5 Most Useful Languages to Learn

People learn new languages for many different reasons. One example is the importance of making business deals in foreign nations, which can be a challenging task if you cannot speak the language. Moreover, mingling with people abroad is impossible if you cannot understand what they say. So, you can see that learning a language is vital for many situations, and perhaps that is why dual language education is becoming so popular. Here are the five most useful languages to learn and combine if you want to enroll in a dual language program.

Mandarin

Chinese influence on the global stage is growing at an accelerated pace. For example, it accounted for 12.4% of global exports in 2014 beating the United States by 3.8 percentage points. That means encountering a Mandarin speaker at some point in your life is highly likely if you are a businessperson. Therefore, learning this language spoken by 1.1 billion people is an excellent idea.

Spanish

More than 512.9 million speak Spanish worldwide. These speakers are present globally. For example, 41 million people speak Spanish in the US. South America and Europe have 184 million and 38 million Spanish speakers respectively. That means you are likely to encounter Spanish speakers anytime you travel to any of these continents. Learn it early so that you can converse with them articulately.

Japanese

The number of native Japanese speakers stands at 128.2 million. That figure is not as high as it is for English, Mandarin, or Spanish speakers. However, understanding Japanese is critical because of its historical, cultural, political, and economic significance. For example, Japan is one of the top export nations in the world. Moreover, every year, more than 17 million Japanese citizens travel outside of Japan to other countries for business or leisure. Learn Japanese so that you can chat with them eloquently.

Continue reading to find out more about useful languages to learn…

German

Only 95 million people speak German as their first language while 100 million have learned it as a foreign language. Why did so many people choose German as a foreign language? They want to learn it because Germany has an unshakable influence on European and global affairs. Remember, the most widely spoken language in Europe is German so ignoring its significance to Europe and the world is unwise.

Russian

Did you know that Russian is an officially recognized language in thirty-eight territories worldwide? These territories cover Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, the Baltics, and parts of Central Asia. Therefore, learning Russian might be an excellent idea if you are visiting any of these areas. Remember, more than 260 million individuals speak it.

Dual language programs are becoming more prevalent everywhere, and the above are perhaps the five most useful languages to learn and combine in a dual language program. Find a highly qualified English tutor to help you with this language if you need to improve your English skills. Talk to us today. We will help you find one.

This article was written by Annabelle, who is part of the Content and Community team at SmileTutor, sharing valuable content to their own community and beyond.

Author: Sandra Mercuri

Dr. Mercuri is a nationally and internationally recognized educational consultant in the area of second language acquisition, dual language education, and curriculum integration for biliteracy development. She has over 28 years of experience in teaching in K-12 schools and at the university level in Argentina and the United States. After retiring as a professor from the University of Texas System, she continued to work on research on the development of academic language across the content areas, the use of translanguaging practices for language transfer, and the effect of long-term professional development on dual language, bilingual and ESL teachers’ instructional practices. Dr. Mercuri provides professional development for teachers and administrators as well as for parents. She presents at national and international conferences on issues of second language acquisition and bilingualism, dual language education, translanguaging pedagogy, and ESL strategies. Dr. Mercuri has published articles in the TESOL Quarterly, Talking Points, EJLTS, JMER, TESOL Connections, MEXTESOL, and the NABE journal as well as the Spanish professional journals The Colombian Journal of Bilingual Education: GIST and the Revista Educación y Pedagogía and more than twelve book chapters. Dr. Mercuri is the author of the book titled Supporting Literacy Through Science: The Challenge of Teaching...