Discussion About Should People Learn A Second Language?

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Should people learn a second language?
Introduction
Language is the basic requirement for human interaction. It forms the first line of social life and ensures that there is indeed communication between people. Language is defined as a means of communication between humans. It can either be through writing or speech and it is structured in a conventional way. The lightening pace of globalization has left workers in multinational companies with no choice but learn other languages. The most sought after languages other than English, include Swahili, Spanish, French, Chinese and German. However, not all people agree with the idea of learning a second language.
There has been a raging debate on the importance and efficacy of learning a second language. It might either be in support or opposition of the idea. With the increased rate of globalization however, this debate might not end any time soon. According to Carbonell (2010), learning a second language is a waste of time and unproductive. They assert that learning a second language involves coming up with an entirely new understanding of something that was initially foreign and unfathomable. As a result, it not only calls for a lot of energy but also time invested in it.
The history of learning a second language dates back to the 16th Century. Latin was the most common language used by governments in Europe, religion and education. However, French, English and Italian displaced Latin in the 16th Century. Governments in the world have realized the importance of learning a second language as an aspect of appreciating other cultures. According to Gao (2012), China has undertaken major steps in ensuring students learn English although it is a foreign language. Although learning a second language has great importance, other people argue it distorts our culture. This study seeks to examine whether people should learn a second language. If so, what is the effect?
Every language learner has his/her own personal reason for wanting to speak another language. However, the analysis indicates most people do it to increase their employment opportunity. More organizations are crossing borders to expand their businesses in other countries. Nonetheless, they cannot do this if their employees do not speak other foreign languages, (Herzing, 2011). The analysis concludes that, most of the cute ladies who work as Air hostess speak more than one language. The ability to speak another language may also increase chances of promotion or transfer to another country.
English is mostly used in business and government meetings in Africa. However, the locals feel more comfortable to socialize in their own language immediately the meetings conclude. Hence, English speakers should try to learn other languages. Even in local business entities, speaking a second language may be an added advantage during job application. The main point here is that learning a second language plays a key role in increasing a person’s competitive edge. There are so many instances that can prove this notion. First example are language translators. The individuals usually play a key role in ensuring that international meetings run smoothly, due to their ability to understand one language and translate it to another. The other instance is the leaders of global organizations, such as the U.N. These are individuals whose proficiency in more than one language. They are able to chair meetings consisting of various nationalities. In the educational system, teaching foreign lang...