Looking for a Place to Belong with Language

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princeton.edu

Language is humanity, coming in many different forms and always evolving.  Language is resilient and never disappears as a whole.  Language is a social creature, not a lone island, as it is always seeking for another to communicate with.  Language develops even in isolation, as it attempts to communicate with its surroundings, just as a lone child growing up in isolation develops his/her own language in the attempt to communicate with his/her surroundings.  Language is stubborn and is omnipresent, as it fills the world with beautiful sounds that will never cease to end.  In the U.S., with English being the dominant language, it is a major concern that many other languages may cease to exist or begin to lose their traditional roots.  One solution to this problem would be for all universities in the United States of America to provide language majors in order to enable students the access to programs that would, overall, help preserve languages.

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adviceforyou.org.uk

 In America, although there are many different languages due to the diversity of the population, English is the dominant language.  Therefore, there is the threat of other languages disappearing. This threat can be seen among generations of Americans that are losing touch with their ancestral roots because they grew up learning English in educational institutions while neglecting their native languages.  I, myself, am a fine example of this. My father and my mother are both immigrants, from Hong Kong and Taiwan respectively.  I was born in New York, the state where my parents met and were wed.  In my household, I was never forced to speak Mandarin, unlike all my other Chinese friends.  As I grew older, I gradually lost my Mandarin writing, reading, and finally speaking skills.  In school, I always used English to speak.  In language classes in middle school, I learned Spanish, the only foreign language provided in my school, and I continued to learn Spanish in high school, for the only alternative was learning a whole new language, French.  When I wanted to take an elective in Mandarin in high school, my advisor rejected my plea based on the fact that I took Mandarin lessons as a child. Since I had prior knowledge in Mandarin, I could not take the class although my Mandarin skills have pretty much deteriorated to nothing.  I was upset with this decision, but I tried to be more optimistic by reminding myself that I would take both Japanese AND Mandarin classes in college.  However, when I applied for colleges, I did not find any Japanese or Chinese majors.  I had to settle for the East Asian major.  Much later on, I discovered that, according to College Board’s matchmaker function, there are only 102 colleges, out of more than 3,800 colleges in its database, that provide Japanese majors. I lost a part of myself when I lost my Mandarin skills, which was lost due to my negligence of it in an environment that focuses on the English language, and now I have the motivation to gain more than that in which I lost.

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johnpaulus.com

The disappearance of languages is a major concern because there is no doubt that languages are important. Language is very important, being a vital form of communication and an embodiment culture.  Its importance became apparent in my survey, which 17 university students participated in, as one of my questions involved my participants’ thoughts on whether or not language fluency is a skill that is vital in the job market.  The answer to this question was unanimous.  All 17 participants chose “yes,” which demonstrates how people know that language fluency is a beneficial skill for obtaining a job.  No matter what the job is, language is important for communication and expressing inner thoughts.  Moreover, in an article, “The Importance of International Studies and Foreign Language Education for U.S. Economic and National Security,” the main point addressed is that there should be increased education for global leadership through stressing the importance of international studies and foreign language studies for the U.S. economic and national security.  The article included many quotations, such as one by President George W. Bush: “I call on schools, teachers, students, parents, and community leaders to promote understanding of our nations and cultures by encouraging our young people to participate in activities that increase their knowledge of and appreciation for global issues, languages, history, geography, literature, and the arts of other countries.” (Education for Global Leadership…Committee for Economic Development vii).  This reflects my opinion on how colleges should stress the study of foreign languages in order to prepare students for a global society.

