I dunno, it could?
In the 1960s, in my then small rural school, they started teaching French in 5th grade. That continued on into 6th grade. Prior to that they taught us some foreign language songs in music class.
We were too small of a district and the popular concept of middle schools didn’t take root until later. So, elementary school was kindergarten through grade 6. After that you went to high school.
By 7th grade, you had a choice between French and German. It’s different now, at least in the languages being offered. And they actually have a real middle school now as a separate building. That’s pretty recent.
I suspect, at the time, French was the international business language. Correct me if I’m wrong. They really pushed French.
Right now, if you’re not learning English, you’re going to be at a severe disadvantage when conducting business internationally. Even if you’re merely travelling, English is pretty universally understood by a lot of people at some level.