English as the Common Language

This last blog is going to be more of an opinion piece than a piece where I’m giving a lot of quotes out of a book or from websites to support my ideas as facts…with that being said, I highly believe in English being used in other countries, and I believe that we, as a country need to also have some languages learned, such as Spanish. “Many conservatives oppose its use, yet it must be mastered if citizens are to participate in global business and politics.” (1)

 So many immigrants come here from other countries and don’t know our language and they have to learn so much in order to communicate and connect with the new cultures they have come into. An example of this is a student I have been working with recently. She has just come to the United States from Japan and she has entered a new place, been put into a new house, a new environment, started school for the very first time EVER (she’s 4), and she’s  been given a new name as her parents wanted her to become “Americanized.” So completely unfair, she’s only been here for a week, and she’s trying to adapt and she doesn’t know a word of English.

On the complete opposite side of the scale, my husband moved here from the Philippines 23 years ago. In the Philippines, English is a REQUIRED language and is taught to citizens as young children. It’s a subject in school just like Math, Science, History, and the other topics that are taught. When my husband moved here, he was supposed to be in seventh grade, but when he was tested for placement in school, he was put into the ninth grade! He was completely prepared for school because he knew English, he only had to adapt to the new cultures that he moved into, I believe because of this it made things less stressful for him.

I think that in the global business and political arena, it is best that the language is English because it is common for all countries to use it and since so many people move around to different places, it just seems logical that there be that one common language for all to go to.

Like I said earlier however, I believe we live in a country where we need to learn Spanish as well as communicate in English. We have several people who communicate in only Spanish and as they are learning the English language, I think we should learn Spanish so that communication would be easier for all, especially for those like me who are striving to be school teachers. I think that it would make communication a lot easier. 

Question:
Do you believe that every country should learn English? Why or why not?

     Works Cited:

     (1) Rowntree, et al. Globalization and Diversity: Geography of a Changing World. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2011