Are high school foreign language classes at all effective?

Not in the least. Back story: I developed an interest in languages in middle school (Russian, and Spanish). I took both French and Spanish in high school. My French teacher my sophomore year spoke French fluently. read more

If I were to write the curriculum for a foreign language program in high school, it'd look a bit like this: Year 1: No writing, no books. All oral comprehension and conversation Year 2: Basic reading and writing. Improved conversation year 3. Intro to grammar. Debate and complex oral expression year 4. Intro to composition. Interpretation. read more

Foreign language classes ‘fail’ The other factor contributing to a lack of bilingual proficiency in the U.S. may be low expectations. Too many Americans accept the claim that foreign language instruction is a dismal failure, that a very large percentage of students will never become fluent in another language and that investing in foreign language learning is likely to be a waste of time. read more

It's important, if not necessary to learn a foreign language in high school. There are almost all pro's to learning a foreign language, and the only con is deciding which language to study. In today's world, everything is globalized and it's increasing. read more