Only 10% of people in the U.S. speak a foreign language proficiently. In comparison, in Europe, 65% of people can speak a second language other than their native tongue. Although the difference is drastic, these numbers should not come as a surprise. For many years, American public schools have been completely lacking when it comes to language education. For a country that used to hail itself as a cultural melting pot, the U.S.’ foreign language education programs are greatly impaired. Foreign language education has been shown to be beneficial in enhancing memory, problem-solving and even aptitude in other subjects. In addition, foreign language increases a student’s knowledge of the world, allowing them to be informed about different cultures. It goes without saying, therefore, that American foreign language education needs improvement.
A major complication prohibiting effective education has been teacher shortages. When there are not enough people qualified to teach second languages, the U.S. lacks the bilingual population necessary to fill teaching positions for future generations. Contrast this with Europe; since many Europeans are bilingual and become proficient in foreign languages from a young age, their system raises a population that can fulfill the needed teaching positions to promote language education. The U.S. doesn’t have this luxury, forcing hiring from many different sources, which is complicated by the difficulties of finding teachers who are willing to relocate in order to teach. American foreign language education has also decreased because of a lack of language requirements, with only 7% of American college students and only 20% of the school age population in the U.S. studying a foreign language. Simply not enough Americans are required to learn foreign languages, with fewer following through with their studies.
As someone who spent eight years in American public schools, I know how I didn’t receive adequate education. When I began elementary school, the opportunities to learn a foreign language were few and far between. I was already prevented from gaining a strong proficiency in a language, since the best time to begin learning a language is before the age of 10. When I was that age, there was almost no way to study a foreign language in school, with the only option being to wake up early on Wednesdays for an hour of Spanish. This was nowhere near enough, because practicing a language consistently is key to learning. I did not have any opportunities to engage with foreign languages officially until eighth grade. At this age we could only pick from three European languages: French, Spanish and German. This only gave me one year of language experience before entering high school, where I was required to take two additional years of courses, putting me at level three proficiency in one language. My language learning throughout this system was not nearly sufficient enough and left me barely able to speak a foreign language.
Then, I began learning a new foreign language at Tufts. The Tufts language requirement requires each student in the College of Arts and Sciences to reach three-semester proficiency in a language, supplementing more traditional classes with culture ones. I believe this requirement is a step in the right direction and should be implemented at all universities. However, to begin here is too little, too late and the American language system needs to start teaching students earlier. Although my experience is unique, I believe that many other Americans can relate to how foreign language has been lacking from their education.
Although American foreign language education is currently failing, there are a few early steps that can be taken to improve it. These include introducing foreign language learning in elementary school and implementing stricter requirements by forcing kids to take languages for longer periods of time. These steps should be considered an upfront investment. If America raises more bilingual citizens from a young age, it will only make finding language teachers easier, reinforcing the system over time. Our foreign language system must also add more classes in non-European languages, such as Chinese and Hindi, to reflect the diverse population of the U.S. Moreover, Americans must work to devalue the idea that we can and should only speak English. This is a dangerous nationalist idea that only isolates our diverse population. The American education system is outdated, fails at foreign language education and needs to be drastically improved.
