We Can’t Afford to Cut Language
Why are our best public schools cutting foreign language?
Fairfax County’s Thomas Jefferson High School has the highest SAT scores in our country. This achievement is remarkable for a public high school (albeit magnet) and for Fairfax County.
But there is cause for alarm from this same county, which occupies a leadership role in the national spotlight.
The news that Fairfax County is considering major cuts to foreign language is alarming.
As a former Spanish immersion student in a Fairfax County elementary school, I use Spanish professionally in a technology career. I wouldn’t be in this position without my early start.
Say It Ain’t So
The proposed cuts will have a pervasive influence beyond the D.C. area and trickle down to school districts across the county emulating the Fairfax County model.
By making this decision, officials are spreading a toxic message:
Foreign language is of little value.
They couldn’t be more wrong.
People Are Talking
The two most widely spoken languages in the world aren’t English (they’re Mandarin and Spanish). In the midst of Fairfax County’s decision, DC charter schools are banding together to create a new school with a focus on foreign language and neighboring Montgomery County parents are clamoring for bilingual programs. They couldn’t be more right.
By 2050, the U.S. will be the world’s largest Spanish-speaking country.
Spanish is the Future
Let’s focus on Spanish, which is rapidly becoming a primary language in the United States.
In politics, Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia recently delivered the first Senate floor speech entirely in Spanish (which he learned as an adult). This historic moment is surely a sign of things to come.
Catering to the Spanish speaking community also provides great economic promise. McKinsey estimates Hispanic purchasing power set to hit $1.3 trillion this year.
We also see the growing influence of Spanish every day in popular culture, from Shakira’s role on top-rated The Voice to Marc Anthony’s latest hit on the radio.
Spanish has become the second language of the United States and will only continue to grow in importance, domestically and internationally.
The Perks of Language Learning
Students should be learning Spanish, and other languages, to understand and connect with diverse communities, at home and abroad. An added benefit is that speaking another language has been shown to improve cognitive development in children and stave off the onset of Alzheimer’s in older populations.
Beyond our economy, society, and health, foreign language is fundamentally tied to our national security. This connection was highlighted during the Cold War with funding for Russian language study and the recent emphasis of the U.S. State Department on “critical languages” which are closely tied to our national security.
In the words of Arne Duncan, our Secretary of Education, becoming fluent in other languages is “absolutely essential”.
Priorities, Priorities
Last year, defense spending soared over $700 billion, consistent with this year’s projected budget. One expense that stands out is military bands, which the Washington Post estimated costs taxpayers $500 million each year. The expected cost savings of eliminating Fairfax County’s elementary foreign language programs is a paltry $5.5 million.
We need to re-prioritize. We should equip our future leaders with language skills to strengthen the fabric of our evolving society, improve international relations, and galvanize economic development.
Addressing budgetary concerns isn’t easy, as our national government illustrates every day. But giving up and slashing funding to a critical component of our country’s future is not the right answer.
Technology Saves the Day
We’re a nation built on innovation. We need to seize this entrepreneurial spirit to employ creative solutions to our budgetary constraints.
One potential solution is new education technology, which can empower overburdened teachers and frustrated parents. These technologies enable learning everywhere on new platforms, provide engaging, interactive experiences, personalize with big data, and have the potential to radically improve instruction.
Replacing expensive textbooks and tired legacy software, innovations like Fluencia and Amplify empower educators to personalize instruction, improve education outcomes, and lower costs.
Our Future
This debate has much higher stakes than language classes in one county.
If we chose to send the wrong message, by cutting foreign language education, we are fundamentally failing to prepare the next generation.
If we don’t change course, we make a deliberate choice to dim the bright promise of our country’s future. Let’s make the right choice and maximize the global competitiveness of our future leaders.
