother for not teaching me to speak Spanish fluently. I always questioned the importance of being bilingual, like how would this every help me in a world where English is becoming the native tongue. Before I stumbled across the research done on bilingualism I had very little to none background knowledge on bilingualism. I thought the only outcome of being bilingual or multilingual is you get to socialize with other people from other backgrounds and maybe have more opportunities to a more variety of jobs. Needs less to say I greatly underestimated the importance bilingualism has on the mind, in school and in life itself. After reading tremendous amount of research, I have a better insight, on how bilingualism can change one’s life and more importantly the change it has on the structure of the mind. I have discovered how the mind of someone who is bilingual works, also the impacts bilingualism has on the mind and most importantly how bilingualism can essentially pave a way to success in education and learning.

Elizabeth Peal and Wallace Lambert published a monograph titled “The Relation of Bilingualism to Intelligence” in 1962. They directed research in Montreal with 10-year-old children where they analyzed the performances of monolinguals to bilingual speakers of French and English on standardized tests of intelligence. Before this study was conducted, bilingualism was thought of negatively because there was concern around bilingual children and the disadvantages of learning two languages at once. Some disadvantages included lower intelligence, a “language handicap”, poor linguistic capabilities, more grammatical errors, reduced vocabulary, among numerous other factors researchers believed to be true. Peal and Lambert’s discoveries were the first research study that contradicted the negative opinions noted previously in research and underlined the positive effects of bilingualism in relation to cognitive development. Studies after Peal and Lambert’s continued to show that bilingualism has more positive, beneficial outcomes rather than focus on the negative ones. These positive outcomes include better cognitive control abilities, improved executive functioning, and protection against cognitive decline. Therefore, knowing two languages is greater than knowing just one.