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> The u.s. is uniquely mono-lingual. I think that you're thinking of the UK - very few people there are bilingual. In the Southern states there are a lot of b

> The u.s. is uniquely mono-lingual. I think that you're thinking of the UK - very few people there are bilingual. In the Southern states there are a lot of bilingual people. Neither are comparable to say Belgium, The Netherlands or Switzerland, where > 80% of the populations are bilingual.

DanBC 12y ago
> I think that you're thinking of the UK - very few people there are bilingual. Where "not many" means 40% of the population, and ignores the fact that languages must be taught to school children under the national curriculum. EDIT {Obviously not all of those children will become fluent in those languages; they're not counted in the stats I quote. the point is that foreign language learning is compulsory for English state school children and not for American state school children} http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/uk-now/read-uk/languages http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/uk-now/read-uk/l... https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-languages-progammes-of-study https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curricul... The EU average is 58% of the population speak more than one language. The US? Only 20% speak another language. 291,524,091 people, of whom 230,947,071 speak only English and only 60,577,020 speak another language. http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/acs-22.pdf http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/acs-22.pdf
- 72deluxe 12y ago
  I grew up here and was taught German and French (at least at an incredibly basic level) at school but I would by no means class myself as bilingual! I struggle even going on holiday to France! Of my colleagues, hardly any remember any French or German from school, despite it being taught. I think there is a large gulf between being taught it at school and classing as bilingual.
  - deleted 12y ago
    [deleted]
  - DanBC 12y ago
    You're right, but that point was that not all US schools require foreign language learning. People who can't speak another language aren't counted in the stats I quote.
    - 72deluxe 12y ago
      Ah, I am surprised to learn that some US schools do not teach another language. What a pity.
      - pdx 12y ago
        Who knows what "some US schools" do, but every school I have ever been involved with for 30 years does. You're required to take a foreign language in high school. Most people pick Spanish. I unwisely took 4 years of German, which I have never used, outside of watching WWII movies. Not the best use of my time, in retrospect, but oh well. Don't believe every bad thing people tell you about US schools.
        DanBC 12y ago
        Perhaps you could post a link to the regulations requiring all school student to have foreign language teaching? I posted the English national curriculum above. I'm unable to find any such requirement for US schools. "Many" does not mean "all". But as well as the lack of a requirement for US schools to teach a foreign language we see that US children do worse than Asian or EU children. http://www.actfl.org/advocacy/discover-languages/for-parents/cognitive?pageid=4724 http://www.actfl.org/advocacy/discover-languages/for-parents... > Foreign language programs are often one of the first items to be scrutinized and cut when elementary, middle, and high schools in the U.S. face poor performance evaluations or budget crunches. > Caccavale: Although parents may not be able to get a foreign language program instituted at their child's school in the immediate future, they can help to do so in the long run. Edit: http://www.psmag.com/navigation/books-and-culture/u-s-students-hurting-in-foreign-languages-13529/ http://www.psmag.com/navigation/books-and-culture/u-s-studen... > The center’s most recent report shows a decrease in the last decade in school language programs, which Rhodes says can be attributed to “budget cuts, and foreign languages are among the first things that get cut. > America has never placed a premium on teaching foreign languages. Less than one-third of American elementary schools offer foreign language courses, and less than half of all middle and high school students are enrolled in such classes, the majority studying