Foreign Languages Taught in US Public Schools

[ingemann]

I always think that learning at least one foreign language make sense. But I also think that you should focus on usefulness.

So for all Americans learning Spanish makes a lot of sense, it's the most widely spoken language in the Americas.

Beside Spanish it doesn't matter a lot what American learn (except for French in Maine).

But beside usefullness you should also look at how hard it is to become fluent in different languages.

As example Mandarin, it's incredible hard for a Indo-European to become fluent in it, and outside China it's not really widely spoken (and unlikely to become so). So it doesn't really make sense to teach it to widely and on individual plan unless you plan to move to China it's not worth the investment.

Arabic are easier, but honestly it's not really useful to a American, unless USA plan a whole lot of future invasions of the Middle East.

Russian are even easier, but it's a language in decline. It's becoming less and less important for every year since the Cold War.

French, German, Portuguese and Italian are relative easy for another Indo-European to become fluent in, but they suffer from not especially useful to Americans.

I would say that French would be the most useful one (widely spoken, including in the Americas and still something of a prestige language), while Italian would be the most useless one (not really widely spoken outside Italy (except for some old emigrants), and outside Italy speakers are usual fluent in English, Spanish or German beside it).

[Frodo]

French, German, Portuguese and Italian are relative easy for another Indo-European to become fluent in, but they suffer from not especially useful to Americans.

In the case of French, I'd have to disagree with you.  Africa is set to begin (or at least accelerate) its economic rise within the next few decades, and with a burgeoning population it would make sense for Americans to prioritize French (given it's the most widely spoken language on the continent besides English) in addition to Spanish.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

People were saying that in the 1960s as well Frodo.

[Simfan34]

French, German, Ancient Greek, Latin, and other.

What matters is a real classical education. And the other one.

[politicallefty]

People were saying that in the 1960s as well Frodo.

Indeed. It seems like every decade has a new language to learn based on a growing economy or some other world event. In the '80s, everyone had to learn Japanese. In the past decade, it's been Mandarin. During most of the Cold War, Russian was the smart language to learn.

I disagree with the implicit assumption that the same languages should be taught across the entire country.

More than most other curricular questions, the answer should be contingent on local needs and resources: What languages do people in the community use? English and Spanish are widely-spoken enough to be taught almost everywhere, but there's more geographic heterogeneity in the use of other languages, literally dozens of which would be locally appropriate subjects in some part of the United States.

I actually do agree with you. Firstly, I do think Spanish should be taught as a second language throughout the entire country. However, I think there should be requirements to learn a third and perhaps a fourth language. I don't think that should be set at the national level, although I do think the available options should be set at the national level. States and local school boards can thereupon decide which other languages should be available or mandatory.

Personally, I think something very different from English or Spanish should be required as an addition. That would ideally be something from Asia, such as Arabic, Mandarin, Japanese, or something else. I think the best solution is to set the requirements at an early age and have them required henceforth to ensure the best absorption of said languages. I'm sure we're all aware that the best way to learn a language is to start at an early age. The curriculum should reflect that.

[ingemann]

French, German, Portuguese and Italian are relative easy for another Indo-European to become fluent in, but they suffer from not especially useful to Americans.

In the case of French, I'd have to disagree with you.  Africa is set to begin (or at least accelerate) its economic rise within the next few decades, and with a burgeoning population it would make sense for Americans to prioritize French (given it's the most widely spoken language on the continent besides English) in addition to Spanish.

You can include Algeria and Tunisia in the French zone, if you're there to do business it will be more useful than Arabic, beside the Mahgreb dialects tend to less than perfect intelligible with the Arab westerners usual learn (Classic or Egyptian).

...and I agree French is not a language in descline no matter what some people think.

But here's the problem, how often will a average American need French. There's a good chance for them to use Spanish, but French would rarely be useful for most Americans, and that's the primary purpose with the state using money to teach you a foreign language, it's a practical investment and French give little bang for the buck, through it's a better investment than Mandarin, Japanese or Hindi.

As such I believe it make sense for all Americans to learn Spanish as 1st foreign language, and let it be voluntary to learn more foreign language than the 1st. The ones who don't want to learn a 2nd, would likely neither learn it well or ever use it.

[politicus]

The problem with French is that it has de facto lost to English in most fields where it once dominated.

Geographically French is already replaced with English in Vietnam and Cambodia as the first foreign language (and almost replaced in Laos - not that that matters). In Francophone sub-Saharan Africa the elite is increasingly switching to English as the language of business and sending their children to universities in the anglosphere. Rwanda has de facto switched to English and I think more countries will folllow down the road. Syria /Lebanon do not use French.

[Хahar 🤔]

As electives, the standard group should be Spanish, Chinese, and Hindi, as these are three most useful languages as a composite of usefulness in business and those using the language in the United States.

Nobody conducts business in Hindi.

Really? I would have thought that it was rather common. I suppose I stand corrected.

This is a common misconception. All educated people in India speak English, and Hindi is only the language of a minority of the population.

[politicus]

As electives, the standard group should be Spanish, Chinese, and Hindi, as these are three most useful languages as a composite of usefulness in business and those using the language in the United States.

Nobody conducts business in Hindi.

Really? I would have thought that it was rather common. I suppose I stand corrected.

This is a common misconception. All educated people in India speak English, and Hindi is only the language of a minority of the population.

A 40%+ minority and a majority language in large parts of northern India. "Nobody" seems a bit hyperbolic.

This site advertise Hindi Language Lessons For Business.
http://www.hindilearner.com/hindi_tutorials/hindi_language_lessons.php

[Green Line]

Spanish, German, and Portuguese should be elective languages.  Nothing else need be taught.

[pikachu]

As electives, the standard group should be Spanish, Chinese, and Hindi, as these are three most useful languages as a composite of usefulness in business and those using the language in the United States.

Nobody conducts business in Hindi.

Really? I would have thought that it was rather common. I suppose I stand corrected.

This is a common misconception. All educated people in India speak English, and Hindi is only the language of a minority of the population.

A 40%+ minority and a majority language in large parts of northern India. "Nobody" seems a bit hyperbolic.

This site advertise Hindi Language Lessons For Business.
http://www.hindilearner.com/hindi_tutorials/hindi_language_lessons.php

Just an anecdote, but I once got to sit in on a business meeting between two fluent (not native though) Hindi speakers (my uncle and an investor). For the meeting, thry used English almost exclusively, with a few Hindi phrases thrown in occasionally.

However, at home, my uncle and his family only spoke Punjabi, though they are all fluent in English.

For the question, Nix is correct.

[DavidB.]

Depends on the state and on the population within the school itself. In general, Spanish and French seem to be the obvious two. Korean, Hebrew, Mandarin, Japanese, and possibly Russian could be cool optional languages if there is a large Korean/Jewish/Chinese/Japanese/Russian minority in these schools/areas.

I learned Dutch, English, German, French, Latin, and Ancient Greek in "high school" for six years. The benefits of living in a small country, I guess.