Why study languages? Seven hundred reasons for studying a language... You might have sometimes heard the question, ’Why study languages?’ For us here at the Language Centre the answers to this question seem very obvious. Languages can give you the freedom to communicate with people from around the world in a much deeper way than if both parties use a ‘lingua franca’. Conversely, ability in using, for example, English, French or Spanish as a lingua franca, enables communication with peoples in vast areas of the globe. I have even been in situations with other ‘foreigners’ here in Finland from different countries where Finnish is used as the only possible language for all of us to communicate in. Finnish as a lingua franca – there’s a thought! The notion of why people should study languages was raised some time ago in a study in the UK. Angela Gallagher-Brett’s (2004) survey entitled Seven Hundred Reasons for Studying Languages addressed this very issue and came up with, as the title suggests, seven hundred reasons for studying languages. Research was undertaken by the Subject Centre for Languages at the University of Southampton in 2003. The survey consisted of a broad literature review, resulting in the formation of set of categories related to language learning, such as communication, identity and mobility. This was then followed by a questionnaire- based survey of 16-19 year olds and undergraduates in the UK. When the results of this were added to the initial categories, seven hundred reasons were arrived at. So, why study languages? The majority of respondents answered that the main reason for studying languages was personal satisfaction: Languages are more stimulating than other subjects. There’s always something new to learn; Languages are an inspiration. The second most commonly cited reason was employability – learning a language simply gives you a much better chance of getting a good job: Languages mean that you can basically do any job that you want anywhere in the world. Next came personal and social development of the individual: it was felt that languages help you develop as a person and help you fulfil the potential you have in many areas. This was followed by mobility and communication. Finally, the study suggested certain rationales as to why language study is seen as useful. What stands out is that language learning is seen as enjoyable, it provides many personal benefits, it helps in cultural understanding and it helps promote better relationships with others. The respondents recognized that languages do help in gaining employment – but that was not the main reason why they studied. Many noted that the process of actually studying a language was also important: some were motivated because they found it easy and experienced success whilst others simply enjoyed the challenge. Thus, we are in a win-win situation: language learning not only gives us many benefits, but the actual process of learning a language can also be beneficial to us as well. To summarize, I’d like to finish with the words of one of the respondents: I think languages just set you free. If you’d like to see the 700 reasons have a look here: https://llas.ac.uk/resourcedownloads/6063/700_reasons.pdf Mike Nelson
Posted on: Thu, 21 Aug 2014 06:21:32 +0000
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