Should Children Learn a Foreign Language?

The 21^st century has seen a revolution in the way humans communicate with each other. The importance of learning foreign languages has received great impetus among working professionals in recent years. While knowledge of a foreign tongue can be an asset in business or tourism, research indicates that learning a second language during childhood is more beneficial.

Studies in linguistics have asserted that language is not merely a verbal activity, but a cognitive one. Learning a foreign tongue helps strengthen the brain, and opens it to newer possibilities. Better problem solving skills, critical thinking, and creativity are characteristics seen among multilingual children. The more the brain is exercised, the sharper it gets.

Learning a foreign language at a younger age also has linguistic benefits. Children respond to it in the same way they would their mother tongue. Pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary skills are better inculcated, and children do not have to struggle with accent barriers or self-consciousness. In contrast, learning a language later in life would require double the effort, as an adult would have to unlearn previous grammar and muscle patterns to accommodate the second language.

Furthermore, learning a foreign language enriches a person culturally. It broadens the child’s perspective, builds an appreciation for diversity, and breaks the borders of race and ethnicity, all at a tender age. It also offers additional career opportunities later in life.

Erik Erikson’s psychosocial development theory suggests that the experiences of a child, till the age of 6, have the ability to determine his personality. Learning a foreign tongue at this stage would ensure the child retains its benefits in the long run.

Children should be given the opportunity to learn a foreign language so as to equip them with the right cognitive and cultural abilities, and be conscientious citizens of the world.

- Maryam Shaikh

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