Care2 – Lizabeth Paulat
“New findings by the University of Cambridge show that unless the UK adopts a more comprehensive language program, it will fall behind the global economy, losing jobs to international competition. The paper, titled The Value of Languages, says that the knowledge gap may already be costing the UK, “billions of pounds per year.” According to Professor Wendy Ayres-Bennett, who helped co-author the paper, “English is necessary, but not sufficient.” She goes on to say that, “A UK strategy for languages would mean that UK businesses can participate fully in the global marketplace…It would also mean that the UK is able to maximise its role and authority in foreign policy through language and diplomacy.” Although language courses are now compulsory in Britain’s primary schools, challenges such as quality of the language course and continuity once students have left primary school are still issues.”(more)