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university2.info

In addition to the preservation of languages resulting 
from the method of opening up language majors in all universities in the U.S., a place for language lovers to belong would also develop.  Because many people consider language as a secondary skill, not the major skill needed for future jobs, no place exists for language lovers in universities that do not provide language majors. However, this place can be created, which is shown through a promotional video by Delaware University, as the university tries to draw in potential students.  The main focus of the video was to appeal to people who have an interest in majoring in a foreign language or have an interest learning a foreign language in general.  The video contained the voices of many students who experienced learning foreign language in that university, had friendly professors trying to welcome possible students, and had examples of fluency in language skills students obtained in the university as the students spoke in the languages they learned.  The video supports my argument of opening language majors in all universities.  There are people all over the country that are interested in learning languages; a language major would pull in more students.  By opening language majors in all universities, a place for language lovers to belong, a niche of their own, would be established.  In addition to basic language classes, studying abroad programs are provided in order to enhance students’ learning experiences; a language major would enable students with a passion for languages to immerse themselves in a program suited to their tastes, whether it be studying abroad, studying within the university, or both.

Incoming students should have access to better language programs in all American universities.  The stress on foreign language education is an issue that is already being addressed at the high school level.  In an article, "College Board To Add Japanese To Language Offerings," from a few years back, it was announced that a Japanese Advanced Placement (AP) program would start during the 2006-07 school year (Manzo).  A Japanese AP course would now be opened, which would enable students of the Japanese language to earn credit just like students involved in the AP program of French, German, Latin, and Spanish.  College Board’s announcement of the start of a this program supports my idea of language being important in college.  In addition, a Japanese AP program would take learning Japanese as a foreign language to a whole new level as high school students prepare for a challenging test, experiencing a fast-paced course that would greatly improve students’ Japanese language skills.  The opening of the Japanese AP course reflects how important languages are to the U.S., as it promotes international understanding, and so colleges should follow its example and step up its efforts in making foreign languages more significant, especially for students who have a passion for the languages.

Some might argue that language majors only give a person limited opportunities in the future, if that is the only skill he/she has.  For instance, only having a language skill would mean having a job in translating or interpreting.  Finding such jobs are difficult.  Also, translating and interpreting jobs may be unstable and may only be short-term jobs.  The salaries are also on the lower end, making it difficult to support a family, let alone the individual who has either job.  Also, people would rather hire native speakers rather than non-native speakers to do such translating or interpreting jobs because it is often easier to translate another language to English than the other way around.  This situation is similar to one of the questions in my survey, in which I asked my participants if they thought it is more likely for a native speaker of the language he/she wants to teach to be hired than for a non-native speaker of the same language to be hired for the same teaching position in the U.S.  The majority of the participants, 14 out of the 17, answered, “yes,” which shows how most schools prefer native speakers than non-native speakers who want to teach the same language.  This may discourage those who would like to pursue a language major.  Moreover, if universities open up language majors, that means that they will have to invest a lot of money into the program even though it is not guaranteed that the money spent would come back from incoming students, who may not be interested in taking language majors.  Some say they agree with language majors being opened in universities, but have no plans in pursuing such a major.  However, this shows how there is support for a place for language majors in universities. This decision is very important to those with a passion for learning languages, for a future with language skills may be the only one they have in mind.  Furthermore, this decision is also vital to universities because they have to invest money in such programs to support language majors.  If universities do not find that opening language majors would attract many students, who are the ones paying tuitions to support the school, they have no real incentive to support such an endeavor.  Universities obviously provide language classes, but it is not necessary for them to have language majors.  On the other hand, there are those who may discover that they love language in a university, but cannot find any language majors to transfer to.  Universities are faced with losing such students if they are forced to look to other universities that actually have language majors in order to pursue language.

