Gosh, let’s see, what use has French been to me in my life?
Well, one of my early jobs involved shipping items with UPS to, among other places, Quebec. Regretably, there were significant differences between the French I was taught and Canadian French, but I could communicate. Occassionally the communication was “Can you find someone who speaks English? You’re exceeding my skills in French” but my knowledge of French enabled me to make some sense out of French-managled English on the other end. For this skill, I earned $1 more an hour than the other peons in the office.
It definitely was useful when I went to France.
Haven’t spoken it much in the past 25 years - but I have used it to assist (and occassionally surprise) tourists in Chicago. I have enjoyed the stories of Maupassant, Jules Verne, and Saint-Exupery in their original form, which has given me great pleasure.
When purchasing items in stores I can read ingrediant lists or instructions/warnings written in French and frequently Spanish as well (the written forms of the languages are that close, that many words are the same). This has occassionally saved me money, such as the time I read on the $20, two-ounce bottle of CD cleaner that the ingredients were (written French) isopropyl alcohol and water, after which I went to Walgreen’s and purchased a pint bottle of “CD cleaner” for 69 center.
And, oh yes, I am not dependent on CNN for international news - I can read any French-based news website on the Internet and thereby gain a very different viewpoint from what is pushed by the US media outlets.
Has this translated into a HUGE profit for me? Well, no, not really. I’m sure I would have had a fulfilling and wonderful life without the language skills. But I have found the knowledge handy, and I do derieve great enjoyment from it.
Absolutely, the younger you start learning a second (or third) language the easier it is. However, it is NOT true that adulthood is “too late”. Language ability varies enormously from person to person. Some people can acquire another language quite late in life, some just never seem to have the knack, even when motivated. Myself, I acquired some ability in Irish Gaelic in my late 20’s - not fluency, but enough to ask directions, inquire about the weather, identify objects asked for and make simple requests - in about a year and a half. Given that Irish is not closely related to either English or French, that’s not too bad. I’ve picked up some Spanish as well, just by living in an area with a Spanish-speaking population. No doubt, if I actually studied it I could acquired a working knowledge and be able to communicate. I want to have a go at learning another language, but there isn’t a lot of language instruction easily available - most I’ve found seems to be focused towards full time students who can take classes during weekdays, not adults who need classes on week nights or weekends. Not to mention the attitude of “you’re too old”. No, you’re never too old to try to learn something. I’ve known too many people who moved to the US in their 30’s and 40’s who learned to speak English to believe it’s “too late” in life to learn. Now, they may not ever acquire full fluency, particuarly in conversation, but that doesn’t mean the effort is worthless, or that their level of language learning is useless. Being able to say “I need someone who speaks Russian” while lying injured in an emergency room can be a lifesaver.
So, Isabelle, if I had anything to say about it, I’d make learning a second language mandatory in elementary school. I see nothing unreasonable about making it a requirement for high school graduation. High schoool language classes don’t require fluency to pass - the average human being can earn a passing grade by exerting the same effort used for literature classes, or math and science.
) and World History.