Benefits from learning languages

A Royal Society paper in 2013 offered four research-based arguments for learning languages.

First, it said, language and culture are central to a healthy personal identity. A Canadian study found lower suicide rates among indigenous people in places where most people spoke the indigenous languages.

Second, learning another language creates new linkages in the brain which may improve attention and working memory. Some studies have found that it delays the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Third, there is evidence that students who learn another language also do better in their own language and in maths. And fourth, learning someone’s language helps if you are trying to sell them something, either in their own country or when they visit New Zealand for tourism, business

Schools are totally free to choose which languages they wish to promote, but the onus is on the schools to offer a language programme. Dr Martin East

or study. Not sharing a common language is a “barrier to trade”.

This last issue matters much more now that trade is a much bigger part of the world economy. The sum of exports and imports has roughly trebled since World War II from 20 per cent to 60 per cent of global output.

Investment has become globalised since exchange controls were abolished 30 years ago. Just over half of Kiwisaver funds are invested overseas, and just over half of New Zealand’s capital stock is owned by foreigners. Lower airfares have hugely increased both travel and migration. Foreign visitor arrivals in New Zealand have almost quadrupled from 1 million in 1990 to 3.8m in 2017, and the overseas-born share of our population has risen from 17 per cent to 25 per cent.

Facebook, YouTube and other social media have also opened up the world for young people. Children often watch YouTube videos oblivious to the languages being used.

Auckland University educator Dr Martin East says the new curriculum adopted for New Zealand schools in 2007 has spurred the growth in language teaching in intermediate and early secondary years with a provision stating: “All schools with students in Years 7–10 should be working towards offering students opportunities for learning a second or subsequent language.

“Schools are totally free to choose which languages they wish to promote, but the onus is on the schools to offer a language programme,” he says.

He says the growth of Chinese has been partly due to support from the Chinese Government’s Confucius Institute, which has 147 Mandarin language assistants in schools throughout the country.