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agawampublicschools.org

Universities look 
at the brighter side of language majors if they consider some of their students double majoring.  Before and as I made progress in my research on opening language majors in all universities in the U.S., a question that constantly ran through my head was:  “Does a person have to double major if he/she has an interest in language?”  Well, the people who responded to this question, such as my family members, classmates, and professors and advisors of my university, basically said that it is wiser to double major than to only major in language because the latter would greatly limit him/her in the future in the job market.  Advocates of language programs illustrate this point in an article, as they declare: “Majoring in International Business would expand job opportunities for students learning language skills,” (Sampsell 10). These advocates demonstrated how two departments, language and business, could merge in order to bring about a whole new generation of international business students with concentrations in foreign languages.  By majoring in both business and language, a person would have more jobs available to choose from as opposed to the translating and interpreting jobs that language majors are usually limited to.  A person who majors in language could also major in politics or education in order to attain financial stability in the future.  The topic of double majoring came up again during my interview with Professor Kuo, my Japanese teacher, when I asked him if people had to double major, with one major being a language one.  Professor Kuo replied:  “Yes.  It is beneficial.  People need some skill.  Use language as a tool.  People need other education.  Use a financial or educational background to support language.”  I think what he meant by this was that language is merely a beneficial skill that enhances another major skill.  It would be more difficult to graduate from a university with only a language major, for it limits the job possibilities and positions available for the person.  However, by double majoring, a person’s opportunities would be much greater as he/she would stand out with language fluency as a skill on the side.  For instance, a person who majored in both business and language would look far better than a person who only majored in business.  Furthermore, since language is used everywhere, there are so many possibilities people can look to by double majoring. In the U.S., people can major in hospitality management, politics, education, speech pathology, or many more along with a major in language, that is if language majors are available in all universities in America, with the guarantee that language would give them a boost in the job market as well as on the job.  Language is a skill that can only be beneficial, but it is difficult to merely have that one skill.

Although some people believe that language majors should not be opened in all universities, because of limited opportunities in the future or because of the large investment that has to be put into providing such programs, the opening of language universities would still be the best way to better preserve language in the U.S.  Even if there are not many students interested in majoring in language, all universities in the U.S. should provide language majors because language is very important in the country as the major form of communication and as the embodiment of culture.  In my survey, I procured a piece of information that gives an insight to how many are interested in majoring in language, as I brought up the question of whether or not the participants would want to major in their university if it were offered.  Around 60% of the participants answered “no,” which is not surprising because every person has an interest of his/her own.  People are more interested in the major they actually applied for; however, with around 47% of the participants saying “yes,” there is proof that a considerable amount of people are willing to take such a major if it were available.  Universities should note that a little less than 50% of the participants would want to major in language.  With the result of this question being so close to a tie, all universities should consider providing language majors for their students.

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mytjnow.com

          Even though I believe that the best way to better preserve languages in the U.S. is to have all universities there open up language majors, there are alternative methods that people believe will have the same effect.  The most prevalent alternative is that all universities should merely provide basic language classes, not necessarily having to provide the language major.  However, this is not enough, which is a point that Professor Kuo brings up in his response to my question about whether or not language, on its own, is able stand on equal terms with other majors, such as business or politics.  Professor Kuo replied to this question by stating:  “…With business, language skill as a minor or major is a plus.  Being a teacher in language, you need to learn grammar, pronunciation, and linguistics.  Minor doesn’t teach these, only major, so it’s important.  Language major should come to equal terms.  Concentrate on language.  Usually it’s for fun or to support job target…learning more languages is beneficial.”  Professor Kuo’s response runs in line with language majors being opened up in all universities.

In addition to Professor Kuo’s support on language majors in universities, there are others who share the belief that developing students’ language skills would help preserve languages better in the U.S.  In my survey, the results to whether or not the participants themselves shared this belief were: the majority of the participants answered “yes,” with only two of the 17 participants answering “no.”  This demonstrates how honing students’ language skills would benefit the U.S. in helping to preserve languages.  Since English is a universal language as well as the dominant language in the U.S., many other languages are being lost due to neglect and the disadvantage of not knowing English.  Opening programs to develop students’ language skills through the form of language majors would enable languages to survive in the U.S.  However, it is not enough for merely some universities to have language majors, for only through the process of all universities across the U.S. providing language majors will the country reach the cooperation needed to support the big picture, of the survival of language in the U.S.