Should we stop teaching Spanish in public Highschool and replace it with Chinese and Japanese?
486967
well there is gonna be a lot of Chinese coming around in the future ,especially to be in farming,they got mega problems with that at home ,and they got lots of money so Chinese would be more politically correct\non the other hand most of the labor will be in Spanish so you need that as well.\n\nwhy cant you have more than two extra languages in your country ,is your intelligence that limited \n\n,in Holland the norm is 4 languages,for everybody ,\nFrench.Dutch.German and English and very often Spanish as well.my dad spoke 6 languages ,the average Moroccan street kid can handle 5.\n\nand the Chinese and Japanese Will not do the menial jobs that the Mexicans are doing ,i know that for sure ,and have seen it in Africa.
265222
Aah! Here we go again.....\n\n\nYou should make the same comment to the imperialist white men that came here and slaughtered the natives? If you lived during that time, would you have made the same statement to the white men about learning to speak the language of the local Native American Tribe.\n\nI often wonder why people insist that people speaking spanish should learn to speak english. \n\nIt is not their fault that YOU do not speak spanish. It is also NONE of your business what they are saying. The fact that you make the tired old comment of 'this is america, speak english' goes to show your level of intelligence.\n\nYou could fill a bottle cap with your knowledge. \n\nWhere you aware that the United States is filled with immigrants. Unless you are Native American, you have no business telling anyone that they should speak the language of this land. \n\nIf you were not monolingual, would you make the same comment. Did you know that in almost every other country, children are taught two languages.\n\nSo as a whole, most Americans are monolingual and have no room to tell anyone to learn another language.\n\nYou should learn how to speak mandarin becuase that soon will be the universal language.
516355
Absolutely.  A common language is an absolute necessity for a nation formed of disparate heritages.  Official English, then English only.  End bi-lingual programs and put the students in English immersion classes.  If Berlitz can teach adults a foreign language in 6 weeks (and they do), our schools can teach children in a semester.\n\nAnd as for the illegals-----ROUND THEM UP AND SEND THEM HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
996342
Its a distraction for sure, and it has almost no practical value.  Don't get me wrong, I'm all for it.  And no doubt it has a certain surface appeal to those who don't think it through.  But would it mean no more Spanish language newspapers?  Nope.  No more teaching in native languages in primary grades in school?  Probably not.  Would service workers still need to be able to speak another language?  Probably (in L.A. you can't get a job in a fast food restaurant unless you're bi-lingual -- think about how many people that excludes).\n\nIn fact, it would mostly mean that the government is only required to conduct business in English.  Of course if they want tax returns filed or foreign language criminals convicted the IRS and the courts will be doing business as usually: multilingually.
1075827
There's nothing wrong with learning a language. But, in the USA, you shouldn't have to know Spanish to get a job. And yet, employers want bilingual employees especially in Texas. Many classified ads say "bilingual preferred" which means they only hire bilingual, which isn't right. We shouldn't be pandering to people who can't speak English. It's the responsibility of everyone living in the USA to learn English. Americans can't be expected to learn the language of every immigrant (German, Italian, Chinese, Thai, etc.) who moves here.
67304
Being that in Japan you can be paid $50 on up per hour to teach english, with absolutely no ability to speak Japanese.  Something that valuable suggests exposure to language is a key step to learning or improving.   In Spain I learned quite a bit of Spanish students students that wanted to practice their english by speaking to me.  They get feedback and learn pronunciation first hand. Conjugation is important. If you want to speak another language to somebody then you will have to know your past, present, future tenses, combined with singular, plural or  we us they you are almost always used in any conversation so they are also important.  If you are already fluent in english try using spell/grammar checkers that comes with whatever word processor you use.  You learn from your errors that are found, and from the suggested corrections to these errors.
134290
In China it is teaching, and since there are more people in China than any other country, I would say that teaching is probably the answer. However in the US teachers have lost a lot of respect in the last couple of decades. I have met US teachers that have such poor grammar their students can not understand them.
718341
Okay...\n\nSo if they speak spanish, then this changes the rules???
