Learning another language is one of the best things that you can do at any stage of life, but particularly when you’re attending school. In some parts of Europe, roughly 80% of people speak a second language at a beginner level.
In the US, however, that figure drops to 20%. There are lots of benefits to learning another language, from making new friends, discovering more of the world and giving yourself better career opportunities.
Read on to find out why you, and most other people, should consider learning another language!
Make New Friends
People who speak English as their first language make up just over 25% of the total people in the world. That roughly amounts to 5.5 billion people that don’t speak English – which is a lot of people! By learning another language you open the door to meeting so many new people and making wonderful friendships. Having friends from different cultures allows us to live rich, diverse lives and lets us learn about how people in other parts of the world live.
We think that taking a class or studying abroad is a brilliant way to learn a new language and meet new people. There are even some language exchange classes run in most large cities, these are informal meetups where people come and chat in a second language to improve their vocabulary and confidence.
Explore Other Cultures
Learning another language can unlock a whole new world. By only speaking one language we’re restricted to only fully understanding books, songs, plays and movies in our mother tongue. This, unfortunately, means that lots of us miss out on important pieces of art and culture. However, it also gives us an opportunity to learn a new language. Watching a foreign language show on Netflix can help us become accustomed to a new language. You can improve your learning by either listening in the language you want to learn, or by adding subtitles to your favourite shows. It’s a fun and easy way to learn. In no time at all, you’ll be reading books and listening to songs in another language.
Boost Your Future Work Opportunities
It comes as no surprise that being able to speak a second language can make you a much more attractive employee when you start your career. In the world of business, there are lots of multinational companies that love to have bilingual or even trilingual employees. This makes them much more adaptable to work locations, which also results in these members of staff earning higher salaries, with most earning at least 5% more.
Improve Other Aspects Of Your Life
No matter what topic you’re interested in studying it’s always a great idea to learn something new. Keeping our brains active allows us to improve many areas in our lives, but did you know that learning another language can make us more creative and empathic? Because no two languages are the same, by speaking in a second language our brains have to adjust and problem solve in lots of different situations that we are not normally used to. By constantly changing between two languages our brain has to work harder than normal which helps keep our brains healthier for longer and find creative solutions.
Truly Travel
One of the best parts about being bilingual is how much better it makes travelling! Any of us who’ve been on vacation to a country where we don’t speak the local language will tell you that its hard to get a true feel for the place. Of course, we can still bask in the atmosphere of the country, but it can be hard to get under the skin and live like a local. There’s such pleasure in asking strangers for restaurant recommendations that steer clear of tourist traps and find where the locals eat.
Here at Study In Burnaby, we can see the true value of learning another language. English is the most widely spoken language in the world and by being bilingual you can experience life to its full potential. If you’re interested in learning English in Canada, get in touch with us today and learn a skill that you’ll treasure for life.