Spanish. http://www.forbes.com/sites/collegeprose/2012/08/27/americas-foreign-language-deficit/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/collegeprose/2012/08/27/americas... > When elementary and secondary schools and colleges around the country open for the fall semester, millions of students will not be studying a foreign language. Not necessarily for lack of interest. They won’t be able to. > at public K-12 schools, course enrollment in 2007-2008 reached 8.9 million individuals, about 18.5 percent of all students; Most damning: >. - The percentage of public and private elementary schools offering foreign language instruction decreased from 31 to 25 percent from 1997 to 2008. Instruction in public elementary schools dropped from 24 percent to 15 percent, with rural districts hit the hardest. >. - The percentage of all middle schools offering foreign language instruction decreased from 75 to 58 percent. >. - The percentage of high schools offering some foreign language courses remained about the same, at 91 percent.
- gadders 12y ago
  We (Brits) all get taught another language in school. I'd say very few get fluent or even attempt to use it when abroad. I think this quote by PG Wodehouse sums it up: “Into the face of the young man who sat on the terrace of the Hotel Magnifique at Cannes there had crept a look of furtive shame, the shifty hangdog look which announces that an Englishman is about to speak French.”
- radicalbyte 12y ago
  I'm officially part of that 40% for French, but I don't speak a word of it. I do speak fluent Dutch, but I learnt that in The Netherlands. Not in the UK.
- jccooper 12y ago
  Curriculum standards vary widely across the US, but it's very common to require some foreign language learning. Only a few states (mostly midwestern) have no requirement, but even there it's basically required for college application. It is true, however, that it very rarely sticks. The reason is twofold: 1) It's poorly taught: usually only two years is required, and usually in high school (which is too late for really learning a language well) and usually via text books. 2) There's almost no need and little opportunity for most people in the US to use a foreign language. Even if a non-English language is successfully taught, it'll atrophy quickly. Unless you're a member of an ethnic sub-community, the only body of non-English speakers less than several thousands of dollars and an ocean away is Spanish--which is why you find most bilingual people in the south and southwest. But even in Texas it's quite easy to get along without a lick of Spanish. Even if the government insisted you become fluent in some language in school, and they did it well and thoroughly, the eventual numbers of bilingualism would be about the same due to the linguistic landscape. You don't walk around with umbrellas in the desert.
illumen 12y ago
There's millions of people that speak languages other than English in the UK [0]. Apart from Welsh, there's Polish, Punjabi, French, etc. 21% of people in the UK are functionally illiterate. Which is pretty good compared to the USA at 48.7%. [1] Even in the USA, there's lots of people that speak Spanish and English. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_the_United_Kingdom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_the_United_Kingdo... [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Functional_illiteracy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Functional_illiteracy
- Kurtz79 12y ago
  Yes, of course there are, in any country which has some measure of immigration, people which will speak their original language, in addition to the language of the country they moved in. Just as well, the people of some region of the same country with a different language than the national one, will likely speak both (Wales, Catalunya...) But in this case I would say that multilinguism is a side effect for those groups, not something that is part of the country itself.
  - lil_cain 12y ago
    I think the Welsh (or Scots, or Northern Irish) would disagree that their language is not part of their country...
    - deleted 12y ago
      [deleted]
    - Kurtz79 12y ago
      For "country", I meant the United Kingdom, at least in this context. Although I agree that the term is open to interpretation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Countries_of_the_United_Kingdom http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Countries_of_the_United_Kingdom

