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VOL.2 December 2010
Language Skills Required... By Age Six
Why is it important for children to learn a second language?

Parents who dream of their children succeeding are enrolling them in second language courses earlier and earlier – usually before the age of six. But classes are usually expensive and results are not always guaranteed. Chen Jianyang, a manager at MetLife Insurance in Beijing, and Akberet Yohannes, an Eritrean graduate candidate in global business journalism at Beijing's Tsinghua University, discuss the growing importance of being bilingual.

 

It Pays to Be Bilingual

by Akberet Yohannes

With fast technological and communication development our world is becoming smaller and more competitive each day. People are grabbing every opportunity to survive. As a result, learning a foreign language has become important, and parents are enrolling their children in classes at younger ages.

"A child taught a second language after the age of 10 or so is unlikely ever to speak it like a native," writes Kathleen Marcos in a February 1996 Newsweek article. Her piece, "Why, How, and When Should My Child Learn a Second Language?," also pointed out that in addition to developing a lifelong ability to communicate with more people, children may obtain other benefits from early language education, including improved overall school performance and problem solving skills. Moreover, children who receive second language education are more creative and more confident.

Personally I agree that the earlier a child is introduced to a second language, the greater the chances the child will become truly proficient in the language.

I began learning English in school when I was six years old. My teachers taught us the language mostly using Amharic, an Ethiopian language. Looking back, it was not a good way to teach a foreign language. There was no way to master it.

Teaching children – and teaching them foreign languages in particular – is about getting their attention and understanding them. Once they have given their attention, teaching is easy because most children by nature are like blank pieces of paper, and they grasp thing easily.

The learning environment also has a great effect on outcomes especially if children are below six years of age. It's difficult to get their attention because they don't have any interest and they don't understand the need behind learning a language. I believe that teaching children in a formal classroom to recite and memorize words is ineffective. In an informal classroom, by fostering interaction between teachers and students and also amongst the students themselves, an interactive method may be more fruitful.

For the past few years in Eritrea, the number of private institutes offering foreign language classes in English, French, Arabic and Italian has increased. The number of youngsters interested in learning foreign languages is increasing day by day because everyone is realizing the importance of being bilingual.

But most of the students who benefit from this are from financially stable families. In my opinion, everyone should have the opportunity to learn a second language. After all, it's for the benefit of all.

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