Why are so few of us learning another language? Call for action by Richard Howitt MEP

A call for action to reverse the “severe decline” in young people learning foreign languages has been made by Cambridgeshire’s representative in Brussels.
Richard Howitt MEP said knowledge of at least one other European language is important given that so much of the UK’s trade is done with the rest of Europe, despite English being recognised as the world language.
There has been a 30 per cent drop in the number of British universities offering degrees in French and a 50 per cent fall for German over the last decade, with numbers declining for A-level students too, the Labour politician said.
He added: “As students prepare to head back to university, it is very sad to see that the high level of language learning promoted in Cambridge is not being matched elsewhere in the country.
“The case for young British people to learn an EU foreign language is so important, given that more than half of the UK’s trade is with the rest of Europe and our businesses need staff who can speak the language of their customers.
“The new statistics on loss of language courses are directly reflected in a 17 per cent drop in the number of language students and a halving of numbers studying French or German A-levels over the last decade.

I agree too. I have cousins in Germany and Holland who can speak German/Dutch as well as English as they learn in school. They don't need to depend on us as much as we do them whenever they come here for holidays; they can speak English so they have the freedom of doing their own thing. They also would have the option of working abroad in any English-speaking country because of their language skills. I think bilingualism opens up a lot of doors.

And although I can't speak fluent French, the little vocabulary that I remembered from GCSE helped a great deal when I went on vacation to Paris .

Some people think that English is enough and don't see the need to learn another language which I think it's a bit arrogant really.

It may be arrogant, but it is just a reflection of reality really. Virtually all young people in Europe can speak English, so there is little reason for most British people to learn other European languages. As for the rest of the world, virtually all of the educated middle classes can speak English. We have a massive advantage in the global race by being able to speak the world's language, so instead of wasting time pointlessly learning other languages we should invest that time in the curriculum to getting ahead at Maths and Science subjects. This is just common sense.

Read more: http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Cambridge/Warning-over-severe-decline-in-language-learning-20130923060155.htm#ixzz2fjfB6B3K

I have to agree with the MEP- learning another European language can be of immense advantage to a British student, as half of our trade is carried out with Europe. However, I also would not underestimate the value of learning non-European languages, although this may not be as practical due to their huge differences with English. English may be the world language, but it's always good to learn another one.

Read more: http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Cambridge/Warning-over-severe-decline-in-language-learning-20130923060155.htm#ixzz2fjfB6B3K

I have to agree with the MEP- learning another European language can be of immense advantage to a British student, as half of our trade is carried out with Europe. However, I also would not underestimate the value of learning non-European languages, although this may not be as practical due to their huge differences with English. English may be the world language, but it's always good to learn another one.