DanBC 12y ago

> I think that you're thinking of the UK - very few people there are bilingual. Where "not many" means 40% of the population, and ignores the fact that languages must be taught to school children under the national curriculum. EDIT {Obviously not all of those children will become fluent in those languages; they're not counted in the stats I quote. the point is that foreign language learning is compulsory for English state school children and not for American state school children} http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/uk-now/read-uk/languages http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/uk-now/read-uk/l... https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-languages-progammes-of-study https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curricul... The EU average is 58% of the population speak more than one language. The US? Only 20% speak another language. 291,524,091 people, of whom 230,947,071 speak only English and only 60,577,020 speak another language. http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/acs-22.pdf http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/acs-22.pdf

72deluxe 12y ago
I grew up here and was taught German and French (at least at an incredibly basic level) at school but I would by no means class myself as bilingual! I struggle even going on holiday to France! Of my colleagues, hardly any remember any French or German from school, despite it being taught. I think there is a large gulf between being taught it at school and classing as bilingual.
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
- DanBC 12y ago
  You're right, but that point was that not all US schools require foreign language learning. People who can't speak another language aren't counted in the stats I quote.
  - 72deluxe 12y ago
    Ah, I am surprised to learn that some US schools do not teach another language. What a pity.
    - pdx 12y ago
      Who knows what "some US schools" do, but every school I have ever been involved with for 30 years does. You're required to take a foreign language in high school. Most people pick Spanish. I unwisely took 4 years of German, which I have never used, outside of watching WWII movies. Not the best use of my time, in retrospect, but oh well. Don't believe every bad thing people tell you about US schools.
      - DanBC 12y ago
        Perhaps you could post a link to the regulations requiring all school student to have foreign language teaching? I posted the English national curriculum above. I'm unable to find any such requirement for US schools. "Many" does not mean "all". But as well as the lack of a requirement for US schools to teach a foreign language we see that US children do worse than Asian or EU children. http://www.actfl.org/advocacy/discover-languages/for-parents/cognitive?pageid=4724 http://www.actfl.org/advocacy/discover-languages/for-parents... > Foreign language programs are often one of the first items to be scrutinized and cut when elementary, middle, and high schools in the U.S. face poor performance evaluations or budget crunches. > Caccavale: Although parents may not be able to get a foreign language program instituted at their child's school in the immediate future, they can help to do so in the long run. Edit: http://www.psmag.com/navigation/books-and-culture/u-s-students-hurting-in-foreign-languages-13529/ http://www.psmag.com/navigation/books-and-culture/u-s-studen... > The center’s most recent report shows a decrease in the last decade in school language programs, which Rhodes says can be attributed to “budget cuts, and foreign languages are among the first things that get cut. > America has never placed a premium on teaching foreign languages. Less than one-third of American elementary schools offer foreign language courses, and less than half of all middle and high school students are enrolled in such classes, the majority studying Spanish. http://www.forbes.com/sites/collegeprose/2012/08/27/americas-foreign-language-deficit/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/collegeprose/2012/08/27/americas... > When elementary and secondary schools and colleges around the country open for the fall semester, millions of students will not be studying a foreign language. Not necessarily for lack of interest. They won’t be able to. > at public K-12 schools, course enrollment in 2007-2008 reached 8.9 million individuals, about 18.5 percent of all students; Most damning: >. - The percentage of public and private elementary schools offering foreign language instruction decreased from 31 to 25 percent from 1997 to 2008. Instruction in public elementary schools dropped from 24 percent to 15 percent, with rural districts hit the hardest. >. - The percentage of all middle schools offering foreign language instruction decreased from 75 to 58 percent. >. - The percentage of high schools offering some foreign language courses remained about the same, at 91 percent.
gadders 12y ago
We (Brits) all get taught another language in school. I'd say very few get fluent or even attempt to use it when abroad. I think this quote by PG Wodehouse sums it up: “Into the face of the young man who sat on the terrace of the Hotel Magnifique at Cannes there had crept a look of furtive shame, the shifty hangdog look which announces that an Englishman is about to speak French.”
radicalbyte 12y ago
I'm officially part of that 40% for French, but I don't speak a word of it. I do speak fluent Dutch, but I learnt that in The Netherlands. Not in the UK.
jccooper 12y ago
Curriculum standards vary widely across the US, but it's very common to require some foreign language learning. Only a few states (mostly midwestern) have no requirement, but even there it's basically required for college application. It is true, however, that it very rarely sticks. The reason is twofold: 1) It's poorly taught: usually only two years is required, and usually in high school (which is too late for really learning a language well) and usually via text books. 2) There's almost no need and little opportunity for most people in the US to use a foreign language. Even if a non-English language is successfully taught, it'll atrophy quickly. Unless you're a member of an ethnic sub-community, the only body of non-English speakers less than several thousands of dollars and an ocean away is Spanish--which is why you find most bilingual people in the south and southwest. But even in Texas it's quite easy to get along without a lick of Spanish. Even if the government insisted you become fluent in some language in school, and they did it well and thoroughly, the eventual numbers of bilingualism would be about the same due to the linguistic landscape. You don't walk around with umbrellas in the desert.

illumen 12y ago

There's millions of people that speak languages other than English in the UK [0]. Apart from Welsh, there's Polish, Punjabi, French, etc. 21% of people in the UK are functionally illiterate. Which is pretty good compared to the USA at 48.7%. [1] Even in the USA, there's lots of people that speak Spanish and English. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_the_United_Kingdom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_the_United_Kingdo... [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Functional_illiteracy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Functional_illiteracy

Kurtz79 12y ago
Yes, of course there are, in any country which has some measure of immigration, people which will speak their original language, in addition to the language of the country they moved in. Just as well, the people of some region of the same country with a different language than the national one, will likely speak both (Wales, Catalunya...) But in this case I would say that multilinguism is a side effect for those groups, not something that is part of the country itself.
- lil_cain 12y ago
  I think the Welsh (or Scots, or Northern Irish) would disagree that their language is not part of their country...
  - deleted 12y ago
    [deleted]
  - Kurtz79 12y ago
    For "country", I meant the United Kingdom, at least in this context. Although I agree that the term is open to interpretation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Countries_of_the_United_Kingdom http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Countries_of_the_United_Kingdom