384150
Easy. The US is called a 'melting pot' by some people. And seriously hayleylov you actually expect someone to abandon their language and culture to become a 'true' American as you say? Well, I sure as hell would NEVER and will NEVER do that. I speak Spanish and all my American friends want to learn it. And it'll NEVER stop happening, as the US is growing every day.
610618
Yes.\nRight now, while they're young enough I can still influence them, we are learning Irish.  I use Pimsleur for the kids, and then I am studying using a book and tape system.  It's working fairly well, however, this is nothing like learning French or Spanish.  There is no frame of reference within the English language for pronunciation of Irish Gaelic.\n\nThe reason we are learning Irish is because of our Irish heritage and the fact that there are only 50,000 speakers of this language left.  If I don't teach my children the lyrical tongue of their mothers, it will die.  It's also an extreme intellectual exercise for me, hopefully putting off Alzheimer's for a couple more years.  ;)\n\nWhen they reach high school age, they know they can pick whatever language they feel will serve them in the future.  But I wanted them to learn Irish first.  Anything else will be a piece of cake after that.
107124
Pero que paso contigo? Se parece como usted está teniendo un día muy malo?\n\nHispanics do not need to acknowledge English as a universal language. Maybe the imperialist white man should have learned to speak Cherokee or Lakota when plopped their fat they arses on American soil.\n\n\nIf your public school ONLY offers Spanish and French, it is probably becuase those are the only two languages they could get instructors for. It has NOTHING to do WITH accomidating ANYONE.\n\nI attended a public high school and was offered Russian, Japanese, Spanish, German, Mandarin as well as French. \n\nI don't know what part of the woods you live in, but almost all colleges offer foreign language aside from French and Spanish. \n\nI am not sure what is stemming your animosity towards hispanics but you should try and overcome it. You obviously have lived a life that lacks diversity as your views of latin culture is severely distored.\n\nThere is no need to feel that latinos are so demanding. It truely appears that you have some inferiority complex toward those that speak spanish. :) Your comments are not backed by anything of true substance except negative emotions. Did you have a latin friend that hurt your feelings? Did you fall for a beautiful latina that decided she was not interested in you?\n\nPlease try to be a bit more open minded when acknowledging other cultures. You miss out on alot when you focus on the negative.
966164
Well, I wouldn't say it bothers me, mostly because the US dosen't have an official language. I think it may bother some people who are afraid of change, because if enough spanish speaking immigrants come into the country, enough to make Spanish speaking americans the majority, then everything would be in Spanish, and people would have to learn a new language.\nMakes me wish I had taken Spanish instead of French in HS.
882524
Some magnet schools (including elementary schools) in Chicago teach Japanese, as do some prep schools.  My (private prep) high school in Virginia didn't teach Japanese, but our brother school did.  So some of the better high schools in all parts of the country do teach it, though a lot do not.  I think Chinese is the new hot language for prep schools to teach, and this has taken away from Japanese.\n\nIf you love learning Japanese, you should consider doing the JET Programme after college (http://www.jetprogramme.org).  It's a good way to improve you language skills, make some money, and live somewhere a little different.
56583
probably depends on where you're teaching and what level you are teaching. and u probably need to know chinese
18373
I don't think it's being forced on us, it's just that English is not being emphasized as the unifying factor that an "official" language should be. There's no real encouragement for Latinos to learn English anymore. Everything is readily translated for them. It's all given rise to a kind of entitlement mentality. Time was when many immigrants didn't want their children speaking the parent's language outside the home, if at all. They really had a different idea of what it meant to be an American and everyone was on the same page! Sad how times have changed. What was once a rich melting-pot of cultures has now become more of a stew with ingredients that just don't blend. Unfortunately, we've allowed it to get too far along to turn anything back now. Really sad.
540107
No, it makes them part Spanish.\n\n(?)
951390
I think being bilingual is a must. We need to start teaching a second language in Junior High (LIKE MOST COUNTRIES IN THE CIVILIZED WORLD). The citizens of most countries are bilingual. We need to make America's education better.