¿Por qué no enseñar español en la Escuela Primaria?



csmonitor.com

If you are like me and challenged by foreign languages, you have no idea what the subject of this story is about.  Reflecting on that, it really is a shame.  When I was in high school, I had two years of Spanish and one year of Latin.  Enrolled for one more year of Spanish in college.  The sum total of those three  years of learning is a handful of words that I know and hardly ever use.  It is indeed a shame.

As I think about it today, I am ashamed that I did not take those three years of learning more seriously and become somewhat fluent in Spanish.  It would be helpful to me today in my work but unfortunately, I chose not to put forth much effort when I was a younger man.  I work with nearly thirty people who speak Spanish and our communication with each other is less than great. 

Most Americans believe that it is the responsibility of the non-English speaking individual to learn English if they choose to work and live in the United States.  For the most part, I agree with that principle.  It seems to me that one would want to learn the prevalent language of the country in which they live and work.  I also support English as the primary language of the United States and believe all communications emanating from the government and other public institutions should be delivered in English. 

At the same time, it is increasingly true that our nation has a growing population of Hispanics.  Most statistics point to 50.5 million Hispanics living in the United States as of July, 2010.   This accounts for 16.3% of the population of the United States.  The same studies point to a total population of Hispanics of 132.8 million by 2050 or 30% of the population. 

Thus the question of the subject line, "Why Not Teach Spanish In Elementary School?"  The children of Hispanics attending elementary school in the United States are all learning English.  This is certainly appropriate and of great value to the Hispanic community as these children will be bi-lingual and in a good position to secure better jobs when they reach work-age. 

Teaching Spanish to our English speaking school children only makes sense, especially since 30% of the population will also be speaking Spanish.  Teaching any foreign language in the elementary grades makes great sense as languages are much easier to learn early on rather than later in the educational experience.  Sure, English will always be the prevalent language in our nation but why not provide the same competitive advantage to our English-speaking young people too. 

America continually stands by and watches our competitive advantage disappear in the educational arena.  Our scores and educational achievement lags behind many nations of the world.  Children in countries across the globe are not only learning their own native language but also English.  Why should be neglect this same opportunity for our young people. 

No debemos dejar que orgullo estar en el camino.  (We should not let pride get in the way.)  Let's educate our  young people and give them the same opportunities to compete and excel in later life.  I sure am sorry I didn't learn to Habla español.