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International trade, communication and tourism have increased the need to break down language barriers. The common language is no excuse in today’s competitive, global marketplace for a US company to cut production costs by building a plant in Ireland instead of setting up shop in Eastern Europe where labor costs are much lower. It’s time for governments, educators and the media to increase the exposure to and the acquisition of foreign languages. The world market is only truly accessible to those who can communicate successfully in the different languages of the world. So why is it that so many university graduates have not yet been given the language skills necessary to function in a global marketplace? The future of any given society depends on the education of its youth. We must insist that language skills be given the importance they deserve to avoid that our children become second class citizens.
Gordon

www.myprofe.com/tandem

This is very interesting.

But, i believe all the community should envolved in this. The more we enphasize the need of having a second or "third" language, the more people will be eager to learn them.

I don't believe portions of the community can do much alone. They need to go for the same thing at the same time,

Universities themselves can help a bit, but they are not able to fix the "problem".

I must agree that language/languages is/are important. In order for a person to be marketable, one must not only acquire his or her language alone. Having the asets of other languages are beneficial. Other languages woven with the sensitivity towards other culture would open great opportunities to knowledge and bussinesses as well. Hence everyone should try to be bilingual at least. Though this is not an easy task but at the end of the day, the effort will pay.

Aren't people in the three nations you are posting from strongly encouraged to learn English? Aren't your governments very much on the case?

Trouble is, it isn't very easy to learn a foreign language.

I am all for learning languages (especially learning them younger) and intercultural communication and exchange. However, I'm not sure how I feel about globalization. Is business really the only good reason to learn a foreign language? How should we feel about the prospect of McDonalds and CocaCola on every street corner and in every supermarket?

Do we really want to export jobs from the US (I use it as an example because it's my country, but the argument works just as well elsewhere)? Is it really good for us? Is it really good for them?