Foreign language classes are often hailed as being one of the most beneficial classes you’ll ever take in high school. However, across the nation and in IHS, there have been dramatic drops in enrollment in foreign language classes in recent years.
Language classes have an extensive list of benefits, which are emphasized by foreign language teachers at IHS. Learning a foreign language allows students to broaden their worldview, letting one see situations from a multicultural perspective. State standards from the New York State Education Department (NYSED) emphasize this aspect of taking a language by making sure cultural traditions and perspectives are studied by students. Knowing a foreign language also enables students to travel abroad and immerse themselves both linguistically and culturally in a foreign environment. At IHS this is apparent in the German Exchange Program, where students taking German spend a couple of weeks in Germany with a host family, an experience valued by many students in the program. This possibility of being able to immerse myself in another culture was one of the major reasons why I decided to take German in middle school.
Learning a different language has also been shown to aid in brain development and improve an individual’s cognitive function. Studies from Cambridge University found that multilingual speakers have increased neural pathways compared to monolingual speakers. The new experience of learning a language sets the foundation of creating neurological pathways, and there is a dramatic difference in brain performance, as multilingual brains function more efficiently than monolingual brains. This is true even for individuals being a novice in a different language. The effects of this change in brain performance are better academic performance, improved concentration, increased memory, improved analytical abilities, stronger communication skills, and more creativity. Additionally, taking a language class also helps students better understand English grammar and appreciate the differences between sentence structures in different languages. Through taking a foreign language I’ve learned more about sentence structure and prepositions, as well as how to differentiate nouns in a sentence.
Practically, language classes are also emphasized as crucial classes to take if one wants to get into a highly-ranked university. Many of the top universities require applicants to have taken three or four years of language. That would mean at least two years of taking a language class in high school, hence why counselors often encourage students to take a language through at least their sophomore year. Beyond college, there are often more career options and better job prospects for those who can speak multiple languages.
While all these benefits of learning a foreign language, why are students stopping to take a foreign language class early in high school, especially at IHS?.
With the transition from an eight period schedule to a seven period schedule, students lose one period in their day that could be spent taking an elective. This forces some students to choose between taking a foreign language and a class that will boost their college application or a class that they are very interested in. Language is not the only department that has been impacted by this schedule change. The music department at IHS has also been hit hard, and there has been a decrease in the number of students in music ensembles.
Language classes are also extremely difficult. High school classes are all difficult, but there is something about a foreign language class that is even more challenging than other classes. This is likely due to the fact that achieving fluency in a non-native language after childhood is not easy, especially if the learner does not experience full immersion. Meeting once a day for only forty-five minutes and being expected to progress quickly in a language class is mentally taxing on students, as many students do not have lots of opportunities to really enhance their understanding of a foreign language outside of class time. As a result, despite putting a lot of effort into learning a foreign language, some students do not feel that they are thriving in class and therefore choose to not continue to take a language class. The district might consider including language classes starting in elementary schools. That will give learners longer time spans and more opportunities to learn and get better in a foreign language.
The applicability of a language to a student’s daily life also affects whether or not a student wants to take a language class. If a student is already fluent or proficient in a language at home, they may want to continue learning that specific language rather than taking additional courses in a third new language. Personally, I grew up in a Mandarin speaking household, but I am not proficient in reading or writing in Chinese. So if I were to focus all my attention on being fluent in a language besides English, I would want that language to be Mandarin. However, this is not possible at IHS due to the limited range of language classes offered. I think that by offering more language classes at IHS, students would be able to pick a language that they care about learning, therefore allowing them to experience all the benefits of learning a different language.